Just recently, Zac Sunderland returned from a cruise and went ashore in the Los Angeles harbor area. Nothing unusual about that. Except that he is 17 years old, and had spent 13 months sailing around the world alone in his 36-foot sailboat named Intrepid.

Zac is now officially the youngest person to ever do a Magellan type of circumnavigation solo. For envious travelers who are happy to vacation for as little as $100 a day, his budget for food and supplies throughout the trip was about $5 a day.

For those who are frequent fliers and cruisers, let’s think of what fun Zac missed by his lonely trip. No fighting traffic to and from the airport. No security searches or long waits for flights. No sitting in the middle of crampted five-across seats on long flights. No lifeboat drills onboard. No dress up for dinner. No bingo. No diapered little kids in the ship’s spa.

Seriously, if you’d like to try something similar. but not quite a year at sea, check on the many varieties of saiboat vacations. They range in size from 10 to 200 feet, with facilities that range from four-stacked bunks to luxurious staterooms, from sandwiches on deck to gourmet dining. And you can book a sailing for one day to ... if you believe you’d really enjoy it ... a 12-month cruise. Don’t even think of doing it alone.

Below is just a small sampling of websites that advertise sailing ventures:
www.2adventure.com
www.caribbean-sailing.org
www.loscabosguide.com
www.vacationstogo.com/windjammer.cfm
www.gosailnow.com
www.marinasailing.com
www.shellbackdon.com