Antigua Sailing Week: a portrait of the Caribbean's great regatta week

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Antigua Sailing Week is one of the Caribbean's best-known regatta weeks and has been a fixed date in the Lesser Antilles sailing calendar since 1968. Every year in late April, owners, charter crews and cruising sailors gather around English Harbour in the south of Antigua (as of October 2026).

What is Antigua Sailing Week?

Antigua Sailing Week is a multi-day sailing event off Antigua, where regatta and cruising in company come together. The organiser is Caribbean Sailing Events, a non-profit organisation under the umbrella of the sailing association of Antigua and Barbuda.

The week is run from Nelson's Dockyard in English Harbour. The historic British naval dockyard is now part of a national park and belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage site "Antigua Naval Dockyard". Right next door lies Falmouth Harbour, the second large bay in the south of the island. Together, both harbours form the centre of yachting on Antigua. You can find more about berths and facilities there in the harbour guide Falmouth and English Harbour.

The event is deliberately open in format. It is aimed at owners who normally race and want to explore the island once in company, at charter crews with sporting ambition and at cruising sailors who live aboard their boats. Newcomers and families are expressly welcome.

When did Antigua Sailing Week start?

Antigua Sailing Week was first sailed in June 1968. The idea arose in 1967 amongst a circle of friends, including several hoteliers. They wanted to extend the winter season and keep guests on the island longer.

The programme of the first edition was varied: a regatta with yachts up to 135 feet, a race from Guadeloupe to English Harbour, motorboat racing, deep-sea fishing and races for local fishermen's working boats. It concluded with a costume ball at Nelson's Dockyard. Later the date moved to April. The hotels gradually withdrew, the fishing boat races were dropped, and dinghy regattas are now held separately.

In its strongest years more than 250 yachts entered. Lately the fleet has settled at around 100 boats per year.

When does Antigua Sailing Week take place?

Antigua Sailing Week takes place every year in the second half of April. According to the organiser's schedule, it usually begins on a Wednesday and ends the following Sunday.

The organiser publishes the dates several years in advance. Current dates are on the official site under "Dates – Next 5 Years".

The week traditionally forms the conclusion of Antigua's regatta month of April. In the weeks beforehand come the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta and the Antigua Racing Cup (more on that below).

How does a regatta week run?

Today Antigua Sailing Week is a round-island tour with one daily leg per day. The start is in each case near the last anchorage, the finish lies off the next bay.

The rough schedule looks like this:

1. Day one: registration, skippers' briefing and opening party in English Harbour.
2. Days two to four: one leg each day along a different section of coast. Overnight anchorages or moorings include, in the first edition of the new format, Nonsuch Bay on the east coast, Maiden Island/Little Jumby in the north and Ffryes Beach in the west.
3. Final day: return to English Harbour and the prize-giving in the evening at Nelson's Dockyard.

Each destination offers a shore programme, including beach games, snorkelling tours, dinghy competitions and evening beach parties.

Important for planning: because the fleet anchors off a beach every night, the format is particularly suited to boats with berths for the whole crew. Anyone sailing on a pure racing yacht without accommodation needs either a support vessel or lodging ashore each night. Some anchorages are not suitable for boats drawing more than 10 feet (just over 3 metres).

How was the week organised before?

Until 2025, the Antigua Sailing Week ran as a traditional seven-day regatta week. Racing took place on five days off the south coast, with a lay day and beach party halfway through. There was also a separate race round the island. These elements are no longer part of the new format, but the prize-givings and celebrations in English Harbour remain.

What classes are there at the Antigua Sailing Week?

Scoring is under the CSA system, the rating formula of the Caribbean Sailing Association, the governing body for Caribbean regattas. It levels out differences between boat types using time correction factors.

Three divisions are offered:

• CSA Simplified Monohull for single-hulled yachts,
• CSA Simplified Multihull for catamarans and trimarans,
• CSA Simplified Bareboat for charter yachts without a professional skipper.

"Simplified" is a streamlined version of CSA measurement. Monohulls and multihulls require a valid rating certificate for the current year. Charter yachts sail under the separate CSA Bareboat rules.

Each crew decides how seriously to take it. Those wanting to race sail the legs as proper races with marks and racing rules. Those preferring a gentler pace sail in rally mode: the crew chooses its own start and finish times within the daily windows, and normal collision regulations apply. Spinnakers are permitted but not compulsory. One rule applies to everyone: at least two people must be on board at all times. Racing boats must also meet the organiser's minimum safety requirements.

How can you take part in the Antigua Sailing Week?

