The 2026 Sailing Plan

2026 Sailing Plan

A challenging and exciting season afloat

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Departure Date: 26-Jun-26

Arrival Date: 05-Jul-26

Remaining Places Available: 12

Departure Location: Aarhus, Central Denmark, Denmark

Arrival location: Harlingen, Friesland, Netherlands

Cost of trip: £1,200 per person All bookings are subject to a 6% booking fee

Bursaries & Sponsorships:

Apply for SPONSORSHIP

TALL SHIPS RACES: LEG 1 RACE 1: AAURHUS, DENMARK TO HARLINGEN

**Call or email to book**

26th June - 5th July 2026

Price: £1,200 per person

Join Excelsior in Aarhus on the east coast of Denmark's central area on the stretch of sea called Kattegat or, Cat's Gate for the first race of 2026's Tall Ships festival. Aarhus has a history going back to the Viking era and is now a vibrant city, the second largest after Copenhagen. While the Aarhus area is rich in history, it is also a modern forward-looking city with museums, parks, a zoo, cafes and restaurants serving excellent local and international cuisine. We know Denmark for hygge, but there is much more to it, and the importance they place on family and society make it a very safe place to visit. Transport links in Denmark are very good; there are flights from London to Aarhus, or alternatively trains run from Copenhagen. The local and national buses are also good with excellent connections and are safe for solo travellers.

This is a 8-day/9-night voyage on board Excelsior and will take you up and around the top of the Jutland Peninsula and down the eastern reaches of the North Sea along the Friesian Islands and between them into Harlingen in The Netherlands. Both Aarhus and Harlingen will be hosting a festival celebrating not just the tall ships, but also their culture with special events, local food, music and the opportunity to visit the other ships taking part. Some have open days when you can go on board for a tour, make friends with their crew and find out for yourself how other ships are sailed. You’ll also take part in the Crew Parade and attend the Crew Party.

Eligible for DofE Gold Residential Award

You will be sent a kit list after signing up, but we don’t expect you to buy expensive sailing kit. We have wet weather gear on board, and a life jacket for everyone. Please get in touch if you have any questions.

Please remember that many European ports will need some biometric information – fingerprints and a photo - from you upon arrival, so make sure you calculate extra time for that when making your travel arrangements and leave enough time to get to the boat. You should plan to embark Excelsior at 5pm on the first day of the trip and disembark by 10am on the final day.

Due to racing requirements, this is open to 15-25 year olds only

About your destination: Why sail with Excelsior for Tall Ships Races? As a smaller vessel with 17 crew (5 responsible crew and 12 trainees), you form a tight-knit community from day 1. You work together to achieve all elements of the voyage, from cooking to sail handling to helming to navigating. Everyone gets to experience everything, and you form a close bond with everyone in the crew. The professional team is friendly and accessible, and highly experienced in handling their ship. Since Excelsior is still authentically rigged and sailed as she was when she was built in 1921, she's a dream for traditional boat geeks (and wannabe geeks) who really want an experience of historic sailing. You get a close-to-the-water small boat sailing experience, whilst still feeling safely cradled in a large strong sea-going voyager. You don't need any sailing experience to join the Tall Ships Races, just enthusiasm and a thirst for adventure.

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Harbouring Potential

'Harbouring Potential' is our exciting maritime industries recruitment community development project. We aim to bring local young and unemployed people together with the principle marine employers in the area, to raise awareness and reinvigorate enthusiasm for the employment opportunities all these companies represent. We recognise that locally there is both a high unemployment rate and a high staff shortage in the maritime sector. We are working with our marine industry partners to offer young people in the region the opportunity to voyage aboard Excelsior and learn about the varied roles open to them.

Since her commissioning by HRH the Princess Royal in 1988, Excelsior has touched over 11,000 trainees, many of whom have returned decades later to reminisce about the impact the boat has had on them. Inspired by their introduction to life at sea, a number of her former trainees and volunteers have gone on to forge careers in the marine industry (both in sail training and the commercial sector).

Through this initiative, we take young and unemployed people out to sea, demonstrating how the maritime industry is vast and diverse and can offer a range of job opportunities for people with different skill sets and education levels. Participants experience first-hand life on board, inspired by fun, hard work and stories of work at sea. This is an important step in understanding whether this career is right for you.

In collaboration with Njord Offshore, North Star Shipping, Safety Boat Services, Caudwell Marine, Associated British Ports and HM Coastguard, a pilot project was launched in September 2023.

"As an employer of over 150 seafarers, Njord Offshore was honoured to receive an invitation to The Excelsior Trust's 'Harbouring Potential' event. Hearing the infectious enthusiasm of all the participants as they recounted their experiences was truly inspiring. We have every confidence that this event will not only remain a cherished and unforgettable memory for them all but may also mark the beginning of a more extended journey into the maritime world where future jobs await as the offshore renewable sector continues to grow."

Tom Mehew, Managing Director, Njord Offshore

Many Lowestoft residents are descended from former fishermen and have a direct connection to the town’s past major industry (many left unemployed since its decline). With our project, we aim to use Lowestoft’s own piece of working history (one of the last remnents of the former fishing industry) to inspire a sense of pride in our own maritime heritage, and get people excited about following in the footsteps of past generations to consider a career at sea.