What is a Sailing Travel Journal?​

The Port Information pages took a long time to perfect. I thought long and hard about what would be useful information to record and what I’d want to remember about a place.

The left hand page has been designed for the facts and figures.

The obvious had to be included: the name of the port and country it was in (who knows where these journals are going to end up?! Mine have the UK, Holland, France, Jersey and the Isles of Scilly already and we have big plans for next year too!) I thought writing the Latitude and Longitude would be useful for plotters and also to know what the courtesy flag is (so you can make sure you have it onboard ready!).

The next section is more a log book section where you can record the journey travelled from the previous port. I included it in the Port Information section rather than it’s own so it could have some context. The items included are all the things I’d want to note down plus a few more.

Next is the general information about the Port. This can be filled in before your journey whilst you do your plan if you wish so you have it to hand when it’s needed and know for sure that you’ll be able to get into your chosen destination when you arrive.

After that – the facilities they have at the port. This can help you plan where you can get certain jobs done if you are travelling long term (like we are) or can just be filled in as general information about a place whilst you are there.

The Recreational section: I always like to know what’s on and the things I can do when I get somewhere. What’s the fun of getting somewhere and sitting on the boat – I love to go and explore my surroundings!

The right hand page is more of a diary format so you are able to record all your thoughts and feelings about a place.

I admit. I have an obsession with food and LOVE to sample any local specialities! (I walked 30 minutes across the centre of Amsterdam just to buy the best Stroopwafel in the city!) As my plan is to eat my way across Europe, a box purely dedicated to food and drink was a must – you never know what your new favourite food is going to be or what you’ll come across on your travels!

Every place you visit will have a best bit whether it’s a restaurant, beach, walk, museum visit, swim off the boat… this is the space to record that in: the Visit Highlights.

Everywhere we go, we meet new people on our travels and it’s great to keep in contact with them in the future. We’ve met fellow travellers, long term liveaboards, people on holidays and business owners and for one reason or another, want to keep in touch with them. The box has been included so you can write down names, numbers, emails, addresses – whatever you need to stay in touch! It will also help you remember where you met them and help jog your memory if it’s been a while when you do get in touch.

The notes box is there to record anything else that doesn’t fit in any other section.

Boats always need maintenance and whilst on a trip, things always come up that need doing that might slip your mind if you don’t note them down. You can also record jobs that have been done in this section.

After your visit, go back to the first box and give the port a rating from 0-5 stars so you can quickly look back at any particular place and see if it’s worth a return trip!