I'm often surprised by when and where I hear about great charter vacations. During the long Memorial Day weekend touring Washington State wine country, I joined a few folks on a 42 mile bike ride through the country side around Walla Walla. A fantastic ride! (except for the reminder that a 15kt wind on the nose is not only tough when trying to sail from one place to another... it's very tough on a bike).
One of the other riders and I started chatting and he mentioned that he and his wife had a fantastic charter in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) a few years back. He had some limited sailing experience but his wife was an absolute novice. They had been considering trips to some rather exotic locations but in the end, they selected a crewed charter and couldn't believe what a fantastic experience they had. By the end, they had learned a bunch about how to sail and had made great friends with the skipper and his wife (the chef).
I of course asked many of questions and and came away with some interesting observations including a couple good tips for first time charterers:
- Crewed charters are a great way to go for first time charterers. But, it's probably worth thinking about how much you might want to get involved with operating the boat before you plan your trip. This couple is quite active and really appreciated the skipper's willingness to let them "run the boat" as much as they wanted. Assessing charter party interests around this can help the skipper (and you) plan accordingly and afford good opportunities to learn how to sail, anchor, etc. It also helps locate the right skipper and crew to match your overall interests.
- After chartering for a few weeks, too much time in a resort can be a letdown. He mentioned was that being on a boat provided so much unexpected seclusion and flexibility that they felt very spoiled. They could go where they wanted and see places few on shore ever see. The downside of this incredible experience? Being landlocked in a room for too many days after the charter was boring and offered too many limitations.
I could tell they now have seen a glimpse of what many of us that have chartered know: it's hard to beat chartering in beautiful places. The flexibility, the seclusion, and the immersive experience that chartering provides is second to none.
Tags: sailing, crewed+charter, bvi, yacht+charter, bvi+charter, british+virgin+islands, walla+walla, wine