Bareboat Yacht Charters Blog » caribbean yacht charter vacation

Give Your Bareboat Charter Motor Yacht Engine Daily TLC Tender Loving Care

admin — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 06:33:13 +0000

So you’re about to enjoy your first bareboat charter in the Caribbean. You own a powerboat back home and can’t wait to try your hand at a Caribbean yacht charter vacation. If you practice the same mechanical checks on your bareboat charter yacht that you do on your own boat, chances are you’ll be in for a hassle-free adventure.

The best advice we can offer a motoryacht bareboat charter client is this – perform a daily engine check – even if the engine was running well yesterday!

Here’s a step-by-step engine maintenance guide to follow during your Caribbean yacht charter odyssey:

Before starting your boat:

Engine compartment: Take a quick look – make sure the bilge is clear. Look for oil or water leaks, look for loose wires, and make sure all belts are ok.

Raw water inlet: Valve should be open and the strainer clear.

Fuel filter: Use a transparent filter and check for water or dirt. Drain off if needed.

Engine oil refill: Check with the dipstick. Fill if low, but take care not to overfill.

Checking bareboat engine

Ready to Start:

Switch over to starting battery. Start the engine with the gearbox in neutral, and run at medium revs to warm up.

Check the cooling water: Is it running from exhaust?

Look at the instrument panel: make sure batteries are charging, and check the oil pressure.

While running:

Check the stern gland twice a day for leaks. Tighten the grease filter (if fitted) as needed.

Gearbox oil: Check periodically when the engine is running and warm. Remember to top up with gearbox oil, not engine oil.

These daily maintenance tips can prevent costly time delays during your vacation. Now get out there and have some fun!

Should Bareboat Charter Customers Buy Travel Insurance?

admin — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 06:18:31 +0000

Anyone who has booked a bareboat charter vacation knows that charter companies, especially the large syndicates such as Sunsail and The Moorings, heavily promote trip cancellation insurance.

For the bareboat charter fleets managed by Sunsail and The Moorings, trip cancellation insurance is a substantial profit point. Commissions of as much as 20 per cent for selling this product are common, and these bareboat charter titans simply add the cost to the charterer’s invoice. Although optional, they make the customer waive the coverage in writing in order to remove it.

Suggestive selling is not limited to the industry giants. Luxury yacht charter brokers often offer this coverage to their Caribbean yacht charter customers who fear trip delays due to summer tropical weather disturbances. Mediterranean yacht charter customers also hear the pitch to purchase this coverage, as concerns for lost baggage are common with long, international flights.

Putting aside the fact that someone “profits” from the sale of these policies, a luxury yacht charter customer should give serious consideration to this coverage option. Whether you rent a boat or a megayacht or a superyacht, for a Caribbean yacht charter or elsewhere, the facts remain the same – you are spending a lot of money and you may wish to protect your investment!

Here are some common questions and answers about travel insurance:

Q. Why should a traveler buy travel insurance?
A. Travel insurance gives travelers coverage for unforeseen problems, such as cancelled flights to serious illness – or in rare cases, even an act of terrorism or the financial default of a travel supplier. If an illness, accident, or other covered unforeseen circumstance forces a traveler to cancel or interrupt their plans, they face two major financial losses – money invested in nonrefundable prepayments and medical expenses that in many instances may not be covered by health insurance.

Q. What happens if a traveler must cancel his/her vacation?
A. Often a traveler will lose nonrefundable deposits and prepayments that can add up to thousands of dollars. An insurance plan can provide coverage for the charterer’s vacation investment – the insurance company reimburses the traveler for nonrefundable expenses for a covered loss.

Q. How does the coverage work?
A. It reimburses for forfeited, nonrefundable deposits if the traveler must cancel or interrupt their trip due to a covered reason.

Q. What other coverage is typically included in a travel insurance plan?
A. In addition to cancellation and interruption, the more comprehensive plans may also cover emergency medical expenses and transportation, when ordered by a doctor, to the nearest adequate medical facility; reimbursement for accommodations and expenses incurred due to travel delays; reimbursement for the purchase of essential items if baggage is delayed; and coverage against lost, stolen, or damaged baggage.

Lost luggage and trip cancellation insurance

Q. Does travel insurance cover terrorism?
A. Many travel insurance policies do not cover terrorism; but some do.

Q. Is the financial default of an airline or tour operator covered?
A. Many programs include financial default coverage if insurance is purchased within 15 days of making the initial trip deposit.

Q. How much does coverage cost?
A. The cost is based on the value of the trip and the age of the traveler. Typically, the cost is five to seven percent of the trip cost.

Q. What else is offered?
A. Most providers offer 24-hour travel agency-type services, in case a traveler has to change a flight or a hotel room. Some offer assistance with emergency cash transfers, pre-trip consultation services (travel advisories, passport requirements, inoculation information, etc.), and live messaging, which will relay any email or phone message to family, friends, or business associates.

