The American Sail Training Association (ASTA) is a non-profit organization devoted to the development, support and promotion of sail training and education under sail and is the oldest of 19 national affiliates of the International Sail Training Association.

ASTA annually organizes Tall Ships^® Events, a National Conference on Sail Training and Tall Ships, and in conjunction with the ISTA, an International Safety Forum attended by tall ship captains from throughout the world. For more information about the American Sail Training Association, sail training or on how you can set sail aboard a tall ship, contact ASTA at PO Box 1459, Newport, RI 02840 or visit its website at http://tallships.sailtraining.org

ASTA’s mission is to "encourage character building through sail training, promote sail training to the American public, and support education under sail..." The professional membership of the American Sail Training Association represents virtually all of the ships engaged in sail training in North America and individual members hail from every US state, Canada and around the globe.

Different from learning to sail, sail training enables learning from sailing. ASTA member vessels provide opportunities to study the marine arts and sciences, explore blue horizons and make history come alive… the possibilities are as varied as the sea’s edge. Long utilized by the navies of the world to develop strong leadership skills in young officers, sail training is now accessible to people of all ages and walks of life. Each year, more and more ships come on-line as various schools, municipalities, museums and other non-profit organizations incorporate the powerful ability of the sea to teach in their curricula.