Sailing

On watch days, your watch (supervised by an experienced crew member) is responsible for sailing the ship for 4 hours, twice a day.

Watch days and school days

On board, day to day activities are neatly structured and ordered. The group is split in two. Any given day, one half has watch and the other half has school. On school days, you will focus on your schoolwork. And on watch days, you sail the ship.

You set the sails, fill in the logbook, steer the ship, check the engine room, bake bread, clean and do maintenance. You will learn the necessary skills during sail training. If you are lucky, you might see something extraordinairy: dolphins, whales, the Milky Way or bioluminescent algae.

Galley duty

Not the engine room, but the galley is the beating heart of the ship. Without good food, no one lasts long. In groups of three you have galley duty. You make the meals for everyone on board during that day. That means getting up early to make breakfast, providing (healthy) snacks and cooking a good, nutricious meal for 50 people. No small feat, especially on a moving ship!

With the help of a cook, you will learn to cook and season dishes, but you will also learn food management and creativity. Because: nothing goes to waste!

After two to three months, you know your way around the galley and the cook can go home. The galley will be all yours by then!

Ship takeovers

The first test of everything you learned in sail training is the ship takeover at the end of the first Atlantic crossing. Have you got what it takes to assume the role of captain and manage the whole ship? Or would you rather be up to your elbows in grease in the engine room? Apply for the job you want and convince us that you are most qualified for the job!

During takeovers, the “real” crew steps back and you sail the ship and decide what sails to set and what course to keep. Can you bring us to port safely?

The ship: the Thalassa

Thalassa is a 47 meter barquentine, one of the most beautiful and fastest ships in the Dutch fleet.

Feel at home on board

Thalassa is a barquentine. Barquentines have three or more masts with a square rigged foremast and fore-and-aft rigged other masts. Though the rigging is traditional, but this ship from 1980 is equipped according to the most recent safety standards. This makes Thalassa a sturdy and safe ship. It is the perfect foundation for School at Sea – and your home for six months! On board, the team of experienced crew and certified teachers make you feel welcome and at home.