Kids and Sailing in Malta

Kids and Sailing in Malta

Kids and Sailing in Malta. Many people wrongly believe that having kids and enjoying yourself on board is an impossible thing. The truth is the opposite of what most think. In-fact, sailing in Malta with your children can be one of the best things you can ever think of. Of course this depending mostly if you and yours kids have the right attitude for the thing. For kids, being on board a sailing boat is an adventure like none other and may prove to be the holiday of a lifetime for them. Any sort of sailing boat would do but we recommend a spacious boat with plenty of inside and outside space. A sun bathing platform and swimming platform also add on for more fun.

Here is a list of tips which one can follow when out with the kids. Doing so, keeping everyone on-board happy, entertained and most of all safe!

Safety & Rules

First of all make sure that the boat rental company is equipped with life vests for your kids. Make sure the agency has all the necessary details about the height and weight of your children.  Hence they can prepare proper sized life vests as most boats are equipped only with life vests for adults.
The first thing is to emphasize to your kids is that they need to follow the rules of being out at sea.

• No pressing of buttons
• Safety vests always on
• No pulling of levers or switches (you can also make it more entertaining if you explain the use of each one of them)
• No running & jumping whilst cruising
• Do not get off the boat without permission from an adult
• Do not go swimming alone
• Do not go to the front of the boat alone

Discuss them with your kids before the trip starts and start enforcing them the moment you get on board. The most important should be: Wearing a life vest when not in inside space is obligatory.

Introduce them to Sailing

Try and involve your kids in anything you do. Instilling in them the same love for boating as you have is essential at this stage. This can be done by discussing with them basic boating terms and principles as you go along. These can be things like showing them how to put down the anchor, how much line you need to give the anchor as certain depths, checking depth gauge etc. You can also show them some nice tricks such as basic sailing knots and perhaps letting them assist you with the easy stuff.

Planning the Trip

This is crucial for the success of your trip especially if you are planning for more than 1 day on the boat as a family. The first essential tip which we recommend is to plan short sailing distances because kids get bored quickly. If you can split your trip into shorter time frames of sailing and breaking it of with some swimming action etc this will prove quite beneficial. Also try and find sailing locations which also have landmarks and attractions which are of interest to them. These can be anything from beaches, to water park or just simply ice cream shops. Give them the options to choose and map these down on their maps and hence making them eager for the next stop.

Entertainment

Plan for any items which can help distract them when they got bored on long journeys. The most obvious of these are toys and snacks. Having their favorite items on board saves you much hassle on the long haul. Keeping them happy and full of their favorite snacks is a godsend in such a situation. Also it’s ideal to get some colors and papers or any sort of activity books for when they get tired. We also recommend preparing and downloading some of their favorite movies which they can watch on a tablet or on the on-board TV.

During the Trip

Depending on the locations you’ll be in, you can plan any of these activities to keep the fun up.

• Snorkeling
• Beach/Sea cleaning
• Use sea toys, inflatable kayaks, windsurfer etc

You’ll soon realize that making your kids enjoy sailing in Malta is actually not that hard! Like any other activity it takes a little bit of patience and creative thinking. Once they get the full swing of it, you’ll have little sailors in no time!