7 Adventure Sailing Vacations for Your Bucket List

7 Adventure Sailing Vacations for Your Bucket List

Adventure sailing holidays have the opportunity to take passengers to the most remote corners of the world and gain access to some of the most remote and magnificent landscapes the world has to offer.

Having recently returned from my first tall ship sailing adventure off the west coast of Scotland and with my interest in the high seas really piqued, I'm taking a look at some adventure sailing holidays I'd like to take part in.

1. East Greenland

Duration: 15 days, Isafjördur to Kulusuk Price: €4,950 ($5,800) More information: anotherworldadventures.com

alt="Adventure Sailing Holidays-Greenland">DreamtimeThe east coast of Greenland is one of the most remote places in the world

Along the 2,600 km (1,600 mile) stretch of coastline between Tasiilaq and Scoresby Sund on Greenland's east coast, barely 3,500 people eke out a living, making it one of the most remote places in the world. This is the kingdom of polar bears and narwhals.

On this trip, a 60-foot sailing yacht with just 12 passengers and two crew departs from Isafjördur in Iceland and takes approximately 32 hours to cross the Denmark Strait before heading south along the east coast of Greenland. If conditions are right, there are many opportunities to go ashore and explore Greenland's spectacular wilderness.

2. South Georgia, Falklands and Antarctic Voyage

Duration: 22-39 days, Falkland Islands to Ushuaia Price: From €7,490 ($8,800) More information: barkeuropa.com

alt="Adventure Sailing Holidays Europe">Bark EuropeEuropa offers a range of Antarctic sailing expeditions

The 100-year-old iconic tall ship Europa offers a range of Antarctic adventure sailing holidays. My favorite is the 34-day expedition from the Falkland Islands to Ushuaia in Argentina via South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula in the Weddell Sea. These iconic destinations commemorate the epic voyages of discovery of the likes of Shackleton, Scott and Amundsen.

Traveling over 2,400 nautical miles (2,500 km), the ship visits some of the most inhospitable yet beautiful open oceans. Expect to see icebergs, albatrosses and penguins, the latter in their thousands. Finally return to civilization by crossing the infamous Drake Passage.

3. Cruise the Scottish Hebrides

Duration: 7 days, Oban to ObanPrice: From £600 ($900)More information: ladyofavenel.com

alt=“Tall Ship Sailing Adventure Scotland 2″>Atlas & BootsThe Lady of Avenel is an ideal base for exploring Scotland

Scotland's west coast may not be as remote as some destinations on this list, but it offers comparable wild beauty, albeit with the option of a cozy pub and a hearty meal at the end of the day. Fresh from my first sailing adventure in the Inner Hebrides, I can highly recommend a week surrounded by some of Scotland's most beautiful scenery.

The Lady of Avenel is a 102ft brigantine square-rigged yacht that operates a range of tall ship adventure sailing holidays across the UK. Options include sea kayaking, paddleboarding, wild swimming, mountain hiking and whiskey tours, as well as a variety of passage cruises.

4. Sailing to Cuba

Duration: 8 days, Havana to Havana Price: €1,279 ($1,500) More information: gadventures.com

alt="adventure sailing vacation-adventure-cuba">G-AdventureVisiting Cuba by boat allows you to avoid the crowds

Adventure sailing holidays don't have to take place between hostile glacial seas. The Caribbean offers some of the most beautiful waters in the world and it's an exciting time to visit Cuba. Recently the country has experienced a massive increase in tourism, making sailing an ideal way to see the country while escaping the crowds.

Explore the Canarreos Archipelago south of Cuba's main island on a small and personal 82-foot catamaran. In addition to snorkeling, rafting and kayaking, passengers can also explore the country on hiking and cycling trips.

5. Spitsbergen (Svalbard) sailing and photography cruise

Duration: 7 days, Longyearbyen to Longyearbyen Price: €2,700 ($3,200) More information: classic-sailing.co.uk

alt="Adventure Sailing Holidays-Spitsbergen">DreamtimeThe Antigua has been sailing to Spitsbergen every summer since 2008

The Dutch-owned tall ship Antigua is a Svalbard specialist and has been sailing to the high Arctic archipelago every summer since 2008. The ship makes trips throughout the summer to the Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, located about halfway between continental Norway and the North Pole.

However, I'm most interested in the trip in September, which focuses on photography. Nights are darker at this time of year and better for viewing and photographing the Northern Lights. The crew includes photography experts as well as wildlife specialists who help passengers spot polar bears, walruses, whales - both at sea and on land - and the wealth of birdlife on offer.

6. New Zealand to the Falkland Islands

Duration: 44 days, Auckland to Port StanlyPrice: £5,500 ($7,300)*More information: jst.org.uk

alt="adventure-sailing-vacation-stubborn">Patrick Wernhardt; CC BY-SA 2.0The Tenacious is the largest operating wooden ship in the world

A square-rigged ocean passage aboard the Tenacious, the largest operating wooden-hulled ship in the world. From New Zealand, the ship follows the westerly winds of the Roaring Forties, which are found in the Southern Hemisphere between the 40th and 50th parallels.

After 4,000 miles (6,500 km) on the open sea, the ship rounds Cape Horn and heads for the Falkland Islands. With a 3,000 mile non-stop passage behind them - from 50 degrees south in the Pacific - the entire crew has met the criteria to become members of the International Association of Cape Horners (assuming the voyage was completed under sail without the use of the engine). Apparently more people have climbed Mount Everest than joined this exclusive club.

*Subsidized price through fundraising. The full price is £8,800 ($11,600).

7. Circumnavigation of Picton Castle

Duration: 425 days, Lunenburg to Lunenburg Price: $48,000 More information: classic-sailing.co.uk

alt="adventure sailing vacation-picton-castle">Classic sailingPicton Castle has completed six trips around the world

The three-masted tall ship Picton Castle has completed six circumnavigations. In March 2018 she begins her seventh. The voyage begins in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada and will sail west toward sunset for most of the journey. From Canada it heads south into the lower latitudes and rounds Cape Horn into the Pacific Ocean.

From the Pacific Ocean it goes through the Torres Strait between Australia and Papua New Guinea into the Indian Ocean. It circumnavigates southern Africa and the Cape of Good Hope, crosses the South Atlantic, approaches the equator again, the Caribbean and then north along the North American coast and returns to Lunenburg.

Passengers are apprentice sailors (trainees) and are expected to participate in sail handling, sailing small boats and handling them under oars, helmsmanship, rigging, chart work, rope work and even sail making and boat building.

Trainees can register for one or more of the four stages of the journey. They last 88 to 135 days and cost $15,000 each way. Alternatively, the entire 425-day trip is available for $48,000.

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Mission statement: Dreamstime

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