Welcome to our first in the Ultimate Guide to Sailing series.
People often ask us how best to get into sailing, so we have prepared this series to make it as user-friendly as possible. Our aim is to cover most major cities in the countries from which most of our students live: the US, Canada, Australia/NZ, UK. We are starting with the US.
Below gives a summary of the guide for Austin. For a trial period, we have made the guide free to download. Feel free to download the entire guide in PDF, or just read the summary below.
Whether you are from Austin or new to the city, we outline the various ways to get your first sailing experience. Joining a sailing club (more on that below) or sitting a beginner course locally is a good idea, whether you want to go on a sailing vacation or simply sail at home. We have five sailing schools listed that are local to the Austin area: Austin Sailing Adventures, SailATX, Outbound Sailing, Landfall Sailing and perhaps the original in the area, Texas Sailing.
Image thanks Austin Sailing Adventures (link above)
If you want to make a decision on how to choose, you can check this post to give you some general tips on choosing a school that suits you best.
Joining a sailing club can be a great way not to just learn how to sail, but to mix with a great bunch of outdoorsy, active people for racing and social events. Although some sailing clubs are elitist, most are simply people wishing to have fun on the water.
Image thanks Texas Sailing (incorporated in 1965!!)
Don't be put off by age difference: if you are substantially younger than the average age of the club, talk to the Commodore and find out if s/he is interested in helping you attract younger people.
One sailing club we recommend is the Austin Yacht Club.
If you intend to get out on the water, and have some friends with similar plans willing to co-invest, you may be surprised at how affordable it is to own a small sailing boat. For instance, it is not unusual to find a well-kept 28' sailing boat for less than $4,000.
The freedom to explore afforded by your own boat is fantastic. When looking for boats, Craigstlist and Google are worth searching, even if you are tire-kicking at this stage.
Lake Travis offers more than 60 miles of cruising. A sunset sail on the lake is one of the surprising pleasures to be experienced around Austin. There are several little towns on the lake, some allowing you to dock up alongside and visit their local restaurants. You can anchor in State Parks and easily find yourself on a three-day adventure in different parts of the lake.
Groups such as MeetUp are a good way to find out who is heading out sailing, as well as Facebook groups (just search Facebook Groups for Austin Sailing).
Image thanks SailATX (link provided above)
If you would like to know more information, click below to download the Ultimate Guide to Sailing.
If you have any comments or suggestions, we would love to hear them! We have probably inadvertently omitted some businesses that are well regarded and would do well to be in the guide.
Either put your recommendations/additions in the comments below or email us at sail@sailingvirgins.com and we will incorporate them into future editions.