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 Beaufort force 11 wind description, corresponding to mean wind speeds of 56–63 knots. Exceptionally high waves may hide small and medium-sized vessels from view, while foam and spray greatly reduce visibility. Such conditions are extremely hazardous and are rarely encountered by small craft operating prudently. The Beaufort force is based on wind speed and…
A Beaufort force 12 wind, with a mean speed of 64 knots or more. Hurricane force is the highest numbered force on the Beaufort scale and describes extremely destructive wind and exceptional sea conditions. The term can be used for wind outside a tropical cyclone and therefore does not by itself mean that a meteorological…
A five-category scale classifying hurricanes by their maximum sustained surface wind speed. Category 1 begins at 64 knots and Category 5 at 137 knots on the one-minute sustained-wind convention used by the United States National Hurricane Center. The categories indicate potential wind damage but do not measure a cyclone’s physical size or overall destructive potential….
The amount of dissolved salts in seawater or other water. Ocean salinity varies with evaporation, precipitation, river input, ice formation and melting, and mixing between water masses. It influences seawater density, buoyancy, sound speed, freezing point and large-scale circulation. Modern oceanography commonly reports practical salinity as a dimensionless value derived from conductivity, while absolute salinity…
A buoy, platform or other installation that gathers and often transmits oceanographic or meteorological observations.
Breaking wave crests whose entrained air and foam appear white against the surrounding water. Also called whitecaps, they form when waves become steep enough to break under wind, opposing current, shallow-water or crossing-sea effects. Their increasing frequency is one visual cue used in empirical wind and sea-state descriptions. White horses do not correspond to one…
Waves or turbulent water generated by a vessel’s hull or propulsion system. Hull-generated wash forms part of the wake, while propeller and thruster wash can create strong local jets even when the vessel has little speed over the ground. Shallow or confined water can amplify wave height, bank interaction and seabed disturbance. Wash can endanger…
The disturbed flow and wave pattern left behind a vessel or other body moving through water. A vessel’s wake can include divergent and transverse waves, propeller wash, turbulence and a region of changed current. Its size and persistence depend on speed, displacement, hull form, depth, channel width and propulsion rather than speed alone. Wake can…
A narrow channel crossing or winding through a shoal, sandbank or area of shallow water. A swashway is formed and altered by tidal streams and wave action and may provide a shorter passage for suitable shallow-draught craft. Depth, width and alignment can change after storms or as banks migrate. Use requires current local and chart…
The Beaufort Force 10 wind category, corresponding to sustained winds of 48 to 55 knots. The Met Office marine description is ‘Storm’. In a fully developed open sea it is associated with very high waves, long overhanging crests, extensive foam and spray and reduced visibility, but actual waves depend on fetch, duration, depth and pre-existing…
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...
Our 1% commitment
My Sailing Course contributes 1% of every Stripe payment to help promising carbon removal technologies move from the lab into the field.
Stripe Climate commitments fund the development and purchase of carbon removal. They are not carbon offsets or credits attached to an individual order.
Welcome to My Sailing Course. Where's this adventure going to take you?
Ahoy there, Visiting Sailor! Ask us anything—whether you need help choosing a course, have a sailing question, or want to speak to the crew.
Scan with your phone to open the My Sailing Course WhatsApp service. You can review or edit the prepared message before sending it.
Your conversation stays with My Sailing Course so our Support team can respond securely.
Enter at least two characters to explore.
Welcome back aboard. Sign in with the email address connected to your My Sailing Course account.
Your account details are encrypted in transit and your password is never displayed or stored by this form. By continuing, you agree to our Terms & Conditions and acknowledge our Privacy Policy.
Join free to save your favourites, unlock bonus learning resources and keep everything nautical close at hand.
Join the My Sailing Course community with one secure account for your courses, profile and support.
We've successfully created your account. Hold station for a few moments and you will be returned to the page.
Already have an account? Sign in
Enter your account email and we will send you a secure reset link.
This reset link is invalid or has expired.
Your new password is saved securely. We are confirming it across My Sailing Course before you sign in.
Please keep this window open. It will change to the sign-in form as soon as every service confirms the update.
