Ciao Baby

Three Volcanos & a Bottle of Vino

CIA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Well, here it is, January and time to think about the what, where & when of this year’s trip away to visit WJ3.  This year it’s all about Italy with a haul out somewhere west of that – possibly Spain.  So there’ll be some overnighting and a big schedule spread over a few short months.  Yes, there’s not many options to escape Schengen this year, so we’ve allowed for a max of 4 months away.  The plan is also rather sparse with fewer anchoring possibilities than Greece.  That said however, we will take advantage of marinas and make longish stops to visit those essential tourist hotspots.  Given that we’ll also be travelling over peak tourist season, it’s a safe bet we’ll not be lining up or making bookings weeks in advance – it will be a case of exploring “undiscovered” Italy.  This worked well in Venice so there’s no reason to fret just yet!  With any luck, we can move with greater speed (meaning spend less time waiting for repairs or the weather to improve) and have more time to find a suitable storage facility for WJ3 this year.  

So, after that long winded introduction, here is a first and rough draft of our sail plan 2016, with times stretched to the max. 


Stage 1: Greece to Malta (3 weeks – June)

Time to splash, bid farewell to hospitable Greece and make a quick “out of country” stop in Albania to ensure WJ3 meets her EU VAT conditions.  Our plan then is dictated by weather - will we coastal hop Italy’s boot or sail directly to Malta…   


Stage 2: Malta to Sicily (2 weeks – June/July)

After a week or so exploring popular Malta, we’ll head over to Sicily and book ourselves into Marina di Ragusa on its southern shore, a very popular wintering spot for fellow cruisers.  From here, we can hire a car and explore Sicily’s rich cultural offerings.  Moody Mt Etna being an essential visit.


Stage 3: Sicily to West Coast Italy (5 weeks – July/August)

Once we’ve ticked off the list of “Things to Do” in Sicily, we’ll head back up the Straits of Messina, take a detour to see Stromboli lit up, then coastal hop along Italy’s west coast with 3 main marina stops -as close as we can afford to get to Naples (Mt Vesuvius, of course), Rome and Pisa (to explore Tuscany & Renaissance Italy).  

Italy - always so dramatic & colourful

Stage 4: Italian & French Riviera (3 weeks – August/September)

We mentioned last year Italians in their designer everything (including yachts) and the west coast of Italy will be no exception – it’s their home after all – but the Rivieras will be exceptional.  It will be a time for us to gawk and smirk but with stratospheric prices on all things I’m guessing we’ll dally modestly but keep moving.  With any luck there’ll be time to do a short coastal walk along the Cinque Terra, locate rich relatives in Monaco (as if) and learn the fine art of food preparation – French style.    

We've coped with lots of visitors before... (St Marks Square, Venice)

Stage 5: Med France to Spain (3 weeks - September)

Then begins the search for WJ3’s winter home for the season!  There’s not a lot of options and our only turistico-ing stop is planned for Barcelona.  We won’t stay too long; Gaudi’s famous Basilica Sagrada Familia might inspire GS into re-renovation mode.   Mind you, that creation too remains unfinished!  If in danger of over-staying our visa, we might have to finish off with a mercy dash to Gibraltar (who knows?).

Valiant Visitors: 

Keep in touch by email if you’d like to catch us.  WJ3’s map and tracker will be updated regularly (with any luck) so that you can see exactly where we are.  We will try to fit in with your plans but sadly are strictly “regulated” by our 90 day visa.  This means we can’t wait anywhere for too long, or indeed change this itinerary too drastically.  (Indeed there are plans to speed it up already!)  Notes on what to bring (and what not to bring) can be found in the updated Visitors Guide.  BYO Chianti & rustic bread….