Four days of racing off Sint Maarten, evenings at Regatta Village, and the same motto: « Serious Fun ». The 47th St. Maarten Heineken Regatta is set for March 4-7, 2027. The Notice of Race is live and registration is open, according to the organizers' official release dated 14 July 2026.
For travelers already on island or planning an early-March stay, the draw goes beyond the race fleet. The event pulls in more than 20,000 visitors each year and crews from over thirty-five countries, from professional maxis to bareboat holiday sailors. Racing unfolds just off the coast in typical trade-wind conditions that are often dramatic from shore or from a spectator boat.
What is confirmed for 2027
- Dates: March 4-7, 2027 (47th edition)
- Notice of Race available; registration open via Yacht Scoring
- Regatta Village at Princess Port de Plaisance (Simpson Bay), free public entry
- Family-friendly programming from 4:00 p.m., food court and evening concerts
- Organizer: Sint Maarten Yacht Club Regatta Foundation, with Heineken as title sponsor
Local champions set the tone
The first team to enter for 2027 is also the 2026 overall winner: More Zessin', a Sint Maarten-based J/105. In a fleet of more than one hundred boats, that local victory carried real weight. The crew returns to defend the title, in an edition Regatta Chair Cary Byerley frames as a handoff between generations of island sailors.
Also among early returns is Anomaly, a Diam 24 trimaran from a one-design class that lined up eleven boats in 2026. Family storylines on the water (including father-son rivalries and ties to the regatta founders) sit at the center of the official registration announcement. For spectators, it mainly means a varied fleet to watch: monohulls, performance multihulls, and holiday bareboats.
How to follow without racing
Regatta Village at Princess Port de Plaisance in Simpson Bay remains the onshore hub. Organizers say entry is free for the public, with family-friendly programming from 4:00 p.m., a food court showcasing Saint-Martin / Sint Maarten flavors, then evening concerts. It is the simplest way to catch the atmosphere without stepping aboard a racing yacht.
On the water, Aqua Mania Adventures lists spectator trips on March 5, 6 and 7, 2027 from Simpson Bay Resort Marina aboard catamarans Lambada and Tango plus the Santino motorboat. Sessions are presented as half-days of about 2.5 hours to stay close to the racing. Details and booking sit on the operator site; confirm prices and exact times when reserving. The regatta also offers, in some editions, separate official spectator boats: check the Heineken Regatta site as March approaches.
Registration and next steps
Skippers and crews register through Yacht Scoring from the 2027 Notice of Race. Bareboat and individual berths on race boats are also flagged on the official site for sailors who want to race without bringing their own yacht. For travelers, the practical takeaway is simple: hold March 4-7, plan on Simpson Bay for village evenings, and watch spectator-boat options if the goal is a closer look at the starts.