Windjammers: Fleet sets course for SAiL 2025 in Bremerhaven

It's almost time! The SAiL begins in Bremerhaven on Wednesday, 13 August. On Saturday, 60 tall ships will set off from Esbjerg after the conclusion of this year's Tall Ship Races to take part in the big entry parade on 13 August. After a ten-year break, the city on the Weser will once again become a stronghold of windjammers. Five days full of programme!

The coming week sees the start of the SAiL Bremerhavenone of the most important maritime festivals in Germany. From 13 to 17 August 2025, over 250 ships from all over the world will dock at the quays of the Weser estuary, led by the "Alexander von Humboldt II", the flagship of the Windjammer Festival. Over the next few days, the North Sea will be navigated by numerous tall ships, including the "Alex", which is already underway. Around 60 boats will set off on Saturday from Esbjerg in Denmark, the destination harbour of the this year's Tall Ship Racesor come to the Weser from other directions.

Run-in parade on 13 August heralds the start of the meeting

The run-in parade on 13 August marks the start of the event. It is organised by the "Alexander von Humboldt II" followed by a good 60 tall ships and numerous other boats and ships under sail or motor. The "Gorch Fock" with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on board will receive the ships arriving together and escort them to Bremerhaven. A total of around 250 large and small ships are expected.

Three premiere guests and one tragic cancellation

Three ships dock in Bremerhaven for the first time: The four-masted barque "Unión" from Peru, known as the largest and fastest sail training ship in Latin America. With a length of 115.75 metres, the ship was built in Callao in 2014 and is used to train future leaders of the Peruvian navy. The figurehead depicts the Inca ruler Túpac Yupanqui reaching for the sun. At the beginning of May, the ship set off for Europe with a crew of 255 and will not return to its home port until November after 178 days.

Another premiere guest is the French brig "Le Phoenix" - a film star! Built in 1929 in Frederikshavn, Denmark, the 34 metre long square-rigged ship has played many roles. Originally designed as a merchant sailer, the ship served as a Protestant missionary ship for 20 years before being used for freight transport. After years of decay in Florida and a change of ownership, the "Le Phoenix" shone for over two decades as a location for historical film productions under the British flag. In Ridley Scott's Columbus epic "1492 - The Conquest of Paradise", she was transformed into the caravel Santa Maria, and in the Moby Dick adaptation "In the Heart of the Sea", she is rammed by a giant white whale. The ship has been sailing under the French flag since 2024 and trains trainees in the traditional art of sailing.

The third newcomer to Sail 2025 is the Portuguese caravel "Vera Cruz", a replica of the type of ship that established Portuguese naval and colonial power in the 15th century. The almost 24 metre long "Vera Cruz" was built in 2000 at the Vila do Condo shipyard as part of the celebrations to mark the 500th anniversary of the discovery of Brazil. Since then, it has been used to provide young people in particular with sailing training and sea experiences.

Following a tragic accident, the Mexican sail training ship "Cuauhtémoc", which was also originally registered, cannot take part in the SAiL. The ship collided with the Brooklyn Bridge in New York on 17 MayThe masts broke and two people lost their lives. The damage to the tall ship was apparently so serious that the repair work is taking longer than initially expected.

With your own boat to the SAiL

Accompanying the entry parade on your own keel or simply getting to the party mile in a few steps from on board for a few days - sounds tempting? Then let's go! The marinas in Bremerhaven don't accept reservations for the event, "but so far we've managed to accommodate everyone, whether in a packet or on the quay wall," says Jasmin Schuster from the LLoyd Marina with 180 berths. This is also confirmed by Klaas Kuhlmann from the North Sea Marina in the fishing harbour. "Especially when the weather is good, many boats from the neighbourhood come over spontaneously. Then it can get crowded. But in addition to the marinas, we also have the clubs, which are also happy to welcome guests."

SAiL convoy of the Lower Saxony Motorboat Sport Association

The Landesverband Motorbootsport Niedersachsen e.V. The participants will gather in Wilhelmshaven and Oldenburg on 11 and 12 August 2025 before taking part in the arrival parade of tall ships in Bremerhaven. The boats will remain moored in the fishing port during the Sail Festival programme. A free shuttle bus connects the various festival locations. The event concludes with a convivial evening in the "Strandhalle" restaurant on 15 August and officially ends on 18 August 2025.

Lookout for the run-in parade - the best seats

If you can't join the entry parade on the water, there are several good places along the Weser to look out for the queens of the seas. At around 11.00 a.m., the ships set off from Wurster Arm between the Butjadigen peninsula and the Wurster North Sea coast. About one to one and a half hours later, the flagship "Alexander von Humboldt II" is expected to arrive at the Strandhalle Bremerhaven. There are good views of the "Alex" and the other windjammers from several places along the Weser: at Seebäderkaje, the dyke, the Strandhalle or the Havenwelten promenade.

Colourful programme for everyone

During the five days of the festival, the boats invite you to Sail along a. Wheelchair users and their companions also have access to the "Henk de Mol" Opportunity to stick your nose in the North Sea wind. Those who prefer it rock-free can take a look around the ships during the daily "Open Ship". In addition to the maritime attractions, a Stage programme and market stalls, party cruises, pyro shows and its medieval buccaneers' village for a varied programme from early to late.

Sound installation brings back forgotten ship sounds

Who doesn't miss the sonorous tooting of ship typhoons, once an acoustic landmark of every harbour city? For the duration of SAiL, it is returning to Bremerhaven in the form of a sound installation made up of typhoon signals. Bremerhaven artist Jens Carstensen has collected more than 100 recordings of ships' horns, including those of well-known vessels such as the "Queen Elizabeth II", the old "Europa" and the "Maxim Gorki" as well as numerous merchant and government ships. He did not compose songs from them, but entire messages from Morse code signals. Those who can still decipher them can hear sentences such as "Just a little moment of silence to think about what we are in the world for" or "If you don't take risks, you can't shape the future" from a twelve metre high tower on the Geestemole - messages from the guest books of the Bremerhaven Seamen's Mission.

The SAiL Bremerhaven

Traditional ships from all over the world have been meeting on the quayside at the mouth of the Weser every five years since 1986 - this year for the tenth time after Sail 2020 had to be cancelled due to the pandemic. After the long forced break, around one million visitors are expected. The event reflects the city and region's close connection to sailing shipping. Bremerhaven can look back on a long tradition of shipbuilding: between 1840 and 1926, over 250 large deep-water sailing ships were built here. Some of these historic ships, such as the "Kruzenshtern" (formerly "Padua") or the "Statsraad Lehmkuhl" (formerly "Grossherzog Friedrich August"), are still sailing the world's oceans today. The "Alexander von Humboldt II" has been a floating ambassador for Bremerhaven in the international windjammer community since 2011.

After the long forced break, Sail 2025 should be a highlight of the summer not only for sailing enthusiasts, but also for culture vultures and families. And - as things stand today - it seems to be giving its all once again for the duration of the event with temperatures of around 25 degrees and plenty of sunshine!