Private Yacht-Swap: Poll

[Pelagic]

We are interested in finding out how many private yacht owners would consider a time swap of their boat with other owners of recreational assets in different world locations.

I am not suggesting just one kind of scenario with a boat to boat swap, or boat to condo swap, or whether it would/should be: bareboat or accompanied… as there are too many variables of experience, size, opportunities to consider for each situation.


The onus would be on both parties to do due diligence to satisfy themselves of the terms of a secure and legitimate exchange and has nothing to do with chartering boats for hire.

Assuming you found another legitimate yacht owner willing to trade some time on his yacht for yours,

is this something you would ever consider?

[imagine2frolic]

Never in my life would I swap my pride, and joy to someone who just might not care as much as I do. My brother's motto, and now mine is I never loan anything with a motor, or that I hold dear. In this case it would be 2 motors, and something I hold extremely dear to my bleeding heart

[swagman]

Thats one opinion.

I too care for my yacht but it's not my wife or my child, its a yacht.

If a swop gives me the chance to sail somewhere much further afield in exchange for someone else using my yacht close to her home location - whats the risk?

Reciprocity is the word - I'll care for thier yacht, they can care for mine - and we both benefit.

Cheers
JOHN

[Nordic cat]

I think we need to add another question to the poll.

Would you like to be take someone for a sail with you?

Not defining a set period.

I might not want to swap my boat, but maybe take some people with me for a long weekend or a week.

Cheers

Alan

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Nordic cat

I think we need to add another question to the poll.

Would you like to be take someone for a sail with you?

Not defining a set period.

I have been allowed to stay aboard (unaccompanied!) on someone else's boat for a few days, albeit not to use. Seadog Owners can be very freindly At that point I did not own a Seadog - and had only swapped a few e-mails. Some folk are more trusting than others.

I think a great idea - but my first reaction is that would be a brilliant way to travel half way around the world and steal a yacht - unless their was something that could be used to prove that both parties in the real world were real people, with a fixed abode and something to lose from stealing a yacht. I.e. like you were both Teachers / Accountants in permanent and verifiable employment etc (not to say this is a guarantee of course ). Simply "knowing" someone from an internet forum does not work for me - not where funds are involved. Charter Companies are insured for boats going missing. Would the lender be insured for that. or even at all?

A freindly trip aboard is another thing. But only for smokers

[svHyLyte]

With the exception of some very close friends that we already know very well, that have virtually the same yacht as we; and, that we know to be as fastidious about their yachts as we, there's no more chance that I would agree to swap our yacht than there is that I would agree to swap wives or children. While I am not much of an anthropomorphist, our yacht, HyLyte, does seem to have a spirit and if not cared for just so, can be a real bitc_ and I would certainly not trust her care to an unknown.

I just hope we continue to have her after Hurricane Fay blows through here Tuesday. Wish us, all, luck!

s/v HyLyte

[GordMay]

Yacht-Swapping
SeeMySea creates a link between boat owners who wish to enter a swap system, worldwide. To join the SeeMySea network and become a member, boat owners must subscribe on a yearly basis.

Echange bateau, échanges bateaux, échanges voiliers, bateaux à moteur seemysea.com

[Hud3]

I've never let some one use my boat, but I did have the experience a number of years ago of using a friend's boat, which he had in the BVI at the time. It didn't work out very well.

The boat, which had a bit of age on her, was possessed of a number of idiosyncracies, which the owner knew how to deal with. We did not, and our anticipated week of idyllic sailing degenerated into a series of crises to solve. In one case, we needed a mechanic, and since it was Easter weekend, we sat trapped in a marina for four days, unable to escape the blaring music of the large motor yachts slipped nearby.

We finally decided to leave our friend's boat in her slip and chartered a boat to finish out our vacation time.

That experience cured me of the idea of swapping boats.

[Pelagic]

There is no way I would swap unless I was 100% satisfied with the ability, experience and attitude of the person I am exchanging with.

Even then, because of boat size and systems, I would spend at least a day sailing with them on their boat to go over everything and treat it like it was my own.

If I found the potential swap candidate to be totally unconcerned about my abilities and didn’t have the same concern over his own yacht, I wouldn’t want to swap with him!

