I have nothing but great things to say about both locations Sausalito and Alameda Club Nautique and the experience we have had while getting BBC Certified. We absolutely recommend CN for a steady journey of proper education and experiences getting certified with awesome qualified instructors. Having had no sailing experience or even interest prior, my friend convinced me to sign up with her and begin this journey of courses, tests and certifications to open doors to a future I never imagined. I had no reason to say no so we signed on and the excitement began. It took us almost a year but we are now BBC Certified and ready to travel! She has plans to continue to Coastal Passage Making and even Offshore Passage Making, while I am content with destination pleasure sailing :) Everyone in both offices and all of our instructors have been amazing in all aspects of their program.... communication, instruction, preparation, encouragement, and most importantly... safety! And the boats! We have been spoiled with the nicest boats in the bay! If you're shopping around for sailing programs trying to find the right club... this one is definitely the right choice. Thanks CN! read more

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After extensive research and 22 years of sailing/powerboating in SF Bay, I can confidently say that Club Nautique is the premium place to charter a sailboat or powerboat.  The US Sailing Classes is a great format too for newer sailors and powerboaters.  My family and I have spent 60 days on the water in the last 12 months with CN and it's definitely a professionally-run operation. The best thing you will find is the fleet condition ... nowhere else will you be able to charter 1-3 year-old boats that are maintained, clean, and shiny.  Think electronic instruments, autopilot, climate control, powered winches (on the larger boats), and bluetooth audio systems inside and out.  The presentation and feeling of a premium charter is unparalleled.  The staff are serious about their jobs; the owners of the business treat boats and members with prompt, service-oriented action. As far as pricing goes, I've also been a part of other clubs in the SF Bay and CN is on the higher end for a reason.  The CN boats are nice and you won't be sailing on 20-year old boats with inoperable systems that are accepted as normal.  There is always fleet availability via an online booking system.  The community is great and getting like-minded crew or joining social events has been easy for my family. Other reviewers have complained about having to pay for expensive repairs and this is a good chance for an active CN member to tell it to you straight.  The boats are owned by fellow club members and if someone broke something on your boat, wouldn't you want it fixed too?  For new boaters, please be aware that everything on a boat costs way more than you think it does because most parts do not benefit from large economies of scale like the auto industry.  Things require individualized labor to repair and as any boat owner will tell you, it's never simple because ... it's a boat.  Sailing and powerboating is fun, but with it comes an associated spend. Both Sausalito and Alameda bases are excellent. Enjoy and be safe on the water. read more

Club Nautique - Interior of a 1-year old, Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 410 in 2022. - Boating Near Me - Sausalito, California

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Truly disappointing experience. Terrible communication and they penny pinch EVERYTHING! They are maybe the greediest company I've ever dealt with. read more

Long time member - for powerboating and a little less, sailboating. Excellent and well run club and school. Boats are maintained flawlessly. Training is excellent. We are so lucky to have Club Nautique in the Bay Area. A+. read more

I bought my Jeanneau through Club Nautique last year and placed it in charter. I was very optimistic at the thought of this being a mutually beneficial relationship as the owner and staff seemed very professional, but after some damage to the boat from the charters that continues to go unrepaired after 3 months and many requests, in addition to other repair requests now going fully unresponded to I would not recommend you put any new or high-value boat in charter with Club Nautique. read more

Wonderful place to charter boats since they offer charter to non-members as well. My bf and I came here twice and chartered two different boats, a Hunter 31 and a Colgate 26. All in great condition, clean and very well maintained. Had an excellent time in the Bay, sailing pass Belvedere and Tiburon. read more

