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A Sigma 33 One Design keelboat racing on Dublin Bay Photo: AfloatA Sigma 33 One Design keelboat racing on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

Displaying items by tag: Club Med 2

#ClubCorkCruise – Club Med 2 called to Cobh today where passengers from the impressive five-masted cruiseship visited the town's charming hillside location overlooking Cork Harbour and regional attractions, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The 14,000 tonnes ship completed in 1992 had sailed from the Isle of Scilly is operated by Club Med which was founded by Gérard Blitz who was a pioneer of the all-inclusive holiday company in 1950.

At 187m long the vessel with computer-controlled masts has a sail-surface area totalling 2,000sq, a ship of her appearance demonstrates a distinctive alternative and appeal to conventional cruiseships.

Tucked in between the second and third masts is the ship's slender funnel. At the top, uptakes are split in two and angled to deflect the fumes away from the masts above the eight-deck vessel.

Asides the usual passenger facilities, are sporting pursuits ranging from sailing, snorkelling, water-ski and windsurfing which are provided from the 'nautical hall' of the vessel located at the stern.

Accommodation are in cabins designed by Sophie Jacqmin, all with sea views for her 372 passengers who are looked after by 200 crew members.

The following cabin categories on board the French flagged vessel are designated as follows, Club Cabins, Deluxe Cabins or Suites, including Shipowners Suites which are located towards the bow of the vessel.

This teatime, the Club Med 2 is scheduled to depart, so what cruise-caller is next to call alongside the dedicated cruise berth. To find out check, the Port of Cork's website, by clicking HERE.

 

Published in Cruise Liners

#cruiseliner – As majestic as she might be, the five–masted cruise liner, Club Med 2 left Dublin Port yesterday evening, and just like local craft she dwarfed, she was unable to sail away, as there was no wind on Dublin Bay

Instead, the 637–foot long the Club Med 2, normally associated with the splendours of the Mediterranean Sea during the summer months, slipped away past the Baily lighthouse under engine.

As previously reported in our cruiseliner section of Afloat.ie, a crew of 200 cater for the floating resorts 439 passengers who can indulge in a stress-free atmosphere thanks to two swimming pools and fitness rooms. Passengers can also enjoy sporting pursuits ranging from sailing, snorkelling, water-ski and windsurfing which are provided from the 'nautical hall' of the vessel. Guests are accommodated in 175 cabins and 11 suites.

A one-person, seven-night cruise aboard the Club Med 2 costs $1,894 for an all-inclusive 'vacation experience' (in Australia), according to the Huffington Post.

Published in Cruise Liners
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#ClubMedCruiseAs previously reported on Afloat.ie, Club Med's impressive five-masted cruiseship Club Med 2 (1992/14,983grt) docked into Cork Harbour this morning, writes Jehan Ashmore.

She had sailed overnight from Brest and her presence alongside Cobh will make for a refreshing sight compared to the usual albeit considerably larger cruiseships that compete with the town's steep sided ramparts.

The 637 foot long the Club Med 2 which is normally associated with the splendours of the Mediterranean Sea during the summer months also cruises in Caribbean waters during the winter.

A crew of 200 cater for the floating resorts 439 passengers who can indulge in a stress-free atmosphere thanks to two swimming pools and fitness rooms. Passengers can also enjoy sporting pursuits ranging from sailing, snorkelling, water-ski and windsurfing which are provided from the nautical hall of the vessel. Guests are accommodated in 175 cabins and 11 suites.

Tomorrow the Port of Cork is set to welcome 1,500 Australians and 400 Kiwis to the town as part of their Sydney to Sydney 104-night World Cruise on board the Sea Princess. In addition Cobh will be hosting Australia Day and hopefully with the weather to match!...while watching the Rugby action 'Down-Under'.

 

Published in Cruise Liners

#CruiseTallShips – An unprecedented number of cruiseships also equipped with sailing masts are to visit Irish ports this season, starting with the arrival of the five-masted Club Med 2 to Cork Harbour tomorrow, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Club Med's impressive 637-foot vessel is to dock alongside Cobh Cruise Terminal around dawn tomorrow and a further two such cruiseships the Sea Cloud II and Wind Surf are to visit Irish ports before mid-July.

Those privileged to experience a cruise on these types of cruiseships have the added opportunity in operating the rigging systems, albeit they are mechanically controlled.

Sea Cloud II which has three masts has a total sail area of approximately 32,150 sq. feet (3.000 m²) and carries a mere 64-passengers. She is operated by Sea Cloud Cruises and the 384-foot vessel is also to head for Cork Harbour, however on this occasion during her call on 13 July, she is expected to take anchorage off the Whitegate Oil Refinery.

The final member of the trio is another five-masted vessel, Windstar Cruises 310-passenger Wind Surf. The 535-foot long vessel is heading too for the south coast on 16 July when she also makes an anchorage call off Dunmore East.

Further calls by the trio are to include visits to Belfast Harbour, Dublin Port and Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

 

Published in Cruise Liners

How to sail, sailing clubs and sailing boats plus news on the wide range of sailing events on Irish waters forms the backbone of Afloat's sailing coverage.

We aim to encompass the widest range of activities undertaken on Irish lakes, rivers and coastal waters. This page describes those sailing activites in more detail and provides links and breakdowns of what you can expect from our sailing pages. We aim to bring jargon free reports separated in to popular categories to promote the sport of sailing in Ireland.