Luxury Comes to Bareboat Charter as The Moorings Renovates their Tortola, British Virgin Islands Base

admin — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 05:16:03 +0000

British Virgin Islands Renovated Moorings Bareboat Base

Luxury awaits bareboat charter sailors planning a Caribbean yacht charter vacation. The Moorings, managers of the largest bareboat charter fleet in the Caribbean, proudly opened the new Moorings Village on January 29, 2009. Part of a $15 million expansion by The Moorings of their flagship base in Road Town, Tortola, BVI, the Village brings a touch of luxury to the barefoot yacht charter marketplace. The new facility also highlights the company’s efforts to protect the area’s natural resources.
Caribbean yacht charter enthusiasts, especially bareboat charter customers, will appreciate the company’s commitment to the environment and efforts to preserve the BVI cruising grounds. A new desalination plant provides 60,000 gallons of water daily, while the revamped laundry operation recycles treated water to save 12,000 gallons on a daily basis. There is also pump-assisted flowthrough breakwater in the new marina that can circulate over 50 million gallons of water weekly. Local officials believe the new facility has already greatly improved water quality in Road Town Harbor.

The new Moorings Village is nothing short of a luxurious treat. The complex was designed entirely around the needs of sailors.

The staff greets you and takes your bags directly to your barefoot yacht charter vessel while you are greeted in the reception area with a tasty island drink. The reception area opens onto a landscaped plaza, with panoramic views of the Sir Francis Drake Channel. From here, visitors can stroll among the new retail shops or stop in the café serving locally-made island pastries, ice cream and gourmet coffee.

Before heading off to sea, sailors can enjoy dinner ashore, at Charlie’s Bar and Restaurant, built over the water and overlooking the harbor, where the coldest cocktails and a sumptuous yet informal menu are offered.

New oceanfront hotel rooms offer luxury accommodation overlooking the harbor, perfect for those sailors wishing to extend their Caribbean yacht charter vacation by a few days. The majority of the existing rooms have also undergone a major renovation. Customers choosing an evening start or simply wishing to freshen up prior to departure will also be able to benefit from the use of a new, modern club-style shower facility with private dressing area.

A full service spa offers the latest relaxing treatments. Sailors who need to stay in touch with the outside world can use the village business center and enjoy free WI-FI internet access.

1-800-BAREBOAT (see www.bareboat.com) is an authorized representative of The Moorings and their global fleet. “Great Prices and the Newest Bareboats in the World’s Best Destinations” allows 1-800-BAREBOAT to present new yachts such as the Beneteau 51.5; the Robertson and Caine 4600 catamaran; and the Beneteau 43.3.

A Dream Bareboat Charter Yacht – the 2009 Cruising World Boat of the Year, the Dufour 525

admin — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 07:36:49 +0000

Dufour 525 Boat of the Year 2009

If you are a bareboat charter enthusiast, you will marvel at the 2009 Cruising World Boat of the Year. The US-based yachting magazine CRUISING WORLD has announced the winners of the Cruising World Boat of the Year 2009. Dufour Yachts, a perennial favorite among Mediterranean yacht charter customers has been rewarded twice!

The Dufour 40 Performance bareboat charter yacht won the prize for “Best Midsize Cruiser,” while the Dufour 525 Grandlarge is the overall winner in the category, “Best Full Size Cruiser.”

Known among bareboat charter yacht fans everywhere as the Rolls Royce of sailing yachts, the Dufour 525 combines sleek, elegant European styling by French and Italian designers with stiff, strong construction – making her a safe and fast blue water cruiser.

The topsides feature a low coach roof, uncluttered teak decks, dual wheels, a German mainsheeting system operated at the helm, wide transom, and electrically operated swim platform.

Below decks, the mood is light and airy with a mix of mahogany and lighter textures illuminated by multiple ports and hatches. The owner can choose from 8 different layouts that include three to five cabins with either a longitudinal or u-shaped galley. We feel the yacht charter marketplace will favor the 3 and 4 cabin layouts, as most yacht charter vacations are booked for 6 to 8 passengers.

On the water, a deep V’d hull design delivers a favorable compromise between sea kindliness and speed while electric winches let the crew trim the sails with the touch of a button.

The Dufour 525 is a sleek, classy vessel that can transport its passengers in safety and comfort anywhere its skipper chooses to sail, whether a Mediterranean yacht charter holiday or a Caribbean yacht charter vacation.

Dufour Yachts is a French sailboat manufacturer founded in 1964 by designer Michael Dufour. 2009 finds the builder fully commited to environmentally-friendly building practices:

* IROKO FSC wood: the company has chosen this wood for a healthy and durable forest management. By using FSC certified wood (Forest Stewardship Council), the builder supports a sustainable forest management to satisfy environmental, social and economic standards.

* New generation Volvo engine: the company installs latest technology engines which reduce emission of particles by 50%, while noise is being limited providing pleasure to everybody.

* Strong power alternator: the builder installs 115-140 amp service, to limit the time for batteries to refill and, consequently, to reduce the consumption of energy.

* LED Navigation lights with low energy consumption: to provide a luminous output (much higher than the traditional sources) that generates huge energy saving. (These navigation lights use less than 10% of the necessary energy to light a traditional source of 25W).

* Sea Water Foot Pump: to save fresh water resources on board.

* Injection/infusion Decks: the builder manufactures decks through injection/infusion to limit the emissions of VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) and to reduce air pollution.

* System carburizing anti-overflow: to prevent spilling when filling in cooperation with the French Marine Federation (FIN).

* Holding tanks with a large capacity: to limit rejections and to preserve our maritime environment.

* Kit of biodegradable hygiene products: for a first gesture towards an eco-responsible behaviour.