I'm planning on bareboat chartering a 40 foot cat this spring break in the BVIs for the first time. Takin the family (7 or 8 of us) I'm thinking of going out of Tortola. Any recommendations on charter companies, destinations, etc?
BVI Charter
- Thread starter bnort3
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Hi B,
Try asking the question on the Destinations section of this site. There are so many different aspects to those islands to enjoy. I took my first trip to BVI in June, and had a really good experience with the Moorings. You'll hear a lot of opinions, but it seems like the age and condition of the Moorings yachts better than most other options. Of course, you pay a little more for this. Check out a book by Nancy and Simon Scott on Cruising the Virgin Islands - they've got maps, navigational, and all the tour details you'll need.
Try asking the question on the Destinations section of this site. There are so many different aspects to those islands to enjoy. I took my first trip to BVI in June, and had a really good experience with the Moorings. You'll hear a lot of opinions, but it seems like the age and condition of the Moorings yachts better than most other options. Of course, you pay a little more for this. Check out a book by Nancy and Simon Scott on Cruising the Virgin Islands - they've got maps, navigational, and all the tour details you'll need.
Get Good Charts !!
I have been to the BVI's a couple of times. I suggest that you get some charts before hand and review them before going down so you are familiar with the "lay of the water".
Ditto the comments on Moorings - Sunsail rented us a piece of crap the last time were down - top dollar for something I would never leave port with at home.
If you are planning a trip to Anageda (very highly recommended - it's nice there for a couple days !!) - I can strongly recommend an approach chart (for sale) on bvipirate.com
This is a website owned by a Texan who lives part time on Anegada - he took hundreds of soundings and plotted a highly detailed approach chart to Anageda - and if you are want to go there, I think that getting the chart beforehand and putting the waypoints into a portable GPS will give you a better sense of security. (The reefs start about 3 miles out, but you can only see the island from about 1 mile out !!).
BVI's Rock !! have fun !!
Paul
I have been to the BVI's a couple of times. I suggest that you get some charts before hand and review them before going down so you are familiar with the "lay of the water".
Ditto the comments on Moorings - Sunsail rented us a piece of crap the last time were down - top dollar for something I would never leave port with at home.
If you are planning a trip to Anageda (very highly recommended - it's nice there for a couple days !!) - I can strongly recommend an approach chart (for sale) on bvipirate.com
This is a website owned by a Texan who lives part time on Anegada - he took hundreds of soundings and plotted a highly detailed approach chart to Anageda - and if you are want to go there, I think that getting the chart beforehand and putting the waypoints into a portable GPS will give you a better sense of security. (The reefs start about 3 miles out, but you can only see the island from about 1 mile out !!).
BVI's Rock !! have fun !!
Paul
Do Not Call Northsouth
check out my archive, what a nightmare, and full of lies. still waiting for return call from the owner.
mike
check out my archive, what a nightmare, and full of lies. still waiting for return call from the owner.
mike
We have chartered in the BVI (out of Tortola) several times. We started with Moorings and the boats/ service have been so good, we never go anywhere else. We have done strictly 40- 47' monohulls but Moorings has lots of Cats.
I would highly recommend the Anagada trip- our favorite location and definitely worth 2 nights (great beach and restaurant at Cow Wreck Beach and excellent snorkling at Loblolly Bay!). I agree that the Anagada approach chart is well worth the money.
The Moorings (if you choose to go there) will give you a thorough brief on getting there but most charts are not accurate and the above recommended chart is very helpfull.
I can't speak for any of the other charter companies, but Moorings will send you an excellent cruising guide and with the "big picture" chart they supply on the boat, you won't need anything else.
There is a wealth of information on the traveltalk(BVI) online site here:
http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=bvi
Enjoy!
I would highly recommend the Anagada trip- our favorite location and definitely worth 2 nights (great beach and restaurant at Cow Wreck Beach and excellent snorkling at Loblolly Bay!). I agree that the Anagada approach chart is well worth the money.
The Moorings (if you choose to go there) will give you a thorough brief on getting there but most charts are not accurate and the above recommended chart is very helpfull.
I can't speak for any of the other charter companies, but Moorings will send you an excellent cruising guide and with the "big picture" chart they supply on the boat, you won't need anything else.
