Family Sailing Holidays

As we approach the summer season, we thought it would be fun to keep you posted with the changes and improvements we’ve made to our flotillas for 2019.

We have previously visited the Dalmatian Islands and The Lefkas Flotilla.

This time around, we’re taking a trip to France. So grab your internet berets and let’s go!

The South of France remains one of the most chic areas on the planet, so we haven’t deviated too far from last year. We liked the blend of small towns, larger towns and national parks. The Chic and the quaint.

We’re in our third season in France and we are extra confident that we can name the best spots in our sailing range, particularly in regards to restaurants.

The French Cuisine will never fail us. We’ve had a wonderful time devouring — err, researching, the best eateries in the land.

We’ve corrected our absolute cardinal sin! We’re ashamed to admit at Seafarer HQ that we ran a flotilla in the South of France which didn’t include Cheese or Wine.

We can only apologise for this grave error…

From Bandol we are now arranging excursions to a couple of great wineries (depending on the route you choose) offering both full-day and half-day tours which include a tour, multiple tastings and a beautiful French meal…

For those who don’t love wine, but do still want to explore on land, we can point you in the right direction of bike hire at the cycle-friendly towns and national parks we visit. Namely, Porquerolles, part of Îles d’Hyères. An absolutely charming place. It is more than just a national park! It is home to various organic farms, restaurants, stunning beaches as well as an array of biking and hiking routes.

For history buffs, there is a great path where you can do a tour of all the sixteenth century forts. Sainte-Agathe fort, for example, houses an exhibition tracing the history of Porquerolles and actions of the National Park of Port-Cros.
If you like a picturesque walk along the coastline, we simply have to mention Sentier du Littoral. We thinks its beauty speaks for itself.

In addition to the stunning views and sea breeze, there is also the chance to take a Scuba diving trip. If this is something that interests you, let the lead crew know and they will arrange everything for you!

À bientôt et Bon Voyage!

New at the Beach Club! We’ve decided to add a Club Board option at Nikiana Beach Club this summer.

In previous years, we’ve been simply Bed & Breakfast as we felt it didn’t “lock you in” to spending every mealtime at the Club like some places might. But due to popular demand and the fact a large percentage of guests were happy to grab a bite in the taverna for just about every meal anyway, we thought we’d let you pre-book your meals!

The price is £89 per person for adults or £69 for children 13 or under.  This includes the following;

• Monday Evening Social Dinner
• Wednesday Night Greek Night
• Saturday Farewell Dinner
• 2 x 2 Course Evening Meals from a set menu*
• 3 x 1 Course Lunch from a set menu*

*These meals can be taken any day but Sunday and will have quite a number of options for Meat, Fish, Vegetarian and Vegan. We will always cater for dietary requirements but please let us know in advance as some products can be tricky to source in Greece. Club Board Menus are available behind the bar.

If you would rather keep it flexible, our B & B option is, of course, available and our traditional Greek taverna will have a great a la carte menu this summer.

As we approach the summer season, we thought it would be fun to keep you posted with the changes and improvements we’ve made to our flotillas for 2019.
Last time, we visited the Dalmatian Islands:

This time around, we’re going to talk you through the best Lefkas has to offer.

Given that we had a rather good 4.4/5 star rating last year on Feefo for our Lefkas Flotilla, we think we had it just about right. With 85% 4 or 5 Star ratings

We’ve been in the Ionian a long time and we know all the bays, tavernas, nooks, crannies, swim stops and photo stops. But as perfectionists, we keep striving!

Since we’re fairly confident we’ve got the sailing down to a tee, our main priority this year has been adding to the land-based activities.

We know that not every member of your group is necessarily an avid sailor, so we want to give you the opportunity to sell it to them! We all know the drill, be it round the dinner table or on the group chat with incessant notifications, the holiday negotiations can be fraught. “But you’re the only real sailor, what will we do..?”

We’re arming you with the answers. Aside from you telling them how great yacht life is, we can offer:

• Scuba Diving options
• Bike Hire and cycling trips around the islands
• A dedicated kids rep with fun activities during the school hols
• The option to join our Beach Club for Watersports (or for sunbathing and cocktails!)

We’re also going greener! We always tried to be clean and green as we are sailors and like to respect our surroundings, but this year we’ve decided to raise our game and be more eco-friendly. We’re eliminating plastic bags and plastic water bottles wherever we can. We’re using only eco-friendly soaps and washing up liquids. We’re adding catchers to fuel breather valves on our yachts to stop diesel dropping in the water during refuelling and much more!

Our yachts have also received attention with another 2-Cabin Sun Odyssey and a new Bavaria 46 joining the fleet.
We’ve also added solar panels to our fleet, which with our superior levels of instrumentation and amenities means we continue to have the best-equipped flotilla fleet in the Ionian.

