Ground

Bottom-up or top-down? After several practical courses with skippers trained elsewhere, I saw the same pilotage problems: plans too long to read or too thin to protect the boat. Here’s how to choose a format, avoid left/right flips, and build a cockpit-ready plan that works by day and at night.

Your family Med sailing holiday is closer than you think. Pick your route: • Fast-track: 8–10 weeks • Balanced: 3–6 months • Steady: 6–12 months Get the right tickets early. Day Skipper, ICC, and VHF SRC. Croatia checks VHF hard, don’t risk a ruined check-in. Start in a flotilla or hire a skipper for day one or two, then build to bareboat confidence. This guide lays out the steps, the timelines, and what “ready” really looks like.