The sailing world turns its gaze to Biscayne Bay during the winter racing season, providing an economic boost for Coconut Grove businesses.
Senet Bischoff grew up as a self-described “dock rat” at Coconut Grove Sailing Club.
“If anyone needed somebody to sail with,” Bischoff said, “I’d be out there.”
A couple of decades later, Bischoff – now a 50-year-old Wall Street lawyer who lives in the suburbs of New York City – still enjoys sailing.
In fact, he is one of the thousands of sailors and sailing enthusiasts who flock to Coconut Grove every winter from December to early April for Miami’s annual racing season, providing an economic boost for local merchants.
And while exact numbers are hard to come by, there’s plenty of visual evidence that winter sailors and their families help to lift the local economy by filling hotel rooms, camping out at local restaurants, and shopping area stores.
“If you go to dinner in Coconut Grove during those months, it is hard not to walk into people who are all wearing regatta shirts and jackets,” Bischoff said.
“We’re down there in force. The Coconut Grove Courtyard (hotel) is like a family reunion because there are so many sailors there, and we all know each other.”
As Miami’s winter calendar fills up with one regatta after another, so does the town.
“We’re the winter sailing capital of the world,” said Harry Horgan, co-founder of Shake-a-Leg Miami, an organization based in Coconut Grove that uses sailing and other water sports to empower individuals with disabilities. “People come down here from all over the country, and Europeans seem to love it, too.”
Miami is regarded by many as one of the four great sailing destinations in the world, especially for high-end racing, and the vast majority of boats that set sail during racing season do so from Coconut Grove.
The list of top sailing destinations also includes Newport, Rhode Island; San Francisco Bay; and Lake Garda in northern Italy. All four locations boast excellent racing committees and a well-established sailing culture.

But Miami, due in large part to its consistent winds, is the go-to winter destination.
“We have beautiful, flat water 12 months of the year with good breezes, especially in the winter,” said Mark Pincus, who runs the Bacardi Cup International Regatta, one of the season’s premiere events. “Biscayne Bay is one of the greatest racing venues in the world.”
When it comes to sailing season, Coconut Grove in particular is popular because it has an abundance of hotel rooms and restaurants, and great access to Biscayne Bay.
“People typically sail into Biscayne Bay and directly to Coconut Grove,” Horgan said. “We are the gateway into and out of Miami.”
In fact, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau (GMCVB), the organization that markets Miami to the world, calls Coconut Grove the Sailing Capital of Miami.
“The Grove and sailing are intrinsically connected,” says Rolando Aedo, chief operating officer at the GMCVB, which tracks tourism countywide.
In 2023 alone, more than 27 million people visited Miami-Dade County and spent a combined $21 billion on hotels, food, goods and services, according to the GMCVB.
And while the GMCVB can’t say what portion of that windfall was related to sailing, Aedo said he sees the impact of the sport nearly every day during his commute.
“When I go to work practically every day along Bayshore Drive, especially during this time of year, you will see these families, these young kids, carrying their sails back and forth, to the clubs, going to the hotels,” Aedo said. “So, while we don’t have quantitative data, qualitatively we feel that sailing is a fundamental part of our brand.”
Bischoff backs that up, from personal experience.
“It’s not unusual to go out on Biscayne Bay and see four or five race courses for different types of boats,” Bischoff said. “There are other cities – Los Angeles and St. Petersburg, for example – that have plenty of sunshine and waterfront. But they don’t have Miami’s consistent winds.”
Another plus for Miami: The area has a robust sailing culture, centered around four local clubs – the Coconut Grove Sailing Club, Coral Reef Yacht Club, Biscayne Bay Yacht Club, and Miami Yacht Club. Those clubs all support each other for racing season.

Of course, Miami does have its drawbacks, most notably the shallow depth of Biscayne Bay, Pincus said. “Our bay limits us because it’s only 10-to-12 feet at the deepest parts. Some of these new boats, we can’t invite them to come sail due to that issue.”
But Stuart Delisser, waterfront director at Coral Reef Yacht Club, believes that Biscayne Bay’s shallow water is one of its biggest strengths.
“On average, it’s about eight feet deep – no more than 12 feet at any point – and that leads to calmer water, which is better for sailing,” he said.
Another concern, voiced by Pincus: He worries that Miami has become so expensive that some sailors may skip the area for racing season.
But tourism is up overall in Miami, according to the GMCVB, and the winter season continues to draw sailors, thanks in part to events like the Bacardi Cup in March.
Bacardi is the largest privately-held, family-owned spirits company in the world and has been sponsoring sailing for 98 years. The Bacardi Cup has sailed out of Coconut Grove since 1962.
In addition, Coconut Grove is the headquarters for the U.S. Sailing Center, which many Olympians use for year-round training.
“On a random day in the Grove, you will see Olympians from Italy, Sweden, Brazil,” Bischoff said. “People from all around the world come down here because it’s such a great venue, and we have so much talent.”
That talent includes Miami-area legends such as Admiral Keith Davids, a national champion sailor at the U.S. Naval Academy; Augie Diaz, a member of the Sailing Hall of Fame; Morgan Reeser, an Olympic silver medalist; and Erika Reineke, a 2024 Olympian who is bidding to qualify for the Games again in 2028.
And that’s just the short list. There are plenty of other highly-accomplished sailors who now make Miami their home, including Olympic gold medalist Magnus Liljedahl; two-time Olympian Mark Mendelblatt; and two-time Olympian David Hughes.
As for the major races held annually in Miami, things get started with the Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta in late December.
Other major races in the Miami area include the Etchells Midwinters (February 14-16); the Bacardi Cup International Regatta (March 2-8); Miami Sailing Week (March 15-16); and the M32 Catamaran Winter Series championships (April 4-6). In addition, the U.S. Optimist (16-and-under) National Team is set to practice on Key Biscayne (Feb. 21-23).
It’s quite a show for those who love the sport, and the economic impact is profound, Delisser said.
Delisser estimates that more than 2,000 people came to the Grove for the Orange Bowl regatta in December – about 700 young sailors, ages 8 to 18, and their families.
That translates to full hotel rooms and restaurants as well as money pouring into rental-car agencies, grocery stores and other retail shops.
On average, domestic tourists who stayed overnight in Miami in 2023 spent $1,014 per person, according to the GMCVB. International visitors spent $1,305.
In addition, many sailors, anecdotally at least, have bought homes in the Grove so they can race all year. The financial impact of that is hard to quantify, but you can add it to list of what sailing means to the Grove.
“The impact of sailing on the Grove is probably more than you think,” Delisser said.
Of course, there are many reasons why people flock to Miami in the winter, and that includes the water itself – another plus for Coconut Grove.
“Miami is the ‘Magic City’ and I believe that magic comes from the water,” Horgan said.
“Coconut Grove, since its inception, has always had that magical connection to the water.”