Sail Away Sailing School, LLC takes pride in excellent customer service, conducting classes, cruises and coaching in Minnesota, the Great Lakes, and Caribbean.

Lead instructor is Captain Joan GiImore, who holds a master’s degree in adult learning styles. She has conducted research and presents seminars on how adults learn. She has been an Instructor Evaluator for ASA since 2000, training Small Boat through Advanced Coastal Cruising instructors in the U.S., Japan and Caribbean. The former ASA Education Coordinator now serves on three non-profit sailing boards and writes articles for Sailing and other national magazines.

Most of our instructors are USCG licensed captains with at least 10 years of sailing experience. All have sailed in both American and international waters, and have served as boat delivery captains.

We offer private groups and families many options for a tailor-made course on Minnesota lakes, Lake Pepin, Florida coast, the Great Lakes and Caribbean.

Our students are frequent, loyal, return customers.

Our Basic Keelboat course is taught in four sessions, with an emphasis on thorough understanding and confidence.

Our popular Docking Endorsement course is two full days of docking, including backing into a slip and single-handed techniques.

Our instructors get rave reviews from their students for the enjoyment students derive from the on-water courses, and for the delight of learning life-enhancing skills.

The majority of our students purchase a boat of their own after taking courses with us. Our instructors provide resources for more sailing experience after the course is finished by referring students to a number of local sailing clubs, often helping them locate the right boat to buy, or offering crew positions for local up to trans-Atlantic deliveries.