By Peter Cave
For just two weeks each year, my wife and I enjoy the sort of lifestyle usually reserved for the very wealthy, or very privileged. By day, we sail leisurely across the crystal-clear waters of the Aegean Sea in our own 32-foot yacht. Nights might find us either sitting up on deck sipping our gin & tonics under a dark sky ablaze with stars, or ashore enjoying the convivial atmosphere in any one of a dozen friendly tavernas – eating superb seafood, freshly killed and grilled, Mediterranean-style and served up with the exuberance and enthusiasm that only Greek waiters seem able to muster.
Not bad for a retired couple, existing solely on our state pensions and modest savings.
The secret is Flotilla Sailing. These unique adventure holidays are operated by only a handful of specialised companies, and don’t appear in the usual package holiday brochures – but they are attracting an ever-growing band of ardent devotees of all ages, interests and backgrounds, the only common factors binding them being a love of sailing and a taste for a holiday experience which is truly like no other.
The concept is simple enough. Couples, families or groups charter their own yacht to suit their needs (usually ranging between 32ft to 45ft, berthing from two up to eight people) but sail as part of an organised and well supervised flotilla of up to twelve craft, accompanied by a lead boat and an experienced, dedicated support crew with specialised knowledge of local waters and geography, boat maintenance and a wealth of helpful and friendly advice on anything from the best food to the coldest beer in any given port. Every boat in the flotilla is in constant radio contact with the support boat, so that if anything goes wrong (and things do sometimes go wrong – that’s part of the adventure) help is on its way immediately. The lead boat sees the last flotilla craft safely out of harbour on each day’s voyage, and is already at the destination port when they arrive, to assist with safe navigation into harbour, mooring up etc.
Yet within this itinerary, there is a surprising degree of flexibility – and this is the true beauty of the flotilla experience. Once out of harbour, each boat can choose its own itinerary. Sail or motor directly to the destination then go ashore to explore somewhere new for the rest of the day? Drop anchor in some virtually deserted bay to have lunch, swim, take the dinghy ashore to sunbathe on the beach or visit a friendly little bar? Or simply enjoy a full day’s sailing before heading home to choose how to spend the evening – be it an intimate dinner for two or a more social gathering with other members of the flotilla.
This social aspect of flotilla sailing is another of its unique qualities as a holiday experience, for there’s always a warm, comfortable feeling of being part of a close knit fraternity, if not an actual family. The support crew organise some group gatherings – from beach barbecues to formal sit-down meals – but they’re purely voluntary. Should you wish to stay aboard your boat and cook your own meal in its small but well equipped galley, you’re free to do so. As, too, you can cultivate the company of people you like and avoid those you don’t – without any fear of embarrassment or social stigma.
You would, however, miss much of the entertainment, for just like golfers and fishermen, sailors love nothing more than to tell stories about their experiences when in like-minded company. But with throats lubricated by several glasses of Greek wine and imaginations fired by a final glass of ouzo or raki, minor wind squalls blow into raging tempests, dragging anchors become a life-threatening experience, a scrape against a harbour wall assumes the impact of a head-on collision and sighting a cluster of rocks a hundred metres off the port bow is recounted as a near-death experience. You, of course, just nod sympathetically and pretend to believe every word – because you have yet to tell your story of the slip on deck which nearly cast you into a shark-infested ocean.
So, which flotilla operator to go with?
There are a handful of companies specialising in this type of adventure holiday, but for the past two seasons, we’ve chosen to travel with Suffolk-based Setsail Holidays, one of the smaller operators in the field, but who promise a more personal, friendly service which ‘goes that extra mile’ – and this claim has certainly been borne out by our personal experience.
Setsail currently operate flotillas and skippered charter in Greece, Croatia and Turkey, as well as offering bareboat charter in Majorca, The Canaries and The British Virgin Islands. For those completely lacking in previous sailing experience, they also provide ‘learn to sail’ weeks in Turkey under the supervision of a qualified RYA instructor.
Last year’s two trips took us around the beautiful Sporades group of Greek islands and the stunning Lycian Coast of Turkey. This year? Who knows – but perhaps Bob Dylan had the right idea when he penned his classic anthem. ‘The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind’.
