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Weeklong Live-Aboard Courses (Saturday 11am –
Friday 1pm) Our most popular courses, these
learning vacations take you out in the islands for a week of sailing,
exploring and learning. We offer beginning and advanced courses that take
you through some of the most spectacular cruising area in North America.
In the beginning course, with pre-study and a desire to learn, students can
achieve bareboat charter certification in just one week. We limit
course size to four students and one instructor as you live aboard
beautiful yachts between 30 and 45 feet. |

Spring Special
Reserve your space in an April or May Learn-N-Cruise or weekend
package and receive a manual/automatic inflation Type V, Coast Guard
approved PFD (personal flotation device) - a $129.99 value - when you arrive
for your cruise. |
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1.
Basic Sailing to Bareboat Cruising (Bareboat Charter) Certification Learn-n-Cruise
in the San Juan Islands (ASA 101, 103, & 104).
No prerequisites. We'll begin with the basics and take you all the way
through your Bareboat Charter Certification, qualifying you to charter or
skipper a boat of your own. This course is
designed for those who are new to sailing as well as students who have some
sailing experience. |
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2. Cruising Catamaran Learn-n-Cruise
(Includes ASA 105 & 114) Prerequisite: Bareboat
Charter or equivalent experience. |
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3.
Advanced Coastal Learn-n-Cruise
(ASA 106 & optional for 105) Prerequisite:
Bareboat Charter Certification plus some cruising experience. |
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Weekend Live-Aboard Courses (Saturday 9am –
Sunday 5pm, except for "1-Day Docking")
Our weekend courses stand apart as they are sleep-aboard and fully
provisioned. For those with limited time,
these courses are perfect. We offer Basic Sailing, Basic Coastal
Cruising, Bareboat Charter and Cruising Catamaran,
as well as our All Women Weekend, each completed between 9AM Saturday and 5PM
Sunday. All weekend courses include anchoring
overnight in the beautiful San Juan Islands.
Purchase the first 3 weekend courses (ASA 101, 103, and 104) together
and save up to $210! |
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1.
Basic Sailing
(ASA 101). No prerequisites. For those who
are new to sailing! |
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2.
Basic
Coastal Cruising
(ASA 103). Prerequisite: ASA 101 or equivalent experience. |
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3.
Bareboat Cruising / Charter Certification
(ASA 104). Prerequisite: ASA 103 or equivalent experience.
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4. Cruising Catamaran
(ASA 114) Prerequisite:
ASA 104 or equivalent experience. |
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5. All Women Weekend
No prerequisite. |
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6.
Docking Endorsement (ASA 118) Prerequisite: ASA 101. |
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Tour our teaching sailboats:
Click to view photos as well as systems and comforts that make these boats ideal
live-aboard yachts.
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Flotilla Opportunities A great
next step! Charter a boat to join one of our flotillas and gain confidence
while cruising with other boats. The many advantages of flotilla
cruising include camaraderie, opportunities to meet fellow cruisers, and an
ideal setting to gain confidence and familiarize yourself with new cruising
grounds. Your flotilla leader serves a knowledgeable guide, providing
pointers and assistance as needed.
Click
here for more information on flotillas. |
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Women's Courses Learn to sail, gain confidence,
and if you'd like, complete your ASA certification on one of these special
courses, taught by women, for women only. |
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1.
Women Only Basic Sailing to Bareboat Charter Certification Learn-n-Cruise
in the San Juan Islands (ASA 101, 103, & 104).
No prerequisites. We'll begin with the basics and take you all the way
through your Bareboat Charter Certification, qualifying you to charter or
skipper a boat of your own. |
2. Women Only Weekend Course
These are perfect courses for those with limited time.
We
offer women-only options for Basic Sailing, Basic Coastal
Cruising and Bareboat Charter. All weekend courses are completed between 9AM Saturday and 5PM
Sunday and include anchoring
overnight in the beautiful San Juan Islands.
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Basic Sailing (ASA 101) Weekend Course
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Basic Coastal Cruising (ASA 103) Weekend Course
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Bareboat Charter (ASA 104) Weekend Course |
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3. All Women Weekend Away
No prerequisite. Develop skills and enjoy a fantastic
weekend getaway. |
| Private Instruction Several
options are available for private instruction. You can arrange daily lessons or
charter the boat of your choice for you and your family and take an instructor with you.
We'll even teach you on your own boat! |
| Challenging a Class
If you
feel that your experience level would allow you to successfully challenge a class, you may
do so when enrolled in the next higher class. The cost is $75 per class challenged,
which includes ASA certification for each level successfully challenged. We only
allow challenging of Basic Sailing (ASA 101), Basic Coastal Cruising (ASA 103),
and Coastal Navigation (ASA 105). NOTE: When challenging a
course you will need to arrive the day before the course to complete the
written exams. |
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Retaking a Class
It
is our goal to see you learn to your fullest potential and really enjoy the
sailing lifestyle! To find out what we offer to assist you in reaching your
sailing goals, click here. |
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Children's Courses We are often asked how young a
student may be and still be eligible for ASA certification. There is
no simple answer for this. ASA asks that we, the certification
facility, make the judgment call regarding the capabilities of our students
that are under 18 years of age. If we feel that the youth has the
maturity to handle a boat alone and accept constructive criticism, has
adult-level boat handling skills, and can pass the written tests, then we
may certify them at our discretion. Keep in mind that these are adult
level classes, and your young sailor must be self-driven, be able to focus
seriously as a student, diligently prestudy, and have a high level of
maturity in order to succeed in the courses. Also keep in mind that
all youth under the age of 18 must be accompanied on the course by an adult.
Lastly, please note that San Juan Sailing requires that a skipper be at
least 18 years of age to charter a boat.
For local children, 8 years and above, teenagers, and college students,
we also highly recommend Bellingham Yacht Club's Junior Sailing Program.
Click here for more
information. |
| Cancellation
If you cancel your reservation 45 or more days before the start of your
course, your reservation will be refunded in full less a $100 handling fee
for week-long courses or a $50 handling fee for weekend courses. If you need
to change your course date, there is no charge to do so as long as it is
done 45 days or more before the start of your course. If you
cancel within 45 days of the start of your course, you will forfeit the
entire tuition. If you think there is a chance you may need to cancel your
class, we highly recommend looking into cancellation insurance (available at
www.travelguard.com). |
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Weather
We want to make sure that your
experience is as safe and positive as possible. Therefore, if the weather
is too severe we may need to reschedule your course. Rescheduling will be based on weather and experience
level, as well as the best judgment of your instructor. For example, ASA
101 courses will be rescheduled if the sustained wind speed is greater than
20 knots, ASA 103 if the sustained wind speed is greater than 25 knots, and
ASA104 if it is greater than 30 knots. |
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Traveling with CO2 cartridges for your inflatable life vest
As of May 2009
CO2 cartridges as part of an inflatable life vest are permitted (with up to
2 spares). However, for the most
current regulations on air-travel with CO2 cartridges, visit the TSA website
and check with your airline. These regulations are subject to frequent
change, so we highly recommend that you check again just prior to your
flight. You may also wish to print off the TSA page detailing CO2
regulations to bring with you to the airport.
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Racing Opportunity
If you are interested in sailboat racing or would like an opportunity to
develop your racing skills,
click here for information on a Swiftsure Regatta racing opportunity. |