Morgenster

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FAQ's

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to the most common questions about booking, preparing for your voyage, life on board Tall Ship Morgenster, safety, accommodation and travelling to the ship. Select a question to reveal the answer.

Booking & Payment

Select your preferred voyage on our website and follow the booking process. After completing your booking and payment, you will receive a confirmation by email. Please check your spam folder if the confirmation does not arrive shortly after booking.Type your paragraph here

The different payment options are shown on the checkout page. Most of our customers use the payment option by credit card.

No, you can't. We don't accept reservations without payment.

After completion of your booking, you will receive an email from the Morgenster Crew (reserveringen@zeilbrik.org). For the daytrips your tickets will be attached to email. For the adventure trips you will find detailed information about your upcoming adventure in the email.

Yes. For daytrips the cancellation should be done by email 48 hours before the start of the daytrip at the latest. For cancellation of an adventure trip you can find the information in our Terms & Conditions. (zeilbrik.org/privacy-policy/)

Before You Sail

We often sail with unexperienced guests. Our crew is keen on converting landlubbers into sailors. You will be amazed how steep your learning curve can be.

Minimum age: In the Tall Ship Races the minimum age is from 15 years. On our other voyages the minimum age does not matter. We have life jackets for toddlers as well.
Maximum age: on coastal voyages, within helicopter reach, we would rather look at your health situation than your age.

Your physical fitness needed is depending on the sailing area of your Adventure with us. In general, if you are able to hike, you should be able to sail with us.Open sea crossings can be rougher and therefore more fatiguing.Winter North Atlantic crossing is as demanding as top sport

On domestic voyages just an ID will do. On international voyages you need a passport and, in some cases, a visum. Depending on the countries that will be visited during the voyage.

On international voyages you need to carry a passport. In some countries, often depending on your domestic country, you may need visa.

Life on Board

Participating in the sail handling is not obligatory, but our crew stimulate our guest to do participate. This is the best way to maximize your experience.

Yes, you can steer the ship. Our guests are welcome to steer the ship under the supervision of our crew.

If you would like to experience the joy of going aloft and have a spectacular view, our crew will give you climbing instructions and a climbing harness and join you aloft.

On a sea crossing we sail day and night, in three watches. Red Watch 8-12 and 20-24, White Watch 12-16 and 24-4, Blue Watch 16-20 and 4-8. Meals are around the changes of the watches. In the watch your team is sailing the vessel: steering, lookout, adjusting the rig, chartwork and position lugging. Off watch you can sleep or read a book or have a chat, or join the team with maintenance.

No, there is no WiFi on board. When we are more the 15 miles off shore, we will also loose the GSM connectivity. In emergency or urgency the crew can send and receive text messages to and from the shore by long distance radio.

Safety

The Morgenster is certified for area A1 (worldwide). The safety of the passengers is paramount in the legislation. The authorities check the ship and safety equipment yearly. The Safety Management System makes the crew check the equipment every month.

Every new group of guests gets a safety instruction including an evacuation drill before departure.

Life jackets on Morgenster are kept in boxes on deck, so in a fast-developing emergency, you do not need to go below deck to get your life jacket. During the evacuation drill, you practice putting on a life jacket. We also carry life jacket for children and even toddlers. If you join the RIB, you will get a self-inflating life jacket.

The crew will reduce the sail area for the expected wind force. To increase safety on a ship with wilder movements we rig satety-lines all over the vessel, so you can hook your climbing harness to a line wherever you are on deck. Puking nets are rigged between the shrouds of the fore and main masts. The Master may order people to stay inside for safety reasons.

The crew will provide a basket in case you need to vomit. You will feel sick and might cool off too much, in which case the crew will help you into your bed. Lying horizontally the sickness often disappears.

Food & Accommodation

Morgenster has 2- and 4-bed cabins. In the cabins there is heating, ventilation, 230 V electricity, a sink with hot and cold water, cupboards and a sprinkler head.

Our reservation team shares people of the same gender in a cabin. As a couple it is also possible to make a 2 person cabin reservation.

In the cabins full bed clothes and towels are provided. The hotel manager can arrange laundry on board.

In both the Ladies and the Gents Heads there are showers. On deck there is an open-air shower for after-swimming showering.

Our cooks are used to serving both meat-containing and vegetarian meals.

Yes, we can. Our cooks are used to working around allergies like gluten- or lactose intolerances. In case of an allergy, for sure if a dangerous allergy (like nuts) is involved, we do an assessment before you join the voyage.

Packing List

On open sea the temperature is always a few degrees less then on land. So be aware when choosing your clothing to pack. We also recommend waterproof clothing in case we encoutner rain during the Sailing Adventure. High heels will not work walking around the ship, so we do not recommend those. Due to the limited electrical power on board, a hair blower is also not welcome. These mighgt blow the fuses.

Prefferable a felxible bag. A flexible bag is easier to work away under you bunk than a hard suit-case.

Good walking shoes that do no slip easy on a wet deck. These shoes also protect your toes when might kick on a stanchion.

In rain or spray you are happy with watertight clothing. But it is not necessary to spend a fortune on that. Rubber boots and rain clothes that you use on a bike tour does fine.

At sea temperatures are a bit lower than on shore. During night watches an extra sweater will do no harm.

Both you and your camera are welcome on board.

Travel to the Ship

The expected berth will be communicated to you in the information that you receive a week before the start of the voyage. You also get the ship’s telephone number to contact the crew if you have difficulties finding the vessel. On apps like Marine Traffic (https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:257330) you can find the whereabout exactly, if you search for “Morgenster”.

It is your choice to travel by plane, rail, car or bike.

From the moment you booked your voyage you can book your return journey.

If something goes wrong our team ashore contact you and will arrange for transport to an updated spot to board, or hotel accommodation to wait for the vessel to arrive.

If the next voyage is fully booked you cannot stay on board. Quite often a guest books more than one voyage in a row. Sometimes there is an event in between two of these voyages. In most of these cases the guest can stay on board. So if you want to stay a bit longer after a voyage, ask our reservation team.

Tall Ship Experience

The organisation Sail Training International uses this definition:“A Tall Ship is a square rigged sailing ship or an along ship rigged sailing vessel of over 40 meter length”. Morgenster is both square rigged and over 40 meter in length

A clipper brig has a smooth lined hull and a lofty square rig with extra stun’sails

Oh yes, our crew will invite them to join the joy of sailing a square rigger.

Depending on the sort of voyage we may have stops. Delivery trips are scheduled without stops, but with favorable winds we gain time and may have a stop anyway. On cruises, the voyage is organized around nice stops.

Solo travellers are more then welcome and will enjoy the company on board

A delivery voyage is not scheduled around nice stops and excursions, it is a trip to 'deliver' the ship from one event to another. So it is pure being on board together and benefit any sailing opportunity.

Accessibility & Special Requirements

For short day sailings we can handle some wheelchairs on deck. We do not have easy accessible toilets on deck so these guest may need to except some help. To get a wheelchair below deck is not possible.

The stairs at the main entrance run 45 degrees. Most other stairs are steeper.

We have sailed with people with different impairments. We can tailor up their experiences. Even blind people did join.

Our cooks have experience in cooking with dietary requirements.

Our guest bring their own medication. They often ask their pharmacy if these drugs can give problems passing customs.

Service animals can accompany you on your voyage. But be prepared in the regulatory department. Some countries have very strict rules concerning rabies, with rather long isolation protocols.