Windstar's Star Explorer Sets 2027 Europe Voyages

Published on Oct 27, 2025, 7:12 pm CDT

4 min read

Key points

Star Explorer debuts in December 2026 and is christened on May 31, 2027 on the River Thames in London
The 224-guest all-suite yacht will sail Europe year-round with a mix of classic and new itineraries including river-city calls such as London, Rouen, and Bordeaux
2027 highlights include Seven Gems of the Baltic, Circumnavigating Ireland, Impressionist France, and Northern Spain and Portugal routes
Early booking rates run through November 15, 2025 with an extra five percent off for pay-in-full

Windstar Cruises has opened 2027 Europe bookings for Star Explorer, the line's second new all-suite yacht. The 224-guest ship debuts in December 2026, followed by a christening on May 31, 2027 on London's River Thames. Afterward, Star Explorer will operate Europe year-round, leaning into long port days, overnights, and calls at central river berths that bigger vessels cannot reach. Early booking rates are available through November 15, 2025, with an additional five percent discount for guests who pay in full.

Star Explorer, routes, and why it matters

Windstar is positioning Star Explorer as a small-ship alternative for marquee and under-the-radar ports alike, including river-city calls such as central London, Rouen for Paris, and Bordeaux. The 112-suite yacht is designed for shallow-draft maneuvering and lock transits, opening access to narrow harbors and inner-city quays where time ashore starts steps from the gangway.

For 2027, Windstar highlights four itineraries. Seven Gems of the Baltic visits seven countries in eight nights with an overnight in Stockholm, time in medieval Tallinn, UNESCO-listed Riga, and a call at Bornholm, Denmark in miniature, before ending in Copenhagen. A 10-night Circumnavigating Ireland charts pub towns, coastal cliffs, and lesser-seen vantage points of the Cliffs of Moher between calls that include Killybegs, Cork, Dingle, Galway, Londonderry, and Belfast. Impressionist France offers overnights in Bordeaux, Saint-Malo, and Paris via Rouen, plus Seine River cruising and access to Normandy D-Day beaches and the Bayeux Tapestry from Caen. Connoisseur's Delight: Northern Spain & Portugal runs Lisbon to Bordeaux with Vigo, Gijón, Bilbao, San Sebastián, and an overnight in Biarritz, emphasizing regional food culture.

Windstar's booking pages already show sample dates and port lists, including Baltic sailings and the christening season Ireland route, reinforcing the emphasis on overnights and compact port-to-port distances that maximize shore time.

Latest developments

Windstar's 2027 release also underscores the company's "pay now, save more" stackable incentive: an early booking offer through November 15, 2025 and an extra five percent with a pay-in-full code. This pairs with the line's ongoing push to sell immersive Northern Europe seasons on small ships while larger brands rotate capacity elsewhere.

Analysis

For travelers who value place over spectacle, Star Explorer's map reads practical and rich. River-city berths reduce transfers and put guests close to museums, markets, and evening neighborhoods, a contrast to big-ship piers that may sit far from historic cores. Back-to-back overnights, such as Stockholm or Bordeaux, create a city-break feel without hotel hopping. On the Baltics, access to Bornholm and longer time in Riga and Tallinn brings a quieter, architectural lens to a region where big ships often sprint. In Ireland, the circumnavigation includes workaday harbors like Killybegs alongside headliners such as Cork and Galway, with a scenic transit by the Cliffs of Moher.

Operationally, a 224-guest cap means popular suite categories will compress quickly on peak holiday and festival periods. Open-jaw air is likely on many routes, so price out multi-city tickets early and watch for schedule changes as European carriers finalize summer 2027 timetables. Given the lock and tide windows tied to river calls, the small-ship buffer matters, but it also means guests should stay flexible on hour-by-hour arrival times.

Background Windstar's core differentiator is small-ship access, typically 150 to 350 guests, with emphasis on longer stays ashore. Star Explorer follows sister newbuild Star Seeker to expand capacity without sacrificing the brand's marina-day, destination-first positioning. Prior seasons have leaned on incentives like early-booking credits and pay-in-full discounts to pull demand forward, a pattern repeated here. For readers comparing options, Adept Traveler has covered Windstar's broader strategy and promotions, which provide context for this Europe rollout: see Windstar Cruises Expands 2026-27 Caribbean Itineraries and Windstar Cruises All-Inclusive Upgrade Deal Runs Through 2026.

Final thoughts

With Europe 2027 open and a christening set on the Thames, Star Explorer gives small-ship cruisers a tight orbit of river cities, cultural overnights, and hard-to-reach harbors. If a central berth in Paris via Rouen or an island day on Bornholm sounds better than a shuttle from a remote pier, this release is your moment to book early, secure the suite you want, and build flights around a compact, shore-heavy plan.