Sailing Fuerteventura

fuerteventura
Sailing Fuerteventura

Sailing around the Canary Islands offers the enthusiast a new world to explore. With an offshore wind blowing almost every day, the extensive coastline of Fuerteventura provides a variety of water conditions for whatever level of sailing you enjoy.

Keen sailors with time on their hands can visit as many of the Canary Islands as they choose although others may prefer to stick with the half a dozen or so marinas and harbours around Fuerteventura or Los Lobos or Lanzarote.

The Canary Island have average temperatures that rarely fall below 18C in the winter and 24C in the summer and the prevailing north east winds provide ideal all year round sailing in moderate waters.

The clear blue Atlantic waters surrounding Fuerteventura are home to a large number of whales, dolphins, loggerhead turtles, flying fish and porpoises.

A regular force 3-5 wind and a constant water temperature of between 19-25C makes for perfect ocean sailing.

The main leisure marinas on Fuerteventura are at Corralejo, Caleta de Fuste, Gran Tarajal and Jandia. There are plans to build a huge new leisure marina with hotels, shops and restaurants - aimed at being the best in the Canary islands - at El Jablito in the north of the island. The project, called Puertoventura, is aimed at building a marina better than Marina Rubicon in Lanzarote. Learn more in our Fuerteventura news archives.

Yacht charter is possible in Jandia. In addition, there are sailing schools offering catamaran lessons on Top Cat catamarans in Tarajalejo and Las Playitas. An absolute beginner can learn how to sail a catamaran in 12 hours. Catamaran charters are also available.

A two hour, two person taster course costs 60 Euros. A 12 hour VDWS basic course lasting 12 hours costs 190 Euros.

A Catcourse for dinghy sailors lasting four hours with a minimum of two people costs 90 Euros and a VDWS sailing certificate 30 Euros.

sailing catamaran fuerteventura

If you wish to charter or hire, there are two classes of catamaran available - F2 (15ft) and K1 and K2 (17-18ft).

There are regular Vela Latina competitions in the summer months.

In the Canary Islands la vela latina or Latin sailing is as important as regattas. How exactly this sailing sport started is not known but there is evidence the original natives of the islands used wood to build their boats. The relationship between the boat and the sail is disproportionate with the boat about 6.5m long and the sail between 12-13.5m. Because of this the boat cannot be kept afloat without the crew moving around on-board ballast allowing them to steer.

For a different slant on sailing, pop along to the los archipencos event in Puerto del Rosario if you are here when it is on.

Prices for the F2 catamaran are 28 Euros for one hour, 44 Euros for two hours, 110 Euros for a five hours card and 190 Euros for a ten hour card.

Charter prices for the K1 and K2 class are 38 Euros for one hour, 60 Euros for two hours, 150 Euros for a five hours card and 240 Euros for a ten hour card.

There are several larger catamarans that offer day boat trips, usually with the promise of seeing dolphins or whale watching, in Caleta de Fuste and Corralejo.