IYT (International Yacht Training) is a certification scheme recognised in over 50 countries, and you can work through it on holiday with us in Kefalonia. Six days of Ionian sailing doubles as your course: the same week that gets the family around Fiskardo and back also gets you a certificate that means something at charter desks abroad.
What is IYT training?
IYT training is a ladder of internationally recognised sailing qualifications from International Yacht Training Worldwide, running from a first taste of yachting to professional tickets. On our sailing weeks the practical element happens on board with our instructors, so the training fits inside a normal holiday rather than replacing it.
The three certificates you can earn with us
- Introduction to Yachting, age 10 and up. A certificate of achievement for basic sailing awareness, earned across six days sailing. Free, and a genuinely good souvenir for a first-time crew member.
- International Crew, age 14 and up. The qualification that says you are a useful, active crew member on board. Register as an IYT student before you travel; the certificate fee of 35 euros is paid locally in Greece.
- Flotilla Skipper with the ICC, age 16 and up. The big one: an online theory course plus six days of practical sailing and an in-Greece assessment, leading to the International Certificate of Competence with the VHF module included.
Which sailing holidays does the training run on?
Any of our Kefalonia sailing weeks can carry it. A learn to sail holiday suits complete beginners, the Kefalonia flotilla and west coast flotilla suit crews who want miles and anchorages, and a yacht charter works once you hold the ICC. Tell us when you book that you want to certify and we plan the week around it.
Why bother with certificates?
Two reasons. Charter companies abroad increasingly ask for the ICC before they hand over a yacht, so the Flotilla Skipper route directly unlocks future holidays. And for younger crew, working toward International Crew turns a family sailing week into a project: by day six they are calling the mooring, not watching it.
IYT or RYA?
Both are respected; they overlap more than they compete. IYT suits certification during a holiday abroad and is what our Greek base delivers. If you are after UK-scheme dinghy or instructor tickets instead, see our RYA instructor courses and guest RYA courses.
