Captain Phil’s Story
After sailing in Seattle a few times and falling in love with it, I discovered quickly that it was too cold for me! In 2002 my wife and I moved to Southwest Florida to pursue the dream of living in the sunshine and sailing in the warmth all year round. I became an ASA Certified Sailing Instructor, and when the opportunity came to buy the school from Captain Tim Benson in 2011 we jumped on it!
About Our School
All of our Sailing Instructors are Captains licensed with the United States Coast Guard (USCG). Each one has been a sailor for many years, and they have more than 75 years of combined experience. They are all American Sailing Association (ASA) certified instructors, and love being out on the water teaching the art of sailing.
Our school is easily located in Punta Gorda, in the beautiful Charlotte Harbor on the Gulf of Mexico. Sailing classes are taught aboard our Catalina 310 ‘Eliora’, no classrooms! To maximize your time at the helm each class is limited in size to a max of 4 pupils. The courses are usually offered over a weekend, but we can accommodate your schedule if you need weekday classes.
In addition to the beginner and intermediate courses, we also offer the harder-to-find course Advanced Coastal Cruising (ASA106), as well as private lessons on our boat or yours.
Captained Sailing Charters
We also offer sailing charters – enjoy a Sunset, half day, full day, 2 days or a long weekend exploring Charlotte Harbor & the Gulf Islands. All our charters include a Captain, and you are free to take the helm and do as much or as little of the sailing as you wish.
