SAILING TRIPS
ON THE ATLANTIC
THE ISLANDS
IN THE EAST ATLANTIC
Madeira, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera, El Hiero and the seven Cape Verde islands stand for more challenging sailing, varied nature and authentic encounters.
THE
TRANSATLANTIC
Over almost three weeks and around 2,300 nautical miles, we will experience the fascination of ocean sailing first-hand.
Impressive experiences await us and, with a bit of luck, we may even spot whales.
Update / correction (as of 16.08.24):
Unfortunately, the transatlantic and subsequent Caribbean cruises originally planned for autumn 2024 have had to be canceled!
Instead, I will remain in the Canary Islands with the Fair Lady and offer a wide variety of sailing trips with Tenerife as the start and end destination over the winter months (cf. → sailing schedule / sailing offers).
A sailor's dream comes true: out into the vast Atlantic and across the big pond on the barefoot route.
With plenty of time, the sailing trip takes you via Madeira, the Canary Islands and the Cape Verde Islands to the exotic Caribbean on the great Atlantic crossing.
More than three full months are planned for the sailing voyages and sailing trips on the Atlantic Ocean until the Atlantic crossing from Mindelo to the Caribbean in mid-December.
With plenty of time, we will sail southwards via Madeira and the seven Canary Islands to the Cape Verde Islands.
On the one hand, to have enough time and opportunity to explore and sail these wonderful island pearls in the Atlantic, and on the other, to wait for the northeast trade winds to set in at the Cape Verde Islands and thus the perfect conditions for the transatlantic passage.
Active offshore sailing, a breeze of adventure and intense experiences on the high seas – sailing trips on the Atlantic can be demanding and sometimes challenging.
This applies not only to the Atlantic crossing, but above all to the longer offshore passages between the island groups, which involve sailing for several days and nights.
The co-sailing voyages around the Canary Islands and Cape Verde are somewhat less demanding, but also require experience and a willingness to actively participate.
Those who are up to the challenge will take home incomparable moments, impressive experiences and fulfilling days at sea and on board the Fair Lady.
The Atlantic crossing and the sailing areas around Cape Verde are a challenging sailing trip for thoroughbred sailors and all those who want to become one.
Atlantic sailing offers - September to December 2024
Facts about the Atlantic sailing area
Active offshore sailing surrounded by volcanic landscapes ranging from tropical to barren
This is what makes the Atlantic so special as a sailing area:
- more demanding active sailing
- Day & night trips
- Seamanship & on-board routine
- The most diverse exotic impressions
- colorful and cheerful cultures and people
- authentic cuisine
What is additionally possible on these trips:
- Active sailing
- Experience in deep-sea sailing and collect plenty of miles
- Wide range of options for organizing cruises on the islands
- Haustiere
Character of the sailing trips on the Atlantic: *
Particularly recommended for: *
*The information provided is for rough orientation and classification. More details can be discussed in a phone call.
Don’t hesitate to call me if you have any questions about a trip or sailing area.
Your sailing vacation
on the Atlantic Ocean
What to expect and what you should know about your adventure on the Fair Lady
General Information
On the Atlantic Ocean, sailing areas with very different characters await us: on the one hand, there are the day-long offshore passages that always lead across the open sea from one archipelago to the next and, on the other hand, the pleasure and activity-oriented sailing trips on the archipelagos themselves.
On the former, the longer legs, more consistent winds and higher waves mean that more experienced and sporty sailors are required - the open ocean is a challenging sailing area.
Our sailing trips in Italy and Croatia are more leisurely.
Although the barefoot route is one of the easy Atlantic routes, the sailing requirements are in the medium range even in good wind, wave and weather conditions and require seaworthiness, practical sailing experience and a high level of willingness to actively participate and get involved.
Sailors on these legs have therefore already been on a yacht several times and / or have one or two pleasure craft licenses.
Active sailing and participation in the daily routine on board are essential, as the ocean passages inevitably require 24-hour sailing, including at night.
