A GREEK ODYSSEY

Marc Shoffman gets a rather different view of the ancient islands on a small cruise ship by sailing with Star Clippers

- Marc Shoffman

The Athens Riviera shines in the distance as I take the helm of a Star Clippers tall ship, the fate of 2,289 gross tonnes and hundreds of passengers and crew in my hands.

This isn’t a video game or ship simulator. The helmsman aboard Star Clipper – one of three tall ships in the Star Clippers fleet – had actually asked if I fancied a turn at steering during a week-long Greek island cruise. As I stand by the steering wheel, which I am assured actually works and isn't just for decoration, the patient crew member shouts at me to ensure I keep travelling in the correct direction, occasionally calling out “midship”, which I soon learn means to keep it straight.

It's like being back in driving lessons, but this time there's no curb to mount. Just the Aegean Sea, stretching endlessly in every direction. It feels a long way from the megaships I am used to.

The bridge, where the crew steers the ship, is usually a sacred space, reserved for the captain to navigate the high seas in peace – without the camera flashes of passengers.

But as the cruise director, Peter Kissner, says on our first evening: “Forget everything you know about cruises. This is not a cruise, this is a sailing voyage.”

You won't find a casino, waterslide or robot bar on board a Star Clippers ship.