Sailing Classics

Boutique Sailing-Yacht Voyages

Our boutique sailing-yacht voyage programme brings together carefully selected small vessels – traditionally rigged yachts, classic wooden ketches, and well-maintained ocean-going sailing boats – for itineraries in the Mediterranean and Atlantic that emphasise the sailing experience over the amenities of a cruise ship. These are departures for guests who want to travel under sail, in a small group, with a professional crew, without the compromise of a mass-market product.

The vessels in this programme share certain characteristics: they are sailing yachts first, with sails as their primary means of propulsion; they carry a small number of guests in private or shared cabin accommodation; and they operate on itineraries where the passage itself is part of what makes the voyage worthwhile. A week spent sailing between the islands of the Greek archipelago on a traditionally rigged vessel is a different proposition from a flight to Athens and a hotel in Santorini, and we offer it to guests who understand and want that difference.

The Sailing Experience

On the yachts in this programme, sailing is active and present. Guests on deck watch the crew handle the sails – and are welcome to participate at whatever level suits their experience. A guest who wants to learn how a topsail is sheeted home can do so; one who prefers to read in the cockpit while the boat works to windward has that option equally. The crew manages the vessel professionally and safely; the guest’s role is to be present at sea, which is itself the point.

At sea on a classic sailing yacht – particularly one with a wooden hull and traditional rig – the boat moves differently from a fibreglass production yacht. The hull responds to the sea with a directness that is felt rather than explained, and the sound of wind in a canvas sail is not the same as wind in a modern dacron one. These differences are subtle but cumulatively produce an experience that guests who have sailed on both types consistently prefer.

Accommodation and Daily Life

Cabins are compact and thoughtfully fitted. Meals are prepared on board, typically from provisions bought in port that morning. Evenings are spent at anchor in coves and small harbours rather than marinas or commercial ports. The social scale of the group – rarely more than eight to twelve guests – means that the crew and guests eat together, and the voyage develops its own character over the course of a week in a way that a larger ship cannot.

Destinations

The programme covers the classic Mediterranean sailing grounds: the Greek Ionian and Aegean, the Turkish Aegean coast, the Dalmatian islands, Corsica and Sardinia, and occasional Atlantic itineraries to Madeira and the Canary Islands. Voyage duration is typically one to two weeks, structured to make the most of the prevailing winds in each region at the time of year the voyage operates.

Why We Recommend This Programme

These voyages are for guests who have exhausted the conventional holiday formats and want something that requires a degree of flexibility, presence, and openness to the unpredictability of sailing. The reward is a week or two that is simply unlike anything else we offer – small in scale, personal in character, and deeply connected to the sea and the places it leads to.