Since 1991, Star Clippers has offered cruisers the opportunity to catch a glimpse of a bygone era of tall ship sailing. The three-masted Star Flyer was joined, one year later, by sister ship, Star Clipper, both operating itineraries in the Caribbean and Mediterranean. The turn of the Millennium saw this impressive fleet added to by the five-masted Royal Clipper – the largest sailing ship built since the 1902 German vessel, Preussen.
2016 and 2017 both proved to be interesting years for the line, with the introduction of new itineraries in Far East Asia, enabling guests to visit the islands of Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. It also saw the announcement of a fourth ship and the first new addition to the Star Clippers fleet in 15 years. The Flying Clipper is set to become the largest sailing ship in the world, with five masts and a rigging made up of square sails.
The 300-passenger ship has been designed as a replica of France II, a five-masted barque that sailed as part of the French merchant navy in 1911. She is currently under construction at the Brodosplit shipyard in Split, Croatia, with work having started in 2015. This is a shipyard which has specialised in building smaller niche ships over the years.
