Learn to Sail

The Learn to Sail Experience

Sailing Certification Courses for Beginners and Small Boat Sailors

Learn to sail in Florida, or learn to sail and cruise in the British Virgin Islands and earn US Sailing Certification from expert, caring instructors. Offshore Sailing School’s comprehensive OSS 101 sailing courses are perfect for beginners and small boat sailors looking to earn basic sailing certification and then continue on to gain cruising certification and sailboat racing skills. The Basic Keelboat 101 US Sailing Certification Course takes you through the intermediate level aboard award-winning Colgate 26 sailboats, designed for training and safety, with plenty of features to make the transition to larger boats easy. In preparation for this exciting learning adventure, shortly after enrollment, you receive the two textbooks, US Sailing’s Basic Keelboat and Offshore’s Fast Track to Sailing. Studying in advance is highly recommended to ensure you get maximum value from your learn to sail experience. Protect your investment with Travel Insurance. View coverage options here.

The Learn to Sail 101 Experience

Offshore Sailing School’s popular Learn to Sail Course package includes a five-night resort stay at most Florida locations.  The first three full days you are immersed in classroom and hands-on sailing instruction, with lunch breaks each day. On the third day, you take the US Sailing Basic Keelboat Certification test, then enjoy two days to explore and participate in all the other vacation activities available in the area.  The standard OSS 101 package includes resort accommodations, with tax and resort fee. You may wish to request additional nights or shorten your vacation to the first three days. We also have a “no-lodging” rate for those who live nearby.

The Best Sailboats for Training — Safe, Fast and Lots of Fun!

The award-winning Colgate 26 sailboat is the brainchild of Offshore Sailing School founder and National Sailing Hall of Famer, Steve Colgate, and renowned naval architect Jim Taylor who drew the lines for its production. The year it was launched, the Colgate 26 was chosen by the U.S. Naval Academy and then the U.S. Coast Guard Academy for training plebes and cadets. The Colgate 26 makes it easy to move up to larger sailboats quickly. It has lots of go-fast features, ergonomic seating, and sophisticated adjustments that make learning to sail FUN! Best of all it’s safety features provide the confidence so many seek when stepping aboard a new boat for the first time.

The Only Way to Learn

Academics and professionals whose careers revolve around learning have applauded Steve Colgate’s teaching method after taking Offshore Sailing School sailing courses.

Visual

As soon as you sign up you receive the US Sailing Basic Keelboat textbook and our comprehensive Fast Track to Sailing textbook written by Steve and Doris Colgate. You also receive a packet of information on what to wear and bring, your course schedule, and information about the location.

To give you a broader visual understanding before you arrive for the course, we recommend taking our Learn to Sail Online course developed by Steve and Doris Colgate. This interactive four-hour program is distributed by the BoatUS Foundation, the premier online boating education provider in the United States.

Auditory

All Learn to Sail certification courses include a classroom session each day, before you go out on the water. These sessions reinforce what you studied in the book, and graphically explain the “whys” (not just the “hows”) of what you are about to learn on the water on your way to earning US Sailing Certification. During these sessions, a model of the Colgate 26 and visuals are utilized to further clarify what you studied.

Kinesthetic

Now you are sailing aboard an award-winning Colgate 26, actually “doing” what you studied in the book and classroom. These hands-on sailing course sessions are thrilling as your instructor verbally guides you through the steps of learning to steer and trim sails. You do all the maneuvers, coached by your instructor. No question is too “dumb” to ask, no maneuver is ever considered “wrong.”

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