Passage Stats
8-10 Available
Skipper: Nikki Henderson | Mate: Alex Laline
Price: $14,900
Note: 5% discount on all passages paid by wire transfer.
Distance: 600 Nautical Miles
Total Days: 14 days
Start & End Port: Falmouth Harbor, Antigua
We are taking pre-registrations now, and will confirm the crew list by the end of July.
SYNOPSIS
Join us in Antigua for the legendary RORC Caribbean 600 - an iconic 600-mile offshore race often ranked alongside other epic races like the Fastnet and Sydney-Hobart. But this one comes with warm weather, turquoise seas and consistent 20-25 knot trade winds.
Before the race begins, you’ll spend a full week in Antigua sharpening your skills with intensive sail training before the race. Then, it's time to put that training to the test on a thrilling figure-eight course that weaves around 11 of the Caribbean’s most stunning islands.
This is offshore sailing at its most exhilarating: navigating around volcanic peaks, surfing Atlantic swells under spinnaker, bashing into 20 knots of wind and surface ocean currents and making tactical calls to sneak around lee shores. The course is not just beautiful—it’s one of the most technically interesting of all the offshore races in the world.
🎥 Watch the 2025 Caribbean 600 Wrap-Up Film
The Route
The race starts and ends in Antigua. Here’s a glimpse of what lies ahead:
The first leg is an Upwind beat to Barbuda, leaving it to port.
You surf downwind towards the sunset - rounding Nevis, St. Kitts, and Saba to starboard.
Dawn brings another beat to windward - this time past St. Barths.
Enjoy quick reprieve and a flat boat as you fly downwind around the south of St. Maarten, before hardening up for the journey south east.
It’s a fast close-reach down to Guadeloupe, where the key tactical choice awaits: hug the coast or avoid the notorious lee wind hole?
After a gentle day sneaking through the light winds, you round the Isles Des Saintes for a tough beat to Desirade, the easternmost point.
The final stretch! A beam reach up to Barbuda, downwind hop past Redonda, and a last upwind leg to the finish—just in time for the Friday night prize-giving and party.
Weather & Conditions
Trade winds from the E/NE dominate this time of year, delivering:
Classic Caribbean squalls and big ocean swells.
Hot sun, salty decks, and sweaty foulies.
Every point of sail from upwind grinds to downwind thrills.
Skipper & Mate — Team leaders
You'll be led by 59° North’s racing dream team Nikki Henderson (skipper) & Alex Laline (first mate).
Together, they’ve skippered every one of our races to date, leading teams to a 2nd place in the 2024 Middle Sea Race and 3rd in the 2025 Caribbean 600. They're here to help you learn fast, race hard, and have a blast doing it.
“Unforgettable! I knew I’d be inspired by Nikki and Alex—true professionals. But the real surprise was the inspiration I drew from my crewmates. As a bluewater cruiser, this experience made me a better sailor.” —2025 Caribbean 600 crew member
Gender parity is a priority: 50% of race spots are reserved for women, 50% for men. With Nikki and Alex forming a 50:50 leadership team, we’re proud to offer one of the most balanced and inclusive offshore race programs in the sport.
RECOMMENDED EXPERIENCE
We have designed this passage to be accessible for anyone even if you come with no prior racing experience. So, you don’t need racing experience to sign up—but you should have:
Some offshore sailing experience or
Some racing experience (dinghies or keelboats)
And, a good level of fitness and agility is essential. Age is not a barrier.
THE YACHT
For this event, we charter a race-optimized offshore yacht—not part of the 59° North fleet. These boats are 40–50 feet, light, fast, and built for competition. It’s equipped with high spec race sail wardrobes (headsails, Code-0s, spinnakers, storm sails). It’s very basic below deck (think bunk space, not luxury).
Past boats include an XP50 (2024) and a J/122 (2025).
ACCOMMODATION
At Sea: You’ll sleep onboard during the race.
On Shore: You’ll need to arrange accommodations while the boat is docked. This is common practice for most race crews, as race boats aren’t set up for living aboard outside of racing.
HOW TO JOIN
To register, click the 'Sign Up' button anywhere on the site. Complete and submit the form indicating "2026 // RORC Caribbean 600" as your preferred passage.
We’ll get back to you within 24-48 hours after completing the ‘Registration form’ and send out a link to the ‘Offshore Crew Application’. We are taking pre-registrations now, and will confirm the crew list by the end of July.
Payments are non-refundable. You'll be asked to agree to our terms & conditions on your application before submitting the deposit. Please read them carefully.
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Join the boat at 13:00 on the passage start date. Crew must depart the boat by 12:00 Noon on the passage end date.
Make sure you eat lunch before joining! We’ll get straight into bunk assignments & briefings once all crew have arrived.
Travel logistics & specific itinerary will be sent in the Passage Newsletter #2 emailed to all crew 2-4 months before passage departure.
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All 59º North passages are led by qualified RYA / MCA Yachtmaster Ocean-certified skippers & mates. All miles sailed onboard both boats will count towards your own license mileage requirements. We are happy to provide certificates to this effect for your RYA Day Skipper, Yachtmaster or other countries’ sea-time requirements.
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We now reserve two spots for women on all of our passages! You will not be ‘alone’ when you sail with 59º North. Learn more here.