Looking for advice for first time BVI charter

[stimpsonjcat]

Melody at VI Sailing was great to us.

Don't miss 'The Indians'.

The caves on Norman are all but destroyed from cruise ship traffic.

There is a decent mini reef just of Pirates in the bight on Norman...or there was in 2015.

[remydog]

Originally Posted by leboyd

The answer does depend on when you are planning to go. If you go in the off season, more places are closed (Cooper, Nanny Cay and probably others). Generally, many are now open after Irma/Maria during the prime seasons.

If you want to review all possibilities, you might try:
Listing of those open for Business - TravelTalkOnline

Leverick and Scrub are both open and have places to stay "on land" and I believe they are open all year. I'm sure there are others.

Thank you. We are planning to travel in April so mid-season.

[bensolomon]

In April, you will have good sailing, too. I second the recommendation for Scrub island. It's very nice there, and many services and amenities. We've been there 4 times on 4 different charters.

Ben

[leboyd]

Originally Posted by stimpsonjcat

Melody at VI Sailing was great to us.

Don't miss 'The Indians'.

The caves on Norman are all but destroyed from cruise ship traffic.

There is a decent mini reef just of Pirates in the bight on Norman...or there was in 2015.

We've always used Melody. They're a great company and do the searching for you. On our first trip we didn't really know if we'd like chartering, so we went cheap. Melody found us a good boat and they still treated us as if we have chartered a 50' cat. We're off with them again next month on a Cat. Good company, good people and very responsive.

[remydog]

How long can I wait to book the charter? It might be a few months before my fellow travelers can commit to the time off from work. I would hate to book and then find we cannot go.

[remydog]

Originally Posted by stimpsonjcat

Melody at VI Sailing was great to us.

Don't miss 'The Indians'.

The caves on Norman are all but destroyed from cruise ship traffic.

There is a decent mini reef just of Pirates in the bight on Norman...or there was in 2015.

Planning on the Indians. Sorry to hear about the caves.

It looks like Melody and VI sailing is a broker. I would expect that may increase the cost and reduce the customer service from the actual charter company. Am I wrong?

[leboyd]

Brokers don't increase the cost at all. In fact, you get the same repeat customer discounts, etc. The charter company pays a broker fee to the broker and will not reduce the cost of the charter to someone who did not use a broker.

You can book as late as necessary, although the boat you want today may not be available as it is already booked. You definitely don't want to book and then find out you can't go. Sometimes, if you're not too particular on the boat (for example, you'll take pretty much any nice mono from 40 to 50 feet) waiting can work out very well. Most, if not all charter companies have "last minute" deals on their boats (again, same discount is available through a broker). But I would not recommend this for trips where you have pretty specific wants and needs for your boat. I also really wouldn't recommend this you haven't done a lot of other charters (I know this is your first BVI trip, but maybe you've chartered a lot somewhere else).

If this is one of your first charters, you don't really want to just take any boat. You're looking for a "great trip" and if the boat is too small for the number of people or too big for what you're comfortable sailing, then that would just ruin the trip. You're looking for the "Goldilocks" boat - it's just right for you, your crew and your budget.

I'd go look through VI's website, pick out a couple of boats that look just right and send the links to your crew. You want to get them excited about the trip as soon as possible so they push to get the time off as quickly as possible.

(also, just to be clear, I have no financial interest in VISailing)

[remydog]

Originally Posted by leboyd

Brokers don't increase the cost at all.

Thanks again for the great information. I did already speak with a couple of companies (nothing definite, of course), so I don't know if that would now create a problem if I booked through a broker. I just got some quotes and had some nice chats about itineraries.

I clicked on the BoatUS link in your photo. I didn't realize that you guys are based here in Boston. Love the Bruins shirt on the owner/captain. My boat is in Constitution Marina - Hunter 33 S/V Free Spirit. We have a Boat US membership, not that other company!

[leboyd]

It doesn't really matter if you've spoken to charter companies or even other brokers. You're shopping around for who you think can give you the right service and boat for your budget. It's like trying on three pairs of pants at the store when you know you're only buying one.

[Lihuedooley77]

Some ideas to toss around...

Four people:

Conch Charters, great prices, good people, family owned, well maintained vessels that are a bit older, but a great deal less than moorings, sunsail, and some of the other
corporation owned companies.

November, Hurricane season is supposed to end at the end of October, but , at this time, with the climate change, that may be extended on mother natures whims.

