Everything I wish I'd had when I hitched my first ride across the Atlantic as a complete newbie. 400 pages to take you from “I'd love to cross the Atlantic” to sipping a coconut on the other side, celebrating.
400 pages. 32 captains and 58 crew interviewed. Over 4,000 copies sold.
Crew season is now. In harbours like Las Palmas, from now through the winter, hundreds of boats are getting ready to cross the Atlantic, and skippers are asking the same thing every day: are you crossing? Are you looking for a boat? This is the book for catching one of those rides.
Featured in
This is for you if
- You dream of crossing an ocean, but you don't own a boat.
- You have no boat, no budget and no sailing experience, but a love of adventure.
- You want to find a boat to crew on, and know how to tell a good one from a bad one.
- You're weighing it up as a solo female traveller.
- You want to cross the ocean and give something back to it.
This is the resource to make an Atlantic crossing happen: happy, safe and meaningful. For anyone who wants to sail across the ocean as crew, with or without experience.
You don't need to be a sailor first
I hitched my first ride across the Atlantic as a complete newbie to the world of sailing. Thousands of people catch rides across oceans every year, and most captains care far more about the personal click than about your logbook.
This book shows you how to find those boats, how to choose well, and how to be the crew a good captain wants to keep.
Suzanne van der Veeken
Hi, I'm Suzanne
I hitched my first ride across the Atlantic as a complete newbie to the world of sailing. Since then I've crossed the Atlantic five times on strangers' sailboats, and explored almost every ocean on the planet this way, more than 50,000 nautical miles all told.
The sea opened my eyes to how beautiful the ocean is, and to the trouble it's in. I wrote Ocean Nomad to help other adventure-seekers get out there safely, feel the magic of the high seas, and give something back to the water.
Founder of Ocean Nomads. Author of two books. Featured in the Financial Times, described as one of the movement's leading voices, and in CNN, Lonely Planet and Yachting World.
Inside the book
01. Is it for you?
The real picture of ocean crewing, the mindset to start with, and when it isn't for you.
02. The ocean and the routes
The Atlantic routes, the seasons and weather windows, how long a crossing takes and what it costs.
03. Where to find a boat
The harbours, the crew boards, the places online, and when to start looking so you're not too early or too late.
04. Choose a good boat and captain
The three-step assessment, the red flags, and the agreements to make before you ever step aboard.
05. The crew ports
Las Palmas, Mindelo, Gibraltar, Rodney Bay, the Azores and more, and what each one is actually like.
06. Prepare and pack
The packing list, the skills worth practising first, seasickness, and staying healthy at sea.
07. The crossing
Provisioning, safety and risk, watch systems, and the day you finally leave the dock.
08. Life at sea
The watch, the galley, the people, the night skies, and what three weeks on the water does to you.
09. Give back to the ocean
How to cross as someone who leaves the ocean a little healthier than they found it.
Plus
Crossing stories from both routes, a full packing list, and the boat and captain assessment you can use on the dock.
What readers say
“It is part of my ship's articles: I want every crew member to read it before they step on board. Not just because it's packed with tips for captain and crew, but because it gives a clear insight into the minds of hitch sailors.”
Edwin Butter, captain and boat owner
“As someone with no boat, no budget and no sailing experience but a love of adventure, this book gave me everything the author promises and more. It also shows how any of us can help our oceans.”
Reader review
“One of the movement's leading voices.”
Financial Times
“An inspiration and a fantastic guide on hitch sailing and ocean preservation. It should be on every yacht out there at sea.”
Steve Green, Yachtmaster Instructor and Ocean Master
“A highly organised and helpful book with routes, ports, websites, and even some of the bars you should hang out at to find your ride. Her passion for conservation offers insight into a lifestyle that is also socially responsible.”
Reader review
“She's turned hitching rides on boats from a sketchy endeavour into a graceful art. Do as she says.”
Cliff Lyon, captain
Do I need sailing experience?
No. That is the whole point of the book.
Plenty of people cross oceans as crew with none. What you need is to know where to look, how to choose a boat you'll be safe and happy on, and how to be useful once you're aboard. The book gets you ready. The harbour, and the community, get you the ride.
It was written in 2017. Is it still current?
The fundamentals don't age. The routes, the weather windows, how to read a boat and a captain, safety, provisioning and life at sea are the same as they've always been. The fast-moving parts, like where to look online and staying connected at sea, are kept current inside the Ocean Nomads community rather than frozen on a page.
What format is it?
A PDF you download and keep, readable on any phone, tablet, laptop or e-reader. It prints cleanly, so you can take it to the dock.
Can I cross solo as a woman?
Yes, and there's a section on it. I've done most of my crossings as solo female crew. It covers choosing boats you'll feel safe on, reading captains, and the agreements to make before you step aboard.
How is this different from just turning up at a marina?
Turning up works far better when you know which harbours, which season, which boats to approach and how to present yourself. That's most of the book. It saves you weeks on the dock, and helps you say no to the boat you should never have said yes to.
Get the book
The e-book, straight from me. Read it on any device, print it, take it to the dock. Ocean Nomads community members get 30% off, and every copy funds more content for a healthier ocean.
Prefer print or Kindle? Ocean Nomad is also on Amazon. Reading in German? I wrote a fresh edition with Delius Klasing, Salz auf der Haut, about travelling the world by sailboat as crew.
The book is where it starts
Reading it is step one. When you're ready to actually go, the Ocean Nomads community is where you find your people: crew, captains, boats and the miles that turn the idea into a life.
Meet Ocean Nomads
Or come cross with us
We run our own Atlantic crossings on SV Twister, a 36-metre traditional schooner. Beginners are welcome on most legs. If this book makes you want to actually go, this is the boat to go on.
See the Twister crossings
Ready to catch a ride?
the next boats leave this winter. be ready for them.
Find the boat. Choose a good one. Cross the ocean.
