Price
£770
Nights
Five
Age range
16-25
Start port
Portsmouth
End port
Portsmouth
DofE
Yes
RYA
Start Yachting
Voyage code
CF795
Bursary
Available
Voyage highlights
Join us for an incredible six-day adventure along the stunning south coast!
Meet and team up with fellow adventurers as you step out of your comfort zone and dive into ocean exploration aboard our iconic 72ft Challenger yacht, in the vibrant waterfront city of Portsmouth.
No sailing experience? No worries! Everyone is welcome on this Voyage of Exploration—it’s the first stage of our exciting three-voyage journey focused on Exploration, Empowerment, and Leadership
Throughout the adventure you’ll have the opportunity to learn new skills whilst developing your confidence and self-esteem and building your social and communication skills.
You can also use the voyage to achieve the residential section of your Duke of Edinburgh’s (DofE) Gold Award and achieve your RYA Start Yachting certificate; the first step on your sailing qualifications journey.
You’ll sail through the Solent and then along the south coast of England. Be sure to have your camera to hand, as you may spot dolphins and seals along the way.
Likely stopovers include Cowes on the Isle of Wight, Poole and Weymouth, with plenty of time to explore ashore.
New skills. Increased confidence and self-esteem. New friendships.
Throughout the week, you’ll experience helming a yacht, sail handling, ropework and knot tying, as well as learning how to keep safe onboard. If conditions permit, you’ll also get to do some night sailing too.
We divide the crew into two teams (watches) – traditionally, known as Port and Starboard. In your watches, you’ll take it in turns to be involved in all aspects of sailing the Challenger from deck duties and maintenance to cooking and cleaning.
Each crew member will receive a personal assessment covering their leadership, teamwork and communication skills— a great addition to your CV.
You’ll hopefully get the chance to complete the RYA Start Yachting course while you’re on board.
The RYA Start Yachting syllabus includes:
- Sea terms and parts of a boat, rigging and sails
- Sail handling
- Ropework
- Personal safety equipment
- Man overboard recovery
- Clothing and emergency equipment
- ‘Rules of the road’ (at sea)
The cost of your RYA Start Yachting certificate is included in the price.
RYA logbooks are available for purchase on board at a cost of £6 (Skippers are only able to take cash for this).
All voyages of four nights or more qualify for the residential section of the DofE Gold award. Please let our Reservations Team know before sailing if you want to use the voyage for this.
The Skipper will determine the final route depending on weather and other variables.
Your Skipper can also recommend you for our volunteer crew training programme, if they feel you have the skills and attributes that we’re looking for. You can speak to your TSYT crew if this is something you’d be interested in and you’d like to find out more.
All meals on board are included.

