Introduction to the CA Information Centre

No matter where you live, the information centre is accessible. We have embraced advances in technology, as far as possible, which allows us to get the information you need to you.

Whatever you need is either in person at CA house, at the end of the phone, a reply to an e-mail or a parcel by post. UK members can borrow many books by post - we only ask that you cover the return postage costs. At the present time, overseas members cannot borrow books by post. However, there remains a great dMapeal of information online, by e-mail and at the end of the phone available to you.

Do you need technical help? Whether you have a query that's in the realm of the obscure or you're researching the latest cruising news, take a look at the RATS (Regulation and Technical Services) pages to see what issues they're tackling on behalf of the Cruising Association and its members. If you need a question answered, RATS are here to help.

Make use of the forums, where you can discuss a range of cruising and other nautical matters with CA members, get advice and recommendations from those who have been there before.

Get in touch. Make your membership work for you, contact us and tell us what you need and how we can help. Your feedback is vital.  

The CA Information Centre is the largest of its kind in the world and contains a highly acclaimed collection of material covering every aspect of marine activity with particular focus on sail and power cruising. Situated on the first floor of CA House, the Library and Information Centre is both a magnificent collection of books and a comprehensive cruising information service. More about the origins of the library can be found here.

We do what we can to keep the information up to date, and the information detailed on the website is recent and relevant. The Information centre does hold a range of older material and reports for reference. We aim for detail and rely on cruising reports from you, the members, so make a contribution and submit a report. It will be used! You can submit your own reports online via the website, via e-mail or by post. The advantage of our members reports is that they contain the information you want and need to know. This serves to bolster the support network which is the overall essence of the Cruising Association. The reports are arranged into geographic regional files kept at CA house. These reports are available as an online summary here and can be used alongside the comprehensive cruising guides and publications for all your planning needs.  

CA members have full access to this unrivalled Information Centre which is not generally open to non-members. Members unable to visit the library in person can browse and search the catalogue online and request books to be sent to them by post. We are also able to scan certain portions of our material (within copyright regulations) to send on disk or via e-mail.