Sailing Charter News

It has been a good decade for chartering. Boats have been refreshed, new bases added, new differentiating “products” have been introduced, and it’s easier than ever to learn about cool opportunities and last minute deals. Let’s look at how you can be in-the-know and get out on ...read more

Depending on where you are, Puget Sound can look no bigger than a mountainous version of the Intracoastal Waterway. That’s what I thought when I first laid eyes on it from the lighthouse at Mukilteo Park on a sunny day last July. Then I went to the top of the iconic Space Needle ...read more

Owning a yacht in charter sounds exotic and enticing, and it may have crossed your mind to give it a try. Maybe you’ve heard stories of good experiences (or bad ones). Maybe you haven’t heard any stories, but you’ve romanticized the idea into the perfect lifestyle. Before you ...read more

So, you’re going on a charter vacation. There’s so much to plan, pack and ponder, but who has the time when all you can think of is umbrella drinks under a swaying palm tree? The boat, the sun and the sailing should be enough, right? It is for some. For others, though, ...read more

Two separate racing fleets were streaming into the docks and a party was in full swing at the head of Marseille’s inner harbor. A group of bearded musicians cranked out lively jazz tunes while throngs of sailors jostled around the drinks and snack tables. Sipping a rather good ...read more

It would be hard to imagine a more secure spot than the Sunsail base on the outskirts of the beachside community of Placencia, Belize. The entire marina is protected by a robust seawall with a channel scarcely a few boatlengths across. It’s also located far enough up Placencia ...read more

Prego! Weeks after returning from our Italian flotilla trip last summer, I was still feeling the relaxed atmosphere of the Amalfi Coast. It’s a Mediterranean paradise, with crystal-clear waters, charming hillside towns and cliffside villages, plenty of delicious food and wine, ...read more

Whether you want to build a sailing resume or just gain practical experience, getting more miles under your keel is key. You can sail a lifetime of summer afternoons and never quite get the hang of cruising—where creativity and offshore savvy result in self-sufficiency and ...read more

The multihull world is a funny one in that it pays lip service to speed under sail to the point where any other kind of sailing is almost considered a sin. It’s like the sailing style that dare not speak its name. If you’re not doing your utmost to throw up a pair of dramatic ...read more

So, you want to find a great deal on your next charter vacation? Sure, you can scour the internet, hope for Black Friday deals or ask friends. But an even better way to find good prices on charter boats is to go to a boat show. Not only do charter companies like The Moorings, ...read more

I often get asked about safety and security on charter, and most of the time I shrug and say it’s a matter of common sense, just like at home. Some places may be more prone to issues than others, but it’s usually a matter of luck—good or bad. For example, you may be warned to ...read more

There’s no doubt last year’s hurricanes caused a major upheaval within the Caribbean charter industry. Nor is there any doubt that it has rebounded well. The biggest and most obvious obstacle—after rebuilding bases and other infrastructure—was boat availability. But a year down ...read more

A positive event and a lot of goodwill from the whole community based on the fact that ALL of the people involved went through a lot just getting back on their feet after Hurricane Irma and Maria.  The US VI charter yacht show has 65 boats on its roster this year with 55 ...read more

A little know-how goes a long way on vacation They say cruising is just fixing your boat in exotic places. Maybe that’s why so many people prefer to charter. After a week of sailing you pack your bags and step off your charter boat without another care in the world, leaving the ...read more

It was a bit of an unexpected flashback. After all, it had been decades since I lived in the old Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic) and yet the feeling that bubbled up was the same. I stuck my camera out the bus window to capture yet another of a dozen billboards dotting ...read more

Like Goldilocks, charterers look for a bareboat that’s not too big, not too small, not too expensive, not too complicated and generally “just right.” Just right, though, means different things to different people, and each charter has its own circumstances, so what’s a sailor to ...read more

In the wake of the hurricanes that devastated the Virgin Islands last year many charterers ended up going farther south to Grenada and the Grenadines where they found the sailing excellent and the vibe just fine “God must have been a sailor when he created the Caribbean,” a ...read more

Five years ago I was invited, as the token sailing virgin, to set sail with my girlfriends and explore the British Virgin Islands. Six women of a certain age ditched their husbands, picked up their ukuleles and had the time of their lives. Fast forward to 2018, and I jumped at ...read more

“The BVI is now a bit like it was 20 years ago,” Josie Tucci, vice president of sales and marketing for sister companies Sunsail and The Moorings, told me last December. “Instead of full bars, it may be a guy on the beach with a cooler and a barbeque, but the spirit of the place ...read more

So you graduated from navigation class where you practiced dead reckoning, doubling the angle on the bow and maybe even celestial nav, and you now feel well prepared for your first charter trip. Well, you won’t be doing any of that on vacation—not past the first day, anyway. ...read more

I’m pretty well used to the reactions I get when I arrive somewhere to captain a charter or flotilla. The base manager usually stretches his hand out to the nearest graybeard and says, “Hello, you must be the captain.” When all eyes turn to me, there’s always surprise, sometimes ...read more

Chartering beautiful boats in exotic locales will give your wallet a workout. Expenses go well beyond the cost of the vessel and airfare. It all adds up quickly, but there are ways to pinch enough pennies on each charter to get a head start on the next one. Here ...read more

When my friends and I booked a one-way bareboat charter with Sail Caribe, starting in the U.S. Virgin Islands and finishing in Puerto Rico, we were a little nervous about what we would find in the aftermath of hurricanes Irma and Maria—even seven months later. When our plane ...read more

Ah, Tahiti! Even the sound of the word elicits thoughts of heaven on earth—a Polynesian paradise and a bucket list cruise to talk about for years. Most people are lucky to come here once in a lifetime, so I have to wonder why charterers are always in such a hurry ...read more