7th February 2016 – Ellen MacArthur must been feeling proud today as she celebrates the 15th Anniversary of the day she broke the world record for the fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe.

These big races are a serious business with most races or solo attempts starting in Europe. Sailing around the world includes a few particular activities such as sailing around the Antarctica continent, passing south of Cape of Good Hope, Cape Horn and Cape Leeuwin.

The most famous races around the world are:

• The Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, first held in 1968-1969, this was the first round-the-world yacht race.
• The Vendée Globe is yacht race run single-handed on monohulls limited to 60 feet.
• The Global Challenge, was race is held every four years and follows the westward route.
• The Race, was a race held in the millennium year, 2000.
• The Oryx Quest, held in 2005, started in Qatar.
• The Volvo Ocean Race, a popular event involving Volvo Open 70 monohulls.
• The VELUX 5 Oceans Race, previously known as the BOC Challenge, later as Around Alone.

All these races are true feats of endurance, skill and experience but let’s face it we’re not all made of the same stuff as the wonderful Ellen MacArthur and they would be a bit daunting if you’re new into sailing adventures!

Calling wanna-be Ellen MacArthurs – here are some ocean adventures you can take part in

If you’re interested in an ocean experience you might like to think about joining a tall ship and learning all you need to on the go, either crossing an ocean, or participating in the annual tall ship races. Or how about brushing up your skills on an expedition yacht during an RYA certified week of sail training? Then of course there’s the mobile explorer trips where yachts are used as floating cabins to explore remote and hard to reach places in Greenland and Iceland or on journeys of discovery in search of Vikings and other unusual routes. For those who do have a good level of experience there are places available to join rallies like the ARC race and other transatlantic contests, just ask!

Adventure travel really comes to life when you hop onto a sail boat or tall ship.

Here are the best sail adventures we think are available in 2016.