A sailing adventure with a difference: exploring Oceans of Hope

Oceans of Hope is an international sailing project for people with MS, challenging participants to step outside their comfort zones, with no sailing experience required. The program is designed to empower participants and encourage them to connect with others with similar lived experience.

The program started in 2012, when Danish Neurologist and sailor Mikkel Anthonisen had the idea for a circumnavigation of the globe featuring people with MS as active crew members, with the very first voyage setting sail in 2013.

Since then, Oceans of Hope has spread around the world, helping thousands of people living with MS to break the barriers of their condition and experience the joy and freedom of adventure on the sea.

Fran first found a mention of Oceans of Hope in 2017, not long after her diagnosis, and decided to join the boat in Denmark in 2019.

“That initial diagnosis was a shock and for about a year or so I was so depressed with it. Oceans of Hope was one of the things that really snapped me out of that. I had already done some dinghy sailing in Sydney Harbour and a bit of sail training as a teacher and with Scouts, so I knew what to expect.

“I must admit the conditions can be a bit challenging though. You’re in a small bunk and kind of squashed in together and doing every together with the other guests, and whether that is shopping or cooking or steering the boat, everyone gets involved.

“They had a skipper and a few able-bodied volunteers, who were there to do the jobs that required specialist sailing experience.

“Generally everything else was just encouraging everyone to get involved. We had people joining us for day sails who were in wheelchairs or using scooters or crutches. We even had a guy who hadn’t been for a swim in about 20 years. They lowered him into the water in a Bosun’s chair and I’ll never forget the joy on his face simply to be in the water again.

“We sailed all around the coast of Denmark, and even though I don’t speak Danish they were all happy to speak English for me although there was quite a multicultural group. It was lovely as people shared their stories and you learned a lot.

Fran has since completed two Oceans of Hope sailing trips from Denmark, two in New Zealand, one in Norway, one in Scotland and one in Australia.

“Everyone was so incredibly supportive during the trip. In New Zealand we had several people who struggled moving around the boat, but everyone really helped, whether it was with getting up the companionway or to the toilet or in and out of bunks.

“We were focused on helping each other to get the absolute most out of the experience.”

“The very first Danish one and the two NZ trip were particularly special to me. I got to sail with Jens Al Anderson who was a paralympic sailor who helped to found Oceans of Hope. He was incredibly switched on, knowing when to encourage you to push yourself and when to say, ‘take a break.’

“It was a real lesson in having hope for the future and not writing yourself off and saying, ‘okay I’ve got MS so everything’s over and there’s nothing I can do.’ It was an incredible dose of hope at a time I really needed it. Learning I could still do things that I thought had been lost to me.”

Fran says she has made lifelong friends from all over the world and very much sees herself as part of the international Oceans of Hope community.

“I can’t recommend it highly enough. I’ve made lifelong friendships, achieved goals, and overcome what I thought were my limits. Just seeing what everybody can do and how to live well with MS. It’s such a positive thing to do.

“You often head to remote places out in the wilds, which very few people usually have the privilege to see. One of the highlights has been group swims with people leaping over the side to go for a swim.

“It’s a pretty diverse group too, not only culturally but the age range can be anything from 20s and 30s and up to and beyond my age, 62.”

When Fran was first diagnosed, she joined a Peer Support group and hit it off with the group’s facilitator, Janet. Her facilitator joined Fran for her last Oceans of Hope trip in New Zealand.

“She was initially apprehensive about getting seasick, but she has just booked herself on the next trip with me, so it must have been good!”

Fran is now preparing for her next sailing adventure, with the New Zealand Oceans of Hope Challenge on board the yacht “Lion NZ” in 2026.

“With MS, you don’t get it until you’ve got it. With this trip, suddenly you’re in the company of lots of people who have it — and get it.”

For more information on Oceans of Hope NZ Challenge, 23–27 November 2026, visit the MS NZ website.opens in new tab