Enjoy Miami's Sailing Capital, Coconut Grove

While you’ll find sailboats all over the glittering waters of Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, Miami’s center of sailing is Coconut Grove. Home to many sailing organizations and annual regattas, this lush neighborhood just southwest of Downtown Miami is lined with docks and marinas with easy access to the bay and the Miami River.  Its maritime heritage is nothing new. The Grove has been attracting sailors for almost 200 years, and today you’ll find everything from private charters to sailing schools. For avid sailors or those who just want to experience the serenity of a wind-powered boat tour, here’s all you need to know about Coconut Grove sailing.

Sailing Charters and Excursions in Coconut Grove

Get Out On The Bay With Sailing Adventures Miami

Dinner Key Marina is the largest wet slip on the east coast of the United States, and you can catch any number of charters leaving daily. Sailing Adventures Miami is one of the largest operators, offering four-hour tours into Biscayne Bay, two-hour sunset sails, all-day sails and private tours.

Sail Further Afield With Destino Charters

For longer sailing trips, check out Destino Charters. The company gives you a full immersion in the world of sailing. Destino Charters also offers shorter private charter sails if you have a group that wants a boat for itself.

Shake-A-Leg Miami Opens Sailing To Everyone

Coconut Grove is home to Shake-A-Leg Miami, an organization that helps people with disabilities enjoy sailing and other water-based activities. Beyond simply getting people out on the water, Shake-A-Leg features summer and adventure camps, eco tours, veterans programs, and even vocational programs to get people working in the marine industry.

Become The Captain of Your Ship at Coconut Grove Sailing School

If you want to learn how to sail, check out the Coconut Grove Sailing School. Beginners start with a basic keelboat certification in the school’s ASA 101 course then advance to coastal cruising, coastal navigation and captaining bareboats and catamarans. You can learn to sail in as little as one weekend.

Coconut Grove Sailing Club: The Grove’s Sailing Center

Coconut Grove’s epicenter of sailing is the Coconut Grove Sailing Club, located right on Biscayne Bay near Dinner Key Marina. The club dates back to 1946, and generations of Miamians and visitors have learned to sail here. If you’d like to take a sailing lesson, no membership is required. The club offers both adult classes and youth classes that will teach you simple sailing as well as racing.

For avid sailors, the Coconut Grove Sailing Club lets you participate in weekly races, join boat share programs for all types of vessels, or just kick back in its waterfront restaurant, The Grove’s Nest. The club also holds regular social events, from a Halloween party to an annual Mardi Gras seafood festival called the Flip Flop Fête. Better yet, sailors can join a community of like-minded people and benefit from all the networking and resources that come with being a member.

Sailing Events in Coconut Grove

Miami Sailing Week: The Sailing World Gathers In Coconut Grove

Thanks to the destination’s welcoming weather, Coconut Grove and Miami can host regattas and races all year. The Coconut Grove Sailing Club has races almost every week. The club’s signature event is Miami Sailing Week, a multi-class regatta that takes place at Regatta Park and welcomes sailors from over 20 countries and 200 boats. Miami Sailing Week is as much about the spectators as the sailors; you’ll find viewing areas, cocktail bars and hospitality tents set up all along the shoreline. Miami Sailing Week frequently also partners with local artists to add a cultural component to the regatta.

Bacardi Cup Invitation Regatta: Excitement On The Water, Parties At Night

The Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta, one of the world’s premiere events for Star Class racing, comes to Coconut Grove in March. If you’re not familiar with the sailing world, Star boats are smaller, two-person keelboats and are the oldest class used in the Olympics. You’ll find world championship sailors as well as skilled amateurs at the Bacardi Cup, where every night ends with social events and rum-filled parties. The 2025 event is scheduled for March 2-8.

Young Sailors Compete At The Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta

The annual Capital One Orange Bowl football game’s festivities include the Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta, which is hosted by the Coral Reef Yacht Club and typically takes place during the last week of December. The race dates to 1946 and has become one of the world’s largest youth regattas, welcoming over 700 young sailors from nearly two-dozen countries.

Sail & Party At The Columbus Day Regatta

Though it’s become better known for its lively boat parties than the race itself, the Columbus Day Regatta is one of the biggest annual sailing events in Miami. It takes place over Columbus Day weekend in October and welcomes five classes of boats to Biscayne Bay. After a day of racing, sailors and spectators converge on Shake-A-Leg Miami for the awards ceremony and post-regatta party.

A Brief History of Sailing in Coconut Grove

Sailing has been an integral part of Coconut Grove since long before the City of Miami’s founding in 1896. As far back as the 1820s, sailors would linger in the calm waters around the Grove to rest and recharge after passing the Cape Florida lighthouse in what is now Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne. Toward the end of the 19th century, the area began to attract nature lovers and artistic types as well as a noted New York sailboat designer named Ralph Munroe. He and author Kirk Munroe (no relation) helped found the Biscayne Bay Yacht Club in 1887, and it became the area’s epicenter of sailing for much of the next 100 years. You can see Ralph Munroe’s former home at The Barnacle Historic State Park on Main Highway in Coconut Grove, where a replica of one his sailboats sits moored just offshore.

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