BAREBOAT BASICS

The best vacation sailing has to offer

Want to get off the beach and charter a bareboat?

• Consider whether bareboat companies will consider you qualified to charter.
• Think about when and where you'd like to sail.
• Consider your vacation budget.
• Collect information and make a plan.

WHAT IS BAREBOATING?

Chartering a boat is a way to sail in a part of the world that is far from your home waters or one you simply find intriguing. It's a way to escape winter cold or summer blahs, to test yourself in new cruising grounds, or to experience sailing a different kind of boat from the one you own.

Charterboats in the tropics are optimized for the climate with numerous opening ports and hatches, and the accommodation plans reflect what most charterers want--the ability to take more rather than fewer people (four cabins rather than three, or three rather than two) and to take them in comfort (more heads, an easy-to-work-in galley, refrigeration, roller-furling gear, and anchor windlasses as standard equipment). Most of the boats in these fleets have a stern swim ladder, a swim platform, and a deck shower.

Both monohulls and catamarans are available in most bareboating areas. The usual size range is 35 to 50 feet for monohulls and 32 to 45 feet for cats. Some companies offer primarily new boats (one to five years old), some offer older boats, and some have a mix of both.

Whatever the size or age of the boat you charter, it will have everything you need to sail it--appropriate sails, anchor(s), winches and handles, safety gear, a compass, charts, and piloting tools (and often a GPS), a dinghy and outboard--and everything you need to live aboard, including bed linens and towels, cooking and eating necessities, a bimini, a CD player, and often a cell phone (you pay to activate it).

QUALIFICATIONS

Not surprisingly, any charter company will want to be sure that your crew and the owner's expensive boat will be safe. You will always be asked to fill out a sailing résumé, which usually covers such things as how long you've been sailing and where; the kinds of boats you've sailed and/or owned; the responsibility you usually take at the helm when sailing, anchoring, and docking.

Your experience--and your crew's experience--is primary. Charter certification, through the ASA (American Sailing Association) or US Sailing, is good to have on your résumé, but most companies want to see some sailing experience as well. No U.S./Caribbean/Canada charter company requires certification.

WHERE TO GO

Many people find that the Virgin Islands is perfect for a first charter. Here's why.

• The chartering infrastructure is fully developed; there are lots of companies, lots of boats, and lots of choices.
• The trade winds almost never let you down. They vary seasonally in strength and direction, but a windless day is extremely rare. For the most part, weather patterns are more predictable than in other parts of the world.
• There's a dry season and a wet season, but day after day of rain in any season is also rare.
• You do most of your sailing up and down and across a channel protected by islands on either side, so seas don't build up. There's little open-water sailing.
• Anchorages are close together, and there are lots of them. Navigation is line of sight, and the water is deep.
• There are overnight moorings for rent in most popular anchorages as well as day moorings at popular snorkel/dive sites.
• Need water, ice, whatever? You won't have to go far to find it.
• The language is English; the currency is the U.S. dollar. It's easy to make a phone call.

All these factors combine to make the Virgin Islands the bunny slope of charter-cruising. Of them, the big two for easy cruising are protected waters with plentiful anchorages that are close together. Think of this list as a menu from which to pick the sailing and vacationing conditions that are important to you.

WHEN TO GO

The question of when to charter a boat is closely related to the question of where you'd like to go and to the costs of chartering.

An important consideration is how seasonal weather variation affects the sailing conditions. Is the area famous for its no-wind summers or foggy days? Are there windy and less-windy (or even no-wind) seasons? Is there a hurricane season?

COSTS

Charter companies outside the temperate zones typically have several seasonal breakdowns. What's more, the pricing structure can get quite complicated, varying from one week to the next. It will pay to do some checking; company Web sites have the most up-to-date information. The high season--the most costly--is really the high-demand season; it may be the middle of the summer, as in the Mediterranean, or, as in the Caribbean, the middle of the winter (the end of January through April) plus Christmas and New Year's weeks. Unfortunately, chartering high season usually coincides with airline high season and some of the frequent-flyer blackout dates.

Most Caribbean charter companies offer specials in the low season. The much lower prices usually include more time--ten days or sometimes two weeks for the price of one.

The other important factors in price are the size and age of the boat. Of course, chartering a bigger boat allows you to spread the cost among more people. The most expensive boats are those that have been in a charter fleet for less than three years; as age increases, price decreases. A number of companies offer parallel fleets--new and less new--with appropriate price distinctions.

Provisioning.There are, of course, other costs in addition to the charter fee and airfare. You have to eat. In some places you can simply go to a nearby market and buy what you'll need; elsewhere, you can take advantage of the charter company's provisioning service. This can be as complete as three meals a day, plus snacks, for every day of your charter; it can be as minimal as a starter kit of basic cleaning supplies and paper goods.

Security deposit and insurance. Most companies require that you leave a refundable security deposit (often on a credit card) to be applied against loss or damage that isn't covered by the insurance on the boat; the deposit will be returned to you within two weeks of the end of the charter. It is also possible (and required by some companies) to purchase nonrefundable insurance that covers your liability for the deductible on the boat policy. Insurance does not cover losses caused by negligence or poor seamanship. The average cost is $25 to $30 per day.

Special sailing arrangements. It's assumed that you'll end your charter at the base where you began, but it is often possible to arrange for a one-way charter if you want to cover more distance or would prefer not to undertake a long upwind slog. You'll pay a delivery fee, which will depend on the distance covered. Check before you go.

GETTING INFORMATION

These days the Internet is the instrument of choice for getting all the information you could wish for. Every charter company has a Web site, on which you'll find information about the cruising areas where they have bases, their fleets, their services, the costs, the sailing conditions, suggested itineraries, and even real-time weather. You may be able to cost out a week's charter on a specific boat for specific dates. The Web site is also where you'll find out about special rates and special deals. Go to www.sailmagazine.com and click on Charter Cruising for contact information.