You can take part in three ways: with your own boat, with a chartered yacht, or as crew on a registered boat. Entry is online via the registration portal linked from sailingweek.com ; on-site registration at the regatta office on the first day is also compulsory.

With your own boat

Owners register using the online form and apply for the CSA certificate in good time. The entry fee is calculated per foot of boat length. Early registration and payment attract a lower rate. Exact amounts and deadlines are given in the Notice of Race.

Anyone arriving from another island must clear in on arrival in Antigua. This is possible at English Harbour and Jolly Harbour, among other places. You can pre-register online via the eSeaClear or SailClear systems, which speeds up clearance. In the English Harbour and Falmouth Harbour areas, additional national park fees apply.

With a charter yacht

The bareboat class is for crews hiring a charter yacht without a skipper locally and sailing with the fleet. On the official site, the organiser lists charter companies under "Charter Options" offering charter yachts, racing yachts with skipper or individual berths. It expressly advises checking providers independently before booking. Because charter boats are in demand during regatta week, it pays to enquire early.

If you want to sail as crew

Without your own boat, you can get into the week by taking a free berth on a registered yacht. The official site links to a crew board where skippers and crew can connect. Some charter companies also offer individual places. For a general overview of how crewing at regattas works and what to look out for, see our page Join a regatta sailing trip.

What do spectators experience at the Antigua Sailing Week?

From shore, you'll see the fleet mainly on the first sailing day as it sets out, and on the final day as it returns to English Harbour. On the other days it sails along the east, north and west coasts.

For the departure and return, the hills above English Harbour are ideal: Shirley Heights, the old fortifications of Fort Berkley and Fort Charlotte, and the Middle Ground Trail from Nelson's Dockyard to Pigeon Point. On the other days, the shore programme at the staging posts is worthwhile—it is expressly open to local boats and spectators too. The opening party and prize-giving at Nelson's Dockyard are the two occasions when participants and visitors come together most closely.

What other regattas are there around Sailing Week in Antigua?

The Antigua Sailing Week is not the only regatta in spring. Two separate events take place shortly before it.

The Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta is a gathering of classic yachts in Nelson's Dockyard and usually takes place in the week before the Sailing Week. It originated in 1988, when the classic yacht class split from the Sailing Week. Alongside the racing, there is a beauty contest (Concours d'Élégance), in which the condition and originality of the boats are judged.

The Antigua Racing Cup is aimed at pure racing boats and experienced crews. It takes place a few weeks before the Sailing Week, in March or early April depending on the year, with course racing off the southeast coast and scoring under CSA and IRC. There are no bareboat or club classes. Those with a suitable boat can sail both events.

Practical notes for planning

Late April is a good time for Antigua: the hurricane season in the Atlantic does not begin until 1 June. The trade winds usually blow steadily from easterly directions, making the round-island tour varied because each leg has a different course relative to the wind. How the trade winds behave across the Lesser Antilles as a whole is explained in our sailing area guide to the Lesser Antilles.

• Book berths early: start and finish are in the marinas between English Harbour and Falmouth Harbour, such as Nelson's Dockyard Marina, Falmouth Harbour Marina or Catamaran Marina. In April many yachts are about.
• Check draught: not all anchorages are accessible to boats drawing more than 10 feet.
• Arrange accommodation: anyone unable to sleep aboard needs a solution ashore each night or a support vessel.
• Diesel and water are available in English Harbour, in Falmouth Harbour and in Jolly Harbour.
• During racing a safety boat with paramedic is on VHF channel 16.

Frequently asked questions

When is the next Antigua Sailing Week?

The week falls every year in the second half of April, usually from Wednesday to Sunday. The exact dates for coming years are published by the organiser at sailingweek.com.

Do I need regatta experience?

No. In rally mode you sail the legs at your own pace. Those wanting to race need above all an experienced crew and the appropriate CSA certificate.

Can I take part with a charter yacht?

Yes. For charter yachts without a professional skipper there is a separate bareboat division.

What is the difference between Antigua Sailing Week and Antigua Racing Cup?

The Sailing Week is an island circuit with legs and a rally option for cruising and charter yachts. The Racing Cup a few weeks earlier is a pure regatta for racing yachts with scoring under CSA and IRC.

Where do the crews stay during the week?

Most sleep aboard, because the fleet anchors in a different bay each night. Alternatively a support vessel or accommodation ashore is possible.

Caribbean trips and regattas on Törnfinder

Those wishing to explore the waters around Antigua and the neighbouring islands themselves will find offers on Törnfinder for Sailing in the Caribbean. An overview of all sailing areas and dates is given on the page Trips.