Three families, one week at sea, summer 2027.

Slow days in quiet bays

Turkey is the slower one. Gulets are wide wooden boats with big shaded decks, and most nights you stay at anchor in a quiet bay with pine trees down to the water. The sea is calm and there are plenty of sheltered bays, so you can swim off the back, paddle around or take the tender out.

Meals are long and mostly on board, with Turkish food cooked by the crew. You'll stop at a village or two, but this week is mostly about swimming and doing very little.

Bodrum, the Datça peninsula and Symi

1. 
   Day 1

   Bodrum

   Board below the Castle of St. Peter, built by the Knights in the 1400s, and head out for the first swim of the week as the town lights come on behind you.
2. 
   Day 2

   Knidos

   You anchor in the harbour of an ancient city at the very tip of the peninsula, where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean. Swim off the boat, then walk up through the columns and the old theatre at sunset.
3. 
   Day 3

   Bozburun

   A fishing village where gulets have been built by hand for generations. Watch the boatyards at work, then have a slow lunch on the waterfront.
4. 
   Day 4

   Symi

   A short hop across the water to Greece and a harbour of pastel houses stacked up the hill. Climb the old stone steps to the upper village for the view, and pick up a sponge, which the island has been known for since long before tourists.
5. 
   Day 5

   Söğüt

   A deep green bay with pine trees down to the water and a few family restaurants on wooden jetties. One of the quietest nights of the week.
6. 
   Day 6

   Datça

   A relaxed harbour town known for almonds, honey and thyme. Old Datça, a few minutes up the hill, is all stone houses and bougainvillea, and good for an evening walk and an ice cream.
7. 
   Day 7

   Back to Bodrum

   One last swim stop on the way across the gulf, then the evening in town between the marina and the bazaar.

The captain plans the final route with you on board, based on the weather.

Fast boats and a different island every day

Greece is the livelier one. These are modern motor yachts that cruise at 20 knots or more, so you can cover a lot of water in a week and still have most of each day for swimming. The Cyclades are white villages, beach clubs and dinners ashore, which works well for the 16 to 20 year olds.

The meltemi, a strong north wind, starts to blow in the Cyclades in July. If it is strong that week, the captain will switch to the Argosaronic islands instead, such as Hydra and Spetses, where the water is calmer.

Athens and the Cyclades

1. 
   Day 1

   Athens

   Board at the marina in the afternoon. If you arrive a day early, the Acropolis is best first thing in the morning before the heat.
2. Day 2

   Kea

   The closest of the Cyclades to Athens, so the first afternoon is short. Quiet bays for a swim and Ioulida, a hill village of white houses, for the evening.
3. Day 3

   Syros

   Ermoupoli is the capital of the Cyclades, with neoclassical mansions and a marble town square. Ano Syros, the old village above it, has the view.
4. 
   Day 4

   Mykonos

   The beach clubs for the girls and boys, and sunset in Little Venice by the windmills for everyone.
5. Day 5

   Paros and Antiparos

   Naoussa, the fishing harbour on Paros, for lunch, then a swim in the clear shallow water between the two islands.
6. Day 6

   Kythnos

   Anchor off Kolona, a sandbar beach that joins two bays, for the last full day of swimming.
7. Day 7

   Back to Athens

   A morning swim on the way in and back at the marina in the afternoon.

This route depends on the weather. If the meltemi is strong that week, you would switch to the Argosaronic islands instead of the Cyclades. Wombat's Santorini week would start further south and follow a different loop. The captain plans the final route with you on board.