BBDouro’s Junior Sailing Academy is the first Sailing School for children in the Douro River. Our Junior Academy is designed for kids from 5 to 18 years old who have an appetite for learning how to sail. Teaching methods and content vary according to each kid’s age and personal experience with sailing, so every child can try and join BBDouro’s Junior Academy. Besides the learning of sailing, we promote all the values inherent to sports.
Why BBDouro?
BBDouro is located at Douro Marina, in Vila Nova de Gaia. Beginner lessons take place in an area protected from strong wind gusts, current and waves. These lessons usually occur in front of the Douro’s Natural Reserve, where the parents are able to watch their kids’ lesson from land.
The evolution in the techniques of sailing is progressive and as the kids’ gain sailing experience, the difficulty level increases: lessons take place in a more extended area of the River and at the Ocean, and healthy competition happens more often.
The first lesson is free!
BBDouro’s main goal is to create a healthy and fun learning environment in which kids become progressively more capable of handling a sailboat. We focus on sharing our passion for sailing and nature with every kid in BBDouro’s Junior Academy, as well as helping them grow through the interaction with their team mates, overcoming obstacles, self-confidence, etc.
We believe that a diversed sailing fleet enriches the children’s experience, so we have different types of boats available for kids to sail in.
Groups
Beginner
At BBDouro, we believe the ideal course for kids that never tried sailing is to start in the Junior Academy’s Beginner Group, in which they will sail in Optimist, Laser Pico, Laser Cascais, Open Bic, Dart 16, Laser Bahia and Topaz. They will learn to sail in the different types of boats either alone, as a duo or as a group. The Beginner Group is where the kids will learn the bases of sailing, as well as safety, capsizing and turning the boat back up, assemble and disassemble the different types of boats and hiking. The first lesson is free!
Schedules: Saturdays from 10am to 1pm and/or from 2.30pm to 5.30pm
Monthly cost: Half day – 55€ / Whole day – 65€
Single Lesson: Half day – 20€ / Whole day – 30€
Included: Safety gear
Not included: Lunch
Intermediate
The second phase of the Junior Sailing Academy is the Indermediate Group, where sailing techniques are perfected. More complex concepts are introduced and kids are encouraged to care about the boat’s performance and learning how to reach the best performance. Intermediate sailors will learn to handle the assymetric spinnaker and how to trapeze. They also start to learn about sailing regattas and race eachother in a fun and relaxed environment.
Schedules: Sundays from 10am to 5.30pm
Monthly cost: 65€
Single lesson: Half day – 20€ / Whole day – 30€
Included: Safety gear
Not included: Lunch
Advanced
The third level at BBDouro’s Junior Academy is the Advanced Group. Kids with around 15 years old that keep their interest in sailing and have perfectionned their technique, advance to this group and learn how to sail in a completely different boat: the Platu 25. The main focus for this new phase is the adaptation to the “big” boats and the ability to efficiently perform any task onboard. Sailors in the Advanced Group have the possibility to experience new adventures such as travelling by boat, participate in regattas and teaching sailing to younger kids at BBDouro’s Summer Sailing Camp.
Schedules: Saturdays from 10am to 5.30pm
Monthly cost: 65€
Single Lesson: Half day – 20€ / Whole day – 30€
Included: Safety gear
Not included: Lunch
BBDouro’s Junior Academy’s key goal is to share our love for sailing and for the ocean as we form capable and responsible sailors that experience this sport in their prefered way, either it being leisure, competition or profession/part-time.
Junior Academy Fleet
Laser Pico / Laser Cascais
Main specs:
- Can be sailed with 1 or 2 sails
- Designed for 1 kid when sailed with 1 sail or 2 kids when sailed with both sails
- Hull construction: plastic
Laser Bahia / Topaz
Main specs:
- Can be sailed with 2 or 3 sails
- Designed for a group of 2 to 5 kids
- Hull construction: plastic
Platu 25
Main specs:
- can be sailed with 2 or 3 sails
- Designed for groups of 3 to 6 people
- Hull construction: fiberglass
Discounts
Siblings – 10%
Children of employees of entities with protocol* – 10%
*Carlsberg, Tintas CIN, Cutty Sark, Goldenergy, JOP Landrover, Lusíadas Saúde, Natixis, NORS, Redifogo.
