Making dreams come true

The Laura Dekker World Sailing Foundation has been established to provide programs for young people to develop life skills like team work, self-confidence, responsibility, creativity, and leadership. The challenge of expeditions in foreign lands and long-distance sailing aboard our sturdy training vessel provide a uniquely powerful and extremely effective environment for the personal development of children and teenagers that come from all sorts of backgrounds.

The concept in short:

Up to twelve teens, divided into different age groups, can participate in the programs which Laura is running. You will travel to many areas in which Laura was also during her solo world voyage: From Spain or Portugal through the English Channel to Norway and then across the Shetlands and Orkney Islands to the Netherlands. This Europe route is for younger children who stay on board for only one or two weeks.

Teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 can also take part in an Atlantic crossing: from Portugal they travel across the Atlantic Ocean, past the Canaries, Cape Verde through the Caribbean to the Azores and back to southern Europe.

While sailing the focus shall lay primarily on building life skills and character that can be learned through sailing. Participants will be involved in all aspects of the trip - preparation, cooking, maintenance, navigation, watches, sails, provisioning etc. Through the trip we wish to achieve some core life skills, like team work, responsibility, self-confidence, determination, discipline, become aware of our environment & experience the pleasure of simplicity (how less can be more).

Of course, you will also learn about life at sea (i.e. sail handling, ropes, navigation (celestial and modern), understanding the weather, maintenance (rope work, woodwork, engine...).

However our main focus is building confidence, determination, team work and responsibility as these are very important things in life.