March 7 – March 21 | TRIP IS NOW COMPLETE
If you’ve always dreamed of sailing to the South Pacific or crossing the Equator, this is the trip for you. You’ll join Sea Dragon at the remote island of Kiritimati (pronounced and sometimes spelled Christmas), which has the most land area of any atoll in the world. We’ll spend a few days exploring Kiritimati, from the waters around the island to the island itself. Only one flight a week comes to this special place, which is known for its fly fishing, history of British nuclear testing, and welcoming people. Sea Dragon has visited a few times in past and we’ve always enjoyed our stays.
After exploring what Kiritimati has to offer, we’ll set out for Tahiti and the southern hemisphere! It’s not a voyage for the faint hearted, but the rewards of sailing in the tropics are worth the challenges. The sailing is predominately upwind for the first 1/2 to 2/3 of the voyage, but often ends up with a better wind angle by the end, to reward you for your hard work driving Sea Dragon through the waves and heat.
Just a day or two out of Kiritimati we’ll cross the equator, and King Neptune and his court will board Sea Dragon to turn her crew from pollywogs into hardened shellbacks. This secretive ceremony will mark your inclusion into an exclusive club of those who have crossed the equator under sail.
If you’re interested in celestial navigation, this voyage is a great opportunity to hone your skills. The trade wind skies of the tropics and sub tropics make for great sun, moon, planet, and star sights, and crossing the equator throws in an extra twist that most people only experience in textbooks.
If the weather gives us a fast passage, we hope to have enough time to explore French Polynesia a bit. Depending on travel restrictions, we may be able to hop across to Moorea after we arrive in Papeete, one of the most beautiful islands on the planet. Or, we may choose to merely explore the beauty of Tahiti and all it has to offer.
All meals on board Sea Dragon are delicious and vegetarian, with the addition of fish if we catch any along the way.
This is not a trip for the infirm or physically unfit – you MUST be able to climb up and down a 20′ steel ladder to get from the Copra Pier to our dinghies to board Sea Dragon, have good balance, and be in reasonably good health. Please contact us with any health questions or if you answer “YES” to any of the questions on our health questionnaire prior to signing up for the trip!
This trip is an RYA Yachtmaster Ocean and IYT MOY Unlimited qualifying voyage – contact us to discuss!
Ardent Training is offering a significant discount on the RYA Day Skipper Theory online course to anyone signed up for this trip. If you’re interested in taking the course, let us know when you sign up and we can give you the discount code!
- Cost: $4450
- Date: March 7 – March 21, 2023
- Start: Copra Pier Anchorage, Kiritimati, Kiribati
- End: Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia
- Length: 15 days, 14 nights
- Focus: Offshore Passagemaking | Equator Crossing | Sail Training
Please explore the drop down menus at the bottom of the page for more details about this voyage.
COVID Protocol:
While we can’t guarantee that our protocol will 100% prevent a COVID infection onboard, we are hopeful that with these constraints, it will seriously reduce the risk of the possibility of a serious COVID infection at sea, far from advanced medical care.
The Government of Kiribati has its own COVID-19 regulations, which you will need to comply with in order to fly into Kiribati. We will keep you updated as far as we are able as the trip approaches.
In order to enter Tahiti, you will need to meet the current requirements of the government of French Polynesia. There may be additional requirements that are not directly listed on this website for entry by sea – we will keep you up to date as these evolve. For example, last year Tahiti required that you carry Travel Medical Insurance that provides coverage for COVID-19, with a minimum 90 days of duration, and that explicitly stated it was valid for French Polynesia. We will be working with an agent in Tahiti to expedite our entry, so we will be passing along all necessary paperwork from you to them in advance of the trip.
In addition to meeting all government requirements, the COVID-19 protocol for the boat is as follows:
Everyone on board the vessel must provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19, including a booster shot if it has been more than 6 months since the final dose of your initial course of vaccination on the date you board the vessel.
14 days before trip: I agree to take maximum precautions to minimize my risk of infection with COVID-19 by following CDC guidelines.
72 Hours Before Boarding: I agree to take a PCR or Rapid Antigen covid test at my own expense. This test must be administered or proctored by a medical professional, and the result must be on official letterhead. If a testing site is available that can provide results in less than 72 hours, I agree to get tested as close to the date and time of boarding as is consistent with receiving results before boarding.
Day of Arrival at boat: We will take your temperature and administer a rapid antigen test to you before you come in close contact with the rest of the crew. With proof of a negative pre-trip test result, a temperature of under 100.4 F, and a negative rapid test on the dock, you will be able to board Sea Dragon. Once everyone is on board, we will fall into the normal routine for trip operations. We’ll become a “bubble” with no masks required on board. You’ll choose your bunk, we’ll have a group dinner on board and go through safety briefings for departure.
In the event that you have a fever over 100.4F, test positive on either the pre-trip test or your pre-boarding rapid test, you will not be allowed aboard the vessel, and we will be happy to transfer your payment to a trip of your choosing at a later date.
***The Fiji Airways flight that this trip connects with is sold out. If you want to sail this trip, you either need to join Sea Dragon in Hawaii ($500 discount off one leg), or find another way to get to Kiritimati (charter flight from Tarawa?)***** Please contact us (info@panexplore.com) if you are interested and want to discuss.
Sign up Now with only a $500 deposit! It’s non refundable if you back out, but if we cancel or modify the trip we are happy to return your money or apply it to a different voyage. Please review the Crew Contract for full details. The remaining balance will be due on January 6.
Contact UsCall Us: +1 (305) 330-4212 (Pacific Time) If we don’t pick up, please leave a message and we’ll get back to you ASAP.
“This was one of the best vacations I have ever had. I learned a lot … from skipper, first mate, and knowledgeable crew …The boat was perfectly set up and maintained for our trip.”
-Shana B.
