Not everyone can be a concert pianist, but it's fun trying.

It's always fun to push yourself and try something new.  At the tender age of 14 my father took me to private piano lessons.  My father was musical and, as it quickly transpired, I was clearly not!  But I persevered and even managed to bash out a good enough rendition of "She'll be coming round the mountain". So, why is this relevant to learning to sail?

Well, not everyone is going to turn into Sir Ben Ainslie - Olympic medalist extraordinaire - after a week of learning to sail, but you will have a huge amount of fun trying, here in the sunny Caribbean!  

Learning to sail in Antigua

We always see a flurry of inquiries for learning to sail in Antigua each New Year - what a great resolution to make!  So I thought I'd jot down some pointers for those new-to-sailing people out there who know they want to experience sailing, but really don't know what happens on one of our ASA certification sailing courses.

Well firstly, we only offer private, live-aboard courses.  We don't team you up with other people on board.  This means that you arrive in Antigua with your buddy/best friend/husband/wife and you have an entire boat just for you. You don't stay in a hotel or a hammock on the beach, but you sleep on your boat in your own cabin - perfect!  You will be on board with your Instructor for the duration of your course - no classrooms as part of this certification.  Everything happens on board; cooking, learning to sail, jumping into the warm Caribbean sea.  

You step on board at our base in Jolly Harbour Marina and, after a safety briefing and itinerary discussion, you will leave the Marina for your week of sailing adventure.  The courses are structured so that you will experience not only sailing, but also the beauty of Antigua, too.  So yes, there will be time for swimming, snorkelling and exploring ashore.

Your home away from home for the week

You will sail each day to a new anchorage. This means that you have every opportunity to practice your knots, your sail handling and your newly found navigation skills.   It's all about time on the water and getting as much experience under your belt.  Every day will be different, you will experience different conditions - sometimes less wind, sometimes more wind.  All of this is great for you as you are building your knowledge in different situations.  

Your Instructor is there as your friend and teacher.  They have so much experience - probably sailing all over the world and crossing oceans - so use them to ask as many questions as you can think of.  There's no such thing as a bad question here.  

People learn differently, and our Instructors recognize this.  Some people need to see something first and then they pick it up, others need to make notes.  Whatever works for you, works for us.  

Waterfront dining in Antigua

If, after a week afloat enjoying the Antiguan scenery, you decide to follow up with an Olympic sailing campaign then fantastic, or if you decide that becoming a concert pianist is more suited to you, then that's great too. Either way, sailing is a wonderful hobby that brings people together, makes you forget everything else happening in the world and means you get to see some of the most beautiful parts of the world - all under sail power!

To find out more, contact Jackie at info@antiguahorizon.com 

Learning to sail without oilskins and four layers of clothing - hello Antigua!

I was recently back in the UK during Cowes Classic Week and boy did I know it!  Although I didn't get to race and enjoy the bracing (!) Solent breeze, I was amazed at the amount of clothing the crews were wearing just to keep warm.  The rain certainly didn't help, I'm sure!

That is not to say there aren't beautiful UK sailing days; I just got unlucky with my timing.  Now, this is all well and good for the likes of Musto and Slam; both doing a roaring trade with new oilskin sales and extra warm neck scarves (I know, I own about four!), it doesn't always offer the 'new to sailing' adventurers the best total experience.

Palm tree-lined beaches await you

Flying back to Antigua's steady temperatures of between 26 and 34 degrees Celsius, I thought I'd encourage more sailors from the UK (and possibly Canada who tend to get quite a short sailing season up there) to come and experience this kind of sailing with us here in Antigua.

The biggest difference, apart from the temperature of the air and sea, is the fact that it is non-tidal here. So, if that's always been a concern of yours, you will love sailing here.  We do get a range of about 12 inches which is nothing to the multiple feet you experience in places such as Chichester Harbour.

Racing in the UK - our craft - note blue sky!

At this time of year, the water temperature is a very pleasant 82 degrees I was told yesterday.  It doesn't quite feel bath-like, but it's certainly very pleasant for a splash around with your noodle and a cold Carib on a Sunday afternoon after a day on the water.

Some of you may have taken courses in the Med where you can get quite flooky wind.  I remember heading out to race a few years ago in Chichester Harbour and it was looking like a perfect Force 3. Well, by the time the hooter went for the start we were hanging on for dear life and pretending to have fun!

Here in Antigua, we tend to get around 15 - 20 knots and always from the East (ish).  It always makes people smile when I print the weather forecast for our charter guests and they see a steady stream of arrows from the right depicting the Easterlies.  Some people, new to the Caribbean, will ask me if the wind is greater in the morning or the evening and I have to say that it doesn't really change.

Sailing our Bavaria 33 "Vixen" from Barbuda to Antigua

I personally think that Antigua offers the best of all worlds if you are considering a 'new to sailing" or "discover sailing" charter experience.  You can choose to stay on the protected west coast which is the Caribbean Sea, you can also work on your passage planning skills by sailing up to our sister island of Barbuda, or you could even explore the coastline with a trip to the East coast of Antigua which takes you into slightly bigger seas at times.

Whatever you decide sailing Antigua, you won't need your cosy neck scarves or oilskins!