There is a wealth of information on the traveltalk(BVI) online site here:
http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=bvi
Enjoy!
It being your first time, I would recommend one of the major outfits like Moorings. I chartered a monohull from Sunsail this year and got a great boat. It was one of their club models but was in like new condition(except for the sails).
We went to Anagada. It was not hard for me but I am used to navigating in an area with no room for error. From the south, you will see the island before you get to the outer edges of the reef. There is a channel but many of the marks are missing. Our depth sounder went to zero about 3/4 of the way up the channel. It was calibrated for a 2 or 3 ft. below the keel.
Although the snorkeling at Loblolly was excellent and we had a great dinner we only stayed for 1 day. We are not beach sitters and were looking forward to spending some time at Jost. There really is not much to do or see there(in my opinion). We did see a wreck of a small sailboat in the reef along with some nurse sharks. See my photos below.
BVI Trip Photos(link)
We went to Anagada. It was not hard for me but I am used to navigating in an area with no room for error. From the south, you will see the island before you get to the outer edges of the reef. There is a channel but many of the marks are missing. Our depth sounder went to zero about 3/4 of the way up the channel. It was calibrated for a 2 or 3 ft. below the keel.
Although the snorkeling at Loblolly was excellent and we had a great dinner we only stayed for 1 day. We are not beach sitters and were looking forward to spending some time at Jost. There really is not much to do or see there(in my opinion). We did see a wreck of a small sailboat in the reef along with some nurse sharks. See my photos below.
BVI Trip Photos(link)
As usual all of your input is excellent. I think I'll stick with Moorings as I want the most assurance that it will be a good experience. While my wife and sister are beach people, we all love destinations that are desolate, non-commercial, natural beauty spots. We'll do a lot of snorkeling and maybe some diving. And we like good, local food and fine wines. Sounds like we should provision to allow for half our nights at local restaurants/bars.
Should we get a boat with generator and AC? The ladies would be uncomfortable if its too hot at night.
Thanks again for the advice!
Should we get a boat with generator and AC? The ladies would be uncomfortable if its too hot at night.
Thanks again for the advice!
We booked our charter through charter brokers here in Maine (Hamilton, not related to Hamilton Marine). They put us with a company called BVI Yacht Charters. We had a 40-ish Beneteau. The boat was great, trip was great. Didn't make to Anegada but we'll do it next time.
It was breezy enough at night to keep things cool. I believe you would ruin the experience if you hole up in the cabin at night to enjoy the AC. Besides, you can just jump in to cool off. As for desolate, the BVIs are not unless you seek out the anchorages with no moorings and anchor instead. Expect all the moorings in the popular anchorages to be taken up by 2 or 3pm.
More BVI Forums
Oh yes - I forgot to mention - at the website that sells the Anageda approach chart, there is a forums section - I found it to be excellent for BVI info - everything from Food discussions, to Anchoring, Passages, and Navigation, etc.....give it a look if you have questions or are planning a BVI trip.
http://forums.bvipirate.com/index.php
Paul
Oh yes - I forgot to mention - at the website that sells the Anageda approach chart, there is a forums section - I found it to be excellent for BVI info - everything from Food discussions, to Anchoring, Passages, and Navigation, etc.....give it a look if you have questions or are planning a BVI trip.
http://forums.bvipirate.com/index.php
Paul
I agree. I used that site a lot leading up to my trip. For the record, the best grocery we found was in Soper's Hole. The guides say this is a more commercial port but we found it very nice. Their definition of commercial means more touristy. Bobby's market in Tortolla was good for packaged goods only. The deli had a smell that I think Peggy couldn't even get rid of!
We just went this past June for 2 weeks. This was our second trip to the BVIs. First time was with Moorings out of tortola and everything was excellent but pricey. As a first timer to that area, we did a flotilla which is not a bad idea for your first time there. We had a lead boat from moorings that gave us daily captain meetings of where we needed to be by 3 or 4 pm and also assisted with dinner reservations, points of interest, what to look out for, weather briefs, mechancial help, beach parties and most importantly the exact path into Anagada. back than, you had to follow a company boat, you weren't allowed to take a charter into there without one.
