Boating at MIYC
The MIYC Calendar is filled with wonderful boating activities from sunset cruises to luncheon cruises to a nautical scavenger hunt, not to mention the exciting overnight ventures to more distant ports around Florida. As a Full or Equity Member, you can participate even if you don’t have your own boat!
Look for all the upcoming cruise events on the Calendar or the Upcoming Boating Events tab.
Sunset Cruises
Enjoy a lovely evening on the water, hosting other Members on your boat or joining another Member on theirs. Groups of boats go out together, enjoy a beautiful cruise and sunset, then return to the Club for dinner and conversation. What a pleasant way to spend an evening in our island paradise!
Day Cruises
Cruise with your Yacht Club friends to a water destination for lunch. Destinations range from places like the Naples Yacht Club to the Rod & Gun Club in Everglades City. Groups of boats join in and you might have from 20-50 MIYC people participating in each event. Day cruises also include competitions like our Digital Scavenger Hunt, where teams compete in boats to follow clues and shoot photos of the target items. Members compete for prizes and bragging rights, and there's always a lot of fun and laughs!
Overnight Cruises
For a real change of scenery, go on an extended cruise. These trips head for more distant ports and stay a few days. Members party together and enjoy the sights, restaurants and activities in the new harbor. Destinations have included the Florida Keys and Bahamas as well as closer ports like South Seas Plantation at Captiva Island--with side trips to Useppa Island and Cabbage Key. Extended cruises deepen friendships as well as fun, and nothing can beat the belly laughs of competing in crab races at Tween Waters with your cruisin' buddies!
Blessing of the Fleet
The Blessing of the Fleet is a traditional invocation of good fortune for boaters. The Marco Island Yacht Club invites all area boat clubs to participate with us each February or March. Vessels assemble in the Marco River between Factory Bay and the Jolley Bridge, and then parade past the Bridge Officers of the Yacht Club for a blessing by the Club's Chaplain. The parade is usually led by the Marco Island Fire Department vessel, "J.W. Adams," followed by the Marco Island Princess, the participating fleets, the Marine Division of the Marco Island Police and the Chief of Police. Veterans are honored with their appropriate hymn as they pass.
We encourage all local boating organizations to participate. Boats can be grouped in fleets by organization if so desired.
Origins of the Blessing of the Fleet
The tradition began many centuries ago in Mediterranean fishing communities looking for divine protection as they went out to sea, and is now an annual highlight in many seacoast communities across the United States. In Florida, the first blessing was held in St. Augustine, then home to a large shrimping industry employing Italian and Sicilian immigrants.
Spectators are invited to view the event from the Yacht Club as well as stay for a buffet lunch and enjoy a "Concert in the Courtyard."
Get Involved in this Beautiful Tradition
Check the Club calendar for the event in February or March. When the announcement to sign up comes out, register your boat to participate. Invite fellow Members to join you onboard.
If you don’t have a boat, watch the beautiful ceremony from our Courtyard, the Burgee Bar or the Veranda, then join the participants for a wonderful lunch. We encourage you to dress in blue and white.
