RYA/MCA Yachtmaster
Prep & Exam
Step Up to Professional Skipper
This intensive 23‑day training is designed for experienced sailors preparing for the RYA/MCA Yachtmaster practical exam. Under the experienced of our Yachtmaster Instructors you’ll refine existing skills and practise advanced techniques to Yachtmaster standard—with clear objectives, focused debriefs and Athens‑based continuity from classroom to prep to exam.
Fast Track Yachtmaster:
Seven-days theory phase, online from home or in Athens
Complete the theory phase online from your own home or attend in person at our Alimos classroom.
Six days of tidal sailing in the UK
Train aboard a yacht from Port Solent, with accommodation provided on board.
Ten days on-board/shorebased preparation in Athens
Complete the remaining supporting courses and your final practical training in Alimos, with accommodation provided on board during the seven-day Yachtmaster preparation and examination.
What Sets Our Yachtmaster Training Apart
- Specialist radar simulation based on RYA Training Chart 4
- Practical standing-rigging cutting and liferaft exercises in a heated open-air swimming pool
- Focused coaching and structured debriefs from our full-time RYA Yachtmaster Instructors
Entry requirements
- 2,500 miles logged
- 5 passages over 60 miles
- Experience in tidal waters — available in‑house
- RYA First Aid (within 3 years) — available in‑house
- RYA SRC (VHF) or above — available in‑house
- RYA Sea Survival — available in‑house
- RYA Professional Practices & Responsibilities (PPR) — available in‑house
Outcomes & certification
- Sail & work worldwide with a commercially endorsed RYA/MCA Yachtmaster Coastal/Offshore CoC
- Hire‑ready for superyachts and professional charter roles
- Stand out on your CV with a leadership‑level qualification in seamanship, pilotage and decision‑making
Included
- Fuel
- End‑of‑week yacht cleaning
Not Included
- RYA exam fee: £200-231(payable to the RYA)
- SRC licence fee: £76(payable to the RYA)
- Onboard kitty for sea phases
- Travel to/from Alimos Marina (e.g., public bus from ATH airport)
-Seaworthy Blue Water Cruisers
Modern navigation equipment
Full batten mainsail
-Comfortable and Spacious Layout
Private cabins with large storage compartments
Hot water interior showers
Spacious saloon
-Extra Amenities
2 heads (WC)
Refrigerator
Costa K. Tzaneris is an RYA/MCA Yachtmaster Ocean Instructor, Radar Instructor, and World Sailing Offshore Personal Survival Instructor.
He has taught Yachtmaster preparation for over five years, with professional seasons across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Germany, France and the Caribbean—including skippering a transatlantic regatta by sextant.
Teaching in the UK’s tidal waters since 2018, he brings examiner‑level expectations into structured drills, pilotage routines and decision‑making frameworks that translate directly to Mediterranean realities.
His coaching is fair and data‑driven, and—having worked closely with five examiners in recent years—he designs preparation that mirrors the way candidates are actually assessed, which is why many seasoned Greek professional skippers choose to complete their Yachtmaster training under his lead.
Costa personally leads every intake, capping groups at four candidates to ensure genuine coaching attention and precise daily debriefs. Training runs in English, with clear support on English nautical terminology for Greek speakers thanks to his fluency in Greek.
A hallmark of his approach is treating every passage and manoeuvre as vectors and risk assessments—the mindset commercial skippers need.
As Greece’s only RYA Sea Survival Instructor, he can also integrate the survival training Yachtmaster candidates require without forcing the costlier STCW route, keeping the pathway focused, professional and exam‑ready in Alimos.
The Yachtmaster syllabus covers the following:
- Initial skills assessment, personal goals, exam brief and what examiners look for.
- Full safety brief; MOB under power and sail (quick‑stop, reach–tack–reach, pickup methods).
- Close‑quarters handling under power: ahead/astern control, prop walk, turning in a box, springing on/off, berth approaches (incl. stern‑to/Med‑moor).
- Sail handling & trim: reefs in/out under way, heavy‑weather sails, heave‑to, controlled gybes.
- Day pilotage: transits, leading lines, clearing bearings, sectored approaches, abort points.
- Night pilotage: lights recognition, sectors/arcs, approach plans and contingencies.
- Passage planning end‑to‑end: tidal heights/streams (incl. secondary ports), under‑keel clearance, CTS, ETAs, margins.
- Electronic navigation: GNSS/plotter, AIS, alarms, route creation, waypoint discipline.
- Radar pilotage & collision avoidance: ranges, VRM/EBL, parallel indexing, restricted‑vis drills.
- Paper/chartwork refresh: DR/EP, running fixes, three‑point fixes, cockpit plots; compass error/deviation checks.
- COLREGs in practice: responsibilities, stand‑on/give‑way, sound/shape signals, rule‑based decisions under pressure.
- Meteorology for decisions: synoptic interpretation, local effects, fog processes, gale warnings; go/no‑go updates.
- Skippering & leadership: tasking, briefings, crew resource management, risk assessment mindset.
- Emergency management: distress/urgency, DSC/MAYDAY/PAN‑PAN, towing, damage control, flooding, fire response.
- Engine & systems checks: pre‑start routine, common faults (fuel/air/belts), alternator/charging basics.
- Heavy‑weather techniques: downwind control, gybe prevention, warps/drogue (theory), lee‑shore strategy.
- Examiner‑style orals and timed chartwork/problem‑solving sets.
- Rotating mock passages as skipper with stop–start critique and debriefs mapped to exam tasks.
- Final readiness review and personal action plan; paperwork/logbook check for exam day.
Your Yachtmaster prerequisites — all in‑house
Finish the courses you need before your Yachtmaster prep & exam—in one place.
