NaCzarter Team
· Updated
What to eat on a sailing trip: the short version
For a week's trip, plan a proper breakfast, a light meal on the water and one one-pot dish in the evening in port. Allow 80 to 100 g of dry pasta, rice or groats per person for dinner, which with our meal plan comes to about 1.5 kg for the week for four people and 2 to 2.5 kg for six.
How to cook on a single burner and what works in the galley in general is covered on our list of yacht provisions. The plan below assumes a typical charter: picking up the yacht in the afternoon of day one and returning it in the morning of day eight.
How much food per person
Polish dietary reference values set out energy requirements. With moderate or high activity, an adult needs, according to NIZP PZH (Poland's National Institute of Public Health), from about 2,250 to 3,650 kcal a day, depending on sex, age and body weight.
Portion sizes in grams come from the 2024 Italian dietary guidelines: 80 g of dry pasta, rice or groats and 50 g of bread, which is roughly one slice. Manufacturers give portions of 50 to 100 g on the packaging. On a sailing trip, allow 100 g of pasta per adult, because after a day on the water you eat more than at home.
A healthy adult can eat up to seven eggs a week, as the Polish sanitary inspectorate (Sanepid) points out. Scrambled eggs twice a week fit within that with room to spare. Keep eggs cool, and with a small fridge buy them in two batches.
Meal plan for a week on board
| Day | Breakfast | On the water | Dinner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1, yacht pickup in the afternoon | at home | shopping and handover | pasta with tomato sauce and sausage |
| 2 | scrambled eggs, bread, tea | sandwiches, fruit | tinned stew with groats |
| 3 | cereal with UHT milk, fruit | wraps with cheese and vegetables | rice with vegetables and tuna |
| 4 | cheese and ham sandwiches | snack bars, nuts | dinner at a tavern by the port |
| 5 | scrambled eggs, bread | sandwiches, fruit | pasta with pesto and vegetables |
| 6 | cereal with yoghurt, fruit | wraps, crackers | tinned beans in tomato sauce with sausage, served with bread |
| 7 | sandwiches | sandwiches, fruit | last evening at a tavern |
| 8, yacht return in the morning | whatever is left in the fridge | the journey home | at home |
An evening at a tavern gives you a break from washing up and saves gas. You can find places to eat close to the quay on our list of restaurants near ports in Masuria.
Shopping list for a week for 4 and 6 people
We base the quantities on the meal plan above, that is five dinners cooked on the yacht, four of them with pasta, rice or groats, with a portion of 80 to 100 g of dry product per person and one tin per two people. For a crew that comes back hungry from swimming, add a spare packet of pasta.
| Product | 4 people | 6 people |
|---|---|---|
| Pasta (2 dinners) | 0.6–0.8 kg | 1–1.2 kg |
| Rice (1 dinner) | approx. 0.4 kg | approx. 0.6 kg |
| Groats (1 dinner) | approx. 0.4 kg | approx. 0.6 kg |
| Tinned food (stew, tuna, beans) | 6 tins | 9 tins |
| Eggs (scrambled twice) | 16–24 | 24–36 |
| Cereal, UHT milk, yoghurts | for 2 breakfasts | for 2 breakfasts |
| Drinking water | 56–84 l | 84–126 l |
| Bread, cheese, cold meats, vegetables, fruit | for 2–3 days, then top up | for 2–3 days, then top up |
We count water at 2 to 3 l per person per day. Polish reference values give about 2 l a day for a woman and 2.5 l for a man, including water from food, and in hot weather and when working on deck you drink more. You don't have to carry all the water from day one, because you can buy more in shops near the ports. The list of shops near ports in Masuria shows where they are.
What lasts a week in a small fridge
The fridge on a charter sailing boat is small and runs off the battery, so you fill it first with what spoils fastest: cold meats, cheese, butter and eggs. Buy these for two or three days and top up along the way. UHT milk, hard vegetables (carrots, peppers, onions), apples, tinned food, pasta and cereal will last a week in a cupboard. Tomatoes, lettuce and soft fruit keep for a few days at most, so they are the first things to eat.
One dish from one pot saves gas on the yacht, water and washing up, and with two burners you couldn't cook three things at once anyway.
Frequently asked questions
How much pasta per person should I take on a sailing trip? Allow 80 to 100 g of dry pasta per person per dinner. With two pasta dinners a week, that is 0.6 to 0.8 kg for four people.
How much water should I buy for a week's trip for four people? 2 to 3 l per person per day, which is 56 to 84 l for the week. You don't have to carry it all from the start, because you can buy more water in ports.
Do you have to cook every day on a sailing trip? No. A convenient plan is five dinners on the yacht and two evenings at a tavern by the port.
What should I eat on the water during the day? Something that doesn't need cooking: sandwiches, wraps, fruit, nuts, snack bars and crackers. Save the hot meal for the evening in port.
How do I store food without a big fridge? Put cold meats, cheese, butter and eggs in the fridge, and choose the rest so it keeps in a cupboard: UHT milk, tinned food, pasta, cereal and hard vegetables.
Cover photo: NaCzarter.pl
