CREOLE

Creole belongs to a category of one: launched in 1927 by Camper & Nicholsons, this three-masted schooner remains the largest wooden sailing yacht ever built. Nearly a century on, she is still sailing — not as a museum piece, but as a working yacht maintained to a standard that reflects the same owning family's custodianship of more than forty years, with a refit completed in 2008. What she offers is the sailing experience of yachting's golden age, kept deliberately faithful to its origins. Under way she is quiet and unhurried, the kind of yacht that rewards attention: guests who want to learn the ropes will find a crew of fifteen willing to teach, while those who prefer to simply watch the rig work above them are equally well served. At anchor or alongside for the evening, the focus shifts to the table, where the galley and service operate at a level entirely in keeping with the yacht herself. Accommodation is for eleven guests in six en-suite cabins. The master is finished in warm walnut with elegant marquetry, and includes a desk and seating area alongside a bathroom with both bath and separate shower. The VIP and the two further cabins with double beds also have baths; the cabin with twin beds and the single cabin are fitted with showers. Below, the lower deck salon pairs green stingray with parquet flooring for a notably calm room — good for lounging, a game of backgammon or afternoon tea out of the sun. The low tables convert into a full twelve-seat dining table for days when the weather on deck doesn't cooperate. The upper deck salon is the clearest statement of 1920s taste on board: ornate parquet, silk roll-back sofas and original artworks, all selected by the owning family to sit properly within Creole's history. On deck the day arranges itself as you like — the cockpit gives shelter and a degree of seclusion, and the exterior dining table puts every meal in front of a view, whether of the bay or simply of Creole's own rig and brightwork. She cruises Spain, France and Italy.