CONTRACTS AND PAYMENTS

The company will send you a contract that spells out your legal relationship. Read it carefully. It specifies:

• The payments and payment schedule, including the deposit to hold your boat and when the remainder of the payments are due--usually 45 to 60 days before the charter starts.
• The cancellation policy, which specifies at what point(s) you can get a refund, what percentage you receive, and when the no-refund period begins.
• Your competency, as described on your sailing résumé.
• The security deposit and/or insurance required, including what is covered and the limits of your financial responsibility in case of property loss or damage.
• The company's delivery of the boat to you in good condition. This section defines the company's obligation if down time exceeds a certain amount of time (usually a matter of hours).
• The limits of the cruising area and restrictions (sailing at night is never permitted).

PLANNING YOUR ITINERARY

Many charter companies will send you a copy of a cruising guide to the area. If they don't, ask for a recommendation and buy one. Planning your cruise is part of the fun. It's a good idea to find out how far apart places of interest actually are and not to make overly ambitious plans. Keep in mind that charterers in the tropics usually end up sailing just a couple of hours a day because being in the water is as much fun as sailing on it.

WHAT TO BRING

Basically, just what you need to stay warm enough or cool enough. Especially if you're sailing in the tropics, you'll spend most of your time in a bathing suit. Do bring: high-SPF sunscreen, sunglasses (preferably with polarized lenses), a hat with a visor, a cover-up, film and batteries for your camera (expensive outside the U.S.).

CHECKOUTS

Before you set off, you'll have a boat and chart briefing that covers boat operation and where (or where not) to go. During the boat briefing, verify that the boat's systems and equipment are working and that the inventory is complete. Don't speed through the checkout even though you're anxious to get going.

All charter companies have one or more chase boats to provide assistance if needed. Make sure you know how to contact the company and how long the average wait for assistance is. The chart checkout covers:

• Suggested itineraries
• Location of overnight moorings
• Where to sail and where not to
• An updated weather forecast and how the weather will affect various anchorages.

SAILING THE WORLD

The Caribbean. The islands of the Caribbean stretch in a 500-mile arc from the Virgin Islands to Grenada. They're easy to get to from the U.S. mainland, via San Juan, Puerto Rico, and on some direct flights from U.S. gateways. Even when a string of hurricanes hit the Caribbean and Florida Gulf Coast in 2004, all charter companies were up and operating in remarkably little time.

The U.S. and British Virgin Islands, a mere 45 miles west to east from St. Thomas to Anegada, comprise more than 100 islands, islets, rocks, and cays. The area is ideal for lazy cruising with plenty of stops along the way. Winds here average 15 to 20 knots in the winter and somewhat less in the spring and summer; the water temperature year-round is in the 80s.

The Leeward Islands run southeast in a 200-mile-long chain from Anguilla to Dominica. The islands are more spread out than the Virgins, and open-water passages between islands, along with stronger winds (an average of 10 to 25 knots), make for more challenging sailing. The islands with charter bases--Antigua, St. Martin/St. Maarten, and Guadeloupe--are each at the center of a natural cruising ground.

The Windward Islands in the south are even more spread out, with longer open-water passages; happily, most passages between islands are a reach. The greater distances make the Windwards ideal for a one-way charter. There are charter bases throughout the chain--in Martinique, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Union Island, Carriacou, and Grenada.

Belize has charter bases at the north end, in San Pedro, and in the south end, in Placencia; either way, you'll be sailing in waters protected by the longest barrier reef in the Northern Hemisphere. Belize's islands are small, flat, and dotted with palms. You'll find mostly trade-wind sailing here, but winter brings occasional northers from the States.

In the Bahamas, the shallow waters of the Abacos are ideal for multihulls, and that's the kind of charterboat you'll find here. The Sea of Abaco is protected by low-lying cays, and anchorages are numerous and close to each other. Sailing conditions are best in April through June and in October.

Florida. There are bareboat charter companies on both the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of Florida, including the Panhandle, giving a wide choice of places to cruise and a diversity of experiences. You can cruise the Keys and their 200-mile reef system, for example, or explore the west coast's barrier islands and the Gulf of Mexico.

United States and Canada. In addition to the numerous charter companies in subtropical Florida, charter fleets on all three coasts and the Great Lakes offer as much variety as any sailor could possibly want.

Mediterranean. Summers can be challenging for sailors anywhere in the Mediterranean; it's hot, it's often windless or too windy, and it's almost always crowded in Europe's summer playground. Come in the spring or fall, when the weather is cooler, but sunny and dry, and the wind is more reliable.

French Polynesia. The cruising grounds of French Polynesia are the four Leeward Islands, 90 miles from the island of Tahiti. Because Tahaa and Raiatea share a lagoon, you can spend a week sailing in protected waters or spend 10 days and make the 25-mile or so passages to Huahine and Bora Bora.

Tonga. Sailing conditions in Tonga's Vava'u Group are much like those of the Virgin Islands. Anchorages are close together, the waters are sheltered, and line-of-sight navigation will take you from one island to the next.

Australia. Australia's Whitsunday Islands are reminiscent of the Virgin Islands--the islands are drowned mountains that run along a 100-mile passage off the coast of tropical Queensland. The best sailing months are in the dry season, May through December, when winds average 10 to 25 knots.

New Zealand. Sail the sheltered Bay of Islands, a 35-mile stretch of shoreline at the northern tip of the North Island, in New Zealand's summer (December through February). Or head for the more rugged Hauraki Gulf, north of Auckland, where sailing conditions are more challenging and the waters are less protected.