BVI Yacht Charters Adds New Lagoon 450

One of the hottest charter yachts in the Caribbean, a new Lagoon 450 has joined the fleet at BVI Yacht Charters, which is based in Road Town on Tortola.  The yacht, named Catch the Cat, is a 2013 model with four cabins and four private heads, plus two single berths in the forepeaks.

The yacht is equipped for comfortable bareboat charters with generator, full air conditioning, quiet-flush electric heads, electric windlass with remote, electric sheet and halyard winch, and dinghy on davits. A hard top shades the cockpit with its dining area, while a Bimini top protects the raised helm.

Bookings are being taken at BVIYachtcharters.com or (888) 615-4006. 

New Trawler To SWFYC In Florida

New to the fleet at Southwest Florida Yacht Charters is this sweet Mainship 34 trawler, Quarter Moon.  She’ll be based at their North Ft Myers charter base, which opens the southwest Florida Gulf coast, including the scenic Pine Island-Captiva-Sanibel area to exploration. 

Barb Hansen of SWFYC says “Quarter Moon is the perfect cruiser for two to four people”, and says she is shippy and well-equipped.  The Mainship features a master stateroom forward with large berth plus a salon convertible that also sleeps two.  Headroom is a remarkable 6’4”, the galley has all the amenities, and she has everything from twin color TVs to air conditioning and a dinghy with outboard. 

Power is a single Yanmar 315hp diesel and, to simplify handling, she has a SidePower bow thruster. Electronics are Raymarine, including GPS, chartplotter and autopilot. 

Rates for Quarter Moon are $3165 a week in the summer and $3957 in the winter.  And, as SWFYC celebrates their 30^th anniversary, winter charters of three days or more get an extra day, while similar charters in summer get two free days of cruising.

Contact SWFYC at (800) 262-7939, .

Favorite Yachting Bar Competition

Wight Vodka and Scuttlebutt Europe, the continental version of the Scuttlebutt daily blog about sailing, have launched the 2012 World's Favorite Yachting Bar competition but you need to hurry: voting ends Dec. 27.

Winners in previous years were the Peter Cafe Sport in the Azores, the Soggy Dollar in the BVIs (shown left), and IYAC in Newport, Rhode Island.  Ten entries are on the ballot, but the only two in serious bareboat charter areas are the Bitter End Yacht Club in the BVIs and Sint Maarten Yacht Club in Sint Maarten.  

To vote, go to:  www.scuttlebutteurope.com/sailors-bars.html

The New Issue Is Out!!!

The Winter Issue of CharterSavvy is now available, bigger and better than ever!  This issue includes an 11-page feature about bareboating in Tahiti, illustrated with a mouth-watering array of photography that will soon be showing in your dreams.  For those of a certain age, be sure to read the sidebar on Captain Adam Troy and the Adventures In Paradise TV series.  There's a 10-page feature on an Abacos bareboat adventure and another ten-pager on bareboating in Croatia.  And everyone will enjoy the Dives, Sail-Ins and Swim-ups feature on the best waterfront pubs in the British Virgin Islands.  Not that we drink, mind you, but it's all about the ambiance.  Right.

Our Cargo feature is sunglasses, and a fine collection of shades they are, too, while the Sea Trial is the new Leopard 44 cat.

Our columns and departments bring you weather tips for the BVIs and a look at first- and second-tier charter companies, Dr. Tom deals with seasickness, while The Bareboat Contessa has some double-duty food tips as well as three yummy drink recipes.  

It's a great issue, so take a look by clicking on the cover above, or on our website.  Don't forget that you can also read all our back issues in the archives section.

It’s Here!! The Fall Issue!!

I know, I know, it seemed like forever, but this one was worth waiting for.  The Fall Issue of CharterSavvy is bigger and, he said with no modesty whatsoever, better than ever!!

You’ll find a 9-page feature on bareboat chartering in Belize with gorgeous photography, a 10-pager on hunting the Loch Ness Monster through the Scottish Highlands via bareboat, a close-to-home charter along Florida’s Gulf Coast, and an insider’s guide to the best snorkeling sites in the BVIs.

Don’t miss our look at the latest inflatable life vests in our Cargo section, and our Sea Trial is the new Moorings 393 powercat.

Plus all the great columns and departments, too.

Just click on “Read The Magazine” on our website and enjoy!