Falling dry in the Wadden Sea

The GROOTVORST was built in 1896 as a river clipper and served as a cargo ship until the 1930s. In 1985, she finally met the fate of many sailing ships: she was no longer profitable as a cargo ship. In the same year, the GROOTVORST was completely rebuilt and put into service as an exclusive passenger sailing ship. She was given three masts with a sail area of 520 m². The special feature of this sailing ship is its luxurious interior, which offers plenty of space for all types of groups on board. When they first step aboard the GROOTVORST, our guests always have the feeling that they are standing in a spacious vacation home and not on a tall ship. With four seating areas and a very large, directly connected kitchen, the day room offers the perfect opportunity for cooking, sitting together and socializing. The galley equipment leaves nothing to be desired: you will find a gastro stove, oven, warming cabinet, dishwasher and a beer dispenser. A large cold room turns the galley into a professional restaurant kitchen. From the day room and the deck of the ship, you can access an additional deckhouse, which is equipped with tables and benches for up to 30 people. This is a unique feature on this type of sailing ship. Outside, a seating area right by the companionways and many other places to linger on the middle and foredeck invite you to enjoy a day of sailing to the full. Skipper and owner Dominik started sailing at a very young age in a steel Optimist in the roadstead of Brest (FR). But he came to Harlingen to turn his passion into a profession. After sailing on various ships in the Wadden Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean, he ended up as a sailor on the GROOTVORST in the summer of 2014. From 2015 he sailed as skipper on this three-masted clipper and since November 2022 Dominik and his wife Lisa have been the proud owners of the GROOTVORST.