11 October – Saloon berth: £800 25 October – Saloon berth: £800 or single-occupancy cabin: £1,400
Availability weekly from 28 March 2027 to 24 October 2027
If you would like to book, or none of the above dates work for you, please contact us at info@sailionian.com with your preferred dates, and we can check whether it’s possible to start a new course.
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RYA Competent Crew with Sail Ionian is an entry-level, practical sailing course designed to teach you the essential skills needed to become a useful and confident crew member aboard a cruising yacht. It runs as a one-week live-aboard holiday, combining hands-on learning with island hopping through the stunning Ionian Islands.
RYA Competent Crew is perfect for complete beginners or those with limited sailing experience who want to learn the fundamentals of sailing and life at sea. It’s also ideal for anyone who has crewed occasionally and wants to build confidence and technique under professional instruction before progressing to courses like RYA Day Skipper.
No previous experience is required — just enthusiasm and a sense of adventure. The course is designed to take you from novice to competent crew member, able to take an active part in sailing and handling the yacht under the guidance of the skipper.
During the week, you’ll learn how to sail as part of a team, handle sails, keep a lookout, steer, and assist in mooring and anchoring. You’ll also gain an understanding of safety procedures, ropework, and basic seamanship. By the end, you’ll be ready to contribute confidently aboard any sailing yacht and have a solid foundation for further RYA training.
Read about A Typical RYA Course Week in our blog!
You join your training yacht on Sunday at Sail Ionian’s base on Lefkada, meeting your RYA Cruising Instructor, and the other students and settling in on board. From Monday to Friday, you sail around the surrounding islands (Lefkada, Kefalonia, Ithaca, Meganisi, Kastos & Kalamos), typically visiting a different harbour each night.
Accommodation is included on board for the whole week, and students vacate the yacht by 9am the final Sunday. The main taught section of the course is Monday to Friday.
Expect busy but fun days – we have a large syllabus to get through so setting off by 9am is key, that means getting up early to have breakfast and preparing the boat for sea.
Limited swim stops – although there will be times for a quick dip, you must remember you are on a course and we have limited time to get you through the syllabus. We don’t allow kayaks or paddleboards on courses as they get in the way when training.
Competent Crew students are often taught in combination with Day Skipper students, the courses work well together, and the crew dynamics help Day Skipper students learn to oversee the yacht with less experienced crew on board.
Competent Crew can be taken as a scheduled joint shared group course sharing the yacht with other students, or as a private course where you charter the yacht and have an instructor exclusively for your family or friends. Private courses give you more flexibility over pace, daily routine and destinations, and are ideal for couples, small groups or families who prefer not to share with other students.
For all RYA courses, everyone on board must be taking part in training; “passengers” are not accepted because the boat spends much of the time practising manoeuvres and navigation exercises.
Courses run from 28 March until the end of October each year and operate from Sunday to Sunday.
We recommend that students start a kitty at the beginning of the week. Students are responsible for providing food and water for the instructor during the course. We suggest provisioning for breakfast and a quick lunch aboard, then visiting a taverna in the evening, with one evening meal cooked aboard if desired. You are welcome to cook on board whenever you prefer.
What is not included: food / drink, transfers & flights.
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