Mediterranean in Summer

[dugonggary]

My 37 ft Bavaria is in Faro, Portugal and I plan to sail into the Med late May (25 or thereabouts). I need to to get back to Faro by mid August. This is my first sail into the Med. so I am looking for a sensible (re: prevailing winds and distances) route for this period of time. Thoughts anyone?

[stevensuf]

Be prepared to motor a lot, or not get very far!

[jim_thomsen]

It's a great time to go, seeing Spain and the Spanish islands is great fun, then up to southern France, back to Corsica, then down the west coast of Italy and back to Portugal. We loved that loop and would do it again! If you want to see some photos of that route take a look at our website. We loved the Med!

[boatman61]

Your biggest challange will be getting through the Straits...
Another Med phenonoma is found in the islands...
the wind is always on the nose..

[edsailing]

Are you planning to coast hop from Faro or do it in one hit?

Make sure you don't get an Levanter (Easterly wind) when you cross the Bay of Cadiz as you head for the straits or through the straits themselves. It can blow at 30kts and kick up a nasty sea. Keep to the North side as you come past Tarifa and transit the straits

Gibraltar does not have much to commend it - even the fuel isn't cheap any more - I like Cartagena and any of the Balearics. From Faro to Cartagena is about 4 days non-stop.

Weather in the Med is very fickle and, as others have said, be prepared to motor.

Have a good trip

[jim_thomsen]

There is a great little book, I think called the Straits sailing handbook or something like that. It does a really good
job explaining the different currents. But as long as you wait for reasonable weather it will be a fun experience. If you want to break up the sail, stop in Almerimar. There are some great inland trips from there and it's a cheap but nice marina. We spent a winter there.

Jim

[dugonggary]

Yeah, I figured the straits to be my biggest challenge, the traffic, the current. I was thinking of breaking the journey to Gib. with a stop in Cadiz. Once in Gib, I was thinking about a crossing to Morocco (maybe by ferry) and then on to the Balearics-Sardinia-Tunisia-Malta-Sicili-Sardinia-Balearics-Gib-Faro.
Any thoughts on this plan?

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by dugonggary

Yeah, I figured the straits to be my biggest challenge, the traffic, the current. I was thinking of breaking the journey to Gib. with a stop in Cadiz. Once in Gib, I was thinking about a crossing to Morocco (maybe by ferry) and then on to the Balearics-Sardinia-Tunisia-Malta-Sicili-Sardinia-Balearics-Gib-Faro.
Any thoughts on this plan?

Lots of distance to see a few islands ! , what's wrong with France and Spain.

Dave

[dugonggary]

I'm still thinking and I may well go around Sardinia and Corsica and head back to Faro. Thanks for the input. You've really made me think again. Cruise slowly and see a lot seems to be the right moto.

[jim_thomsen]

I would visit Corsica and Sardinia....they are really interesting. We also sailed down the west coast of Italy, then back west. The Balearics are a really fun cruising area!

We also did the short sail from Gib across to Morocco (as an American we needed to leave the EU every 18 months to avoid paying GST) but its a great place to visit and the marina at smir was excellent, but that was in 2009 so I don't know if that changed.

[jim_thomsen]

For the Straits having AIS makes a big difference!

[Irish rambler]

Having started out with a similar idea I stormed along at first, then I got wise, SLOW DOWN ! what's the sense in whizzing along looking at a coastline. Take your time, go to the tourist offices in each town look out for local festivals and meet the people and have fun. Currently our boat is hunkered down for the winter and we're off ski-ing in Andorra, then a Mimosa festival,some trips to Spain for cheap goodies on a funicular railway etc Take it in small stages, remember to enjoy every day of your journey.
Good Luck.

[dugonggary]

Excellent, and as an Australian, I'll need to do the same. No, wait a minute, VAT has been paid. I'll go anyway. I've still got a few months until I get on the water again, but this conversation is getting in the right mood. Bloody ready to go, actually.

[muammer]

Skip all the countres till Greece and especially Turkey. Enjoy the real Med there and visit Italy, France, Spain on the way back, if you want so.

[alcheringa]

We're currently spending a few seasons cruising in the Med and spent the summer in the Balaerics. To avoid schengen visa issues (We're also Australian) and any possible dramas with matriculation tax which can be applicable if a boat spends more than 180 days within Spain in one year we decided to winter in Gibraltar.

We crossed from Ibiza to Calpe and then hopped along the Spanish Coast down to Gib and really enjoyed it. The Balaerics are a fantastic cruising area whic you will love. If you want some information about the stops we made on the coast and our summer around Mallorca and Ibiza have a look at our blog. www.dreamtimesail.blogspot.com/


This coming season we will be heading back along the coast as far as Barcelona and then going across to Corsica, Sardinia and the Italian coast.