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★★★★★ 4.9 · Feefo Platinum

RYA Day Skipper Theory Online

Backed by a recognised practical school

The RYA Day Skipper theory course is your first step to skippering a yacht in coastal waters, and to obtaining an ICC for bareboat charter abroad.
Supported by RYA Yachtmaster™ Examiners from our base at Hamble Point Marina.
Physical charts, plotters and dividers shipped FREE worldwide. 12 months to complete, then lifetime access to revise before every trip.

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 🇦🇺 🇳🇿 🇨🇦 Join 50,000+ students from 115 countries

How the RYA Day Skipper Online Course Works

1

Sign Up & Receive Your Materials

Immediate access to all online content. Your physical materials — charts, plotter, compass and almanac — shipped the same day.

2

Study at Your Own Pace

Work through the modules in order. Watch the videos, complete exercises, test yourself with quizzes. You have 12 months.

3

Take Your Exams Online

When you're ready, complete both exam papers from home. Results within 1-2 working days. Unlimited retakes included.

4

Receive Your Certificate

Your RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate is posted to you, typically within a day of passing.

What You'll Learn on the RYA Day Skipper Theory Course

The RYA Day Skipper syllabus covers everything you need for coastal navigation and passage planning.

40+
Hours of Learning
32
Professional Videos
3D
Animations
7
Core Topics
👆 Hover over each topic to see what's covered
🗺️

Navigation & Chartwork

Master the art of finding your position and plotting your course.

Hover to explore →
  • Position fixing using bearings & transits
  • Course to steer calculations
  • Dead reckoning & estimated position
  • Waypoint navigation
  • Passage planning
🌊

Tides & Tidal Streams

Understand the water beneath you and plan around it.

Hover to explore →
  • Height of tide (Rule of Twelfths)
  • Tidal diamonds & stream atlases
  • Secondary port corrections
  • Planning around tidal gates

Meteorology

Read the sky and know what weather is coming.

Hover to explore →
  • Interpreting shipping forecasts
  • GRIB files & Beaufort scale
  • High & low pressure systems
  • Weather fronts & passage planning

Collision Regulations

The rules of the road that keep everyone safe.

Hover to explore →
  • IRPCS steering & sailing rules
  • Give-way & stand-on vessels
  • Navigation lights & shapes
  • Sound signals
🚢

Pilotage

Navigate safely into harbours and through channels.

Hover to explore →
  • IALA buoyage system (Region A)
  • Cardinal & lateral marks
  • Transits & leading lines
  • Harbour entry & blind pilotage
📡

Electronic Navigation

Modern tools to complement traditional skills.

Hover to explore →
  • Chartplotters & GPS
  • Radar & AIS interpretation
  • Integrating electronic & traditional
  • Understanding limitations
🛟

Safety & Seamanship

Be prepared for anything the sea throws at you.

Hover to explore →
  • Distress procedures & DSC
  • Safety equipment requirements
  • VHF radio basics
  • Man overboard recovery

Each topic includes interactive quizzes so you can test your understanding before the exam.

What's Included in Your £260?

Everything you need to complete your RYA Day Skipper theory. No hidden costs. Nothing extra to buy.

📦 Shipped to You

Your Navigator Kit

  • Quality Portland plotter & drawing compass
  • RYA Training Charts 3 & 4
  • RYA Training Almanac
  • Urban Truant navigator bag
FREE worldwide delivery
💻 Instant Access

Online Course

  • Full access to all modules
  • 32 professional videos
  • 3D animations
  • 12 months to complete
∞ Lifetime access after passing
🎓 Exams Included

Exams & Certification

  • Both exam papers (General Assessment + Chartwork)
  • RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate posted to you
UNLIMITED retakes at no extra cost
🛟 Expert Support

Instructor Access

  • Unlimited access to RYA Yachtmaster Instructors & Examiners
  • Contact via messaging, email, phone, Teams or Zoom
14-day money-back guarantee
Cardinal Bouys by Day and Night

High Quality Informative Animations

Check out one of our new ultra-realistic animations that gives an explanation of cardinal buoys.

Meet Your Instructors

Real instructors. Real conversations. Direct access to elite RYA professionals. No chatbots, no call centres.