We’ve kept the the scenery, the culture and the same great sailing. The hidden bays and Seafarer’s brand of flotilla that you’ve always loved. We’ve kept our flotillas smaller to make sure you get the same service and attention that makes our flotillas stand out.

So we listened, we learned, we tweaked. We know a lot of you felt that Croatia had become more expensive than you’d been accustomed to over the years and that the marinas were a bit excessive…

Because of this, we’ve changed our routes, meaning there’ll be fewer marinas, more village or town quays and mooring buoys, hence fewer fees ! With 2 national parks and a wealth of history and culture this area has it all. During the school holidays, we will add a kid’s co-ordinator, organising fun & games for all.  The fleet has been refreshed and had some TLC, plus plenty of 2018 & 2019 yachts to choose from.

We’ve also marked this as a family-friendly route, with an extra member of staff to run kids’ activities during the school holiday season.

Want to stay in Croatia a little longer after the flotilla? Well we’ve partnered up with some local hotels and villas so we can make sure that whether you want to continue to explore Croatia or just want to relax in the sun, that we can do it for you.

We’ve put together a blog post so you can read in more detail what the Dalmatian Islands have to offer.:

Here at Seafarer we having been running flotillas in the beautiful Dalmatian Islands for well over a decade now, and we have, in our opinion, the knowledge and experience to take you to the best spots that this part of the Adriatic offers.

Either of our flotilla routes starts from our exclusive base – which is located in the sheltered approaches to the Krka River and is ideally and centrally located to explore the best of the Dalmatian Coast. Unlike a busy marina, our base is quiet, with most yachts looking out across the river – this provides a peaceful and quite private start to your holiday. A 10 minute stroll along the river leads to the small village of Zaton, which has all the amenities you need for the first and last night of your trip, with a supermarket, outdoor market, several restaurants and bars and a couple of boutiques selling local delicacies and souvenirs. One of our favourite restaurants is located in Zaton, and we make use of their hospitality on the last night of the flotilla with a farewell meal, showcasing the local speciality, Peka, which is cooked under the hot coals in an outdoor fire.

Once the experienced local team have finished the briefings, its time to head out sailing, and depending upon the week, heading either north to the Kornati national park, or South towards Trogir and Split. One or other of the routes may appeal particularly if you are looking for either culture and history or alternatively national parks and the unspoilt Croatia, although of course the perfect choice would be to combine both routes in a two week holiday to experience the best of both.

The Kornati Route

Our route heading north focuses on the Kornati National Park, often referred to as a “nautical paradise”. The park comprises 89 islands, islets and reefs and provides some excellent sailing and some beautiful spots from which to swim, relax and enjoy the unspoilt surroundings. Weather permitting, we avoid marinas entirely on this route, with a mixture of town quays and restaurant quays – very different from the regular image of busy marinas that pepper the coast and islands. We ease into the week in Zlarin, an island without cars giving a peaceful first night away from our base. Other stops on the route include Zminjak, a beautiful bay with a single restaurant – mooring is free, and the restaurant is excellent, with the bay providing the opportunity to enjoy an evening or morning swim in pristine waters. Later in the week we enter the national park, and moor in Smokvica, a beautiful little secluded bay on this islet. Our regular program finishes with a free sail, with plenty of options, from staying in the National Park to exploring further up river from our base to Skradin, and the iconic Krka waterfalls and national park.

The Trogir Route

From the rustic unspoilt charm of the Kornati route, our southern stops showcases the cultural and historic side of this beautiful coastline. The first of our favourites is Primosten, a small town dating back to the 16th century, originally strategically situated on an island – connected to the mainland by a moveable bridge that has since been replaced with an embankment, turning it into a peninsula. The walled old town is stunning, and the views from the church at the top of the hill are well worth the climb through the cobbled streets. Rogoznica is another favourite, and the town quay showcases the typical waterfront feel of many towns along the coast. Trogir is perhaps the biggest draw, and this UNESCO protected world heritage site has often been described as a “mini Dubrovnik” with a maze of cobbled streets, full of bars and restaurants, enclosed within the imposing city walls.

For the sailors

The winds in the area can be challenging at times, but the protected nature of the waters means that sailing is virtually guaranteed. The temperatures are idyllic during the summer months, with August high in the mid-thirties, although the breezes tend to keep the temperature manageable. Our experienced flotilla crew and local team know the area very well and ensure that any changes to the route are measured to keep everyone safe and enjoying the best that the Adriatic has to offer.

Getting there

There are plenty of flights from the UK, from regional airports as well as the usual international hubs, we can arrange the whole package for you, including your flights and transfers. Benefit from Atol protection when booking your package with us and look forward to a relaxing and care-free flotilla holiday with us on the Dalamtian coast.

For more information on our flotilla, please click here