I feel like the people at this company don't communicate with each other very well. For the prices I pay they should have these things dialed in a bit better. I had chartered a boat with a Bimini and I specifically chose this boat because it had a Bimini. I even called them and told them the reason I like chartering this boat is because of the Bimini. I got to the boat and the Bimini was gone. I went to the desk and told the person to see if it could be reattached. She said she would ask about it. I waited two hours and got no response. I expected at least a call with an answer. I called the office later and he said he needed me to reexplain the situation, which to me sounds like he never got the message. He also mentioned that the owner took it off. With no apology or statement of why. He just said none of the boats have Bimini's. Which was his passive aggressive way of saying that I can't get a boat with a Bimini now. He also sounded as if I should be thankful to him for even being a member of the club. That level of arrogance is one of the reasons why I am very disappointed in this organization especially for this club being the most expensive in the Bay Area which I have lived and sailed for over 35 years. I just felt like no one there cares at all about customer service and there is no accountability for disappointing situations especially in management and yet if there is even a scratch on the hull they are quick to charge $100 per/hour of labor. I am just disappointed with the communication and service for the prices I pay at this club. Actually this is not a club it is run more like a business and if so than the customer service is lacking especially from management. All they care about is money! $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ read more

Watch out. Club Nautique's business practices that they use to sell memberships are dishonest and fraudulent. When selling you the membership, they verbally promise all sorts of benefits and services that are supposed to come with the club membership, but they don't specify this in writing in the membership contract. The written contract is totally clear about all the money they are entitled to collect from you, but it is almost 100% silent on what you are supposed to get from them in return. You only get something called a "club membership." This leaves them free to deny you any and all of the services and benefits you thought you had paid them for, any time they feel like it, and you will have no recourse. They can say "sorry, that class isn't offered right now, it has been cancelled" or "that class is full, try again next year," or "your chartering 'privileges' are suspended." As Don Durant himself said to me "you didn't purchase the right to charter boats. You just purchased a club membership." Of course they don't tell you that when you are being sold the membership. When they are selling you the membership, they tell you about all the benefits and services you will get, otherwise you would never buy it. They have been sued many times for breach of contract for failing to provide what was promised. But since the written contract doesn't mention any of the things that you are entitled to, they usually win. As Don Durant bragged to me "I have never lost a case in small claims court." The management at Club Nautique doesn't even see the club members as customers deserving service. Even after you have paid them a substantial amount of money, the arrogant, pompous, old men running Club Nautique think they are doing you a big favor just by letting you be in their "club". There are much nicer, more reputable, companies to sail with in the Bay Area. You are better off taking your business elsewhere. read more

I've belonged to Club Nautique for just two years now. I am currently in the process of completing my Coastal Passagemaking. I could never own my own boat and am so thankful that Club Nautique has such a wide array of practically new boats from which to charter. The Instructors are excellent, very knowledgable, and friendly. Learning has been a pleasurable experience. I highly recommend the Club to anyone wishing to learn how to sail, and enjoy the wonder of chartering. Most of my chartering is done out of Sausalito, but my learning was in their Alameda location. read more

As a charter club with monthly dues, management seems to forget that we're loyal long-term customers, and not just open wallets for them to rob. My experience is similar to that of George and Pasha. I recently chartered a boat at CN, and broke (my fault) the key off in the lock when I tried to open the boat. To replace this simple bare metal key, I was charged $81.75. This wasn't a fancy key, but the kind that costs $1.49 to make at any hardware store. When I questioned the charge, it was justified on the basis of labor (i.e., extracting the broken key from the lock). The problem is, this never happened. I had simply removed the broken piece from the lock with my hand, used the spare that they had at the desk, and went on with my pleasant charter day. In my email exchange with the fleet manager, Jerry Nassoiy, he condescendingly suggested that if I didn't want to pay their rates, then maybe I shouldn't have broken the key in the first place. Having been caught in the lie of mis-billing me for labor they never performed, he then grudgingly offered to charge me only 60 bucks for the $1.50 key. I offered him $20, which seemed a reasonable amount for their trouble-after all, they did need to make another spare key. Frankly, I felt this was a generous amount, particularly after having caught them in the act of fraudulent billing. But his response was that "I don't get to tell them what their labor rates are". Apparently, though, they get to invent charges out of thin air. The long and short of it is that over $40, they've lost a customer for life. For what it's worth, it would have been easy enough for me to just eat the charge. But being swindled and lied to doesn't sit well with me, so I chose to give up my membership in Club Nautique, complain to the BBB, and excoriate them on Yelp. So if you're looking to be ripped off, and then treated with utter disdain when you complain, this is the charter club for you! read more

