RYA Coastal Skipper sail

aPYou have three options for your RYA Coastal Skipper course:

• you can complete the course as part of an open group or
• you can charter a boat for 5/ 6 days day and complete the course with family and friends
• you have have the course on your own boat (pr a friend’s boat)

Open groups

With an open group booking, you book a place on a course and we’ll admit up to a maximum of three students onto that same course. This is the most economical option; however, it’s also the least flexible option if your availability is limited. The price of a seat on an open course includes fuel and mooring fees away from our base.

Your RYA Coastal Skipper course with The Boat School includes:

• RYA Coastal Skipper certificate and materials
• Use of light-weight inflatable life jackets
• Cold water on the boat
• Fuel and mooring fees (open groups only)

This course includes accommodation aboard,; however, we cannot guarantee that you will have your own cabin (this depends on the type of yacht used for your course). We do guarantee:

• Couples (or friends) will have their own cabin
• Female participants will only share a cabin with other female student

Please contact us if you have any questions about accommodation.

We publish course dates all year round and you can book the course directly online. Please contact us if you don’t find the dates your looking for; we can also schedule courses in accordance with the availability of students interested in the course.

Rental & course pack

With this option, you charter a sailing yacht and we provide the instructor and teaching materials. This option gives you maximum flexibility in terms of dates and the option to choose the boat on which you’ll be learning (subject to availability). With the rental and course pack, you’ll also have more say in the itinerary. As with any charter, you’re responsible for paying the fuel for the boat as well as mooring fees away from our home port.

The RYA Coastal Skipper course can be combined with other RYA courses in the sail cruising scheme. This means that you can choose a rental and course pack and have, for example, one participant preparing for Coastal Skipper, one candidate preparing for Day Skipper and two participants preparing Competent Crew.

Please ask us for a quote.

Own boat tuition

If you already own a yacht, or if you have a friend who owns a sailboat, we’re more than happy to run an RYA Coastal Skipper course on your own boat. This option is significantly cheaper than open groups and charters; however, you do need to make sure that your boat is up to the standard required by the RYA for training.

Please contct us for a quotation for own boat tuition.

Passage planning

How to plan a coastal passage including a consideration of the capabilities of the yacht, navigation, victualling, weather, ports of refuge, tidal heights and tidal streams, publications required and strategy. Customs procedures for most common circumstances.

Preparation for sea

Awareness of safety equipment required for offshore passages, and preparation for sea including stowage, safety briefings, watch keeping, delegation of responsibilities and equipment and engine checks.

Pilotage

Preparing a pilotage plan, with consideration of soundings, transits, clearing bearings, buoyage, port or harbour regulations and tidal considerations.

Organisational and skipper skills

Taking charge of a yacht and directing the crew, organising the navigation, deckwork and domestic duties of a yacht on passage, awareness of the significance of meteorological trends, aware of crew welfare and use electronic navigational equipment for planning and undertaking a passage, including the use of waypoints and routes.

Yacht handling under power

Controlling the yacht effectively in a confined space under power, including all berthing and unberthing situations in various conditions of wind and tide.

Yacht handling under sail

Using the sails to control the yacht in a confined space, including anchoring and mooring in various conditions of wind and tide.

Adverse weather conditions

Understanding of preparations for heavy weather and yacht handling in strong winds, and navigation in restricted visibility.

Emergency situations

Recovery of man overboard under power or sail, actions to be taken when abandoning to the liferaft and during helicopter and lifeboat rescues.

Where will I be sailing?

During the Coastal Skipper course, you’ll be sailing approximately 100 nautical miles. Our cruising ground for the RYA Coastal Skipper course includes Denia, the Bay of Javea, Moraira and Altea. Depending on the weather, we might also take a trip across to Ibiza!

During the course you will also complete a Yachtmaster qualifying passage of at least 60 nautical miles.

You should have 15 days, 300 miles and 8 night hours on board a sailboat with at least 2 days experience as skipper.

Knowledge of theory

The RYA Coastal Skipper qualification has two parts: the 5-day practical course and a 40 hour theory course. Holding a shorebased course completion certificate in not a prerequisite to attend this course, but it is essential that you have the same knowledge level as somebody that has completed the Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster shorebased course. Whenever possible, we recommend that you do the shorebased course in the classroom.

The minimum age for the award of the certificate is 17. You can do the course with family members under the age of 17 and these junior participants can qualify for another RYA sailing certificate, but we won’t be able to issue these students with the Coastal Skipper certificate.

You won’t need a medical certificate but you should be in reasonable physical shape.