I’m red-faced, breathless and my heart is pounding — not surprising given that I’ve just trekked all the way from the bottom of Gran Canaria’s 708ft-deep Bandama crater to the very top. The hike might be short in length, but it’s a steep, rocky ascent in 24C sunshine.
I turn to see the rest of my 16-strong group hot on my heels and I must confess I’m impressed. The average age of this party is mid to late-sixties but they’re clearly a fit bunch. I’m pleasantly surprised that this excursion, billed as “strenuous”, has absolutely delivered on that promise. As someone who enjoys exercising (I’m training for a marathon), I wasn’t sure whether a Saga cruise — which only takes passengers over the age of 50 (accompanying companions must be at least 40) — might prove too sedentary.
Happily, Spirit of Adventure, on which I’m sailing around the Canary Islands, Madeira and Azores from Portsmouth, is living up to its name, and my fellow passengers are amazing, with a gung-ho attitude and pronounced vigour.
This is my second hike in a couple of days, the first being a six-mile trek through the mesmeric cloud forest on the island of La Gomera. Located in the Unesco world heritage site of Garajonay National Park and rising sharply to a peak of 4,878ft, the ancient laurel forest is almost perpetually shrouded in mist and sustains a unique ecosystem brimming with lush ferns, moss-draped trees and odd-shaped fungi. On that excursion too, my companions were energetic, athletic and great fun, punctuating our few hours’ walking with light-hearted chatter.
Each visit to the state-of-the-art gym on deck 13 of the ship has also seemed nicely buzzy. There are plenty of others jogging on the treadmills, working out on the cross trainers and doing resistance work on the weights machines.
If ever there were a lesson in not judging a book by its cover, it has to be this trip. I confess that, when I first boarded and saw the sea of grey hair, I thought perhaps I was a bit young for this cruise — I’m in my mid-fifties — and would find it too tame. But every day I’m struck anew by the liveliness of my shipmates, their curiosity at each destination and their clear joy at every experience on offer.
Indeed, the thought pops into my head more than once that, should he ever be stuck for inspiration for a Thursday Murder Club mystery, the bestselling author Richard Osman should immediately book himself on to a Saga cruise. His gutsy cast of characters — Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron — would fit right in with the crowd on board and would thoroughly enjoy the 987-passenger Spirit of Adventure. Just like Coopers Chase retirement village, where these fictional characters reside, this voyage has wall-to-wall options for entertainment, eating (very well) and drinking.
“I’d say our passengers are typified by their zest for life. They’re active, tend to be well educated and enjoy the finer things,” says Gemma Wilson, Spirit of Adventure’s hotel general manager, who has previously worked for cruise lines targeting younger guests, many of whom were less dynamic, she says, than those she now hosts.
“With Saga, our average guest will be someone with a wealth of life experience and a story to tell — they’re endlessly fascinating. I’ve dined with everyone from a former Red Arrows pilot to a submariner and the person who developed the sticky toffee pudding sold in Waitrose.”
What you need to know
- Where is it? This cruise takes in the Azores, Madeira, La Palma, La Gomera, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Lanzarote and, on the way home, Lisbon
- How do you get there? This is a no-fly cruise, so you will sail from Portsmouth and have three consecutive days at sea on the way to the Azores and two on the return from Lisbon, plus two more mid-itinerary
- Insider tip Take your glad rags. Saga’s passengers like to dress up, particularly on the formal nights, when it’s black-tie glamour
She says that on my cruise the youngest passenger is 47 and the oldest 94, while the median age is 78. “That’s pretty typical — our average age is usually 74 to 78, but age is just a number, and our passengers are always young at heart.”
I suggest that it feels like a safe, unintimidating environment for a solo traveller and, indeed, Wilson confirms that every Saga cruise includes a significant number of passengers voyaging alone — the ship has 109 single cabins, each one with a balcony. With the majority of guests in their mid-sixties and upwards, it’s not surprising that many are widowed or divorced. The crew works hard to put them at ease and assist with the formation of new friendships.
