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Meet the Pioneering Cruise Captain DOING THINGS HER WAY
Interview & Words Kaye Holland
Belinda Bennett spoke to WOTC’s Kaye Holland about her lifetime love of the sea, the challenges she has faced and why everyone should go on a cruise after coronavirus
Considering the waves she has made in the cruise industry – as the world’s first black female cruise ship captain and a recipient of the highest honour in the UK merchant navy, the Merchant Navy Medal for Meritorious Service – Belinda Bennett is as self-effacing as they come. An island girl – she grew up on St Helena, a small British island outpost in the South Atlantic Ocean between South America and South Africa where she still lives when not at sea – who is now in charge of Windstar Cruises’ signature ship, Bennett insists she doesn’t see herself as “a role model.” Nonsense, albeit charming nonsense.
The groundbreaking skipper was always drawn to a life at sea. Bennett revealed: “Growing up on a small island, the sea has always fascinated me and still does.” At just 17, she enrolled as a deck cadet and progressed rapidly through the ranks to third officer. In 2003, Bennett became chief officer “on a private yacht in Monaco for two years and wanted to stay in the yachting industry but it transpired that I was a [....] threat to what was a very male-dominated yachting industry,” she revealed. “So I joined Windstar in 2005 and have been here ever since.”
Bennett began her career at Windstar, the market leader in small ship luxury cruising, as a navigating office and worked her way up the rungs to second officer and then chief officer. In March 2016, she was promoted to captain of Wind Star – a role which involves being responsible for the boutique ship and everyone on board.
She cited “great listening and communication skills, an approachable demeanour for all and a strong mind” as the qualities that a good cruise captain needs. Bennett’s obvious appetite for her job shone through. She said: “I love the daily challenges of the position – no two days are alike, something I relish – and I adore meeting new people and seeing new places.” Not that her career at sea has been entirely smooth sailing. “It’s been tough and very challenging at times,” confessed Bennett. “I’ve encountered both racism and sexism over the years, but I have refused to let it ever be an issue. It’s not my problem: it’s theirs. As I tell my guests onboard, I am a woman who has had to work twice as hard so that makes me twice as good, right?”
What has helped keep Bennett at Windstar is her love of “the company's ships and the intimate atmosphere onboard – you actually get to meet and greet everyone, guests and crew alike. And there are some fabulous places that smaller cruise ships, unlike larger vessels, can call at so it's the perfect cruise line for me and passengers who want to get ‘off the beaten path’ a bit.”
Favourite ports of call include Croatia – “the Croatian coastline is beautiful” – and Sorrento (Italy) for shopping. She said: “Anyone who has sailed with me knows I have an affinity for Italy. In Sorrento, I have a personal tradition of buying Italian leather handbags. You’ll notice the word “handbags” is plural!” Other standouts include “sailing to Bequia in the Caribbean where my favourite spot is Mac’s Pizzeria for a slice of delicious lobster pizza.”
It’s been a troubling time for the stricken cruise industry – which has been ravaged by the pandemic with ocean-going cruises still largely suspended – but Bennett is optimistic about her company and industry’s prospects of recovery. She said: “Because we operate small ships with lots of open deck space and a relaxed pace of travel, I think Windstar – and other smaller lines like ours – will see more interest when people begin to cruise again, especially since our itineraries tend to focus on less-crowded destinations. Cruising will return and small ship cruising will definitely have a chance to shine in the new environment.”
To the naysayers who bleat that cruises are floating petri dishes for the newly wed, the overfed, and the nearly dead, Bennett had this to say: “Keep an open mind. Come and take a cruise and find out for yourself. Cruising allows you to see multiple places […]. It beats being chained to a hotel in one place, on land.”
When Wind Star is given the green light to reenter the water she’d love to see Vin Diesel and Channing Tatum onboard – “they are welcome any time,” she joked, as is Oprah Winfrey. “Oprah is also a very strong woman and a role model in life, so I'd enjoy sailing with her as well,” shared Bennett.
When asked if she has any advice for other women wanting to follow in her seafaring footsteps, Bennett replied: “Don’t be afraid to come to sea. You get to travel the world and are paid to do so.”
She added: “When you put your mind to something and you really want it, you will work hard for it. And if you really, really want it, no matter what obstacles come your way, you can and will overcome them. If I can do it, anyone can.”