This is going to be long. Here is the summary if you don't want to read the whole thing. After 10 years with Club Nautique (CN), I have cancelled my membership. The reason for that became the fact that CN has charged me $631.90 for the stern seat that I have dropped overboard. In my opinion, CN was not able to prove that such an expense was justified. As I said above, I have been with the club for 10 years. The old-timers used to tell me the stories when they would do some damage to the boat, and the club would not charge them. Nowadays, CN has changed this policy. Fair enough. It has much more members, and I guess they believe that some members are negligent. I have chartered Bear Boat, a 40' Jeanneau. As I was moving from one helm to another, I kicked the stern seat that covers the passageway between cockpit and transom. The bungee cord holding it broke, and it fell in the water. By the time we turned the boat around, the seat has sunk. I most likely did not attach the seat properly after I removed it to disconnect the power cord. So, my fault by any measure, and I should pay for it. When, I got the bill, my eyes have popped out of their sockets. The breakdown of the price was $582.40 for the part, and $49.50 sales tax(??). The seat is about 2 feet on each side. Hollow. Does it really cost that much money? I emailed to fleet manager Jerry Nassoiy asking to send an invoice to me as well as maybe a website where I can check those prices. Here is his response to me: Hi Pasha, Asking me for the invoice is kind of like asking a grocer for his invoice on a loaf of bread. You don't get to drop the stern seat of a boat overboard and then dispute the price of its replacement Pasha, sorry! But for what it is worth, the manufacturer doesn't have those lying on the shelf, they had to actually make it, and then ship it from France. Perhaps it would prove more prudent to just not dump such things overboard in the future, Best regards, Jerry Well, this email told me a story that like a grocer sells a loaf of bread for profit, so does the club considers such incidents as an opportunity. That Jerry is very annoyed at my negligence, and the fact that he had to deal with the whole matter. That when you commit such travesty, you should keep your mouth shut and pay whatever you've been told. Promptly I have emailed to Colleen that I authorize the full amount. Then I emailed to David Scott that I want to cancel my membership. David asked for some time to digest this whole thing. Two days later, he sent me some invoice. He also said that they got the wrong part and had to pay for the shipping it back, and that actually I was charged much less money. The invoice raised more questions. There were serious discrepancies between the bill that I got and the invoice. The part numbers and names were different; the date on the invoice was much later than the bill date. Thing like Sales Tax on the bill made no sense to me. Also, the shipment by UPS cost $179 on the invoice. I posted all those questions to David. I also asked him whether any efforts were done to get an aftermarket seat. The thing is that Bear Boat is not a new boat by any means. One of the settees in the saloon is slashed and fixed poorly with duct tape. So, it is not like the owner spares no cost for his boat. Dave's answers to all these did not convince me though. He again, emphasized that he had to spend an hour re-packaging the wrong part. He said that even though the part numbers are different, it does not matter. He also implied that getting the wrong part was inadvertently my fault as well. Dave suggested that next time, I am welcome to perform the repairs myself. This was not an isolated case when I felt that I was overcharged for the damage. On my previous Bear Boat charter, the door-stopper for the head door has broken. It was a pretty old plastic door-stopper. It broke by just pushing the door into it. It could have happen to someone else as well as to me. For this, I was charged $54. When I chartered the boat again, all the door stoppers where changed to metal ones. So, I believe that I paid for all the new door stoppers (or a disproportionate part) disregarding wear and tear. Those practices are not acceptable to me. I still love sailing and CN has great boats, but I will be looking to join another club. read more

There are two locations for one business: Sausalito and Alameda. Alameda location is bigger (more boats). Sausalito is more attractive. You have to think of them as the same, but there are two different businesses run by one grumpy old man (ex-gov't). 1) A school (which is generally excellent with exceptions, see below) 2) A boat rental business (which has generally excellent boats with gov't-quality 'customer service' outside of its front-desk staff). Detail: School: The curriculum is generally thorough if tired. The pedagogy? Recognizable to those in the early 20th Century. Some of the instructors are very good. I have had two that were awful. One with my wife and one with me that was so bad I would quit sailing if I had to be with people like that. The head of the school (Dave) is responsive to feedback. This half of the business understands what customers are. The rental business: Generally good boats, but confusingly small price discrepancy between the nearly-new ones and those that should have been retired years ago. The customers here are generally professionals and are good people with whom to share a boat on occasion. However, the maintenance crew (Jerry) has a reputation of being condescending. Have you ever been called "childish" by someone in service industry? Yeah, me neither. Don't argue with the owner, Don. It is like arguing with a gov't worker. "I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it." -George Bernard Shaw read more