We have sailed the BVI, for 36 years, and really like the Jeanneau 36i. But, there is just two of us, Not four. There are two cabins. We like the V- berth, the aft cabins on most boats have wave slap. We concede the larger berth aft to the other couple

Finding another couple, who you do not know and plan to spend several days on board a boat....not sure about that plan. Could turn out to be the best sailing vacation ever, or lots of bucks blown on a disaster. And that is a fact.

Also, you might check with your local sailing clubs ,, or yacht clubs, and see if anyone might be interested, and meet and talk with them a few times before any decisions are made. Make sure they pony up the cost of the charter, provisions, etc, way ahead of time. Know exactly what the charter companies cancellaton charges will be.

we really like Conch Charters, after many decades of the moorings and sunsail.

Horizon also seems to have high marks, and you can check both of them out, and
make an informed decision.

Costs vary, and insurance will generally be in addition to the cost of the boat, along with other fees. Make sure you have all of the information and understand the full cost of your charter.

The BVI are the absolute best for your first international bare boat sailing vacation.
We love the BVI, the people, the sailing, the anchorages, the snorkeling, the beach bars, and really great times.

As to your qualifications, they will send you a resume form , and your write in your your sailing experience and send it into them. If they are unsure of your seamanship and sailing knowledge, they will give you a check out. If that does not work out, you will pay for one of their skippers to join you. might be for just a few days, or the whole trip .

You likely will be departing out of Road Town, or some other harbor or marina on
Tortola. Also 7 days is way too short for a BVI sailing vacation , if your are actually sailing. Might think about 10 days to two weeks. You will absolutely return the vessel to your port of departure. NO night sailing, and passages can range of a little over an hour, to four five hours depending on you itinerary.

Not sure if you have purchased the Crusing Guide to the British Virgin Islands, by Nancy and Simon Scott, and become very familiar with the BVI cruising grounds. It is invaluable. Order it on line, and it also comes with a chart.

There is a lot to learn and be aware of .

Novmber Wx :

Transitional season. Typical summer wx, mixed with tropical wave activity ( Rain and winds, and seas ). lPrevailing winds range from 18 to 25 kts. Be aware of the Christmas Winds.....much stonger winds , heavy swells, and rough seas
roaring into normally peaceful anchorages. Will they occur...that is up to the weather gods.

Just make it a point to do your own research . Over many decades, we chose the month of may, before hurricane season and the kids were still in school.

Have a super sailing vacation, the BVI are fantastic.

[bumpman]

I totally concur with Lihuedooley; Conch is low key, nothing fancy, but friendly, helpful, family-run, and uses older boats so one can get a great deal - they have "specials" for some boats during shoulder seasons. They also let you self-provision, which saves $$. I've done many charters with them for high school marine ecology classes (10 students/2 adults/boat), to give you an idea that they aren't uptight. They even let one of my high school students skipper one of the 50' boats in a tandem charter (though he had a big boat racing resume). They're 5 stars in my book.

[Lihuedooley77]

Bump,

Good on ya for introducing the students to sailing and other countries cultures and
the fun to be had in the BVI and the good people at Conch.

Very special.....

The OP may be interested in how we managed our self provisioning and making it a fun time, and not just another task to cross off the list.

We kept life simple , with an early boarding 4:30 pm , the afternoon before departing the next morning for the jump up and Pain Killers, and good times at the Willy T.

We would stow our personal gear on board, did not take long. One duffel bag each.

And then it was time to borrow one of Conch's dock cart ( wheel barrows ) and pilot that puppy at light speed up the coastal road to rite Way market. Yep, dashing in between parked cars to stay clear of the radical local traffic flows.

We would load up the topped off store grocery rolling baskets, into the wheel barrow, all set with everything that we needed. And then once again ran the gauntlet of the Tortola Happy Hour Grand Prix, back to the marina and stowed all of our provisions.

No need to muck up the morning of our departure. The hard stuff was done, We also went thru the vessel systems, running and standing rigging, etc, and other pre-departure check lists just after loading the provisions.

Getting all that done the night before, made for an easy morning, for the chart brief and systems check out briefers, and we were out of the docks at 11:30 am.

As to the provisioning, most normal people would probably take a cab ride of one or two minutes.

Nahhhhhh....keep the fun light illuminated is our motto. Keep those legs churning.

Lordy, I feel like getting on a plane right now, and returning to the BVI.

Thanks for kick starting the memories.