Sailing, Snorkel, Tapas & Drinks

We cast off from the port of Tarifa and, the moment we leave the breakwater behind, the day starts to take shape. We head for Isla de las Palomas, the southernmost point of mainland Europe, and round it from behind. It's one of those moments that's hard to believe until you live it: in just a few metres you cross from the Mediterranean Sea into the Atlantic Ocean, the water changing colour beneath the keel and Africa drawn across the other side of the Strait.

From there we sail along the coast, off Playa de los Lances, that endless ribbon of sand so well known to everyone who comes to Tarifa for the wind. This first part of the trip lasts around an hour and a half under sail. It's time to feel the boat, let the wind do its work and, if you fancy it, take the helm for a while with the skipper by your side.

Then we head back to anchor at Playa Chica, and this is where the trip turns into something hard to forget. We drop anchor in a sheltered cove between the cliffs of Isla de las Palomas and the beach, the water clear and calm. We hand you the snorkelling gear so you can explore the seabed at your own pace, you put your own music on our speaker, and out come the homemade tapas: freshly made Spanish omelette, chistorra, cheese, ham, olives and something cool to drink. This second part lasts another hour and a half, at anchor, unhurried, with no plan other than to enjoy it.

No two trips are ever the same, and that's exactly the beauty of it. The trip adapts to you: if you want to sail more and make the most of the wind, we sail more; if you'd rather stretch out the anchorage, the swim and the tapas, the skipper adjusts the route and the timing to whatever the group feels like doing that day.

At this time of year, the Strait puts on a show of its own. It's bluefin tuna season, and from the boat you can see the almadrabas: a traditional fishing art practised in these waters for thousands of years, since the time of the Phoenicians and Romans. They are true labyrinths of nets anchored to the seabed, used to catch the tuna on their migration between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Seeing them up close, with the fishing boats at work, is a glimpse into a living part of Tarifa's history.

The trip is for everyone. Couples come looking for a different kind of afternoon, groups of friends with something to celebrate and, above all, families: children love the snorkelling, the swimming and the feeling of being under sail, and so do their parents. You don't need to know anything about sailing, or to have ever set foot on a yacht. Just the urge to spend a few hours at sea, with the wind, the tapas and Africa in the distance. We look forward to welcoming you aboard YEMAYA.