Yacht & Sailing Clubs

It’s been said that owning a boat without belonging to a yacht club is like owning a bat and ball but never joining a team. While it’s possible to enjoy the sport on an individual basis, new opportunities for fun and friendship begin opening up when joining a club.

Some boaters react strongly to a long-outdated stereotype at the mere mention of the term “yacht club”. The image of effete snobs parading around in brass –buttoned blazers and white slacks has never represented 99% of yacht club members. Most clubs will have occasions when the officers will adopt formal attire, but the overall atmosphere in Pacific NW yacht clubs is casual, relaxed, and friendly. Fans of “proper nautical decorum” will find clubs in some of our larger cities where more formality is observed- but even in those organizations everyone involved is having a tremendously good time.

Membership in most clubs is not prohibitively expensive, and as a result the membership represents the majority of pleasure boaters in the Pacific NW. Yacht club members typically are people who have had to prioritize and save in other areas of expenditure to justify affording a boat. Many yacht clubs accept boats under 20-feet in length, so even a fairly humble vessel will be welcome in a club in most communities.

Yacht club members enjoy free, or very lost cost overnight moorage at facilities belonging to reciprocal clubs. Many NW cruisers save their yacht club dues in moorage fees every year. Many clubs have permanent moorage available for members, and “outstation” facilities at cruising destinations open only to club members only.

Membership in a yacht club might be the most important “accessory” that can be purchased for a boat.

For more information about nearby yacht clubs, contact one of the Puget Sound Area yacht clubs on the following list:

Puget Sound Area Yacht Clubs