Trip Report and Photos BVI March 2009

[PrincessoftheLake]

Captain Grumpy and I spent 9 days in the BVI's in early March while we celebrated our 25 year anniversary. All in all we had a great time since it's hard to feel bad while on vacation. However, our charter company delivered a less than average charter experience. Our boat, a 2003 Jeanneau 35 SO kept us tied down in port at least 3 days because of throttle failure. Also, the weather was pretty good but the day after we got there the wind started blowing at about 25mph and it NEVER stopped for the next 6 days. Seriously, it blew and shrieked the whole time and that was in the marina! We got stuck in Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbor for 3 nights because of repairs and weather. Seas were 7-12 feet and boats kept coming in and telling us "don't go out there!!". We did have time to really tour the island. We spent time at the Baths and Spring Bay and just spent time chilling on the boat. It was great. We had a great taxi driver Patsy who took care of us. Finally on the 4th day we got out and headed to the North Sound. It was a rough ride but we really wanted to get to the Bitter End Yacht Club. Just as we got into the mooring field the new throttle mechanism, that had been replaced the day before in Virgin Gorda failed again (stuck in forward). Luckily we were able to pick up a mooring before shutting her down. We had to stay that night and the next because it took a whole day to fix it. After that we spent a day at Cooper and at Norman. The wind was so brutal at night that you couldn't sit in the cockpit because it was just too chilly. The only thing I didn't bring enough of on this trip was warm clothes! The snorkeling at Cistern Point at Cooper and the caves at Norman was spectacular. When we returned the boat we asked the charter company what they were going to do to compensate us for the trouble. They said that they didn't feel we had a right to expect any because A. you have to expect boat problems B. We caused the failure of the throttle the 2nd time by jamming the mechanism C. The head problem (did I mention that?) also could have been fixed by us D. What was the big deal anyway-we weren't going anywhere because of the weather. So, since they felt we were 50% responsible for the problems and they had to pay for the repairs it was only fair we pay with our inconvenience. Then the wife jumps in and starts yelling at us that we were unhappy people with bad attitudes determined to be miserable. I am still not sure how she made that leap. Anyway, we finally gave up arguing and left. We spent the last night at the Tamarind Club. It was one of the best days of our vacation! Great place, great people, great food!!! I would go back there in a minute. I am not looking to trash the company we did the charter with but I would SERIOUSLY caution anyone considering booking a charter with ProValor Charters in Fat Hog's Bay (not Pro Valor Sailing in Sea Cow's Bay). After all that time and money I really don't feel like I got my money's worth. It's kind of sad. Anyway, here is a link to some trip photos.
http://community.webshots.com/user/shuonder

Princess of the Lake

 

[Tim R.]

Nice photos Princess. We must have just missed you. We were there 3/12 to 3/21. Sunsail was very good to us and our boat had no problems. It was a 2005 Beneteau. We had some rather windy conditions the first 4-5 days and nights but then it settled down. We sailed anyway in the mostly protected channel but still had 4-5ft. waves. Made for a little bit of a damp ride but we did not care.

Even though we chartered a Sunsail, we used the Moorings base which is adjacent and a very nice brand new facility. The on shore showers were awesome.

 

[Rob Hessenius]

Sam~ Sorry that adventure was not more than you expected. What a let down, but as a Vikings fan you are very use to that Nice to hear your stories again and say hi to the boys. This summer doesnt look like an Apostle Isles adventure :-((

 

[Stu Jackson]

Given your expereinces with the rude

charter company, it wouldn't be unreasonable to use the power of this group to attempt to make some ($) amends with them.

You know, things like "the word's gonna get out to our LARGE group of friends, VERY QUICKLY" and "you treated us extremely poorly."

When we had problems on a chartered C&C36 in the BVIs, after two days they moved us up to a B510! No questions asked, their boat was broken, not our skills to repair it or our vacation time.

Get us the link to their email and we should all start writing them! A little public activism is in order here.

 

[Tim R.]

I have heard that the best way to deal with this situation is to ask for a credit for future charter. Of course you may not want to deal with these folks again.

As much as I hate going with the larger companies like moorings or sunsail they do have large staffs and may even be able to swap your boat out if necessary. I also make sure to arrive at the boat the night before to do my own inspection. This also allows me to train my crew for the days ahead. I always expect to have to fix something but have not been let down yet.

 

[Jim Seamans]

Great Pictures Princess

Just make a couple of postings on the web while naming this charter group. Google will pick it up and be in the search engine.......Pay backs are hell...

 

[PrincessoftheLake]

Thanks for all the support you guys! When we were trying to deal with them on the return I did mention to the owner and his wife that I posted a lot on some of the online boards like TTOL and Ask All Sailors and that I would like to say good things about them and not bad. Well, that was the wrong thing to say! Seriously, they both started yelling at me "Don't you threaten us!" and "That's it-we're not doing anything for you now!" Nice, huh? I will never go to a 3rd tier charter company again. I will pay extra to get decent service next time. Here is the link to their website http://www.provalorcharters.com
and their email address pvc@provalorcharters.com
The owners are Jim and Cecilia.

 

[Lyle]

Had a great experience with Conch Charters out of Tortola in early December. Not all 3rd tier companies are the same and they do allow you to get MORE sailing time for LESS money than the tier 1 companies which makes it well worth it to me. Yes you do get an older boat but new boats can break too!

 

[Ken Honeycutt]

We chartered with Conch Charters 2 years ago. The boat was an older Jenny 36 that had an interesting story.. seems it was won in a card game and then the new owner chartered it out to Conch. Can't say enough good things about Conch personnel..really pleasant to deal with. Their boats are a little older (the autopilot was an historical anomoly and the knotmeter never worked) Tamarand Club was great! they great you at the bar with a pain killer when you check in . Hope to go back there next year.

 

[Ken Prichard]

Thanks for the pictures....

We were at many of the same places in Dec. After looking at your pictures I can't wait to go back.
As for charter companies, I've chartered with lots of them in many different locations and I have to say we found Conch to be as good as any. That's the company we'll use when we return. Our worst experience was three weeks ago in the Bahamas with The Moorings and they're supposed to be one of the best, so who knows?

 

[PrincessoftheLake]

I want to clarify (I should have thought of this before I said it) that I am not dissing third tier charter companies. I am quite fond of older boats and have no problems chartering them. What I really meant is that I would rather pay more next time and get better service, that's all.