The 6 most essential things to pack for a sailing trip!

Maybe you just booked your first sailing trip and you wonder "what should I take with me?". Well, let us help you with this dilemma 😊

First of all, we are fans of traveling with just a handy backpack, it's easier and cheaper if you travel by plane. You can fit all of your essentials and then simply fold the backpack when you’re on the boat. Mind you, it is next to impossible to store a large suitcase in the boat compartments so if you’ll decide to take more luggage with you, please choose a soft material bag instead of a suitcase.

Alright, without further ado, here are the must-have items to pack:

Sleeping bag

On beetle, we sleep in the sleeping bag and this solution is one of the most popular on adventure sailing trips. It’s a simple, hygienic, and very comfortable option, on colder nights (especially if you want to lie down in the cockpit and look at the stars).

The temperature range of your sleeping bag don’t need to be lower than 10 °C, so if your bag has comfort at at least 10°C it will be perfect.

However, if you don't have a sleeping bag, no problem, we can use one of our spare sleeping bags. Please inform us in advance about this issue and bring your own personal sleeping bag liner - it’s a thin material that you put inside a sleeping bag.

Two pairs of comfort shoes (at least one for trekking and night shifts)

Comfortable shoes with great grip are very important on sailboats. While sailing it's much easier to move around the boat, especially when waves are bigger. Also, they protect your toes from injuries while working on the deck. While sailing at night, even in warmer parts of the globe, sometimes it gets cold, and warm, comfortable shoes are a very good option for such moments.

Sunglasses

This is important! When the sun reflects from the water it has more devastating possibilities than on land. That's why it’s very important to have good, UV-protected sunglasses (check yours, because even the most expensive brands don't make all of their sunglasses UV protected)

Comfy clothes

We are all familiar with this astonishing pictures of sailors in full storm cloatchs, taking down sailis, or people in blue polo or in shining white shirt steering the boat and just beeing awesome… But behind camera they all are sitting in big hoodies and track suits <3

A good book (or tv series, or podcast)

Sometimes sailing can be boring, and I will not argue with that. But that's why is so important to take something with you to enjoy the time of the journey. Or maybe just read a chapter or two in peace when we anchor near the beautiful beach.

But now some technicalities, reading while sailing can be hard due to the sea sickness. If you can do it, good for you. But most the people in the first 48 hours struggle with that. So at that moment tv series is a better option, and an even safer way is to downland some interesting podcasts! (Also podcasts are good for night shifts, you can still observe the horizon and check navigation devices, without exposing yourself to bright light).

Waterproof clothes

There is a high probability you will get wet, if not from rain, maybe from waves and splashes. So waterproof clothes are really important if you want to stay dry and comfy. You don’t need the necessary storm jacket and trousers. I mean, after our trip if you decide “ok, I want to do this more often” then sure, go for it. But at first, it is not the most important thing.

Optional:

Skateboard

Yup, on beetle there are more than welcome! For us it is something we bring on every sailing trip! We love exploring new places on our longboard or penny skateboard, it’s easy to carry around and still allows you to make longer distances in a shorter time. Also, if we land in some massive marina, it’s the best way to move around.

If you need some lessons we can show you 101 longboarding too <3

Stay safe!