BVI Charter

[Dr. Sea]

Originally Posted by RidgeRunner

I love the Abacos, but the weather in January can be a crap shoot.

I would definitely rule out Abacos in January. Too cold, wintery, and blustery. March is still iffy, but much better than January. So if you want to avoid BVI, I recommend you look further south. There are some beautiful islands in the Leewards and Windwards and plenty of good sailing. And yes, the French islands have many bilingual people, but some of them won't speak English to you if you won't try to speak French to them.

[Clipper4730]

If I know anything it is the resiliency and resourcefulness of islanders, and I am speaking from experience. My wife and her entire family is from the Bahamas. Our wedding was scheduled weeks after TWO hurricanes swept through the Abacos. They (Hopetown Harbour Lodge) offered to let us reschedule any time at the same price but we stayed with our plan. They have no FEMA no real support but they managed to get on with it no matter what, this is their livelihood. Despite the fact there were no leaves on the trees and the docks were jacked and power was iffy it was the best time of our lives. I know it looks bad now but if the boat is in some semblance of working condition just go and see what happens. You might learn a little about yourself as well as getting a new perspective on what other good hard working people have to go through.

Good luck
Will and Danielle

P.S. look at it this way you will probably have the Baths all to your selves!

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, SoCalMom.

[SecondBase]

I'd add to Will and Danielle's thoughtful post. Try to figure out and defer your decision point. When must you actually decide?

If you can delay the decision a bit you get the option to see if things are coming back and you might enjoy the Sailing paradise largely to yourself "limited time offer".

[CHS_JDE]

I assume most of you that say go in January will say go in June, but what about those who think January is too soon? We were looking at a June charter and my crew has their doubts. I am a believer that they will revitalize, but don't want to be that American a-hole either. Was looking at the Grenadines as well. How is this for first-time bareboaters? We have lots of ASA courses under our belts but haven't chartered alone yet.

[Pitchondesign]

Friends had a BVI charter for June 2018. The charter company advised them the date has been unilaterly changed to June 2019. Note the charter company has their deposit.

[SV Coronado]

If the charter company has a boat for you, don't skip vacationing in the BVIs because it's not convenient. The best thing you can do to help an economy that is based on tourism is to go there. Take it from someone how's a resident

https://youtu.be/x_Ydo0PvjIg

[Cdreamin]

Just got back from the Annapolis show. DYC will have a boat for us for our January charter in the BVI, although not the same boat we had booked. The wife and I still want to go but 2 of the other couples who were going are skeptical.
The problem we are having is that we can't find any current information or images of how things are going in the area right now. If anyone has or knows updated info and images it would be very helpful.

[Dr. Sea]

Originally Posted by CHS_JDE

Was looking at the Grenadines as well. How is this for first-time bareboaters? We have lots of ASA courses under our belts but haven't chartered alone yet.

The Grenadines are a wonderful place to sail, but not ideal for first-time bareboaters. Winds are stronger. I'm sailing to BVI in November. I've been in touch with some people I know there, and they tell me that there is still a lot of damage to homes and roofs, but many restaurants have re-opened, beaches and snorkeling or scuba diving are OK, cell phones are working but not land lines yet. It will be better by January. I think you might enjoy BVI more like it was 20 or 30 years ago before it had so many charter boats. You should find out very specifically about the boat you will charter, because many were damaged, some very seriously or totaled.

[Cdreamin]

Thanks Dr Sea. The original boat was a Bali 4.5 which was totaled from what I understand. The new boat is a 2018 Lagoon 450F. Both are boats we have wanted to try so actually a nice change. My thoughts are that if we can't get everyone on board maybe we can get a refund on our deposit since the original contract is for a Bali that they can't provide.

[danmcquhae]

Originally Posted by Cdreamin

Thanks Dr Sea. The original boat was a Bali 4.5 which was totaled from what I understand. The new boat is a 2018 Lagoon 450F. Both are boats we have wanted to try so actually a nice change. My thoughts are that if we can't get everyone on board maybe we can get a refund on our deposit since the original contract is for a Bali that they can't provide.

BVI was hit hard. Charter companies in the area were no exception. Let's please support them all where we can as they make dreams and wonderful vacations happen.

[piratelooksat40]

If you are a Facebook'er, search for "BVI Abroad Hurricane Irma" This group was started for people wanting to check on the status of family & friends in the BVI, but has morphed into overall updates & status for not only people but also on a lot of the businesses, services & general info about the islands. It seems to be updated regularly throughout the day so things are recent & relevant. There is a lot of good info on there, including pictures & videos. (I'm not smart enough to know how to post a link to it here!) Good luck!

[Dr. Sea]

Originally Posted by Cdreamin

Thanks Dr Sea. The original boat was a Bali 4.5 which was totaled from what I understand. The new boat is a 2018 Lagoon 450F. Both are boats we have wanted to try so actually a nice change. My thoughts are that if we can't get everyone on board maybe we can get a refund on our deposit since the original contract is for a Bali that they can't provide.

If the charter company is going to provide a new Lagoon 450, I don't see how you can go wrong with that. But if you absolutely don't want to take that deal, it seems to me that you have a strong case to void the contract and get a refund of deposit. They might argue that they have upgraded you, and the contract is valid--I could see their point if that's the case. But if the Bali was a 4-cabin boat and the Lagoon is a 3-cabin owner's version, then you could still argue that the Lagoon is not adequate, even if newer and nicer. If I were me, I'd jump on the Lagoon and have a good time.

[PhiSig1071]

Originally Posted by Pitchondesign

Friends had a BVI charter for June 2018. The charter company advised them the date has been unilaterly changed to June 2019. Note the charter company has their deposit.

Which charter company?

[Cdreamin]

Thanks Dr. Sea however the issue isn't the Lagoon 450, Wife and I are all in. The issue is convincing the other 2 couples to stay on with the original plan. If they are out then we can't afford the boat with just 2 couples. We would then need to change plans to a much smaller vessel or cancel entirely. What I am looking for is CURRENT information and or images which could help convince everyone to proceed.