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 collective German term for statutory recreational-craft operator licences, principally the inland and sea variants. Sportbootführerschein Binnen applies in its defined inland scope, while Sportbootführerschein See applies on designated maritime waterways. Requirements depend on propulsion, engine output, waterway, age and current German law. It is not one universal licence for every sailing and motor vessel….
A certificate demonstrating pleasure-craft competence in specified categories for use where an authority or operator recognises it. The ICC implements the framework of UNECE Resolution No. 40 through participating national administrations. Its endorsements may cover coastal or inland waters and particular craft or propulsion categories, subject to the issuing country’s rules. It is not a…
A United States sailing-education organisation that develops course standards and accredits affiliated schools and instructors. ASA offers a progression of practical and knowledge-based certifications delivered through its network, covering introductory keelboat sailing, cruising, navigation and specialist subjects. Its certificates are private training credentials rather than US federal operator licences. Acceptance by a charter company, insurer,…
The United Kingdom’s national governing body for recreational and competitive boating. The RYA represents sailing, motor cruising, powerboating, windsurfing, personal watercraft, inland waterways and related activities, and operates training, certification, coaching and performance programmes through recognised centres. It is not the general statutory regulator for UK shipping; responsibilities also sit with government, the Maritime and…
A United States Navy scientific institution providing astronomical, Earth-orientation and precise-time data. USNO maintains time standards and produces astronomical observations, reference data and publications supporting navigation, positioning, defence and science. It jointly produces the Nautical Almanac with HM Nautical Almanac Office. Its services provide reference information rather than a complete onboard navigation method; users must…
The UK government organisation responsible for hydrographic data and ADMIRALTY maritime navigation products. UKHO compiles and supplies official charts, electronic navigational charts, sailing directions, tide products, notices and other information for safe navigation, drawing on surveys and data from many authorities. It is an executive agency of the Ministry of Defence and the UK’s national…
The UK office that produces and supplies authoritative astronomical data for navigation, astronomy and timekeeping. HMNAO is part of the UK Hydrographic Office and calculates ephemerides and related data used in publications including the Nautical Almanac, produced jointly with the United States Naval Observatory. Its data supports celestial navigation and other applications, but users must…
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…
A conventional boundary near 180° longitude across which the civil calendar date changes by one day. It bends around countries and island groups so political territories can share a chosen date, and it is not defined by a single universal treaty line. Crossing westward normally advances the date by one day; crossing eastward sets it…
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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