During these multi-day crossings, food is cooked on board, the general comfort and convenience are reduced, but the lasting, unique, deeply authentic impressions and experiences that can only be experienced on such long voyages on the high seas make up for it...
A non plus ultra for every passionate sailor who wants to enrich their wealth of experience and live out their thirst for adventure a little more collectively.
The focus of this trip is on the taste of freedom and adventure, the joy of active ocean sailing, practiced seamanship and on-board routine as well as reaching the next destination.
The sailing trips to the archipelagos of Madeira, the Canary Islands and Cape Verde are much more moderate.
The focus here is on island hopping, active Atlantic sailing and shore excursions, which is why these sailing vacations are also very suitable for families, pleasure sailors and beginners who already have some sailing experience and have always wanted to put their skills to the test on the Atlantic.
The sailing requirements range from ambitious to sporty; active sailing is expressly encouraged.
As skipper, I am happy to provide advice and support and give valuable tips and tricks for handling the yacht.
We sail during the day in good conditions – due to the sometimes long distances between the islands, we sail in 4 – 8 hour strokes, depending on the daily destination we have discussed together.
At night, the yacht is moored in an anchorage bay or in one of the authentic harbors or marinas.
We will often cook or barbecue on board; if we stay overnight in one of the often very touristy coastal towns, the galley will remain cold and we will enjoy the typical island cuisine.
Even if the daily sailing times in these island areas are a little longer or even take up a whole day, there is still enough time for swimming and enjoyment, relaxation and idleness.
But the nature and culture of the very different islands are also waiting to be discovered.
If you like, you can actively use your days off for interesting activities, go on shore excursions or set off on a hike or two, e.g. to the Pico del Teide, the highest mountain in Spain.
Event Details
The cruise offers are usually designed for 1 or 2-week trips, from Saturday to Saturday.
On the day of arrival or shortly before, I will inform you of the Fair Lady's exact berth, where the yacht will be ready and freshly cleaned from 4 p.m. .
Take your time to move into your spacious cabin and settle in with a welcome drink.
Until all the other sailors have arrived, we do our first shopping and get to know each other over dinner before setting sail the next morning after an initial briefing.
During the offshore passages, where the ship spends several days on the open sea, active offshore sailing and participation in shipboard routines and watches determine the daily activities. Beyond that, there is little scope for free cruising.
The situation is different on the island groups, where there are again a wide range of possibilities.
Here we will discuss and plan the content of the trip (e.g. routes, spots / sights / restaurants to be visited, mooring in the harbor or anchoring in the bay, etc.) together, taking into account the current conditions.
I summarize the individual wishes and am happy to give tips on the respective cruise destinations or contribute my own experience to ensure an all-round successful sailing trip for all participants.
The last day of the trip brings us close to our final destination and we end the sailing trip together in a nice restaurant before I ask you to vacate the cabin by 10 a.m. the next day.
Arrival
The journey to the Atlantic sailing trips can only be made by plane.
All start and destination destinations of the travel adventures on offer have international airports that are served directly and regularly by various European cities and airlines.
Many of the sailing trips on the Atlantic are onway trips.
In this case, it is essential to book an open jaw flight.
September and October are still high season on Madeira and the Canary Islands, and a correspondingly large number of direct flights fly to these popular vacation islands.
For Cape Verde, we recommend a direct flight to the island of Sao Vicente (Marina Mindelo), which is only served via Lisbon.
The transatlantic cruise
The last trip in the Atlantic sailing area starts in Mindelo and leads around the Cape Verde islands before setting off on the great ocean crossing.
A total of four weeks are planned for this, offering enough time to cross the Atlantic by sailing boat and to get that vacation and adventure feeling.
The Atlantic crossing is one of the major highlights on the Fair Lady, which departs from Croatia and sails past Italy, the Balearic Islands and the Caribbean.
For the Atlantic crossing, we chose the same route as Christopher Columbus a good 500 years ago.
