American Sailing Association

About American Sailing Association

At American Sailing we believe that a great charter experience is truly the reward of a superior sailing education!

For 40 years, American Sailing has taught the highest quality, most comprehensive sailing courses in the world. With over half a million certified sailors worldwide, American Sailing offers Basic Keelboat Sailing through Offshore Passage Making at over 400 schools around the world.

Upon survey, a majority of ASA’s basic sailing students say that in a large part they are learning how to sail because they want the ability to charter/skipper a large, beautiful yacht in the Caribbean or Mediterranean. Of course, bareboat chartering leads to memories that last a lifetime, but from the perspective of an educational organization like ours, it is nothing less than a culmination of well-taught cruising skills that set you free to sail almost anywhere. There are tens of thousands of American Sailing crew who are enjoying the experience of sailing in the most wondrous places on earth in beautiful, brand new sailboats. Your first step to that big charter boat is taking the ASA 104 Bareboat Cruising Course at any one of our affiliate schools and obtaining the ASA 104 certification, and following that, the 114 Cruising Catamaran course. ASA schools deliver the most comprehensive Bareboat Cruising course available today, and our certifications are internationally recognized. 

These courses feature two of sailing’s best-selling books specifically written as texts for the ASA classes. The books’ illustrations, photography, and text bring together thoughts and images that make learning to cruise safely an attainable goal.

Cruising World says of Bareboat Cruising Made Easy “this 212-page book is so thorough and all-encompassing that it will prove to be a useful, if not required, reference for anyone leaving the dock for more than an overnight,” and of Cruising Catamarans Made Easy they say “this beautifully illustrated, highly informative textbook from the American Sailing Association will be welcome on any sailor’s shelf.”

When a student goes through the ASA system and ends up on a heaven-sent broad reach in a 15-knot tradewind, heading toward what most imagine as paradise, we have proudly done our job.

Please pick up an ASA textbook at asa.com and find an ASA school near you via asa.com/find-sailing-school.