Five minutes through immigration, a shiny new boat and toilet hoses.
There is plenty happening at BVI Yacht Charters. Some of it involves blue water, cold drinks and the sort of photographs that make people in offices stare out of windows. Some of it involves toilet hoses. Both matter.
IMMIGRATION MADE EASY
For a lot of US guests, St Thomas is the easy place to fly into. The slight snag is that the BVI is somewhere else.
You can take a private water taxi, which is fast, fun and expensive. On a flat day, bouncing across the islands in a powerful speedboat with some music playing is a pretty good way to start a holiday.
On a windy day, it can also be a very efficient way of discovering how well your lunch was secured.
The other option is the regular ferry.
Cassie recently tried what is probably the sensible compromise: the ferry, with BVI Concierge doing all the annoying bits around it. Read Cassie’s latest blog post, on how to SKIP THE QUEUES.
NEW TO THE FLEET
The newest boat in the fleet is Crude Escape. Six cabins, generator, watermaker, full air conditioning and all the serious equipment you would expect on a big, comfortable charter boat.
And beanbags. Beanbags? Yes. Not, as far as we know, a life-saving device. But on a boat where quite a lot of the plan is to bob about somewhere beautiful, chat, read, have a drink and generally not do very much, they start to make a surprising amount of sense.
Crude Escape is ashore for the summer, so the only photograph we currently have is of her fresh off the cargo ship. Not quite brochure material yet.
But shiny, new, and waiting for a much better background. VIEW CRUDE ESCAPE
THE PEOPLE MATTER TOO
Abbie spends a lot of time talking to guests and one thing keeps coming back from crewed charters. People remember the crew.
The skipper. The cook. The places they suggested. The little beach bar they knew. The anchorage they chose because the wind had shifted. All the stuff that never appears on a boat specification.
A beautiful yacht certainly helps. But put the wrong people on it and you still have a beautiful yacht with the wrong people on it. Get the crew right, and guests often come home talking about them more than the boat.
That tells us something.
MEET AEOLUS
If you’re searching for one of the most luxurious crewed yacht experiences in the BVI, look no further than Aeolus.
Aeolus accommodates up to eight guests in four beautifully appointed en-suite cabins. Whether you’re enjoying breakfast in the cockpit, cocktails on the expansive flybridge, or relaxing on the foredeck with nothing but turquoise water ahead, every moment aboard feels effortlessly luxurious.
One of the things that sets Aeolus apart is her exceptional crew of four. With a dedicated captain, chef, stewardess and mate, every aspect of your vacation is taken care of. Gourmet meals are prepared fresh each day, your favorite cocktails appear exactly when you want them, cabins are impeccably maintained, and your itinerary is tailored around your interests.
It’s no surprise that Aeolus has earned multiple awards at Caribbean yacht shows, including recognition for culinary excellence, hospitality and overall presentation. VIEW AEOLUS
BOAT SPA DAYS
Summer is when a lot of the fleet comes ashore. Engines are serviced, systems checked, underwater gear inspected and all the little jobs that are easy to ignore during a busy season finally get dealt with.
We call it the boats ‘spa day’. Which conjures up a rather nicer image than men in overalls, antifouling dust and somebody upside down in an engine bay.
There are also toilet hoses. Old toilet hoses smell. There is no elegant way to say that.
You can add new cushions, nicer glasses and increasingly elaborate coffee machines, but if the toilet hoses are past their best, everyone will notice. Luxury charter marketing does not tend to mention this. We think perhaps it should.
The good charter somebody enjoys in January is often the result of a lot of fairly unglamorous work done in the yard months earlier.
MEET THE CREW IN PERSON AT THE ANNAPOLIS BOAT SHOW
We will be at the Annapolis Sailboat Show in October, in Tent D Booth 81/82, with a 20% show offer on selected charters. If you are going, come and find us. We can talk about boats, routes, dates, cabins, crews and all the other things which matter when choosing what you are actually going to live on for a week.
Probably not toilet hoses. Unless you ask. See you there!
