The Start Yachting courses provide a safe and fun introduction to Yacht Sailing.

This 2 day introductory course is a great hands on way to experience sailing first hand. On this course you will get to experience steering the boat, safety on board, rope work and sail handling on yachts. Below is a breakdown of the course.

Pre-course experience

No pre-course experience is required as this course is designed for complete beginners.

Assumed Knowledge

None

Minimum Age

None (children must be accompanies by an adult)

Minimum course duration

Two Days

Course Content

This includes learning about the yacht, handling the vessel underway, rules of the road, man overboard recovery, clothing and equipment on board, the vessels emergency equipment, precautions taken at sea and finally meteorology.

Ability after the Course

A basic knowledge of Yachting

The Next Step

Once you have completed your Start Yachting course, we recommend you move on to your five day Competent Crew.

What to Take

What you need to take will vary depending on the time of year and where you are taking your course, but there are some basics that apply across the board. For more information on specific destinations please contact us or see the relevant course destination page.

Sun Protection – regardless of what the climate is it is important to remember that you are on the water and exposed to the reflection of the sun.  This means that you can suffer sun/wind burn and sun glare even on the coldest of days. We advise you always take sun cream, a sun hat (or warm hat if it cold) and sun glasses.

Music – most modern yachts have CD players (most with the ability to plug in MP3 players) and you are welcome to take your own music.

Medications and seasickness – you should take any medication you are on and ensure you inform the skipper of what you are taking. Whilst many boats carry a limited supply of seasickness medication if you know you get seasick or have not been sailing before you should always take some with you. Seasickness medication can be purchased over the counter from most pharmacists.

Clothing – This will depend greatly on where you are taking your course but there are a few things to remember. You will need to take a pair of shoes with non-marking bottoms to wear on the boat. You will generally need to take a waterproof jacket just in case (water trousers are also good for the colder climates). Some companies provide waterproofs on board but we will always advise you if this is the case and it is best to assume they don’t. Finally it is important to remember that it is often colder when you are on water and underway so always plan for this.

Guide price

Start Yachting courses vary in price depending on where you would like to do the course however as a guide line courses start from around £180 per person in Gibraltar up to around £250 in the Solent.