RYA Day Skipper “Skills Weekend”

Price: from £325 (Finance now available)

Location: Starts from our base at Premier Gosport Marina, and visits different ports around the Solent and adjacent waters.

Duration: 2 days

The Day Skipper Skills Weekend Training Course aims to help students who have not yet passed their RYA Day Skipper practical training course who have a small action plan to achieve the qualification. It’s also a great refresher for qualified sailors looking to hone and polish skills after a break from sailing, or a pre-season refresher. We also find it’s very popular with sailors about to embark on a charter holiday abroad.

Take a look at our live course calendar for dates for the Day Skipper Skills Weekend Practical training course!

How to Book

Once you’ve found your ideal dates, you can secure your place with just a 30% deposit. We understand life can throw up the occasional choppy waters, so instalment payments are available to spread the payment out before your course—just get in touch to arrange what works best for you. If you have any questions or want to chat through the course before booking, don’t hesitate to contact Tom for friendly, expert advice on the phone.

Booking details

Training Course Information

Joining Instructions: Please click here for training course joining instructions

What is included in the training course cost:

  • Yacht hire
  • RYA Qualified Instructor
  • RYA training course materials and certificates
  • Breakfast, lunches, snacks and one evening meal
  • Tea, coffee & soft drinks
  • Accommodation on board
  • Diesel
  • Cooking gas
  • Wet weather kit hire (not footwear)
  • Hire of a Baltic automatic life jacket

We can accommodate most dietary requirements, such as vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian or gluten free. Just let us know when you fill out the booking form.

Recommended Reading: RYA Day Skipper Handbook Sail (G71), RYA Yacht Sailing Techniques (G94), RYA Yachtmaster scheme and syllabus (G158)

Training Course Prerequisites: RYA Competent Crew (At least 5 days on board a yacht sailing) & Day Skipper Theory (or knowledge to the level of) plus you must have completed over 60% of your RYA Day Skipper practical training course.

Minimum Age: 16+

Holiday Insurance: We would advise ALL our customers to ensure they have suitable holiday insurance in-place. Yachtsman’s insurance is available from a variety of souces like Topsail Insurance and can cover things like cancellations and personal effects cover.

This training course will enable students who have started their RYA Day Skipper practical training course, but may be needing a bit more close tuition in order to complete it (i.e. the student has an action plan to complete the training course). We aim to do this over two days, but this is subject to us having seen an action plan for each student prior to them booking the training course.

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Two people working on a sailboat in a marina, surrounded by other boats on a sunny day, tying ropes and wearing life vests.
A person smiles on a sailboat, surrounded by equipment and other boats at a marina. "Clipper" sign visible in the background.

Who is the training course for:

The RYA Day Skipper Practical “Skills Weekend” training course is designed for anyone who has started yet not completed their RYA Day Skipper practical training course, or just feels that they need to brush-up on the skills before undertaking the RYA Coastal Skipper or Yachtmaster exam.

We aim this training course at those who just have a few items on an Action Plan where a couple of days with one of our skilled and attentive instructors may be enough to gain the RYA Day Skipper practical training course. We will however need to see an Action Plan prior to the student booking the training course. There is also no guarantee the student will pass, however we will do our best to get you where you need to be.

Successful completion qualifies students for their International Certificate of Competence (ICC), allowing them to confidently plan and complete passages in familiar waters and charter yachts in the UK and abroad.

We recommend that this training course is for those who have already undertaken the RYA Day Skipper practical training course, yet have a few things to achieve in order to successfully pass, or for anyone wanting to improve on existing skills.

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What we cover on the training course:

The training course covers preparation for sea and the safety briefing, deck work, navigation (both traditional and electronic), pilotage into and out of ports and harbours, meteorology, rules of the road, maintenance and repair work, engines, victualing, emergency situations and actions, yacht handling under power and under sail, passage making, night sailing back to a port of safe refuge, and of course being the skipper of a vessel.

Please be aware that RYA Day Skipper Training Courses completed in the Solent and other tidal waters are demanding. This training course is held in high regard with yacht charter companies worldwide due to the challenging waters, winds, tides and busy waterways you will encounter.

Training courses run in the non-tidal waters of the Mediterranean are generally not accepted by the UK yacht charter industry. Our Day Skipper training course also qualifies you for the International Certificate of Competence (ICC).

Our RYA Day Skipper training courses have 4 to 5 students. We aim it at a mixture of Competent Crew and trainee Day Skipper students per boat. All Students are able to live and stay on board the yacht for the duration of the training course. In some instances sharing a cabin may be required.

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own boat Training
A person steering a sailboat on the ocean, wearing sunglasses and a life jacket, with a clear sky and distant ships visible.

Training course formats & details:

Training courses run in a choice of three formats:

  • 2 consecutive days: (Saturday & Sunday)

During your RYA Day Skipper (Tidal) Practical “Skills Weekend” training course you will cover practical navigation, pilotage, boat handling, seamanship, skippering techniques, customs and sailing etiquette and the all-important berthing in marinas. You will also potentially cover rafting alongside another vessel, which is common during high season.

