Windstar Cruises has laid out a set of private, after-hours experiences for 2027, timed to the debut of its newest ship — the 224-guest, all-suite Star Explorer. The headline-grabber is a sunset opening of the Tower of London, but there are also evening events in Livorno and Dubrovnik, and all three come included in the fare as part of the line's Destination Discovery program.
The Tower of London event is the rarest of the bunch. It runs on just three 2027 sailings: Star Pride's Tulip Season in Holland & Belgium and Timeless Maritime Powerhouses of Northern Europe, plus Star Explorer's Christening Voyage: Circumnavigating Ireland. Guests get the fortress to themselves after closing time, with a private viewing of the Crown Jewels, access to the White Tower and the Battlements, live music and a British-style reception in the New Armouries Courtyard. Seeing the Crown Jewels without queuing behind a crowd is a genuinely unusual perk — most visitors shuffle past on a conveyor belt in daylight.
In Livorno, Italy, the evening unfolds at the 16th-century Fortezza Vecchia, the old Medici fortress on the waterfront. The event, offered on the Europe's Winter Riviera itinerary, pairs a taste of the region's history and wines with after-hours cocktails inside the walls. It's a smart pick for anyone who usually breezes through Livorno on the way to Florence or Pisa and never gives the port city itself a proper look.
Dubrovnik's event, The Spirit of Croatia, leans into local tradition. It starts with sparkling wine and klapa singing — the a cappella style the region is famous for — inside a 15th-century Dominican cloister, then moves to the historic Marin Držić Theatre for Croatian music and dance. You'll find it on the Iconic & Hidden Croatia and Off the Beaten Path Adriatic itineraries. For travellers who find Dubrovnik's old town overwhelming by day in high season, seeing its quieter cultural side in an evening setting is a decent argument for booking.
Why it matters: these are the kinds of experiences that are effectively impossible to arrange independently — most heritage sites don't sell after-hours private access, and when they do, it costs a fortune. Bundling them into a cruise fare, included rather than sold as pricey add-ons, is a real differentiator in the small-ship luxury space. The catch is simple: capacity. A 224-guest yacht filling three limited sailings means anyone set on the Tower of London evening should book early and pick their itinerary accordingly.
