BeachYachting

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Adults

Over 12 years old

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2 to 12 years old

Infants

0 to 23 months old

RYA Day Skipper Course

Take your Competent Crew

A complete basic sailing course suitable for beginners. A practical sailing course teaching you the basics of sailing and all the skills you need to be an effective member of a yacht crew.

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Take your ICC with us

If you can already sail but have no piece of paper to prove your ability, then the ICC is just what you need! About a half day assessment which can be taken in the UK or Greece with us.

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Our Tuition Yacht

Our Sun Odyssey 439 is a modern cruiser, fully coded for instructional purposes and the perfect live aboard yacht with 4 sleeping cabins and everything you need for cruising the Ionian.

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Taking your Day Skipper (tidal) with us

If your aim is to become a skipper and take the helm as captain of your own ship, then you will need an RYA Day Skipper qualification. This is a week-long follow-on course after Competent Crew and you can take it with Ocean Elements in a week’s holiday aboard our training yacht from Lefkada in the Greek Ionian.

Our training yachts take 4-6 people and you can book as a sharer (by the cabin) or as a family or group of friends wanting a private yacht and instructor. We often mix Competent Crew with Day Skipper pupils on the same yacht. A great family discovery holiday where you all get to go home with a new qualification!

Tidal syllabus

From 1st January 2017, our syllabus will be combined with the tidal syllabus to offer a combined tidal course in accordance with changes to the RYA sail cruising scheme. We try, wherever possible, to practically demonstrate tidal elements of the syllabus alongside the theory during your course.

Our Yacht Experiences

7 Nts aboard: 5 days sailing, 1 day off
Your Day Skipper in warm, reliable weather
Very practical hands-on course
Lots of sailing including night sailing
Book a cabin or the whole yacht, privately
Sun Odyssey 439
Skipper instructor lives aboard*
Complimentary day at our Vassiliki Beach Club for day off

About the course

Day Skipper Tidal* (practical)
Minimum age: 16
Pre-course Requirements: 5 days at sea, 100 miles, 4-night hours on board a sailing yacht. Navigation and theory to the level of Day Skipper standard. We recommend you do the shore-based course beforehand.
Course runtime: five days sailing, one day off

This hands-on course is very practical with lots of sailing. You’ll even have time for lunchtime swims, plenty of downtime to enjoy the sun and sociable evening meals ashore; not forgetting the chance to visit our Beach Club on your day off for some water sports or relaxation.

Our tuition boat tends to visit the same harbours as our Flotilla but with a bit more sailing in between, so you get the social benefits of the Flotilla and our evening entertainments.

We recommend you complete the Day Skipper theory course before leaving the UK which you can do online. The instructor will be on board your yacht for five full days of sailing and you’ll be sailing long hours together with some night sailing.

View Syllabus

Day Skipper Course Prices

Course Prices	Day Skipper, Coastal Skipper, Competent Crew (per berth)	Gatwick Flight & transfer to marina
	Jeanneau 439
	7-Nts	Sunday-Sunday
July 7- July 28	£649	£199*
July 28 - Aug 25	£699*	£299*
Aug 25 - Sep 1	£649	£249*
Sep 1 - Sep 8	£599	£229*

*Flight prices are estimated, Book early for cheapest flights. Call for our latest prices

Single cabin occupancy: 50% supplement on the above prices

*Yacht may only booked for private bookings (see below)

Prices are per person: 7 Nts live aboard with 5 days tuition and one day (day off) at our Vassiliki Beach Club. Includes provisioning for breakfast and light lunch each day, all mooring fees and port taxes, end stay yacht clean, bed linen and all fuel. And course completion certificate. You need extr: Flights and transfers (ours are from £250pp)

Single cabin occupancy: 50% supplement on the above prices

Private yacht bookings: We ask for a minimum of 4 persons to book a yacht privately. Therefore, if two people wish to book they may pay double the per person premium to book the yacht privately and cover the empty beds. For 3 persons, they just need to share the empty bed cost for the fourth person. E.g. £519 or a £173 supplement each.

About our RYA Day Skipper course

This is a beginner skippering course, and at the end of it, you will be able to take charge of the yacht safely and confidently whilst undertaking short passages by day in familiar waters.

Candidates will live-on-board for 7 nights and the course includes 5 days of tuition with practical hands-on sailing every day, and one day off. The day off is often taken in Vassiliki where you can relax in the sun, take in the sights and make use of the facilities at our Surf Hotel Beach club, perhaps try dinghy sailing, windsurfing or just chill by the pool.

During the course, you will get the chance to take charge and skipper the boat for short passages under instruction with plenty of advice along the way. You will have practical work on navigation and we aim to build confidence during pilotage exercises.

Students who have successfully completed the Day Skipper course are awarded the RYA Day Skipper Completion certificate. In addition, they can apply to the RYA for the International Certificate of Competence (ICC), which is an internationally recognised qualification and ideal for future Flotilla holidays or progression to ‘bareboat’ yacht charter.

* From 1st January 2017, the syllabus will be combined with the tidal syllabus to offer a combined tidal course in accordance with changes to the RYA sail cruising scheme.

Living Aboard

You can book a double cabin as a couple or pay a supplement for single occupancy. All students will live aboard for the duration of the course and you will visit many different harbours and anchorages to practice pilotage and mooring techniques.

We often join our flotilla for some of the evenings which is a sociable experience. You will have five full days with a lot of sailing and you will complete at least 4 night hours of night sailing to experience pilotage and identify lights at night.

We will provision the yacht with ingredients for breakfast and a light lunch each day except lunch on the day off.

Private bookings

You can even book a tuition yacht for private use (if you’re quick enough!) so that you and some friends or family can learn together. We often mix Competent Crew with Day Skipper, as the two compliment the learning process. Minimum booking size is 4 to a yacht and we can take up to 4 per instructor.

Travel

Our charter yachts and flotilla holidays are sold without travel included so you can organise your own flights (to Preveza airport) and transfers to the marina base. Alternatively, we can organise everything for you as a one-stop shop.

Flights and transfer packages are from £250 PP with us. A transfer from Preveza to Lefkas marina takes about 25 mins and taxis (for the self-travellers) are easy enough to pick up from outside the airport.

Marina Address: Lefkas Marina, East Shore Lefkada, 311 00 Greece

Safety at Sea

Our Tuition yachts are regularly inspected and comply with RYA / MCA guidelines and Codes of Practice for Sail Training Yacht. All instructors are RYA certified. And our yachts comply with Greek and British RYA maritime regulations.

• You are under the supervision of an RYA qualified instructor whilst at sea.
• All our RYA instructors hold the requisite first aid certificates and are fluent in English (all courses delivered in English, as per RYA regulations).
• Safety equipment on our tuition yachts complies with British RYA and Greek maritime authority regulations.
• All yachts have DSC VHF radios, handheld VHF radios
• Slimline inflatable life jackets, harnesses and crotch straps are provided for each person aboard, with spares carried on board.
• Our tuition yacht is equipped with electric anchor windlass, a Bimini sun top ( a cockpit sun shade), hot water with cockpit shower, fridge, cooker, hobs, sinks, fully equipped kitchen.

How to Book

If you're looking to book any of our sailing courses then you'll need to give us a call to check available dates. Our expert sales team have extensive knowledge of our programme and ready to help

So call on 0844 770 40 70 and our team will talk you through the options and get the best price for you.