Travel feature: Star Clipper tall ships cruise

They are set on the high seas during the era of Napoleonic wars; Jack Aubrey is the captain of a tall ship; Stephen Maturin is his surgeon, friend and naturalist, in the manner of Charles Darwin.

This August I got my dream chance to sail on a similar four-masted ship, a 'barquentine' named Star Clipper with a full set of back stays, shrouds, jibs, top gallants, mizzens and a spanker.

It has has been converted into a cruise ship that hosts 166 souls plus staff. With a wooden deck and wheel, brass rails, bundles of ropes and rigging, it's a very different experience to those enormous cruise liners like floating tower blocks.

The seven-day cruise started in Civitavecchia, two hours by train from Rome, and sailed down to Sicily, passing volcanic islands, returning via Amalfi, Sorrento and Ponza.

Each day started and finished with a yoga class. I had no idea it was so difficult to maintain a balance pose when you are swaying on the albeit calm seas, but it was exhilarating to climb the rigging, steer the boat, and read a book while laying on hammocks over the prow. At night I looked at stars, gazing down so clearly, uninterrupted by light pollution.

I watched us arrive in port through the round window of my wood-panelled cabin, listening for seven bells (dinner time) ringing through the corridors. Every time I opened my door, a steward's head would pop out and ask if I needed help. I felt pampered to have my cabin tidied three times a day, my nightied folded and a chocolate left on my pillow. Each night a ships newsletter is stuck in the door alerting us to morning yoga or Italian lessons.

We dined nightly at the same table, getting to know passengers who seemed to be mainly German and French. Someone always had a birthday. The waiters brought cake and everyone sang and clapped. Who knew that Germans have a different tune for Happy Birthday?

My table consisted of a tanned French man who turned out to be a crooner on talent night; an elderly German couple who spoke excellent English; two middle-aged Welsh ladies; and an American woman who never spoke. She celebrated her 52nd birthday on the second night, but still looked miserable. Then she disappeared from meal times. I asked the waiter if she was ok and said she was here at lunch.

I found out her cabin number and visited her after hearing she had falled out of her bed. Still in her pyjamas and looking slightly cross-eyed, she admitted she'd been enthusiastically partaking of the cocktails, cheap at five euros a glass. ‘Don’t be a stranger,’ I said brightly.

The German couple had just got married after 16 years together. It was his second marriage.

"His kids don’t know," the step-mum announced with a twinkle.

"Wait ’til they see the will," I muttered. The Welsh lady opposite giggled.

There was something rather Agatha Christie about sharing a table with the same cast of strangers. The next time I saw the American woman, she suddenly looked very green and threw up on the carpet, even though the sea was calm.

Work never stops on a ship. While we were off on excursions, the crew were stitching sails on deck, using a giant industrial sewing machine or sanding and re-varnishing the rails. In Messina, we docked next to a ten-story cruise ship. Men were repainting the outside white with brooms, part of the relentless maintenance. As a nod to modernity, our deck hands hose the wooden decks rather than scrub them. They are an international, multi-linguial bunch, a Belgian captain, Ukrainian mate, and Brazilian activities director.

Approaching Messina we saw volcanic mountains on the horizon, tinged in blue and salmon pastels, and the glowing sparks from Stromboli.

At dawn I went on deck in my nightdress, fancying myself as Kate Winslet, before the sun bean its remorseless creep upwards.

At Amalfi, I took a boat to Minori, the village of my Italian ancestors and took photographs of where my great-grandmother used to stay. Chef Gennaro Contaldo came from Minori and stayed with my nonna when he first arrived in England. Jamie Oliver took cooking lessons from another of my relatives, Enzo, 79, and Maria, 76, who run an agriturismo above Minori. From their terrace, I ate their home-grown produce of tomatoes, mozzarella, homemade red wine and olive oil, I could see Star Clipper in the distance and felt rather proud of it.

"That's my ship," I declared.

A 7-night Mediterranean cruise in summer 2023 starts at £1630pp full board, based on 2 adults sharing a category six cabin. This price includes a 10% Early Booking Discount, valid until 31st January 2023, bookable via the Star Clippers Reservations team on 0845 200 6145. Drinks, excursions and tips are extra. https://www.starclippercruises.co.uk/ships/star-clipper