Sunsail Opens Base In Mallorca

Sunsail has opened a new charter base in Mallorca, opening up bareboating in the Balearic Islands of Ibiza, Menorca, and Formentera. The base is located in Palma, the capital and cultural center of the islands, at the Marina Naviera Balear, just a short walk from the old town of Palma.

The initial fleet will consist of Sunsail 47 monohulls and the new Sunsail 444 catamaran.  The 47 is a powerful and well-balanced yacht with a four-cabin, four-head layout, while the 444 is a Robertson & Caine design that features a unique forward cockpit with direct access from the saloon. 

Mallorca has numerous fishing ports to explore as well as several outstanding bays that are ideal of overnighting and the Cabrera National Park is just a half-day sail from the base, with great diving and snorkeling.  The islands of Ibiza and Formentera are known as jet-set party islands, while Menorca has a unique culture and cuisine.

Sunsail, (877) 630-7358, www.sunsail.com

Sunsail Goes Racing On San Francisco Bay!

We mentioned earlier that Sunsail was opening a base in Sausalito on San Francisco Bay, and the first eight of the Sunsail First 40s have just arrived. 

What is particularly appealing about these Beneteau-built 40s is that they are Farr-designed, performance-oriented yachts that are fully equipped with spinnaker gear and triple-spreader rigs so that local sailors can charter them for the many regattas on San Francisco Bay. 

The First 40, which has been adapted to Sunsail specifications, has built an envious record for a production boat: winner of the 2010 Rolex Sydney-Hobart race, winner of Cowes Week, winner of Spi Ouest France, and winner of the Voiles de Saint-Tropez.  If you don’t take home silverware with this Sunsail charter, well, it’s not the boat’s fault.

The Sunsail First 40 is a three-cabin layout with a generous sail plan and niceties such as a chartplotter, autopilot and a heated interior that is perfect for Bay sailing.

Details from Sunsail, www.sunsail.com/sanfrancisco or 800-797-5907.

Sunsail Opens In San Francisco!

Sunsail has opened its first U.S. West Coast charter base on San Francisco Bay, with a fleet of brand-new matched Sunsail First 40s.  In addition to bareboat vacations, the boats can be used for racing in the many events in the bay area and they are also available for corporate hospitality, team building and incentive programs. Sunsail will also have an ASA-approved sailing school. 

The charter base will be at Sausalito Yacht Harbor, just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco.  This is a central location for sailing the bay or for exploring the wine country of nearby Napa Valley.  The boats can also be taken into the Sacramento Delta, which is the warm playground for San Francisco sailors.  The new base will open in June.

The First 40s are built by Beneteau and designed by Farr Yacht Design as performance racers, and they took first and second overall in the 2009 Sydney-Hobart Race.  Each has a 3-cabin/1-head layout and a spacious cockpit with large wheel.  For racing, the boats will be available with asymmetrical spinnakers and bowsprits as well as amenities such as chartplotters, autopilots, electric heads and sure-to-be-appreciated heating.

Bareboat Racing

"Bareboat" and "Racing" don't seem like terms that go together, but the Spring Regatta is a tradition in the British Virgin Islands, and the most recent edition, which ran March 30-April 1, had a strong turnout in the two Bareboat classes.

These classes are for bareboats from local charter companies, racing without spinnakers, and the only real concession to “performance” is that they all remove or furl the Bimini tops to minimize the windage.  Other than that, these are everyday charter boats.

Which isn’t to say that the racing is weak by any means.  Winning Bareboat 2 was Burt Keenan and Neil Harvey: Keenan is a long-time competitor and Southern Ocean Racing Circuit winner aboard his Acadia, Harvey an equally talented racer employed by Harken.  Pushing them hard was Bill Petersen, a sailmaker and former America’s Cup sailor. 

If you’re considering a bareboat race charter for next year, taking a look at what won this year isn’t a bad idea.  Clearly the highest placing yachts were the two Dufours from MarineMax Vacations, with Keenan’s 433 and Petersen’s 413 easily taking first and second in Bareboat 2.

In Bareboat 1, the first five places went to a Beneteau Oceanis 50 (Moorings), Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 44i (Sunsail), Beneteau Oceanis 50f (Moorings), Beneteau Oceanis 473 (BVI Yacht Charters) and another Beneteau Oceanis 473 (Rob Swain Sailing School).

Finishing behind the Dufours in Bareboat 2 were a Beneteau Oceanis 361 (Rob Swain School), a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 409 (Sunsail) and a Beneteau Oceanis 40 (Moorings). 

Now’s the time to start thinking about the BVI Spring Regatta for next year.  Contact the charter companies to see what packages they are offering. 

Super Sunsail Caribbean Deals!

Sunsail has a great deal going for summer Caribbean charters, but the clock is ticking: if you book by February 29, you get 15% off on charters of 5-13 days or 25% off on charters of 14 days or more.  This special is for charters between June and September of 2012 at seven of their Caribbean bases: BVIs, St. Martin, St. Vincent, Antigua, Abacos, Belize and Grenada. 

And here’s an added zinger: if you’re a previous Sunsailor, you get another 5% off.

Choose from 15 different monohulls ranging from the Sunsail Oceanis 323 (2 cabins) up to the Sunsail 473 (4 cabins).  You can check out the details (new bookings only, 5-day minimum, U.S. and Canadian residents only, doesn’t include flights) and availability by clicking here or going to www.sunsail.com .

The CharterSavvy crew likes the islands in the summertime.  In the BVIs, for example, you don’t have the crowds of snowbirds escaping winter slush, and you don’t have to worry about the Christmas winds that can blow 30+ for days.  By June, the tradewinds have clocked around to the southeast at 10-15 knots.  The temperature is in the high 80s (that’s what generators, air conditioning and pina coladas are for!) and the water temp is also in the 80s, so it’s hard to tell which one you’re in (until you take a breath underwater!).