Club Nautique is an awesome school with super nice people and instructors that have sailed all over the world. And they have beautiful and well maintained boats to charter. read more

Being a member here for three years and renting from them for two years before that, I can say its definitely growing in their membership and level of service. The quality of their boats can't be beat as most of them are five years old or newer. You always have proper functioning of equipment and a nice clean boat to take out on the bay or on a coastal trip. The staff are very friendly and make sure that you have all the information that you need for a great time out of the water. Charter prices to be a little bit on the expensive side if you're not a member but well worth it if you do dive into membership. Still even if you're not a member it is worth the price of chartering given the quality of cleanliness of the boats. We strictly sale and have charter everything from a 26 foot to their 42 foot sailboats. Highly recommended for business outings, families, we're just getting out with some friends. read more

Club Nautique - Well maintained boats and perfect location - Boating Near Me - Sausalito, California

Two years ago, while sailing on a crewed charter in the Med, courtesy of my wife's business partners, I got bit bad with the sailing bug. I had been looking admiringly at sailboats on San Francisco Bay my entire life, without ever before imagining that was something I could do myself. After doing some research on line, I decided to join Club Nautique both for the instruction and as a place to rent sailboats. Last spring my daughter (who was 12 at the time) and I went through the Basic Keelboat and Basic Cruising courses, and then began to sail on our own. After more than a year in the Club, I have found everyone consistently courteous and helpful. I have not yet had a single bad experience. The instruction program is comprehensive, and the instructors are excellent. The day before yesterday, after a total of about 16 days sailing on the Bay, of which 9 were with an instructor, and 3 with other students in the organized practice sessions called Bareboat Prep at Club Nautique, I chartered a 31-foot sailboat and took a few friends out for a day sailing. It was more fun than I know how to say, and after I reflected on the experience, I realized that with my total sailing experience still less than a month of days, I have become competent and confident enough to really enjoy sailing in a very challenging environment, and that the excellence of the program at Club Nautique is the reason this was possible. I don't mean to suggest that it is perfect - nothing is - but it is truly outstanding. For anyone whose goal is to enjoy day-sailing or extended cruises, whether in the Bay or elsewhere, I recommend Club Nautique whole heartedly. And for those, who, like myself, think buying a boat looks like economic suicide, the rental program is great. With a total of four to share the cost Saturday, a day on the bay in a 31-footer came to about $90 each. Taking my motorcycle to the track runs $300 a day or more, and for me, sailing San Francisco Bay is every bit as thrilling, if not more. read more

You can charter for less money, but Club Nautique's boats are cleaner and in better condition. Non-members can expect costs to start around $389 for a decent Hunter 290 for a full weekend day. If you've no experience at the helm, you can also sign up for ASA lessons or pay for a captain. read more

Club Nautique Is an awesome school for both Power Boat and Sailing lessons. They have a large well rounded and well kept fleet of boats to charter. Two bases to choose from, Alameda and Sausalito. Both Members and non-members can charter a boat and have a great day on the S.F. Bay. Staff has excellent knowledge and are always pleasant to deal with. I am sure your experience with them will leave you a very happy person. I doubt you can find a better place to learn and have fun. read more

Great club! The boats are in fantastic condition and it's easy to charter a boat, provided you're certified. And if you're not, they have all kinds of classes. Good people running the club, too. We've been members since '95, when I became certified. (My husband was already). Don't get to take advantage of it much, but it's well worth it when we do. read more

Took sailing lessons here - they may seem more expensive than the other schools but I checked out the other fleets on the Bay and their fleet was soooo much nicer than any of the other schools. Now I'm a member and I love it! The staff is awesome and they all love sailing so they're excited to get you into it! read more

I came to the bay area from the east coast and couldn't wait to get back to into sailing - Club Nautique was the answer. Not only did they refresh what I knew before, they taught me so much more! The instructors are great and the members are friendly and fun. read more