Sail Scotland

Yacht Charter
Browse through these pages to find the right boat in the right place for your next charter holiday afloat the most cost-effective way of enjoying sailing in different locations.

Why shoulder the expense of owning a yacht, or the cost in time of getting to places remote from one's home port, when Scotland's many yacht charter operations offer excellent choices in location and yacht type, ranging from the simple bareboat option for you and friends or family to enjoy, to the luxury of skippered charter aboard a wide selection of craft, from classic to modern.

Glance through these pages to select your preferred option be it power or sail, self-sail or skippered, in sheltered or more demanding waters. You will see that whether your tastes and interests are historic craft, modern estate of the art yachts, power boats or special interest cruising to remote places like St Kilda or the Flannan Isles, they can be catered for.

First Steps
Cruising in Scotland is not all tough, demanding sailing - many areas are ideal for the relative beginner. Pilotage is straight-forward, tides are no stronger than in, say, the Solent, there is little shipping, and fog is rare.

There is plenty of published information about cruising in Scottish waters, which makes forward planning, and day to day pilotage, a pleasure. Admiralty and Imray charts cover Scotland in the greatest detail, and either Clyde Cruising Club Sailing Directions or Imray's Yachts-man's Pilot Series will provide complete and detailed information on virtually every anchorage, harbour and stretch of water.

Add to this the invaluable Welcome Ashore booklet produced by Sail Scotland, and your required reading is complete. You may have progressed through power or sail cruising school, or have sufficient past experience to satisfy charterers' requirements - either way there is a superb range of options offered by Scotland's charter companies.

World Class
Scotland's cruising grounds are unspoiled, if that is not too simple a word to convey the unique combination of land and seascape virtually untouched by man.

Even the sheltered lochs of the Firth of Clyde are relatively unspoiled, and the majestic west coast, with Skye and the Hebrides, offers the cruising sailor the ultimate in scenery and wildlife.

This environment is one of peace and quiet, of empty anchorages, of clear clean water, of long summer evenings when it barely gets dark at all. It is one you will not want to miss.

You cannot truly appreciate the magic until you come to try it.