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Richard Beniston

RYA Instructor Trainer

  • One of only 16 RYA Instructor Trainers worldwide
  • Yachtmaster™ Examiner - Sail & Powerboat
  • RYA Powerboat Instructor, SRC Marine Radio Assessor, Sea Survival Instructor
  • 23 years' experience skippering and teaching worldwide
Read more about Richard
Russell-lake-headshot.jpeg

Russell Lake

RYA Yachtmaster™ Instructor

  • RYA Yachtmaster™ Instructor - Sail & Powerboat
  • Member of the RYA Training Committee
  • Established Egypt's first RYA Training Centre
  • Featured in RYA publications
Read more about Russell

Have a question about your training? Our instructors are here to help.

Learn More About Our Team

How the RYA Day Skipper Online Course Works

1

Sign Up & Receive Your Materials

Immediate access to all online content. Your physical materials — charts, plotter, compass and almanac — shipped the same day.

2

Study at Your Own Pace

Work through the modules in order. Watch the videos, complete exercises, test yourself with quizzes. You have 12 months.

3

Take Your Exams Online

When you're ready, complete both exam papers from home. Results within 1-2 working days. Unlimited retakes included.

4

Receive Your Certificate

Your RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate is posted to you, typically within a day of passing.

Platform Devices

Our Platform

Sailing Course Online is designed to work seamlessly across PCs, Macs, tablets and smart phones enabling you to learn at home or on the move.

Enriched Learning Experience

Our Platform uses a mixture of learning techniques to deliver course content. Realistic 3D animations and graphics provide an effective support to your learning. Our courses include over 32 supporting videos for the key areas of content.

1
Video Thumbnail

Animations Provided Step by Step

A range of helpful animations enable you to follow key activities, such as tying a bowline.

Platform Videos

Videos

Our courses additionally include over 32 easy-to-watch supporting videos designed to strengthen your knowledge in the key areas.

2
Video Thumbnail

See Key Content in Action

We explain what you need to know - then where possible, we show you how it works in practice. Animations, such as lights and shapes, consolidate your knowledge.

The RYA Day Skipper Exam

You'll complete two exam papers to earn your RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate. Both are taken online, from home, whenever you're ready. Unlimited retakes included.

Paper 1 Online

General Assessment

⏱ 120 minutes

Tests your theoretical knowledge:

  • Navigation principles
  • Meteorology
  • Collision regulations
  • Safety procedures
Multiple choice + short answer questions
Paper 2 Open Book

Chartwork Assessment

⏱ 120 minutes

Tests your practical navigation skills:

  • Plot courses
  • Fix positions
  • Calculate tides
  • Plan a short passage
Use your Almanac + Training Charts
Take when ready — no booking Results in 1-2 days Unlimited retakes included
After You Pass

Your RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate is posted to you. Plus lifetime access to your course materials — perfect for revision before your first charter.

After Day Skipper: Your Pathway to the Helm

Your RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate is the foundation for everything that follows.

You're Here

RYA Day Skipper Theory

Online course with exams included — what you're completing now.

1
5 Days

RYA Day Skipper Practical

Qualify to skipper a yacht in familiar waters by day. Available at Hamble Point Marina.

2
Certificate

International Certificate of Competence (ICC)

Charter bareboat yachts across the Mediterranean and beyond. Day Skipper theory + practical qualifies you.

3
Online

RYA Coastal Skipper Theory

Extend your range to coastal passages and overnight sailing. Available online through us.

4
Gold Standard

RYA Yachtmaster Coastal & Offshore

The gold-standard qualification. Theory online, practical with training partners.

We can support your entire journey from theory to helm.

Why Choose Sailing Course Online?

We're not just an online provider — we're a recognised RYA Training Centre with real instructors, real boats, and real experience.

Backed by a Recognised RYA Practical School

We're an RYA Recognised Training Centre at Hamble Point Marina — real sailors teaching real skills.

Supported by Yachtmaster Examiners

Your teachers examine Yachtmaster candidates and support your online journey at every step.

Physical Materials Shipped Free FREE

Charts, plotter, dividers, almanac — all included and shipped worldwide. No hidden fees.