Pitching up at the 6pm solo travellers’ social in the Britannia Lounge early on in the sailing, I fall in with a wonderful group of women, aged from 54 to 86, and have dinner with some of them each night. We also meet for drinks or go to shows together.
Magic of the Musicals, with songs and dances from West Side Story, Mary Poppins and Les Misérables, is a highlight, but it’s the conversation with my companions that I most relish. These are women who have led full lives and it’s enthralling to find out about Loretta’s upbringing in post-Second World War Italy, Penny’s pioneering career as one of the few women in the early days of computing and Kate’s experience ordering fixtures and fittings for — surprise, surprise — cruise ships.
I’m here on my own as my husband is recovering from an operation and I am desperate for a break and some winter sun. There are other passengers in a similar position. Florence, 66, whom I chat to on the La Gomera hike, tells me her grown-up children are giving her respite from caring from her husband, who had a stroke 18 months ago. While physically well recovered, his personality has changed and he can no longer cope with strangers.
“This is my first cruise and I’m loving it as I’m meeting new people and seeing new places — both of which are now impossible in my daily life,” she says. “Before I booked, I got a lot of brochures and chose Saga because of its emphasis on the ‘solo traveller’ experience rather than ‘single travellers’. It’s a subtle difference but it mattered to me as I’m not single, I’m merely travelling alone.”
Wilson recognises this nuance and reiterates how many new friendships she sees being formed — guests are offered the chance to join “social” tables in the restaurants each evening. She also beams when revealing the new romances that have blossomed on Saga cruises. “I can think of at least three couples who have met on board through the solo social events. One of them got married a couple of years ago — they came back on board for their honeymoon, having themed their entire wedding around the Spirit of Adventure,” she says.
Love is clearly never far away on this ship and there are numerous couples celebrating anniversaries and milestone birthdays on board. At a shared table one evening in the Italian fine-dining restaurant Amalfi — where I tuck in to a sensational dish of ravioli stuffed with lobster, steak with gorgonzola and walnut sauce, and lemon tart — I chat to Donald and Joan, whose story could easily be the inspiration for a romantic movie.
Boyfriend and girlfriend six decades ago, they decided they were too young to settle down — they were just 20 — so went their separate ways and married other people. Both were then widowed a decade ago, after which a mutual friend put them back in touch. A tentative period of letter-writing followed and they are now head over heels in love, aged 80. “It’s not easy as we live at opposite ends of the country,” Joan says, “but we spend as much time together as we can. This cruise is truly magical for us.”
While Donald and Joan’s romance is a dream come true for them, one of my own long-held wishes — to see a whale in the wild — also comes to pass during an excursion from Tenerife. While it’s made clear there are no guarantees of witnessing marine mammals on a day trip aboard a catamaran, we not only see a group of bottlenose dolphins, we also come across a large pod of pilot whales loudly exhaling through their blowholes. We even spot a beautiful sea turtle swimming gracefully through the sparkling water.
I’m on a high for the deck party that night — and I’m clearly not the only one. Trays of tequila sunrise cocktails are being handed out by smiling waiters and the dancefloor is busy, with live Motown classics from Roy G Hemmings and his band. At one point I find myself leading a mass conga around the swimming pool.
This isn’t something I’d ever have envisaged, but this cruise has repeatedly shattered my preconceptions and encouraged a new devil-may-care attitude. Activity, entertainment, fine food, fascinating new friends and the chance to kick up my heels have all been part of this life-enhancing voyage.
Gaby Huddart was a guest of Saga, which has 14 nights’ all-inclusive on a Canary Islands and Ponta Delgada cruise from £4,658pp, including a balcony cabin, door-to-door chauffeur service, drinks, crew tips and an excursion in every port, departing from Portsmouth on March 20 (saga.co.uk/cruises)
