Sailing Tours

on Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia

Explore nature, history, legends

Experience sailing

Open your senses, discover the sea

Our Tours

We will offer tours starting July 1, 2020 guided by public health protocols for COVID prevention. Learn more about our stringent cleaning, social distancing and wellness checks here. To increase the safety and comfort for our guests, we now offer only private charters so you can sail in comfort with your own group. 

Experience your own private day sail with Captain on Mahone Bay for a full or half day. Book an exclusive charter for your group and join us during the upcoming 2020 season: July 1 through September 7. 

In light morning winds, feel the gentle motion as the wind fills the sails. If you wish, help raise, winch in and trim the sails as we tack or gybe to alter course. Help navigate or sit back, relax and open your senses to the sea.  Along the way we will keep a keen eye out for seals and dolphins, and share some tales of the mysteries and magic of Mahone Bay.

On full day charters we will set anchor mid day at a secluded island beach to enjoy a delicious, locally-sourced picnic lunch and a refreshing swim. 

In the afternoon, depending on your interests and on wind and weather, we could head over to Oak Island to sail by the Money Pit, or tour the open waters of the bay out towards Big Tancook Island. 

Relaxed and refreshed, we will sail back to the Marina.

 Half Day Private Sailing Charter

  • $300 for up to 4 guests
  • Add up to 2 additional guests for $75 each
  • Departures at 10:00 and 14:00 for a 3 hour sail
  • Price includes taxes, all safety equipment, snacks and non-alcoholic beverages
Book Now

Full Day Private Sailing Charter

  • $500 for up to 4 guests
  • Add up to 2 additional guests for $100 each
  • Departure at 11:00 for a 6 hour sail
  • Price includes taxes, all safety equipment, lunch, snacks and non-alcoholic beverages
Book Now

About Us

Our Sailing Area

Dotted with hundreds of islands and sheltered anchorages, the unspoiled ocean playground that is Mahone Bay is widely known as a sailor’s paradise. With myriad natural habitats, the Bay is home to a vast diversity of wildlife. On a typical day we sail among seabirds, seals or dolphins and if we’re lucky, we might even see a whale.

All tours start from the Mahone Bay Civic Marina, in the town of Mahone Bay.

Our Sailboat

Oak Haven is an Island Packet 350, a full-keeled, cutter-rigged sail yacht, built with comfort and safety top of mind.  She is equipped for your safety in accordance with Transport Canada requirements for passenger vessels.

Oak Haven has capacity for ten, but we provide a more personalized experience by limiting our tours to a maximum of six guests, only you and your guests.

Our captain and crew are fully certified and we have all the necessary safety equipment on board.

Our Captain and Crew

Born at the seaside in Holland, Captain Antoon was always interested in the water and sailing, and progressed naturally from sailing dinghies to cruising yachts and professional training. He is a Transport Canada licenced Captain and also holds an RYA Yachtmaster Offshore certification. Following over 40 years experience sailing Canadian and European oceans and inland waters he settled with his family in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia.

Following a career in higher education, First Mate Robyn feels like she has come home to Atlantic Canada.

Tours are in English, but Robyn or Antoon also speak French, Dutch, and some German. Together they are eager to share with you their love of sailing and the wonders of Mahone Bay!

Testimonials

My wife, Kathryn, and I had a fantastic visit to Nova Scotia, Canada this past July. Leaving the 110 degree (44 C) heat in landlocked Arizona, it was literally a breath of fresh air to tour the Mahone Bay Area. The highlight for me was sailing with Antoon (I call him Ton...) around one of the best sailing areas on the Eastern Seaboard. Nice brisk winds and a huge variety of sights as well as some very informative hands-on sailing. We anchored off the famous Oak Island and had a great BBQ at our cabin at the Oak Island Resort. An excellent adventure, for sure. Thanks!
Ross Mason
Cave Creek, Arizona
Can’t think of a more enjoyable way to spend a summer day than being out on the water. We’re avid kayakers but rarely do we get the opportunity to relax and enjoy the Mahone Islands under sail. Last summer we treated ourselves to just that. Setting sail on Oak Haven with Antoon and Robyn into the Mahone Bay archipelago, we enjoyed the view, the anecdotes about local history and folklore and a picnic stop at a MICA island. I’d say our kayak paddles probably enjoyed their day of rest too!
Peggy & Lloyd MacDonald
Indian Point, N.S.
Meine Freundin und ich haben unseren ersten Urlaub auf Gifford Island – Mahone Bay verbracht und eines unserer Highlights war der Segeltörn mir Ton und Robyn. Es ist kaum zu glauben, dass es ein soooo schönes Segelgebiet gibt, wo man sich nicht mit 25 anderen Schiffen um einen Ankerplatz streiten muss. Für uns waren es unvergessliche Stunden am Atlantik, die unberührte Natur, die vielen kleinen Inseln, ein absoluter Geheimtipp für Segler und Naturliebhaber. Wir werden nächsten Sommer wieder kommen, die Oak Haven mit Ton und Robyn sind für uns ein Pflichttermin 😊
Luki Reihs
Osterreich (Austria)

Contact Us

Questions about our tours? Interested in a private charter to celebrate a life event? Contact us to explore the possibilities:

Sail and See, a sailing experience

Email:  info at sailandsee.ca

Telephone: 902-541-0399

Our tours operate from the 

Mahone Bay Civic Marina

683 Main Street, (Highway 3),

Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada B0J 2E0