What worked well for us on one occasion was that the owner’s 16 year old son came along to help as he knew where every spare part was located (we didn’t need any)

And on the return exchange, my local crew who knew the boat as well as I, joined their cruise as my representative.

It was very successful and we both had a great and relaxing time because of the local knowledge that came along.

Again, with the bigger custom boats that are not set up like bareboat charters, it is pretty much a given that the yacht owner would either join the cruise as engineer/deckhand/tour guide or if too busy, would have an experienced representative go along.

I think the key issue of this poll is to see that if everything fell in place and you were 100% satisfied that your pride and joy would be well looked after…….. could you imagine yourself doing this so as to cruise on a well found yacht in another part of the world?

For me, it is not something I am actively seeking, or would be an overnight decision, but I would consider it and keep that option open.

[anglooff]

The "swop part" is very emotional and can carry some legal ramifications. However in the thread I started a few months ago I suggested a "hosting arrangement". IE you sail the Baltic and come to me in Venezuela for a week and sail the offshore islands with me as my guest...then sometime in the future (the most basic level) I would be your guest.

This is not...if you visit Venezuela then come out for a day sail/few days (Time and opportunity permitting I extend that open invitation here and now). This is more the ability to plan ahead on specific dates, knowing that a week/s sailing is arranged, with people sharing a common interest and in locations that probably one is unlikely to sail (circumnavigate) and the host is expeienced with.

The "swop" possibility could then occur, regarding a furture arrangement, if after the week I believe that my guest's skills and general seamanship qualities would give me confidence to swop. Note it could be (heaven forbid) that my skills wouldn't be sufficient or that the location of my guest's boat has either legal/insurance ramifications or just a very dangerous location that needs local knowledge to navigate safely.

Pelagic's suggestion regarding the creation of a sub heading within the forum has great merit as it allows, those interested, in one of the opportunities, to specifically enter and arrange, without the ...very valid...general philosphical reasons of those not interested to have their sixpence worth.

Further, I believe that Nordicat's suggestion to add a "hosting" question in the poll is a good one and as such would probably add traction to the discussion.

Regards

Alan

[Pelagic]

Can a Mod add that Hosting option for us?

[Ex-Calif]

I think I can add it but then the question is one of multiple answers. Someone may be interested in both swapping and hosting. I guess even if you are allowed one choice people can put their "best" preference.

In addition to

I would host people for a week or two

How about

I would host people for daysails

[Sandero]

The principle is fine. But practically Shiva is much too complex for someone to "run her" for any extended periods of time. That doesn't mean that she is difficult to sail and that other sailors could not manage. But because of all my "owner" modifications one would have to spend a lot of time getting to know her and "my solutions".

I had considered chartering her to a close friend and excellent sailor. But even in that case I wanted to sail one day with him going over everything while underway.. and then hop off and let him continue on.

The idea of jumping on some strage and complex "one off" machine is daunting and I would not even want to do it myself.

However, if you are talking about a stripped down basic charter boat.. generic so to speak, why not? But those boats have little interest to me. Sailing is a more complex relationship with the boat and it's not just wind and sea.

[tonitutusaus]

Funny how this summer I came across the same idea. My first summer in my first cruiser and suddenly spent some time thinking: "OK, this summer I went north from home, next summer south, and then what?"

The theory says East, but my target destinations are over three days away (Western Mediterranean), and I will only have 10 days available on my boat at most. So SWAP became a very very attractive idea.


Today I came across this website
http://www.bootruil.info/

It seems it is already been implemented succesfully.

If the other guy is a boat owner willing to lend me his boat on my own, chances are:

1 he is boat savy
2 he will care for my boat like I will care for his

Suddenly boat vacations all over the globe are possible and cheap:
meditarranean (East and West), Caribean, baltic, Atlantic, even lakes (Le Mans, Cuommo, Maggiore, Michigan)

I'm all for it.

Toni Tutusaus
Barcelona

[fcalvert]

We would like to exchange time on a multihull for time in our home on the Big Island of Hawaii. We could be hosted, captained, and are open to all ideas. We owned a Prout Catamaran and sailed in the Med, across the Atlantic and through the Caribbean. Thanks Fran and Glen Calvert