BVI Charter company recommendation needed

[ltbrett]

I'm looking for a last minute deal for an early December charter out of Tortola or nearby. I need a/c and 2 cabins for a 7 day bare boat cruise. My budget for the boat is $3000. While a mono hull sailboat would be nice, I'll take a trawler too. I've read the archives on this subject, but I'd appreciate any additional recommendations on companies to use/avoid and any other advice. While I am an experienced skipper on both sail and power, this is my first charter. Thanks.

Brett

[captainjay]

I have dealt with Bajor Yacht charters in Red Hook in Saint Thomas in the past Sandra knows most of the local boats and can book out of Tortola as well. http://bajoryachts.com/ You might also want to check with Moorings to see if they have any last minute deals. Or there sister company Nauti Blue for a power cat. You can google either one and get there web pages.
Good luck and enjoy your trip.

[Grant1120]

Give Tortola Marine Management (TMM) a call. http://www.sailtmm.com/ They are a second tier charter company, meaning most of there boats are 6-10 yrs old and have come out of the first tier charter services (like Moorings).

They don't put as much "pomp" into the charter as the first tier and so you aren't paying for that.

Not sure of the rates and the availability as you are pushing the busy season .

Best of luck

[ericviking]

Call the Moorings in Tortola, they have a sister company called Blue water

[wmalloy382]

You gotto go with Sunsail.
I used these guys for my honeymoon a few years ago and couldnt be happier. It's a big outfit, they cruise out of Roadtown and The boats were all less than 4 years old. Compared to price, they were less than Moorings and had still had the same facilities.

I have no idea about how much it cost to rent a boat right now. You are heading into thier high season and prices almost double at its peak. We had a 40' for 7 days for about 3k but we chartered in early June. Best trip ive ever taken. If you only plan to spend 3k in Dec. you can, but plan to do it with with a much smaller boat than I had. I wouldnt recomend anything under 30 feet as the trade winds do make it a little choppy and as we all know, the bigger the boat, the smoother the ride.

Also, dont stock up too much of the groceries in advance. Its a nice service, but you dont really need it. Only pre-order your drinks and snacks before you get there. Its actually suprisingly easy to get groceries down there and 80% of ports have at least one bodega. You can decide to eat on the boat on any day and get what you need in almost every port very easily. You'll also probably spend most evenings at the beachfront restaurants that cater to the cruising crowd.

I would use Sunsail again in a second

[JJC]

We used Sunsail a couple years ago for a monohull sailboat and had a great trip, no complaints about them. Friends have been using them for years and are very happy with them.

[jim1]

ericviking - 11/6/2006 12:05 PM

Call the Moorings in Tortola, they have a sister company called Blue water

They are actually called Nautic Blue and are the powerboat division of moorings, close though. They were great used them a few years ago.

[Joe Mc 44]

I have used Virgin Trader based in Nanny Cay three times with great results. I chartered their larger power boat on those occassions but check their website for prices on their smaller vessels, they may fall in to your parameters.

[captmike74]

Used BVI yacht charters for our honeymoon, took 42 hunter "Monnlight Serenade" in June 06 firstday was spent cleaning and fixing the boat ourselve then waiting for provisions. Saw alot of moorings boat in nice shape, all moorings crews reaved over their bareboats. Don'ts: spanish town in virgin gorda, Fat hogs bay sounded so good in the book so sketchy never left the boat. GO to Norman, bitter end, the baths pass cooper got to make Jost Van Dyke. Bring your wallets for Peter Island. How many people going? Got to get generator & AC! 40 foot monohull sounds big but after a week its tight!

[FLScout172]

I second Grant on TMM. We will be going on our second charter with them over Thanksgiving. The boats are older but they take good care of them and the staff is very attentive. A friend of ours has chartered with them several times without any problems. They are no Moorings, but you get what you pay for. Good Luck.

[ltbrett]

Thanks for all the responses. I checked all the companies recommended, plus a number of others. I was surprised that Ed Hamilton, the market leader, had the fewest boats listed for my dates. I found Melody Delgado at Virgin Islands Sailing to have the most complete website and the most options. Her website covers most of the major charter companies, plus hotels, provisioning, advice, and just about everything else I need to plan an adventure. I booked a 41' sailing cat for Dec 10-17 out of the Catamaran Company in Tortola. Lot of boat for me, the admiral and twin 6 yr olds, but it should be a ton of fun. They had a 30-day advance last minute special for about $4k. Not bad, considering the admiral required a/c and a generator. It is a 'green' yacht, with all electric propulsion. Now, what off the beaten path gunkholes should I explore?

Brett

[yachtjim]

All the gunkholes are on the beaten path. There's no hiding spots in the BVI. You will have plenty of privacy though if you pick the smaller mooring areas. You guys will be swimming in a 41' cat. They are HUGE!


They should give you a nice guide of where to go and let you know whats going on around the islands in your briefing. That will most likely have some impact on your itinerary. Nothing to be nervous about in Tortola, as long as you don't run up on the shore the chances of running aground are nil. And everything is within site. Have a blast!