Croatian charter by catamaran

The setting was perfect: hot sun, an idyllic marina surrounded by mountains, and a yacht club pool. Yet having been carrying my heavy, sleeping three-year-old for about 15 minutes, walking around ACI Marina Dubrovnik trying to find the Sunsail office, I was feeling anything but in holiday mode.

But despite being busy welcoming other new arrivals, the Sunsail crew ushered me to a shady seat while a kind staff-member with a trolley rounded up my travelling companions – who had cleverly opted to wait under a tree at the marina entrance, with the bags.

After meeting our professional skipper and being shown around the Sunsail 404 Premier catamaran, I realised it was all perfect after all and promptly sat in my cabin and burst into tears!

It was the first holiday abroad with my daughters Neve (4) and May (3), and the stress of travelling from London Gatwick was made worse without my husband – we realised too late that his soon-to-expire passport didn’t meet the entry requirements of Croatia. So the challenge of keeping my little ones safe for a week at sea, loomed large.

Luckily I had reinforcements in the form of my sister-in-law, Helen, and niece Tilly (17,) but as both were nervous non-sailors I was feeling the weight of responsibility, especially when Neve and May excitedly climbed up and across the catamaran roof, oblivious to the steep drops, then bounced across the ‘trampoline’ on the bow.

After a bracing swim in the marina pool with swifts darting low over the water and the mountains reflected in the large glass windows, followed by a dinner of tortellini pasta on board thanks to the pre-bought provisioning offered by Sunsail, and eventually settling the girls in their double berth, I retreated to my spacious berth at the other end of the starboard hull. A good night’s sleep made everything seem more achievable.

Welcome briefing

We had been welcomed by our host Jennie and lead