For those who need to vacation apart from crowds but still want to see the world’s iconic landmarks, sailing yacht cruises are the perfect way to explore and make friends. The ships offer something a little larger than a typical boat but are more private than a cruise liner. We ventured around the Mediterranean on one of Windstar Cruises’ classic sailing yachts, and witnessed why this type of small-ship cruising draws some of the vacation-savviest travelers, who have time and money to spend, but little patience for wasting a single bit of it. Here are seven reasons why sailing yachts are a great way to travel:

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Lena Katz

Lena Katz is the author of the Travel Temptations series (SIP, SUN, SNOW), published by Globe Pequot Press in 2009. Lena is also a travel expert for Celebrations/1800FLOWERS and WEtv (online and on-air). She contributes to the South China Morning Post and ABC News online. Lena is a former Orbitz Travel blogger and former columnist for the LA Times. She's been published in Brides Magazine, Robb Rep...(Read More)