Wadden Sea

A sailing vacation on the Wadden Sea is a unique experience for young and old. The tidal effect makes the Wadden region look different at every time of day, and the beautiful Wadden Islands all have their own character and atmosphere. On the Wadden Sea - with its current and ever-changing shallows - fervent sailors will be challenged by our experienced crew, while those who would rather sit back and relax can fully enjoy the beautiful nature and countless sights and activities. It is for good reason that the entire Wadden Sea is in the UNESCO World Heritage List!

Sailing distances

The Wadden Sea is openly connected to the North Sea, but is somewhat shielded by the Wadden Islands. This means the water is a lot less rough, but there is a (fairly strong) tidal effect. Because the Wadden region can also be very shallow locally, the waves are much milder than on the North Sea. These shallows also mean that large portions of the Wadden Sea fall try at low tides. While our experienced crews are used to it, the Wadden area is a difficult area to sail. This has to do with the complicated navigation and constantly changing currents. This makes it a good choice to undertake your sailing trip on the Wadden Sea with a traditional flat-bottomed ship: all our ships have an experienced crew on board, meaning you do not need to know how to sail yourself, and our flat-bottomed boats (clippers and tjalks) can fall dry on the banks if the weather and tide permit it.

The Wadden Sea is connected to the IJsselmeer via two locks in the Afsluitdijk - one in Den Oever (between Medemblik and Texel) and one in Kornwerderzand (between Makkum and Harlingen). Moreover, it is possible to get to the Frisian Lakes via Harlingen, but make sure you schedule several days for that route. Texel can easily be reached from Den Oever, and from Harlingen, you can easily reach Vlieland, Terschelling, and often also Ameland. In addition, Terschelling and Vlieland are easily mutually accessible - due to shallows, from Vlieland & Terschelling, it is more difficult to reach Texel and Ameland (and vice versa) than a look at the map would suggest. In short: a particularly interesting area for sailing and recreation.

Destinations

There is plenty of culture, history, nature, action and relaxation to be found on and around the Wadden Sea. The different Wadden Islands are more than worth visiting and offer various forms of entertainment. We have listed the highlights for you below.