Still & Wake

Gifts for sailors: 25 ideas for every budget

Twenty-five gifts for sailors, from stocking fillers to a weekend afloat. Seven are prints we make. The rest are books, kit and experiences you'll find elsewhere.

Sailing printsA print of their own boat
Two classic yachts beneath tall ivory sails in a painterly marine artwork

How to choose a gift for a sailor

Start with what they sail. A dinghy racer, a yacht owner and a motorboat owner want different things. A dinghy sailor gets wet and wants warm, quick-drying kit. A cruising yachtsman spends nights aboard and values books, charts and comfort. A motorboat owner cares about the boat itself: its lines, its engine, its berth.

Then decide: is the gift for the boat or for home? Kit for the boat is personal. Sizes, brands and fit matter, and sailors are fussy. A gift for home is safer. It reminds them of the water during the months they're ashore.

If you're unsure, buy for home, or buy an experience they wouldn't book for themselves.

Find out discreetly. Look through the photos on their phone, or ask a crew mate what they sail and where. Listen to what they grumble about after a trip: cold hands, a dead torch, a wet phone. Each complaint is a gift idea. If they own a boat, note her colour and the view of her they like best.

Set a budget before you start. The sections below run from under £25 to special gifts, then by recipient. The prices shown for our prints come straight from the live catalogue.

Gifts for sailors under £25

A small framed painting of a yacht at anchor beside a plain notebook and pencil.
Small gifts, under twenty-five pounds.

2. An A4 sailing print. At Anchor shows a single yacht resting at anchor on flat green water. It fits a small frame and a stocking. Live prices:

3. A sailing logbook. A plain hardback logbook for passages, weather and crew. Many sailors keep one for years.

A small print and a logbook make a good pair for a stocking. An A4 poster takes a standard frame from any high-street shop, so they can choose the frame themselves. It ships flat, not rolled.

Under £50

4. A large sailing poster. Under Sail puts two classic yachts side by side under full sail. A portrait shape suits a tall rig. Live prices:

5. A dinghy print. Room to Sail, one small boat and a buoy on open water, suits a dinghy sailor or someone who learned in one.

At this budget, size is the decision. A3 suits a desk or a narrow wall. A2 and 50x70 cm fill the space above a chest of drawers. The 70x100 cm poster is for a large wall. Our print sizes guide shows how to mark the size on the wall first.

Under £100

A waterproof sailing jacket hanging on a peg in a boathouse beside a lifejacket.
Gifts under a hundred pounds.

6. A canvas of a motor launch. Homeward Wake, a launch heading home with its wake behind it, arrives stretched and ready to hang. Live prices:

7. A wood or metal print. The Quiet Berth, a motor cruiser moored on an estuary, works well on wood for a cottage or a cabin ashore.

Canvas has a soft, textured surface. Wood suits a warm room. Metal gives crisp colour and a modern edge. A framed poster in black or natural wood is the classic choice.

Special and personal gifts

A framed painting of a small sailing dinghy on a hallway wall beside coats.
A picture of their own boat: nobody else can give them it.

1. A print of their own boat. Nobody else can give them this picture. Print their photo as it is when every detail must stay exact, and ask a crew member for the full-size file.

8. An AI portrait of their boat. Turn the photo into a watercolour, marine oil or colour study, with a free watermarked preview before you pay. Compare the preview with the photo: AI can alter small fittings. A framed canvas of Slack Water or of their own boat makes a main-wall piece. Live prices:

Decide how much of a surprise it needs to be. A surprise works when you have a good photo and know their taste. If you're unsure about the details, show them the preview and let them approve it. A gift that's right matters more than a gift that's secret.

Allow time. A photo print starts as soon as you order. An AI portrait waits for you to choose a preview, so start it a few days earlier.

Sailing gifts for her

9. Thermal base layers. Merino or synthetic base layers make cold passages bearable. Buy from a chandlery that takes returns, as fit matters.

10. A good waterproof dry bag. Roll-top dry bags keep phones, keys and a spare layer dry in a dinghy or a tender.

If she owns the boat, idea 1 is still the strongest gift.

Kit is often cut differently for women, so let her choose the size. A voucher from a chandlery she uses avoids a return. For the house, a calm print such as At Anchor suits a bedroom or a study.

Sailing gifts for him

Worn sailing gloves and a folding rigging knife on a teak cockpit seat.
Gloves and a rigging knife: kit that gets used.

11. Sailing gloves. Gloves protect hands from ropes. Let him choose the size and grip, or buy a voucher from a chandlery.

