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Testimonials

Over the last 40 years we have received many testimonials about the cruises and the life-changing effect they have on young people. Here are some of them.

Thank you very much for giving pupils of Northgate High School the opportunity to experience life aboard Thalatta. They all thoroughly enjoyed their week’s experience, as did I and benefited from the trip in more ways than I can mention. Thank you to the trustees for the generous sponsorship given to our trip, which enabled pupils from less advantaged backgrounds to enjoy an experience which might otherwise have been denied them.

It was wonderful to see the change in the pupils as the week progressed; watching them develop, gain in self-confidence and learn to pull together as a team was in itself very rewarding. Log entries and letters of thanks to the crew are testimony to their enjoyment and gratitude at having experienced something very different.

Most importantly special thanks must go to your exceptional crew; Kevin, Roger and Rita. Their patience, knowledge, expertise and sense of fun helped make the trip the great success it was and definitely made my life very much easier.

Rachel Thomas, Northgate High School

A week aboard Thalatta provides not only the opportunity for these damaged young people to learn, at their own level, about topics such as navigation, tides and wildlife, but also and perhaps more importantly they soon appreciate that if their week is to be a success they must work collaboratively and in co-operation with other members of a team and this arguably is the most important life skill.

Kingsdon Manor School, Somerset

Without the distraction of TV, radio and electronic games the group felt the need to devise games and activities of their own during periods of free time. At the end of the week everyone agreed that much of TV was overrated and had not been missed. Moreover, several new and unlikely friendships were made.
 
Castle School, West Midlands

On behalf of the children of The St. Christopher School who sailed on Thalatta, I would personally like to thank all of you who were involved in making our trip possible. The importance of trips of this type for our pupils is hard to quantify. It is more than just a holiday. Though our pupils are young, they all have special challenges to cope with. Thalatta provides peace where the stresses of their lives slowly seeped from them.

They became part of a team and had to care as members of that team for one another. They faced challenges and some overcame fears which at first seemed insurmountable, such a picking up a lugworm, or climbing up a side of a barge. The encouragement their peers gave them was just as wonderful to see as the conquering of personal fear. The memory of their trip will stay with them forever, and the lessons learned will strengthen them in their lives.

St. Christopher School, Essex