All our courses are engaging, interactive and fun! Whether formal training or simply looking to brush up, we take online learning to the next level.
Sailing EssentialsFreeA free course great for anyone who spends time on the water.
Essential Navigation & SeamanshipRYA course for beginners. Learn charts, tides, pilotage, and core seamanship with simple practice tasks.
Day Skipper TheoryMost PopularRYA course for inshore skippers. Plan day passages using chartwork, tides, weather, and COLREGs.
Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® TheoryComing SoonRYA course for advanced navigation and passage planning, secondary ports, tidal streams, and offshore weather.
SRC (VHF) Marine Radio CourseRYA Short Range Certificate radio course. Study online, then take the practical exam with an RYA assessor.Are you looking for something nautical related? Our directory is an extensive list of courses and places associated with the marine industry. Hop over and search now.
We believe every day’s a school day on a boat! That’s why we built Nautical Know-How, dedicated to answering your questions. Even better, if it can’t answer your question immediately, you can request it, and we’ll add it to our knowledge base.
Nautical Terms & TerminologyUnderstanding the language of the marine world is like trying to learn a pirate’s secret code while juggling fish. Let us explain why a sheet isn’t for your bed, why “heave ho” doesn’t mean throw up (most of the time), and why “dead reckoning” is surprisingly less ominous than it sounds.
Why do we have tides?Have you ever wondered what causes the tides? Check out this video, which introduces the forces that create the tides we experience on Earth.
What causes our weather?A video introducing the drivers behind our weather, part of our RYA Day Skipper & RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® Offshore theory courses.
Buoyage FlashcardsFlashcards designed to help remember the buoys in the IALA system. If you want to learn them in detail, our module ‘Getting in and out of harbour‘, covers the IALA system and different buoys used.
Interactive Rule Book (COLREGs / IRPCS)Whether you’re a novice sailor or a seasoned skipper, we can help you navigate the IRPCS confidently and clearly. Our easy-to-use, easy-to-understand, plain English rule book with helpful interpretations of what each rule means.
The Salty Sea BlogFrom salty old sea dogs to fresh-faced deckhands, this blog is for anyone who finds peace, adventure, and a bit of mischief on the water. So hoist the main, set your course, and let’s sail into the stories, lessons, and musings that make life on the sea so irresistible.The third RYA Youth Sailing Scheme stage, developing independent sailing in light conditions. Training consolidates sailing in all directions, manoeuvres, stopping, basic safety and decision-making with less direct instructor input. The award is condition and craft specific; Stage 4 extends techniques and independence rather than removing the need for appropriate supervision.
The fourth RYA Youth Sailing Scheme stage, consolidating independent sailing and introducing more advanced techniques. It develops rigging, launch and recovery, efficient sailing, manoeuvres and practical seamanship across a broader range of situations. Stage 4 completes the core youth progression but does not represent competence in every boat or condition; advanced, racing and foiling modules…
An RYA practical module teaching the rigging and use of conventional or asymmetric spinnakers in a dinghy. It covers preparation, hoisting, trimming, gybing, dropping, crew coordination and recovery from common handling problems. Spinnaker gear can produce high loads and rapid sail movement, so the course builds on established sailing skills and uses techniques appropriate to…
An RYA practical foiling course introducing controlled take-off and the first short flights on a dinghy. Training develops equipment knowledge, safe launching, stance, power control, take-off, touchdown and recovery while managing separation from other water users. Suitable weather, equipment and prerequisite board or boat skills are necessary; the award does not imply sustained flight in…
An RYA practical foiling course developing longer, more controlled and efficient flight on a dinghy. It refines take-off, ride height, direction, speed, balance and recovery, with techniques adapted to the foil and craft. It follows first-flight competence and precedes the sustained-flight standard; progress remains dependent on conditions and equipment.
An RYA practical foiling course developing continuous, controlled flight and linked manoeuvres on a dinghy. Training consolidates take-off, stable ride height, course changes, touchdowns, recovery and decision-making over longer periods on foil. It is an advanced personal-performance award, not an instructor qualification, and remains specific to the discipline, equipment and conditions.
An RYA advanced practical module developing efficient boat handling, sail trim and performance in a dinghy. Training applies the five essentials, balance, trim, sail setting, centreboard or keel effects and tactical handling to improve speed and control across a range of conditions. It develops existing sailing ability rather than serving as an introduction. The exact…
An RYA practical module developing the planning and execution of a short day passage in a dinghy. It combines pilotage, weather, local hazards, equipment, crew preparation and decision-making with sailing away from the immediate training area. The certificate records course completion, not unrestricted command competence. Conditions, operating area and supervision remain subject to experience, centre…
The 1884 Washington conference that recommended Greenwich as the initial meridian for longitude and proposed a universal day. Delegates from 25 nations adopted resolutions recommending a single prime meridian, longitude counted in two directions up to 180 degrees, and a universal day beginning at mean midnight at Greenwich. The resolutions influenced international practice but did…
Mean solar time at the Greenwich meridian, now commonly used as the name of the UTC+0 civil time zone in the United Kingdom. Historically, GMT was an astronomical time standard derived from Earth’s rotation. Modern navigation and technical communications normally use Coordinated Universal Time, an atomic time scale maintained close to UT1. In everyday UK…
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
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