12. A folding knife with a marlinspike. A rigging knife is a useful tool for splicing and cutting line. Check he doesn't own three already.

For more, read our sailing gifts for men.

Many sailors have strong views on brands and fit. If he does, a print for the house is the safer present, and it won't end up in a locker.

Sailing gifts for dad

13. A tide clock for the house. A tide clock shows the state of the tide at home, set to his local water. It's a good present for a dad who sails less than he used to.

A picture of the family boat (idea 1) is the other obvious choice.

For a dad who has sold his boat, a print of her is a way to keep her. Find a photo from a good summer and print it as it is. For a dad still sailing, a course or a book keeps him learning.

Gifts for yacht owners

14. The RYA Day Skipper Handbook. The RYA Day Skipper Handbook Sail is the RYA's own handbook for Day Skipper sailors.

15. A nautical almanac. Reeds Nautical Almanac is published each year by Bloomsbury, with navigational data for the year.

16. A head torch. A head torch keeps both hands free on a dark mooring or a night watch.

Yacht owners often have books already, so check the shelf on board before you buy. An almanac is dated by year, so a new edition makes sense each season. A print of their yacht from a broadside photo shows the rig they chose with care.

Gifts for dinghy sailors

A dinghy pulled up on a shingle beach with a wet spray top drying on the boom.
A dinghy sailor gets wet.

17. A spray top. A dinghy sailor gets wet. A spray top or a wetsuit layer is a practical gift if you know the size.

18. A course for a beginner. The RYA Dinghy Level 1 - Start Sailing course is for beginners in a dinghy.

Dinghy sailors spend more time in the water than yacht sailors. Practical, warm, quick-drying gifts suit them best. For home, Room to Sail shows a small dinghy on open water.

Unusual gifts for sailors who have everything

Buy for home, not for the boat. Their boat in a frame (idea 1), a tide clock (idea 13) or a lighthouse visit (idea 25) duplicates nothing in the locker.

Think about what they'd never buy for themselves. Most sailors spend on the boat first and the house last. A framed picture of their boat is a treat they wouldn't arrange alone. So is a day out on someone else's boat.

Experiences: RYA courses, RNLI membership, a day on a classic yacht

A classic gaff-rigged yacht with tan sails on a bright breezy day.
A course, a membership or a day on a classic yacht.

19. RNLI gift membership. The RNLI sells gift memberships. Adult members receive a welcome pack and the quarterly Lifeboat magazine. The money supports the lifeboat crews many sailors rely on.

20. RYA Competent Crew. The RYA Competent Crew Practical Course suits a friend who'd like to crew on other people's yachts.

21. RYA Start Yachting. The RYA Start Yachting Course is an introduction to sailing a yacht.

22. RYA Powerboat Level 2. For a motorboat or RIB owner, the RYA Level 2 Powerboat Handling course suits someone who has just bought a powerboat.

Use the RYA course finder to find a training centre near them. Book a date they can make, or ask the centre about vouchers.

A course can be a gift to enjoy next season. Write the plan in the card, and let them choose the date.

Experiences suit couples and families too. A day on the water together can be the gift, with a print of the boat to remember it by.

23. A day on a classic yacht. Look for an old wooden yacht or a sailing barge that takes day guests near where they live. Most sailors wouldn't book a day like this for themselves.

A classic wooden yacht at anchor on still water at dusk.
An imagined yacht at anchor, for someone who likes time on the water.

24. A skippered day charter. A flotilla or a skippered charter lets a sailor sail somewhere new without the work of owning the boat.

25. A lighthouse visit. Trinity House opens six lighthouses to the public, each with a guided tour. They include Portland Bill, South Stack, Southwold and Start Point.

For more gifts for boaters, start with the boat or the place they love. See our sailing prints, or our Christmas gifts for sailors for last order dates.

Ideas 1, 2 and 4 to 8 are ours; the other ideas are sold by the organisations linked.

Sources

Questions, answered

What is a good gift for a sailor?
A print of their own boat, a sailing art print for home, or an experience such as an RYA course. Kit is personal, so only buy it if you know their size and taste.
What are good gifts for sailors in the UK?
RNLI gift membership, an RYA training course, a lighthouse visit with Trinity House, or a print of their boat. All of these can be bought and delivered in the UK.
What do you buy a sailor who has everything?
Something for home rather than the boat. Their boat in a frame, a tide clock or a day out all work.
What do you get someone who just got a boat?
A print of the new boat from their first photo of her. A logbook for the first season is a useful second gift.