KEY POINTS:
The Spirit of Adventure Trust, which has given thousands of young New Zealanders a taste of life at sea, has been recognised as the world's best trainer.
The trust has won the Sail Training Organisation of the Year award from 20 other countries which operate more than 100 vessels offering sail training and youth development programmes.
The trust operates the Spirit of New Zealand, a sail training ship which spends 340 days a year at sea and is believed to be the busiest tall ship in the world.
The trust said the award, handed down at a function in Canada, was given to the sail training vessel that demonstrated excellence in "innovation" and "best practice" in youth development at sea.
Trust chairman Stephen Fisher said it was an honour to be recognised by the world's top sail training organisation.
The trust had taken more than 75,000 young people to sea in the last 35 years.
Two Spirit of New Zealand crew members were finalists in the only other categories - skipper Paul Leppington in the sail trainer of the year section, and Sheila Budgen in the volunteer of the year category.
Young people go to sea for 10 days on the Spirit of New Zealand. Their costs are subsidised 60 per cent by the trust.
Each day begins with all trainees jumping from the ship into the sea at 6am, summer and winter.
The trust said for the first three days trainees settled down, found their sea legs and were taught sail-handling and emergency drills.
They also underwent team-building exercises, a demanding shore tramp and small boat sailing aboard the ship's two luggers.
They learnt basic navigation and knot-tying and participated in a beach clean which was a partnership arrangement with the Sir Peter Blake Trust.
On the final day the students were given total responsibility for the ship and the safe passage home, including navigation, sail handling, cooking and engine maintenance.
- NZPA
