Spinnaker Sailing has continuously been in business under the same ownership since 1980. Located in one of the Best Marinas on the West Coast, South Beach Harbor, this location is perfect as the breeze is fresh, the water is flat and it’s only 3 minutes from the boats berth to our teaching grounds…no long channels. The waters south of the Bay Bridge provide protection from the gusty breezes of the central Bay yet still offers winds in the 15-25 knot wind range, perfect for learning to sail on our performance instructional fleet.

South Beach is located downtown San Francisco with plenty of easy parking and is centrally located in the famous San Francisco SOMA neighborhood. Dozens of restaurants, parks and venues offer some fun ‘apres sailing’ options.

Our instructors are US Coast Guard Masters with dozens of years teaching, sailing and racing professionally. Many of our staff sail very actively on one or more racing programs throughout the West Coast. We offer a complete curriculum with a friendly and easy-going attitude. Sailing is huge fun…and so should learning TO sail!

We teach our students how to TEACH sailing. We are aware that upon graduation, they will be ambassadors of sailing. They won’t be taking seasoned sailors out with them…they’ll be taking family and friends, many of whom have never stepped on a boat before. We give our students the confidence and capability to safely sail on San Francisco Bay’s winds and currents with their loved ones, showing them the ropes and enjoying a fun adventure together.

We offer the youngest instructional fleet on the West Coast AND the smallest class size in the USA….just two students in our Basic Keelboat Class. Our venerable Andrew’s 21’s offer a huge cockpit and a versatile sailplan that allows the boat to sail in the Bay’s blustery breezes with aplomb but equally important in the light zephyrs that are the norm during the morning hours. This allows the newly certified skipper to hone their skills with their crew in lighter winds when everything is easier but the boat still sails FAST! Our Basic Coastal Cruising fleet of our incredible J/80’s are the perfect boat to sail in the Bay’s 20+ knot westerlies. On the windy days they’ll even get up on the ’step/ planing to speeds well over 10 knots!

We offer a unique take on the Bareboat Charter class (ASA 104 Intermediate Coastal Cruising) as we teach one day on a cruising boat then the next day on a thoroughbred race boat giving the students a breadth of experience and the ability to sail both types of vessel (and qualifies them to charter each type of boat).

Spinnaker Sailing is unique in our approach to boat ownership. We offer our Timeshare Sailing Program which has flat rates for 7 uses per month starting at only $599 mo (less than the cost of a berth). The boats are perfectly maintained and a delight to sail. There’s a maximum of 7 users per boat who treat he like she was their own. It’s easy as showing up, go for a sail on a well prepared, fully -serviced yacht, return to a prime slip, hose her off, bus your trash and your done. We take care of all the nuances including regular detail cleaning, servicing the holding, fuel and water tanks and a full service regimen for the engine and all mechanical systems. Truly the best alternative to boat ownership!

Call Spinnaker Sailing – San Francisco to setup your lessons for the best first day of the rest of your life!