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Sailing holidays in Greece |
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There is definitely much to enjoy in sailing holidays in Greece, which is blessed with more than 15,000 kilometers of coastline and an excellent climate for yachting. The Greek islands, spanning about 20% of all of Greece, offers safe and numerous cruising grounds.
Hundreds of islands and islets dot the Aegean sea. Hopping from one island to another is always an exciting experience during a sailing holiday in Greece for cruisers are treated each time to a splendid sunshine, crystal-clear waters, and magnificent beaches. Mountain villages likewise surround most of these islands.
Greece's 1,400 islands are divided into six regions:
· Ionian (Sea) Islands (west of the mainland);
· Aegean Sea (east of the mainland);
· Saronic Islands (which lie closest to Athens);
· Cyclades (central Aegean, beyond the Northern and Eastern Aegean Islands);
· Dodencanese (southeast); and
· the Sporades (north of Evvoia).
Experienced sailors suggest that the best time to charter the Aegean Islands is early summer to avoid the unpredictable and strong wind called meltemi. This wind can blow spontaneously for hours or even days.
A popular choice among travelers on a sailing holiday in Greece is to take short duration charters. These special charters allow charters to combine land tours with the experience of sailing the isles. Fully exploring just one island group in Greece would probably take about a month.
Charter options
Several options are available to anyone wanting a sailing holiday in Greece. Depending on the traveler's expertise and preferences, he can either:
· charter a bareboat yacht,
· hire a skipper,
· sail with a flotilla,
· book a cabin or berth on a fully crewed yacht.
When one goes for a bareboat charter, it means that he will skipper the yacht himself. It also means that he would choose his own itinerary for the days of the charter. With a bareboat charter, no cooks or hostess will be on board. However, regulations require that there should be two experienced crewmembers on the boat.
Meanwhile, a skippered yacht charter means that a captain or qualified skipper will be in charge of the navigation, sailing and safe handling of the yacht.
Those who want the best of both worlds – the independence of bareboat sailing and the safety of having a company – may go for flotilla chartering. This involves a group of boats, usually seven or more, which follow a lead ship, fully crewed with a skipper, yacht engineer, and a hostess. The boats follow a pre-arranged route combined with agreed stops in designated anchorages for social events such as parties, barbecues, racing, etc.
Another alternative is to go for crewed yacht charters. Crewed charters may vary from just one skipper/instructor onboard to additional cooks, hostesses, etc. On larger yachts, travelers can opt for a berth charter or cabin charter, similar to a cruise, in which they just rent just their own cabin.
There is yet another option for those who want to experience a sailing holiday. There are a number of sailing schools and courses in Greece that offer these people the opportunity to sail.
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