The Nao Santa Maria ready for visitors

PORTLAND (WGME) -- In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed to the New World aboard the Santa Maria. A replica of the historic ship is moored in Portland and will soon be open for tours.

Angel Rosa, Project Manager for the Nao Santa Maria, says sailing on the tall ship is a mind blowing experience.

"When you stare at her from the outside, you don't really know if you're time traveling or in an epic movie or something," Rosa said.

The replica is just over a year old, built by the Nao Victoria Foundation in Spain to commemorate the 525th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' journey.

"Our goal is to share maritime history. Basically, we go from port to port, giving the option to local citizens to visit," Rosa said.

The Santa Maria is a Nao, a type of ship common in 15th century Spain, made famous by sailors like Columbus and Magellan. The replica's design is true to the original, but it does carry some modern amenities like GPS and safety equipment, as well informative panels for tourists.

The Santa Maria is about 82 feet tall, 93 feet long, and 25 feet wide. Between all five decks, the crew keeps very busy. Many of them are volunteers, mostly Spanish and some American. They take turns with responsibilities involving sailing, navigating, cooking, and any other duties as needed by the captain.

It's all for the purpose of education.

Sailing Ships Maine invites vessels like the Santa Maria to Portland to engage young sailors in maritime careers.

"They have the opportunity to go back and look at how people lived, how they sailed, how difficult life was, and it's really a beautiful museum that just happens to be on the water," Sailing Ships Maine Events Director Paul Wolf said.

Wolf says they recognize Columbus's impacts to indigenous peoples, but says his voyage and the ship can hold educational value.

"What this is commemorating is the meeting of those two worlds and really the courage that one guy showed for essentially sailing off the edge of the map into the unknown," Wolf said.

The Nao Santa Maria will be open for tours Thursday 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and Sunday 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. Adults are $10 (12 and up), kids are $5 (age 5 to 11), and kids 4 and younger are free.

The vessel is scheduled to depart on September 23 for Boothbay Harbor.

Angel Rosa says that the crew is always looking for volunteers to travel and serve aboard the Santa Maria, with no experience required. All they would need is a good attitude and a willingness to learn. The crew is mostly Spanish, but English speakers are prevalent.

If you are interested in volunteering, email Angel before they depart at angel@naosantamaria.org.