ClubCoastalTollesbury, Essex and East Coast EstuariesTollesbury Fleet and Blackwater Estuary
Tollesbury Sailing Club
Verified by the clubClub checked this info on 1 Aug 2026
About this club
Founded in 1936 and affiliated to the RYA, Tollesbury Sailing Club occupies a much-extended former paint store beside Tollesbury Creek. The area has long links with traditional boats, sailing smacks, J Class yachts and the America's Cup.
Dinghy access from the public hard is normally practical for about two hours either side of high water, opening onto sheltered creeks and the River Blackwater. Cruisers can use Tollesbury Marina, mud berths on the saltings and a few deep-water moorings in the "leavings". Members have sailed as far as the Baltic, Caribbean and beyond.
Start
Can a beginner start here?
Adult dinghy sailing is ad hoc in 2026, with little current interest in racing. The quieter cruiser section is being rebuilt through a race around Osea Island in September 2026 and East Coast cruises including the Clacton Airshow and Harwich Sea Shanty Festival. The year-round social programme includes talks and quizzes, with the beer festival running from 11 to 13 September 2026.
Beginner· Unclear
The club has access to sheltered creeks, but dinghy launching from the public hard is tidal and normally practical for about two hours either side of high water. The club did not confirm a current structured adult beginner programme; adult dinghy sailing is ad hoc in 2026 and cadet activity is limited. Prospective beginners should ask the club what support is currently available.
Beginner· Unclear
Training
Juniors
Founded in 1936 and RYA-affiliated, Tollesbury Sailing Club is a tidal-creek club with dinghy, cadet and cruiser sailing, member boat storage and an active social programme.
Cadet sailing is limited in 2026 because several dinghy instructors have not yet been replaced. The club has a grant to subsidise training for new dinghy instructors and safety-boat crews and hopes to expand cadet sailing in 2027. Club-owned Optimists, Toppers, two Visions and a Wayfarer are used for cadet training.
The club's 90th-birthday open day on 15 August 2026 is open to all. The club did not confirm that the event includes an on-water taster session, so prospective visitors should ask what activities are available.
Cadet sailing is limited in 2026 because the club is rebuilding its dinghy-instructor capacity. It hopes to expand the programme for members' children in 2027. The club owns Optimists, Toppers, two Visions and a Wayfarer for cadet training.
Access
A Sport England grant helped fund the club's modern changing and welfare facilities, including recently built changing rooms and a boat store. The changing rooms include a wheelchair-accessible shower and toilet. The clubhouse has another accessible toilet and a chairlift to the main floor. Princess Anne opened these facilities in September 2006 during the club's 70th-birthday celebrations. The club did not describe adapted boats or a specific accessible-sailing programme.
Costs
Costs, membership, and boats
Prices
Current annual subscriptions are listed as Single GBP 70, Joint GBP 97, Single OAP GBP 49, Joint OAP GBP 70, one parent family GBP 97, two parent family GBP 118, young member aged 18-22 GBP 36, plus a GBP 20 joining fee for new members. Boat park tariffs agreed in January 2024 include cadet boats GBP 25 summer and GBP 30 winter, sailing dinghies/tenders over 10 feet GBP 50 summer and GBP 60 winter, sailing dinghies/tenders 10 feet and under plus canoes and windsurfers GBP 25 summer and GBP 30 winter, multihulls GBP 75 summer and GBP 85 winter, yachts GBP 6.00 per foot winter and GBP 4.00 per foot per calendar month summer with an 18 foot minimum, and empty trailers/cradles GBP 60 summer and GBP 50 winter.
New members are welcome, and the official club-information page links to membership forms, current subscriptions and boat-park regulations. The boat park has space for members' dinghies and for winter lay-up of cruisers up to about 30 feet.
Members may hire the club's Optimists, Toppers, two Visions and Wayfarer for a nominal charge when safety cover is in place. This is a members-only arrangement, not a public boat-hire offer.
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