Are you considering renting a boat for your vacation, but you have lots of questions about navigation that remain unanswered? Or perhaps you're looking for secrets and good tips for your next cruise on the French Riviera? Who better to answer you than a professional skipper passionate about sailing!
For this article, I had the chance to interview Romain Falga, a skipper specializing in the Nice region, and ask him 14 questions to better understand his profession and his recommendations for your cruise.
The Portrait
Filovent: Can you introduce yourself in a few words?
Romain: My name is Romain Falga, I'm 47 years old and I've been a sailing professional for 7 years. I'm a true sailing enthusiast, a "sailor" as we sometimes say. Today, I work as a professional skipper throughout the high tourist season, and at my former employer during the low season. You could say I've found the solution: winter in an office, summer at sea.
Filovent: Can you simply define your profession? What does "skipper" mean to you?
Romain: The problem is that, contrary to what one might think, being a skipper is far from simple to define! If I had to be really down-to-earth, I would say it's taking people by boat to places that would be inaccessible otherwise, in complete safety. Safety is important in the definition, the skipper is its guarantor at sea. He's the one who takes care of every detail related to navigation, not just holding the helm. And to answer the second part of your question, I would say that skipper is a form of freedom that mixes work and passion. I consider myself very lucky to have found an activity like this.
Filovent: What has been your professional journey? Did you know from childhood that you wanted to become a skipper?
Romain: Maybe not from childhood, but I started getting interested in sailing very early. I started doing it when I was 14, it immediately fascinated me. The next step was sailing on a habitable boat, at age 20. However, I didn't make it my profession right away, and it really remained just a hobby for a good part of my life. I worked in IT at a pension fund for 17 years, so really nothing related. And as I approached 40, I guess I wanted a change, because that's when I decided to professionally retrain. I did sailing training in Brittany for 6 months to become a professional. And there you have it, I'm very happy with this reconversion, let's say "partial", since I work again at my former employer due to the strong seasonality that impacts our profession.
Filovent: Are you interested in regattas and nautical races? Have you done any?
Romain: Well yes, I've already participated in a regatta, but not from the inside, only from the outside. I was a support boat, meaning I ensured with other skippers the smooth running of the regatta, everyone's safety, and also logistical matters. But yes, I would be very interested in participating as a racer. You have to recognize that it's a very demanding activity. It does me good to rest in winter, personally. But I confess that I have access to the Antibes regattas, because I'm in co-ownership of a small sailboat, and participating is a personal goal, that's clear. For now, it's both lack of time and lack of fitness at the right moment that have prevented me, but it remains in a corner of my mind.
Filovent: Do you prefer sailing alone or with a crew?
Romain: It's true that one might have the image of the old solitary sea wolf [laugh]. But I would say I prefer with a crew, or another person who knows how to skipper. It's primarily a matter of communication. First of all from the navigation point of view, it's still easier to perform maneuvers when there are several people and you can communicate about everything you need to know to navigate safely. And beyond that, I'm talking about everyday communication. With clients, we must remain quite professional at all times, it's our job. But on a week of sailing, it's nice to have someone else to talk to about lighter topics in private, to be able to share other things. It's rare, but it happens that you feel a bit lonely. Most of the time, it goes very well, but there are always 1 or 2 clients in the season where you feel a bit forgotten!
Some Nautical Advice
Filovent: What is your favorite sailboat model?
Romain: Ah that's not an easy question. I would choose a Bali 4.6, yes. Rather a catamaran, that's where we'll find stability and the most comfort. It's a fairly wide model, so quite spacious, and the Bali have this particularity of having large tilting doors that open the saloon to the outside. Then, we must recognize that the model is not always beneficial for the skipper, considering the cabins that are allocated in catamarans. We very often end up sleeping in the tips! For people who will read the article and don't know what it is, in catamarans of a certain size, you most often find very small cabins at the front of the boat, so at the level of the "tips". At one time, I did it, but I've passed a moment where now I don't do it anymore. On the Bali, in addition, the bathrooms are in the cabins. Which sometimes creates great moments of solitude when you wake up before your clients in the morning, and you don't have access to the toilets [laugh].
Filovent: What sailboat model would you recommend to people who have never sailed?
Romain: So, for all the reasons I mentioned, I would go again for a catamaran. It's really the type of vessel that will best suit first-time sailors. I would say a Lagoon 39. So a boat with a smaller size, but which still remains much more easily maneuverable than a monohull. It will also give more dynamic sailing than on a Bali, which are a bit slower anyway.
Filovent: Does the age of a sailboat matter a lot?
Romain: Yes, absolutely! It does matter a lot. Then the maintenance that comes after is very important. It's much safer to have a new, recent, and maintained boat than an old boat where you have some doubts about maintenance. Problems don't happen often, but it's true that there are boats like that which are rented out by people who aren't always necessarily careful, and there it deteriorates very quickly. I always say that a boat that is rented out, all year round, is at least twice its age! Overall, it's worn out, renters pay little attention.
Romain's Secrets
Filovent: What is the most beautiful destination where you have sailed?
Romain: It's surely when I sailed during a cruise in the Grenadines, which are a group of islands in the southern Antilles. It's really fabulous, everything. The Tobago Cays, Mustique, Bequia, all these little islands. It's really a chance to sail on such turquoise water. My favorite memory is undoubtedly the evening when we ate lobsters on the barbecue with clients. It was on an uninhabited island, completely deserted, on a beach. There was a giant barbecue organized, about thirty people... Lots of lobsters, and especially rum galore [laugh]. And as for the anchorage I loved there, it was a bit further north, at Marigot Bay, on the island of Saint Lucia. It's a "restaurant anchorage", where you can find quite a few restaurants, for all tastes. There's the Château Mygo for example for seafood, the JJ's Paradise. But it remains above all a very pretty anchorage, very nice.
Filovent: And the anchorage you least recommend?
Romain: So, in the Grenadines, I don't really recommend the stop at Saint Vincent, just south of Saint Lucia. Clients often stop in the city of Kingstown, as soon as you reach the south of the island, and it's a place where there's a still active volcano, so we don't have super peaceful nights, in terms of safety. Generally we don't stay long, we're not very reassured.
Filovent: In which area do you sail most often? Why this destination?
Romain: For now, I sail a lot towards Beaulieu, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, near Nice then. As for the reasons behind this choice, first because I live in Nice, very pragmatically. I've managed to build my little network there, so it helps. And then on the sailing plan, what's practical is that there are many beautiful spots quite close. In one day, I can do 4 or 5 spots, in very little distance. There are also quite a few restaurants, with tender boats that can come pick the guests up to dock. And then it's very beautiful, the Corniche d'Or, the Esterel... The advantage is also that I'm not far from Corsica and Sardinia, which are also very nice areas to sail.
Filovent: What are the 3 anchorages you prefer in this part of the Mediterranean?
Romain: Spontaneously, like that, I would say first the Mala beach, between Nice and Monaco. It's a small beach at Cap d'Ail which is in a really well-preserved cove, and where the water is super clear. The view of the Mediterranean is superb. And there are restaurants for lunch, so it's really perfect for clients. Then, I highly recommend the Anse de Lilong, on the side of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. You might find it under the name Anse des Fossés, but it's the same. What's very nice about this bay is that it's never too crowded, so it's quite peaceful to anchor there. There's also a small beach at the bottom of the bay. And then, it's quite sheltered in terms of wind. And the third anchorage, we'll go a little bit to Italy, it's called Capo Mortola, right next to the border. It's rocky, it's very beautiful. We're on another type of beach because we have pebbles there. And it's really close to the Hanbury Botanical Garden which is also a great visit to do.
Filovent: And the best place to eat?
Romain: So, it will depend on what clients are looking for, there are 2 spots. There are the restaurants at Mala, so the Éden Plage Mala, and La Réserve de la Mala. These are fairly chic restaurants, with seafood, and a mix between French and Italian cuisine. So rather for clients who want a quiet meal. And then, for clients who want to have a bit more fun, there's a restaurant called Anjuna Beach, on the beach of Èze. Clients are always very happy, it's very festive. You eat specialties, but it's rather premium. We're not at the level of the Nikki Beach in Saint-Tropez, but it's kind of the idea.
Filovent: What is your favorite sailing anecdote?
Romain: The first one that comes to me like that, immediately, was during a sailing trip, my clients who spot dolphins, and who ask me if they can give them bread to attract them to the boat [laugh]. The problem is that bread won't attract them at all. If you want to attract dolphins, you have to give them sardines, small fish, or squid. But bread, no chance it will interest them. And at the same time, it's also these moments where people who don't know much about the sea discover this world with a bit of naivety that are very nice to experience.
Acknowledgments
I would like to sincerely thank Romain for the time he gave me during our exchange.
