Nelson Sailing Center

I took a couple classes here a few years ago and they were pretty good. The boats they had were nice and we rented from them a few times. The main problem is that the river is pretty narrow and shallow. Also if there isn’t a good wind, you are not going to get very far. After a while it gets boring because you can only go ~5 knots (or mph) so if you rent for a half a day, by the time you get ready and go you are already thinking of coming back. Also, there’s not much to see out there. I’ve also sailed on the Hudson and the Long Island Sound, both of which are much more impressive.

Regarding Jim R. review:
Seems like Nelson Sailing Center is taking advantage of their supposed monopoly on the local sailing school market. Clearly they do not appreciate you as a customer.
Here is another option: Monmouth County Park System offers summer sailing classes on the Manasquan Reservoir in Howell, NJ. The classes are taught by certified instructors and they have sailing camps for kids. Here is the web site, but keep in mind that this is a Summer program, so the info may not be available until Spring. «
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Best of all… no jelly fish!
I have been renting sail boats at Manasquan Reservoir for the past few years, and have been very happy.
Nelson is not the only option, and does not deserve your business!

Never again!
Horrible experience with both my 6 yr old son and 9 year old daughter. Where to begin? We have a power boat, but wanted our son to get a feel for sailing. Nelson’s «Snappy Sailor» program says:
Snapper Sailing (Ages 5 – 8)
Introduce your child to the wonderful world of sailing in the safety of a keelboat that cannot turn over. Our certified instructors will keep them entertained by combining a variety of water activities like banana boat riding, water trampoline jumping, and more.“
Cost $ 190 per week. 3 hours a day.
The very first 3 lines of the 2010 Kid’s summer program web page says:
A Program of Sailing Instruction for Youngsters in Island Heights, Toms River, New Jersey. We are a full-​service sailing center with great facilities and great boats. Plus we are in an ideal location — safe waters, a beautiful town and near to all the attractions of Ocean County.
Ok, so we’re expecting predominately sailing with some other activities. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The first 4 days my son did not even set foot on a sail boat. All but one day the weather was perfect. When I spoke to the manager on friday morning to express my concern she (I think her name was Jenny) told me and my wife … Oh, we changed the activities to be predominately getting used to being around the water, which meant a water trampoline (more on that later) and a couple of banana boat rides. she went on to say the shoul dhave changed the description. Well, that would have been nice to know before we plunked down $ 190 (each). I asked to speak to the owner, Gordon Nelson who was not available.
Next issue. Jelly fish. The waters are infested with them. we signed up with 3 neighbors. All complained that the kids were getting stung while either swimming at their beach or on the water trampoline. In fact on on Thursday my daughter got stung so bad her whole arm was covered with bites and itched the heck out of her. i had my daughter show the manger her arm. The managers response…” That’s about right” she went on to say that she gets a prescription for herself to combat the problem. Then why are they sending the kids out there? My daughter would not attend on Friday for fear she woul dget stung again. $ 380 later I have one son who was put on a sail boat after we complained for part of the last day and a daughter who has a rash to show for her experience.
Gordon Nelson did call me. I explained that the description of the «Snappy Sailor» program had us expecting our son would actually get some experience on a sail boat… more than just the last day. he told me that they are professionals and know whats best for kids that age. that getting them used to having fun on the water (trampoline, swimming, banana boat riding I suppose) was best for them. I explained that I have a boat and we already do all that, I wanted some sailing experience for my son. Well a half hour of his arrogance was enough for me. He asked waht I wanted and I really just wanted him to know his advertising was off, (which he strongly disagreed with) and as this went on for some time… I asked partial refund. He siad he would look at the description again and get back to us. which he did and said since the description mentions things other than sailing, I should not have expected it to be predominately sailng and he would not be providing any refund. And, about the jellyfish, well they can’t control them. I said of course, but you can control whether you put the kids in the water with them… last I checked sailing was supposed to be done on a boat.

We’ve been going to Nelson’s for 3 years now and heartily endorse the center. Everyone is friendly and very competent. You can rent a sailboat or a catamaran to take out, or you can hire a captain to do all of the work for you.
We had my birthday party aboard the big catamaran and had a great time traversing the Toms River on a sunny day while we enjoyed drinks and snacks.
Their rates are reasonable, and their boats are well maintained. They’ll teach you to sail if you want to learn, and help you sharpen your skills if it’s been a while since you’ve sailed.
Taking sailing lessons would be a great stay-​cation for a family that didn’t want to travel this summer!