renting a bareboat
 

Want to charter a bareboat out of ST. Thomas or Tortola in late July. Want to visit both areas but wondering if it's better to charter from USVI or BVI. How do prices compare for food, lodging, etc., in these two areas. Help!Londave

For what it is worth, the BVI's are the sailing capital of the Caribbean. You'll find the most charter companies operating out of Tortola. The largest fleet is operated by The Moorings (www.moorings.com). Also check out Virgin Island Sailing, Ltd (www.visailing.com).

Finally, you might want to visit the BVI Forum at www.traveltalkonline.com This is a very active forum and many of the participants are active bareboaters. You'll find tons of info there.

sonnyboy, thanks for the BVI talk forum info. (www.traveltalkonline.com) I will tryit immediately! Londave.

Yes, do go to Traveltalkonline -- you'll get all your questions answered.

You'll also find several people who prefer chartering out of the USVI -- mostly because getting there is a bit easier and the provisioning is more "American-style". However, you won't spend much of your time in the USVI, but will have to go to the trouble of clearing in and out of immigration/customs in the BVI. (Frankly, unless you're going for more than a week, you probably needn't even bother with the USVI, since there is plenty in the BVI to keep you occupied.)

As you'll see, the vast majority of charterers go out of the BVI. It's come a long way since my first sail more than a decade ago. Provisioning is now much easier (I use Bobby's Marketplace -- e-mail/fax them your list, and your order will be delivered to your boat when requested). Getting there is easy too -- fly directly to Beef Island, or fly to STT and take the ferry over (lots of people prefer that -- it gives you a jump on getting into islandtime).

I would suspect that boat prices are better in the BVI -- simply the law of supply and demand! I usually recommend Moorings (or Sunsail) for a first-timer; more expensive, but with the comfort of a larger organization and (arguably) better support for a novice. However, my last few sails have been with Moorings affiliate Footloose. Slightly older boats with significantly lower prices (and they will match anyone else on a comparable boat).

Whatever you decide, you won't go wrong, and soon you'll be plotting your next charter!

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www.chocolatblanc.com
A friends 40'cat in Tortola
John