The packed 2013 sailing season sees the usual regular summer leagues and there are regular weekly race reports from Dublin Bay Sailing Club, Howth and Cork Harbour on Afloat.ie. This season and last also featured an array of top class events coming to these shores. Each year there is ICRA's Cruiser Nationals starts and every other year the Round Ireland Yacht Race starts and ends in Wicklow and all this action before July. Crosshaven's Cork Week kicks off on in early July every other year. in 2012 Ireland hosted some big international events too,  the ISAF Youth Worlds in Dun Laoghaire and in August the Tall Ships Race sailed into Dublin on its final leg. In that year the Dragon Gold Cup set sail in Kinsale in too.

2013 is also packed with Kinsale hosting the IFDS diabled world sailing championships in Kinsale and the same port is also hosting the Sovereign's Cup. The action moves to the east coast in July with the staging of the country's biggest regatta, the Volvo Dun Laoghaire regatta from July 11.

Our coverage though is not restricted to the Republic of Ireland but encompasses Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the Irish Sea area too. In this section you'll find information on the Irish Sailing Association and Irish sailors. There's sailing reports on regattas, racing, training, cruising, dinghies and keelboat classes, windsurfers, disabled sailing, sailing cruisers, Olympic sailing and Tall Ships sections plus youth sailing, match racing and team racing coverage too.

Sailing Club News

There is a network of over 70 sailing clubs in Ireland and we invite all clubs to submit details of their activities for inclusion in our daily website updates. There are dedicated sections given over to the big Irish clubs such as  the waterfront clubs in Dun Laoghaire; Dublin Bay Sailing Club, the Royal Saint George Yacht Club,  the Royal Irish Yacht Club and the National Yacht Club. In Munster we regularly feature the work of Kinsale Yacht Club and Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven.  Abroad Irish sailors compete in Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) racing in the UK and this club is covered too. Click here for Afloat's full list of sailing club information. We are keen to increase our coverage on the network of clubs from around the coast so if you would like to send us news and views of a local interest please let us have it by sending an email to [email protected]

Sailing Boats and Classes

Over 20 active dinghy and one design classes race in Irish waters and fleet sizes range from just a dozen or so right up to over 100 boats in the case of some of the biggest classes such as the Laser or Optimist dinghies for national and regional championships. Afloat has dedicated pages for each class: Dragons, Etchells, Fireball, Flying Fifteen, GP14, J24's, J80's, Laser, Sigma 33, RS Sailing, Star, Squibs, TopperMirror, Mermaids, National 18, Optimist, Puppeteers, SB3's, and Wayfarers. For more resources on Irish classes go to our dedicated sailing classes page.

The big boat scene represents up to 60% of the sail boat racing in these waters and Afloat carries updates from the Irish Cruiser Racer Association (ICRA), the body responsible for administering cruiser racing in Ireland and the popular annual ICRA National Championships. In 2010 an Irish team won the RORC Commodore's Cup putting Irish cruiser racing at an all time high. Popular cruiser fleets in Ireland are raced right around the coast but naturally the biggest fleets are in the biggest sailing centres in Cork Harbour and Dublin Bay. Cruisers race from a modest 20 feet or so right up to 50'. Racing is typically divided in to Cruisers Zero, Cruisers One, Cruisers Two, Cruisers Three and Cruisers Four. A current trend over the past few seasons has been the introduction of a White Sail division that is attracting big fleets.

Traditionally sailing in northern Europe and Ireland used to occur only in some months but now thanks to the advent of a network of marinas around the coast (and some would say milder winters) there are a number of popular winter leagues running right over the Christmas and winter periods.

Sailing Events

Punching well above its weight Irish sailing has staged some of the world's top events including the Volvo Ocean Race Galway Stopover, Tall Ships visits as well as dozens of class world and European Championships including the Laser Worlds, the Fireball Worlds in both Dun Laoghaire and Sligo.

Some of these events are no longer pure sailing regattas and have become major public maritime festivals some are the biggest of all public staged events. In the past few seasons Ireland has hosted events such as La Solitaire du Figaro and the ISAF Dublin Bay 2012 Youth Worlds.

There is a lively domestic racing scene for both inshore and offshore sailing. A national sailing calendar of summer fixtures is published annually and it includes old favorites such as Sovereign's Cup, Calves Week, Dun Laoghaire to Dingle, All Ireland Sailing Championships as well as new events with international appeal such as the Round Britain and Ireland Race and the Clipper Round the World Race, both of which have visited Ireland.

The bulk of the work on running events though is carried out by the network of sailing clubs around the coast and this is mostly a voluntary effort by people committed to the sport of sailing. For example Wicklow Sailing Club's Round Ireland yacht race run in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club has been operating for over 30 years. Similarly the international Cork Week regatta has attracted over 500 boats in past editions and has also been running for over 30 years.  In recent years Dublin Bay has revived its own regatta called Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta and can claim to be the country's biggest event with over 550 boats entered in 2009.

On the international stage Afloat carries news of Irish and UK interest on Olympics 2012, Sydney to Hobart, Volvo Ocean Race, Cowes Week and the Fastnet Race.

We're always aiming to build on our sailing content. We're keen to build on areas such as online guides on learning to sail in Irish sailing schools, navigation and sailing holidays. If you have ideas for our pages we'd love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected]