Chartering in the Caribbean

[m2244]

Good Morning,

My wife and I are sitting here having coffee and discussing the possibility of chartering a boat next year for a couple of weeks (without crew). We are interested in the Caribbean, not exactly sure where, open to suggestions. I have a few questions related to this, hoping you guys can help.

First of all, what are the best times of the year to do this and avoid bad weather?

I did a quick Google search and found a few places in the BVI, one of which had prices a little over $5,000 for two weeks. Is there a better place to look? Should I look into private offerings?

[DeepCut]

SailOnline.com has some listings. 2 weeks will get you a discount (and being flexible).

Obviously the time of year has some impact as it impacts the pricing. Temperature is almost same year round. Slight changes in wind. More chances for rain showers in June-October. Hurricane season of course, but I believe less than 2% chance(each week) of a hurricane being within 75-100 miles of BVI.

PM me regarding Sea Tiger if you want more info on a Lagoon 42.

[Saleen411]

Originally Posted by DeepCut

SailOnline.com has some listings. 2 weeks will get you a discount (and being flexible).

Obviously the time of year has some impact as it impacts the pricing. Temperature is almost same year round. Slight changes in wind. More chances for rain showers in June-October. Hurricane season of course, but I believe less than 2% chance(each week) of a hurricane being within 75-100 miles of BVI.

PM me regarding Sea Tiger if you want more info on a Lagoon 42.

Thanks for link...never heard of them before.

[jtulls]

The BVIs are supposed to be a really nice place for a first charter (not sure if you guys have chartered in the past). Good line of sight navigation and consistent but not too strong of winds. I've heard the winds there pick up a bit around Christmas but are otherwise around 15kts. I was looking at doing a week charter there a while back but my husband and I changed our minds and are headed to St. Lucia with a group of friends. We were looking at Sunsail Charters -- at first glance their prices seem higher but sign up for the email list and they send out some really great deals if you're ready to commit to a charter

[denverd0n]

Chartering in the BVIs is competitive enough that you pretty much get what you pay for. That is, for less money you will get a somewhat older boat, maybe a bit less well maintained, possibly shoreside facilities that are not quite as nice. Pick your price point and accept what you get, or pick the experience you want and pay what it costs.

I have chartered with several of the companies there and find myself going back to Sunsail. As mentioned, they have deals now and then, and once you have sailed with them they have returning-customer discounts.

You pays your money and makes your choice.

[shantycrew]

We've been cruising the Caribbean for the last three years. Spent some time in the BVI, which is an easy place to go sailing as a previous poster said as all destinations are in sight. What we found though was that most of the anchorages are very crowded and have mooring balls that you have to use. This means that you need to get to that idyllic bay early some boats arriving as early as 11am because by late afternoon there's none left. It seemed to us that sailors were rushing from mooring ball to mooring ball with little time to enjoy the sailing. The mooring balls are $30 per night so factor that into your budget, although if your thinking of spending $5000 I suppose that little extra is not an issue.

[shantycrew]

Oh by the way we'll be in St Thomas, or St John this winter. You could charter our boat, but she's not for novices how much experience do you and your wife have. We could do you a much better price than Sunsail.