The training course includes free accommodation aboard our immaculate, well-maintained yachts with breakfast, lunch and snacks and three evening meals onboard with one evening meal taken ashore at the students cost. We also include all fuel and safety kit such as lifejackets and waterproofs. All Students are able to live and stay on board the yacht for the duration of the training course. 

Fancy going VIP and having your own exclusive private training course for you and your friends or family? You can book the whole yacht just for your own exclusive course from only £325 per person. Enjoy the training course in style, with up to five persons on the boat being taught by one of our friendly, experienced Yachtmaster Instructors! What a way to start your sailing adventure!

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Our Chief Instructor says this about the RYA Day Skipper Practical “Skills Weekend” Training Course:

This training course is great for anyone who hasn’t quite gotten to the required level in order to achieve their RYA Day Skipper Practical qualification. It’s also a great way for any qualified sailor to brush up on existing skills or refresh what they’ve already got in order to prepare for the next stage in the RYA training scheme, like with the RYA Coastal Skipper or Yachtmaster qualifications.

We will need to see an Action Plan or discuss the exact requirements of every student prior to the training course commencing, as two days may not be enough to get you where you want to be. So please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us!

A person steering a sailboat on clear blue water, wearing sunglasses and a life jacket, with a sunny sky overhead.

Booking details

Please select your preferred start date below.

Related courses

RYA Coastal Skipper Practical

RYA Coastal Skipper Practical: Master Solent Navigation in 5 Days

The RYA Coastal Skipper Practical training course is designed for sailors looking to enhance their coastal navigation and passage planning skills at Premier Gosport Marina. As the next progressive step from the RYA Day Skipper qualification, this training course delivers advanced sailing techniques and navigational expertise for executing longer passages. With over 30 years of Solent-based experience, Commodore Yachting equips you with the confidence to tackle essential Channel crossings. View our live course calendar for RYA Coastal Skipper Practical dates at Gosport Marina.

This Course in Summer?

You may notice that the RYA Coastal Skipper Practical isn’t often scheduled during June, July, or August. This is quite intentional. One of the key elements of this advanced course is meaningful night sailing experience. The long daylight hours of summer simply don’t allow us to provide enough genuine night time navigation for every student. To ensure you gain real-world skills—like plotting courses in darkness and handling a yacht after sunset—we schedule these courses more at times of year when darkness reliably falls early enough for proper night passages.

Every aspect of the course is designed for focused, in-depth learning. We limit numbers to just four students per yacht, all learning at the same advanced level. This lets our RYA instructors tailor tuition to the needs of budding Coastal Skippers. Please note: students must be at least 17 years old, and anyone under 18 will need a parent or guardian on board. But don’t worry we do run them but we have smaller numbers in the summer so we can get those night hours in!

Ready to navigate with confidence, day or night? Here’s what’s included in your training:

Learn more

RYA/MCA Yachtmaster™ Coastal/Offshore Preparation Week

The RYA Yachtmaster™ Coastal/Offshore qualification is the next progression step from being a qualified RYA Day/Coastal skipper, and is one of the most useful, credible, and accepted professional qualifications in Yachting.

Our Yachtmaster training & preparation week is 5 full days of preparation followed by up to 2 days for the exam.

Take a look at our live course calendar for dates for the RYA Yachtmaster™ Coastal/Offshore Training & Preparation week!

How to Reserve Your Place

Booking your spot on the RYA Yachtmaster™ Coastal/Offshore Preparation Week is straightforward. Simply select your preferred start date from the options below and follow the link to secure your place. Once you’ve made your choice, you’ll be guided through an easy booking process—no need to pick up the phone unless you’d like a chat! If you have any questions along the way or would like to discuss the course in more detail, our team is always happy to help.

Learn more

RYA VHF/SRC Radio

The RYA SRC/VHF Radio Course is minimum qualification required by law to operate the VHF or VHF Digital Selective Calling (DSC) equipment on any British flagged vessel carrying a radio. This is also for anyone who wants to operate a marine radio at sea, weather it is on a Kayak or paddle board, to operating a RIB, Jet ski or a Yacht. This course is one of them you need to stay safe on the water.

 

 

 

Take a look at our live course calendar for dates for the RYA SRC/VHF Radio course!

Learn more

Customer reviews

Fun couple of days with the Commodore team doing Day Skipper drills ahead of a YM exam. Very useful and great instruction from Ali.

ChrisC Avatar ChrisC
4th August 2025

I have used Commodore Yachting for the following courses and would never go anywhere else for training or experience building: Sail - Competent Crew Sail - Day Skipper Sail - Mariner Handling Power - PB2 Power - Own boat tuition Motor Yacht Power - Own boat tuition RIB All the instructors have been great and I have come away with bags of confidence. The Chief Instructor Tom is extremely knowledgable and will guide you as to what steps to take in achieving your goals.

Robert Till Avatar Robert Till
30th July 2025

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