Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

It’s one thing to declare an interest in contesting an up-coming iteration of the biennial 704-mile SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race from Wicklow. But it is quite something else to divvy up an entry fee, and sign on the dotted…

Ahead of the first long weekend of 2024, celebrating St Brigid, the Irish Coast Guard, RNLI and Water Safety Ireland have issued a joint water safety appeal asking people to stay safe when in, near or on the water. The…

Marking the end of an era, Roy Abrahamsson, Coxswain and Mechanic of Dunmore East RNLI lifeboat station, has embarked on a new venture in Sweden. Roy's distinguished 24-year tenure with the RNLI, 13 of which he served as Coxswain, has…

CLIA Europe, ECSA, ESPO, FEPORT, SEA Europe and WaterborneTP have jointly organised the EU Innovation Fund infoday for the waterborne transport sector, co-organised by the European Commission. Approximately 300 participants from the broader waterborne transport sector (private and public stakeholders)…

Thanks to dedicated fundraising by members of the Dublin Motorcycle Touring Club (DMTC), Dun Laoghaire Harbour RNLI received a generous donation of €6,300 as a result of multiple events undertaken by DMTC members throughout 2023. Founded in 1971, DMTC is…

World Wetlands Day is being marked in Ireland with a number of events on coastlines and inland lakes from February 1st to 3rd. Birdwatch Ireland says that Ireland has an “incredible array” of wetlands, from coastal and inland areas to…

Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association (ISORA) has signed off on a 'final' race schedule for 2024  As regular Afloat readers know, the association was quick off the blocks at its agm when it published a draft schedule for its 2024 fixtures last…

The Notice of Race and online entry has been published for the Unio-sponsored ICRA National Championships 2024 at the Royal Irish Yacht Club this August. Organisers plan to split fleets into Class 0, Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 and…

The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild team has said this morning that their Ultim Challenge leading skipper Charles Caudrelier has made the decision to put his race on hold for an indefinite period because of the weather conditions which were expected for…

The Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) has provided more details of its 2024 conference, which will be hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Saturday 10 February. This year’s keynote speaker will be Jason Smithwick, director of the RORC…

This Sunday's AIB-sponsored DBSC Spring Chicken Series from Dun Laoghaire Harbour will take place at the National Yacht Club. From February 4 to March 10 (first gun 10:10), six races will be run using a progressive handicap on a case-by-case basis…

The volunteer crew of Arranmore RNLI responded to a call by Malin Head Coast Guard at 6am on Wednesday morning (31 January) to four fishermen on a boat in difficulty at Inis Meain, off the coast of Bunbeg in Co…

Minister Jack Chambers, on behalf of Ireland, concluded and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Ukraine on Thursday (1 February) for the mutual recognition of seafarers’ qualifications. This MOU is an update of the existing arrangement wherein Ireland recognised…

Pwllheli RNLI has closed over “ongoing distrust and disharmony” between crew members at the North Wales lifeboat station. According to BBC News, a number of key personnel have also resigned from the station, prompting the RNLI to “reset operations”. “Until…

Royal Cork Yacht Club Crosshaven, Co. Cork is all set to host the Youth Sailing Nationals from 4th to the 7th of April. The event promises great sailing at Easter in Cork Harbour, and entry to the event is now…

Over 300 teams from more than fifty countries have already registered to participate in the 53rd edition of the Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by Iberostar, the first regatta of the year that will see all ten sailing classes compete, which…

Ferry passenger numbers carried by Isle of Man Steam Packet Company for last year, were the highest for 16 years. Figures from the operator which has routes between Douglas and Heysham, Belfast, Dublin and Liverpool, reveal more than 623,000 passengers…

Castletownbere Fishery Harbour Centre in County Cork, one of the six State-owned Fishery Harbour Centres, has officially opened the Dinish Wharf Expansion. The €48m project was funded through the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s Fishery Harbour and Coastal…

As January progresses, the news starts to zip back from the finishes in the Caribbean of the Transatlantic rowing races from the Canaries, and last year it was a Wicklow team that successfully hit the headlines. This year it’s a…

When Finn Lynch of the National Yacht Club finally secured Ireland's Olympic 2024 ILCA 7 place last August when qualifying opportunities seemed to be rapidly evaporating, he said it was “like getting a monkey off my back”. Since then, he…