ACsailingSF - San Francisco, CA

Jerry Norris

Do Not Buy Ticket Early

I was in San Francisco the weekend of Sept. 13-15th and booked a ride on the America’s Cup boat 76 through ACSailing. It was to be one of the highlights of my trip, I am a big fan of the America’s Cup. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. I woke up that morning to a “small craft advisory” and only 9 people booked for the ride (8 is the minimum). This gave me concern but the company sent nothing out to cancel the ride. Upon arrival our numbers grew to 13, but when we reached the boat the captain informed us that “due to the weather” we would only be using the jib, no mainsail. This initially seemed reasonable but after we got out onto the water it was clear that the weather had nothing to do with not using the mainsail–that decision was more likely due to the fact the captain only had 2 crew members instead of the normal 4 and neither crew member was very experienced. While we were sailing this 90 ft. boat with just a jib, a large sailing regatta was occurring with boats much smaller but all with both a full main (not reefed) and jib, even flying a spinnaker downwind under the same “small craft advisory”. To make matters worse, I reached out to the company the next day and never received any type of response, my email was ignored. While I am sure that this experience for many is exhilarating, that would most likely include the use of the mainsail. My suggestion is to hold off on booking this ride until you are sure of the weather and likely guest count. Maybe this way you can get a full crew and the full experience, but understand the company is not going to respond to any concerns you may have...my guess is they don’t count on repeat customers!

Jennifer Lynde

Excellent experience - even for novices! I have no experience sailing, but enjoy adventure and the ocean. The AC sailing SF experience was a once-in-a-lifetime trip around the bay. We got involved with the crew helping to sail the yacht itself. The best views of the city, bay and Golden Gate bridge were from the yacht. The crew were also incredibly professional, knowledgable about the yacht and sport, and friendly.

Sor Pallocca

This is the experience to do if you're visit or if you live in SF.
Having the chance to experience an incredible thrilling sailing yatcht soaring through the golden gate waters it is an absolutely a must!
With almost 100ft length and 115ft main sail the AC 75 is totally a head turner and very hard to miss on the water.
The crew is absolutely wonderful and the experience is worth every penny.
Great job!

Laura F

Absolutely great experience! Not just a boat ride, but lots of interesting information, little extreme but lovely! Took us about 2.5 hours, enjoyed beautiful sunset over Golden Gate! Absolutely worth it!

Gabriele Caracausi

Great experience! Jon and the crew are really professional and transmit their passion for sailing. Everyone can participate in the manoeuvres, unique opportunity with such big boat!
I would suggest 30 mins more trip.

Adam DePrimo

Whether you're a sailor or never stepped onto a sailboat, this is a pretty cool experience to have in San Francisco. You'll get to participate on the grinders and drive. We weren't able to raise the main due to high winds, but even with a head sail, we're still on an America's Cup vessel and had a great time sailing around the GGB and Alcatraz. Captain and crew were a great group to talk with and share worldly adventures. You should definitely check out this opportunity if you're in San Francisco.

Josef Tadich

Fantastic day on the water, the AC Sailing team were amazing and felt part of the crew on such an iconic boat. Thoroughly recommend!

Jack Powell

My wife and I sailed on this boat yesterday for the Day Sail trip. First off I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this!!!

We boarded USA 76, motored from the dock towards the cruise ship docks while we readied and raised the jib and main. At that point the motor was shut off - this is a true sailing experience, not a motor/sail party barge! We then tacked across/around Alcatraz and on out of San Francisco Bay beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. Since this was only a 2 1/2 hour trip we gybed before reaching Hawaii 🙂 , did a downwind run back under the Bridge, along Fisherman's Wharf, and back to the area of the cruise ship terminals to drop sails and motor back to the dock at Pier 39. The whole trip offers stunning views of the San Francisco Bay waterfront, Alcatraz, and the Golden Gate Bridge (both sides and beneath!).

Along the way the crew of 3 utilized all who wanted to help (18 passengers) in the various tasks needed to sail a boat of this caliber (operating the coffee grinders, tailing winches, raising / lowering / bagging sails, and even steering)! While participation is not mandatory it is allowed and encouraged (it definitely adds to the experience in my mind if you are really "into it"). For those who would prefer to remain on sightseeing and porpoise / sea lion lookout those positions are available as well!