Feefo Platinum 2022–2025 4.9★

837 verified reviews. We're the only provider using Feefo's independent review system — every review is 100% genuine.

24-Hour Full Course Trial FREE

Not a "preview lesson." Complete access to every module, free, before you commit. No card required.

Lifetime Access After Passing

Your course materials stay available forever — perfect to revise before your next charter.

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What Our Day Skipper Students Say

We're the only RYA online provider using Feefo's verified review system — every review is 100% genuine, from real students who completed the course. See why we've held the Feefo Platinum Service Award since 2022.
  • David Walker

    December 15, 2025
    Clear and well laid out material, easy to understand and assimilate
  • Jake Holmes

    December 12, 2025
    The RYA day skipper online theory course was fantastic, with very responsive, knowledgeable instructors always there to give a helping hand. Would thoroughly recommend.
  • James Triggs

    December 6, 2025
    A very good course with lots of quizzes and clear videos. Very fast response from instructor even at the weekends. There are a few glitches in the mobile phone rendering but computer version is perfect.
  • John Rimmer

    December 6, 2025
    A good course
  • Aurelio Wenzel

    December 5, 2025
    hi
  • Ruth Brace

    December 5, 2025
    Quick to respond to any queries and to mark my test papers.
  • Keir Hague

    December 2, 2025
    Fantastic course content & support. I’ll definitely be back for the next course. Thank you.
  • Matt Carrington

    November 29, 2025
    Excellent. Prompt clear and helpful.
  • Danielle French

    November 20, 2025
    Prompt, kind and want you to do well. Even peppered with bits of humour to stop it being too dry, although obviously the whole thing is about staying dry and afloat!
  • Tom Van Severen

    October 24, 2025
    Good and correct service. No remarks to make.

RYA Day Skipper Theory Course: Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about the course, exams, and certification.

The course includes approximately 40 hours of structured learning. Most students complete it within 2-3 months studying part-time, though you have 12 months access. Study at your own pace — there's no fixed schedule.
No prior experience is required. The RYA Day Skipper theory course assumes no previous knowledge and builds from fundamentals. Many students complete the theory before their first time on the water.
Yes. You receive the identical RYA Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate whether you study online or in a classroom. The syllabus, exams and certification are exactly the same.
Everything. Online course access, physical materials (charts, plotter, drawing compass, almanac) shipped free worldwide, both exam papers, unlimited retakes, instructor support, and your RYA certificate. No hidden costs.
Both exams are taken online, from home, whenever you're ready. The General paper is 120 minutes; the Chartwork paper is 120 minutes. Results within 1-2 working days. Once you have completed your exam papers they will be marked by our team and feedback provided. We will work with you until we are mutually happy you have the right level of understanding to keep you safe whilst navigating at sea.
The Day Skipper Shorebased Certificate alone doesn't qualify you to charter, but it's an essential step. Combined with the 5-day Day Skipper practical course, you can apply for an International Certificate of Competence (ICC) — required for bareboat charter in most Mediterranean countries and worldwide.
We're backed by a real RYA Practical Training Centre, supported by Yachtmaster™ Examiners, and are now the RYA Online learning portal of choice providing training to the RYA and the Maritime & Coastguard Agency staff. With Feefo Platinum status from 837 verified reviews, try our free 24-hour trial and decide for yourself!

Free Trial - 24hrs Unlimited Access!

Get access to the full RYA Day Skipper course now.

  • See for yourself how easy it is to learn at your own pace with 24 hours' free access to our RYA Day Skipper Online Course.
  • 24hrs Full Free Access
  • We are the only RYA Training Centre to give you full access to the course before purchasing.
  • Get started immediately, without payment

Ready to Start Your RYA Day Skipper Course?

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Not Sure Yet?

Our free trial gives you complete access to every module, video and animation for 24 hours. See exactly what you're getting before you commit. No obligation. Just full access to decide if this is the right course for you.

No credit card required

Start Your Course Today

Join thousands of students who've earned their Day Skipper certificate with us.

£260

Everything included

  • 12 months access + lifetime after passing
  • Unlimited exam retakes
  • Physical materials shipped FREE
  • 14-day money-back guarantee

or start your free 24hr trial above

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