For the second trip this last year, price was a big consideration because it was 8 of us. We rented a 47 foot mono-hull (figuring if we got the wives and teenagers on a cat they would never go back to our own monohulls). It was plenty of room (4 cabins and 3 heads). We did a combination BVIs and USVIs. This time Sunsail out of tortola had the better price. We provisioned thru Bobbys. The boat was more beat up than the moorings boat and the ectronics were pretty poor to say the least - but she did sail well. They are now owned by the same company and all three (moorings, sunsail and footloose) share the same base. Morrings is top line, sunsail middle and Footloose bottom and price goes accordingly. The difference is the age of the boat and equipment.
As for Bobby, we were a little disappointed; price was great compared to what the base offered. Our entire bill from them including sodas, beer, wine and the hard stuff was about 25% lower than what the base wanted just for food. Our issue was they kept loosing our order that day. We were told that it would be there before we arrived, than by 2, than by 4, etc. It did finally arrive around 10 at night. We chalked it up to "island time mon".
Anagada is defintely worth seeing. But to be honest, some of the best anchorages we stayed at this time were on the back of St Johns and St James islands. Few boats, hardly any other charter boats, very very clean water, excellent beaches and snorkling and just very peaceful. The problem is that once you cross over to the US side, the charter company can not come to assist if you have a problem. You will need to sail back to the british side to get mechanical assistance. Not a big deal but worth mentioning. You'll be amazed at how close the islands are. You should check out and checkin with Customs/Immigrations but that is pretty painless and not too expensive.
We did not want nor feel the need for a generator and AC. The temps got warm but there was almost always a breeze and the breeze boosters and fans really help. We have learned to bring 12 volt or batterary operated portable fans. Actually, the kids that were in the forward cabins complained it was too cold at night. Can't say the same about the aft cabins. The fans are key there. What we did need was a water maker!!! We had four tanks and could only make it about 5-6 days on all of the tanks. Having four teenager girls demand tons of water and getting 1 tank filled in Soper's hole took almost 2 hours because the water pressure was so poor.
Lastly, we did layout a daily plan and pretty much stuck to it. We covered the anchorages we wanted and had a great time. If you do a flotilla, they will take you to the popular spots.
For the second trip this last year, price was a big consideration because it was 8 of us. We rented a 47 foot mono-hull (figuring if we got the wives and teenagers on a cat they would never go back to our own monohulls). It was plenty of room (4 cabins and 3 heads). We did a combination BVIs and USVIs. This time Sunsail out of tortola had the better price. We provisioned thru Bobbys. The boat was more beat up than the moorings boat and the ectronics were pretty poor to say the least - but she did sail well. They are now owned by the same company and all three (moorings, sunsail and footloose) share the same base. Morrings is top line, sunsail middle and Footloose bottom and price goes accordingly. The difference is the age of the boat and equipment.
As for Bobby, we were a little disappointed; price was great compared to what the base offered. Our entire bill from them including sodas, beer, wine and the hard stuff was about 25% lower than what the base wanted just for food. Our issue was they kept loosing our order that day. We were told that it would be there before we arrived, than by 2, than by 4, etc. It did finally arrive around 10 at night. We chalked it up to "island time mon".
Anagada is defintely worth seeing. But to be honest, some of the best anchorages we stayed at this time were on the back of St Johns and St James islands. Few boats, hardly any other charter boats, very very clean water, excellent beaches and snorkling and just very peaceful. The problem is that once you cross over to the US side, the charter company can not come to assist if you have a problem. You will need to sail back to the british side to get mechanical assistance. Not a big deal but worth mentioning. You'll be amazed at how close the islands are. You should check out and checkin with Customs/Immigrations but that is pretty painless and not too expensive.
We did not want nor feel the need for a generator and AC. The temps got warm but there was almost always a breeze and the breeze boosters and fans really help. We have learned to bring 12 volt or batterary operated portable fans. Actually, the kids that were in the forward cabins complained it was too cold at night. Can't say the same about the aft cabins. The fans are key there. What we did need was a water maker!!! We had four tanks and could only make it about 5-6 days on all of the tanks. Having four teenager girls demand tons of water and getting 1 tank filled in Soper's hole took almost 2 hours because the water pressure was so poor.
Lastly, we did layout a daily plan and pretty much stuck to it. We covered the anchorages we wanted and had a great time. If you do a flotilla, they will take you to the popular spots.
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