Curacao and the ABCs in general

[tomfl]

I know it is close to the coast of Venezuela and what a mess it is there.

Thing is I found a boat for sale there and am wondering just how hard it would be to get the boat out of Dodge and to a more friendly place. Not sure if heading to the Rio or up to the Windward and Leeward islands would be the best route. On a side note I would like to hit St. Barts for the races this year; but that is not the main consideration.

Or maybe I should just look elsewhere for a boat.

[sailnautilus]

Curaçao is very safe and very Dutch.....they have Curaçao Marine which is an excellent boat yard and also some beautiful anchorages in an area called Spanish waters.
No problem purchasing a boat there, except you are downwind from the windward and leeward islands.. many people leave Curaçao during the right time of year and make Puerto Rico, then back to the windwards.
No problem at all with the issues of Venezuela there.

[tomfl]

Originally Posted by sailnautilus

Curaçao is very safe and very Dutch.....they have Curaçao Marine which is an excellent boat yard and also some beautiful anchorages in an area called Spanish waters.
No problem purchasing a boat there, except you are downwind from the windward and leeward islands.. many people leave Curaçao during the right time of year and make Puerto Rico, then back to the windwards.
No problem at all with the issues of Venezuela there.

When is the right time of year, looks like a fairly long passage, but doable passage to PR.

[Dulcesuenos]

I know a few people that head to usvi from Curacao each year and then back again between hurricane season and charter season and they charter a few beneteaus etc. Not a difficult run if the wind's are too high. we left there and cruised the wc, Colombia, Panama etc, but I can't Imagine it being a bad trip with the right weather. As for timing I'd say before the Christmas winds kick Into high gear is when they go..the longer you wait the worse it gets.
As for Spanish waters and Curacao, We enjoyed the island, people were great, best barbeque anywhere,, the anchorage had water that was thick like soup and very full of not quite sure what water maker prefilters lasted a bout 2-3 weeks, our anchor chain had incredible hard growth on it, and local boaters left a lot to be desired and there was a constant battle and uneasiness if cruisers were goi g to have a dinghy dock to get on land, anywhere to use Not a place I'd want to be stuck any length of time again

[sailon46]

Sailed from Curacao where I had spent the hurricane season in Spanish waters resort marina just before Christmas a couple of years back. It took us 4 days and nights out there to make it to St Croix. Curacao nice place, Bonaire is better for my tastes. Good sailing winds. These islands have a constant blistering wind during the day but it got a lot better 10-15 knots north of the 15th parallel. Just a last note Bonaire because of its size I recall we got around with the dingy. Curacao in the other hand it is larger so you need a rental car to get anywhere other than the Spanish Waters Lagoon. I also found that snorkeling in Bonaire and Curacao were the best I have seen.
FYI Ernie on the MaryJane

[DMCantor]

We sailed from Bonaire to Puerto Rico a couple of Novembers ago. It was a beat the whole way, and we experienced 20+ winds and 6-7 foot waves. These are conditions where we are comfortable if properly reefed. It took us 60 hours to reach Ponce on the southern PR coast.



We found the south coast of PR to be a delightful area to cruise. People there are extremely friendly and welcoming. This was before Maria, but I don't imagine folks are any less friendly now.

[TeddyDiver]

All nice places. C has the best of Venezuelan veggies on the street vendors, A is the most tourism driven, to avoid that go south east of the island, B for divers and a bit "sleepy" island.

[sailcrazy]

never been, but interested. Following

[sailduggar]

Curacao had some problems with attacks back around year 2000 and state department posted a warning to US tourists. Thieves were climbing up outside of hotels/condos to come in through balcony doors in middle of night. Our boat was attacked anchored in Spanish Harbor one night but intruder was never caught. Cruiser community donated vhf radio to local police so that they could monitor any distress calls. But that was a long time ago.

[dcareri]

Agree with lost of what was said below. Spanish waters in Curacao not a very nice anchorage for long stay, and it's a big island so you need a car. We had the boat hauled at Curacao Marine and found them a very busy but good yard to work with.

We've spent the last two hurricane seasons in Bonaire and love it there. First crossing the best we could make was Salinas on the south coast of Puerto Rico due to too much N component in the wind. This year we waited for a better weather window and easily made it to St Thomas in a little over 61 hours.