LEARN TO SAIL

If you are new to sailing or have crewed on a cruising yachts and want to get more involved learning to sail is for you.  Learning to sail is fun and you learn a new skill that opens up the world sail cruising….

Catch the wind in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

What training courses are available?

The UK based Royal Yachting Association (RYA) has a well thought out structured syllabi for all types of water sports.  The Sail Cruising Syllabus starts with learning to be crew member going all the way up to skippering (being the captain) on an ocean passage.

If you are new to sailing the RYA Competent Crew course takes a student with no prior experience (but a sense of adventure) and teaches you to be a full member of crew.

If you are already familiar with crewing the next level is to train as a RYA Day Skipper.  There are normally two elements to the training, a shorebased theory course and a practical course. When you have successfully completed the practical course you would be qualified to go sailing a cruising yacht, with a suitable crew, on your own.

What prior experience is need?

The RYA Competent Crew and PYA’s Pre-Flotilla (6 day) courses assume no prior sailing experience.

As mentioned above, the RYA Day Skipper syllabus is covered in two courses.  The shorebased course assumes no previous knowledge although some practical experience is desirable.  The practical course has a suggested minimum experience of 5 days on board, 100 sea miles and 4 night hours; in addition it is assumed that students have a basic knowledge of navigation, collision regulations, etc. to the Day Skipper Shorebased standard and a basic sailing ability.

RYA courses are generally run over 5 or 6 days, as are full pre-flotilla courses.  Specialised courses can be of any duration – a pre-flotilla refresher course would run over 3 days.

A mid season Competent Crew trip on a training yacht with Poros Yachting Academy is priced at €659.00, this price includes breakfast and lunch, and all the costs of running the training yacht. In addition to this cost you will have to pay for your evening meals ashore, say €105.00. A total cost of €764.00. This excludes flights to Greece the cost of which varies enormously and will depend on from where you are travelling. Transfers from Athens airport to Poros Island would cost approximately €25.00 per person each way.

Where are the courses run?

Obviously, because the RYA is a UK based there are a large number of schools there.  However, if you want to get away from the rain and cold there are schools all over the world, including (of course) Greece. Our sailing school, Poros Yachting Academy, whose teaching yachts cruise the Saronic & Argolic Gulfs run RYA and other specialised courses, click on their logo to display the details: