Indian Ocean

1-9 of 13 results
  • Sailing in Thailand
    Thailand rewards sailors with dramatic limestone karsts, warm seas and a patchwork of island groups that feel made for passage planning. The Andaman Sea around Phuket offers protected cruising in Phang Nga Bay and open-water hops to Krabi, Phi Phi and the Similan and Surin archipelagos. On the Gulf of Thailand side, Koh Samui, Ang Thong, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao provide a distinct season, a different wind pattern and a relaxed, palm-fringed aesthetic. Most visitors plan their voyage around the two monsoons. In short, the Andaman coast is best from November to April (northeast monsoon), while the Gulf has attractive windows from February to September. Marinas, repair yards and charter bases are concentrated around Phuket and Pattaya, with simpler, mooring-based operations at Samui and Koh Chang. With simple formalities, clear water, marine parks and a strong charter scene, Thailand is an approachable and memorable place to sail.
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  • Sailing in Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay & Lan Ha
    Ha Long Bay and neighbouring Lan Ha form a maze of limestone karsts, jade channels and pocket anchorages unlike anywhere else in Asia. For experienced skippers, the lure is clear: protected waters that still feel adventurous, short hops between sheltered bays, and the chance to moor beneath thousand‑foot cliffs. The flip side is essential to understand. Charts can be imperfect around the pinnacles, visibility can collapse in winter mist, and traffic from tourist junks and fishing fleets is constant near the main sights. The most successful trips are planned with the monsoon in mind, a realistic assessment of pilotage demands, and a flexible itinerary that works with tides and local rules. This guide outlines the sailing areas within Ha Long and Lan Ha, month‑by‑month winds, tide and weather, key harbours and anchorages, and how chartering actually works on the ground. If you want reliable, practical advice before committing to a charter or a cruise north from Da Nang or Hainan, you will find it here.
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  • Comoros Islands Sailing Guide
    Fringed by coral and polished by the warm Agulhas waters, Comoros and neighbouring Mayotte offer wild, rewarding sailing that still feels off the beaten track. Expect a cinematic lagoon in Mayotte for protected cruising, inter-island hops across the Comoros archipelago for bluewater miles, and abundant marine life from nesting turtles to humpbacks. This guide sets out the winds, seasons, anchorages and entry formalities in a clinically structured way, so you can plan with confidence—whether you are chartering a catamaran in Mayotte’s lagoon or arriving on your own keel to explore Moroni, Mutsamudu and Mohéli’s marine park.
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  • Sailing in the Gulf of Thailand: Koh Samui, Koh Phangan & Koh Tao
    The Samui archipelago—centred on Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao—offers compact passages, reef-fringed anchorages and a genuine sense of island-hopping adventure. Conditions vary markedly with the monsoon, so success hinges on understanding when each coastline comes into its own. Expect mostly line-of-sight navigation by day, abundant snorkelling in clear water, and nights at anchor rather than in marinas. This guide sets out realistic itineraries, seasonal wind behaviour, where to anchor in each phase of the year, and what you need to know to charter safely and confidently.
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  • Mauritius & Réunion Sailing Guide
    Emerald lagoons, volcanic peaks and reliable trade winds make Mauritius and Réunion a striking, if underrated, sailing ground. Expect glassy-blue anchorages tucked behind coral reef, steep mountain backdrops, and passages that can be as gentle or as testing as you choose. The pair sit 120 nautical miles apart in the South-West Indian Ocean, so you can keep to lagoon-hopping day sails in Mauritius or build in a purposeful offshore hop to France’s Indian Ocean outpost of Réunion. The environment is rewarding but exacting. Reef passes demand daylight pilotage, the trades can pipe up briskly in the austral winter, and Southern Ocean swell transforms some entrances from inviting to impassable. With a sound plan, a shallow-draft catamaran and a keen eye on forecasts, you will be treated to snorkelling sanctuaries, kitesurf meccas, Creole cuisine ashore and genuinely unspoilt horizons.
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  • Sailing Thailand’s Andaman Sea: Phuket & the Similans
    Thailand’s Andaman coast delivers a rare blend of easy line-of-sight cruising, dependable winter trade winds and showpiece anchorages under sheer limestone towers. From the marina hub of Phuket, sailors can fan out into the glassy labyrinth of Phang Nga Bay, push south to the Phi Phi islands and Krabi’s sculpted headlands, or make a bluewater hop northwest to the Similan Islands when the national park opens. Waters are warm year-round, passages are short for most routes, and support ashore is unusually strong for Southeast Asia. This guide sets out the sailing areas, seasonal winds, where to berth and anchor, and how to charter (and what paperwork you’ll need) so you can plan with confidence.
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  • Sailing in Egypt’s Red Sea Riviera
    Egypt’s Red Sea Riviera delivers high-visibility waters, steady northerlies and reef-sheltered anchorages within reach of modern marinas. You will find concise passages from El Gouna and Hurghada to the Straits of Gubal, and south from Port Ghalib into a string of ‘marsa’ bays renowned for turtles and dolphins. Navigation is visual and rewarding, but it demands discipline: reefs are intricate, lights are sparse and dusk arrivals are best avoided. Choose your season wisely, brief your crew, and you will be rewarded with some of the clearest snorkelling on earth and long, confidence-building reaches between waypoints. This guide sets out the key sailing areas, expected winds and climate, entry points, anchorages and marinas, with practical notes on chartering and formalities so you can plan with precision and sail with assurance.
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  • Sailing in the Maldives
    The Maldives is a chain of low-lying coral atolls strung across the equator, offering luminous lagoons, reef-fringed anchorages and day-sailing between sandbanks. For the cruising sailor, this is a destination of contrasts: serene passages inside atoll lagoons and boisterous ocean swells in the channels; simple village jetties and high-end resort moorings. Understanding the monsoons, the reef passes and the formalities is key. Get those right and you will unlock a unique cruising ground of clear-water anchorages, reliable trade winds in season and world-class snorkelling with manta rays and whale sharks.
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  • Sailing in the Seychelles
    The Seychelles reward attentive sailors with a rare blend of granite peaks, coral lagoons and reliable trade winds. Distances are short in the Inner Islands, yet every leg feels different: reef-studded channels, jade anchorages under jungle slopes, and crystalline sand shelves that beg for a snorkel stop. This guide sets out where to go, when to sail, and how to manage the winds, permits and park moorings that define a smooth cruise here. If you are weighing up a charter, we also outline certifications, base locations and local rules so you can plan with confidence.
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