A candid update and overview of recent additions to the bareboat fleets.
November 2004
From the New Boat News column,
by Gordon

It's been a while since our last New Boat News, so let's review some recent trends.

On the generic side of things the biggest bit of overall news might be in the new series Beneteaus that have appeared over the past year or so. Starting with the 323 and moving up through the 343, 373, 393, 423 and finally the 473, this exciting new line of yachts from Beneteau have proven to be very popular. Excellent performance, comfortable cockpits, and beautiful light and airy interiors are the common features on all of these yachts. BVI Yacht Charters, CYOA, Horizon, Moorings, Sunsail and TMM all offer one or more of these models.

Nautic Blue, now operating out of Tortola after moving from St. Thomas, continues to offer the Express 341, and the 37 and 46 foot power cats. The news there is the recently added NauticBlue 382. Better known as the Carver 38 Super Sport, this 2 cabin 1 head cruiser is the newest non-cat style boat to be offered to the BVI market. It features two double cabins with the master forward being an island queen. The second cabin is smaller and can be set up as a queen or two singles. The head is quite large and is shared.

TMM, Catamaran Co. and Trawlers in Paradise all have opted to add one of the Lagoon 43 powercats to their Virgin Island fleets. This is a very interesting yacht with 4 cabins and 4 heads at TMM and T.I.P., and 3 cabins and 3 heads at Cat Co.. The aft cabin of the 3 cabin version is downright huge and makes me want to consider selling my house! The other cabins are generous enough in size but the heads are cozy. The salon isn't what I would call large, but it is large enough. So much time is spent in the big cockpit and on deck, it really doesn't matter on a charter anyway.

Also new at the Catamaran Company is the exciting new Lagoon 440. This 3 cabin, owners version might just be the nicest bareboat sailing cat available for charter. Several new features on these boats make them true standouts. The helm station is serarate from the cockpit and raised for excellent visability.

The cockpit is well shaded with a permanant bimini and there is a unique sunken cockpit forward of the house, which easily seats 4 to 5. The interior is beautifully designed and finished in the typical Lagoon style. The starboard hull is a masters suite with large head, sette area and an island style queen bunk. Two cabins and two heads share the port side and are both generous in size and very comfortable. This yacht will be tough to come by so book early on this one.

The other big news on the power front is the VIP Tarquin 59. This is the queen of the fleet for power boats and has taken off as one of the most popular motoryachts available for charter. She features 4 roomy double cabins and 4 heads, plus a small cabin for a skipper or maybe that pesky boyfriend your daughter insisted on bringing along. The salon and galley are very spacious, as is the flying bridge, but the real news is the aft deck. Suitable for a small wedding reception, the huge permanant table with wrap around settees easily seats 8 to10. There is a nice curved stairway to the swim platform which again is huge. 4 or 5 divers could put their gear on at once back there! VIP also has the 59's little sisters - the Tarquin 49, 47 and 44. All offer excellent accomodations for groups of 4 to 8.

While we are on the subject of St. Thomas, the big news there is all about Cats! Where there were once no cats, now there are many. VIP just announced they are adding an Island Spirit 40 with 4 cabins and 2 heads. A very spacious cat for her size, she boasts better than average performance, air condtioning and generator, and a generous water supply of 240 gallons. CYOA has continued to increase their fleet of cats and now has 10 different models to choose from. Their 2 Athena 38's, 3 Belize 43's (3 or 4 cabin) and 3 of the ever popular Bahia 46's were recently joined by an Island Spirit 37, 3 cabin and a Jaguar 36, 4 cabin fresh from South Africa. Using the recent trend towards bareboats with air conditioning, all of these yachts, except the Athena's, have A/C. The other big news at CYOA is the Cumberland 44 powercat. This 4 cabin 4 head yacht offers typical power cat accomodations, and although the staterooms are not quite as generous in size as traditional motoryachts, she certainly makes up for it in fuel efficiancy and stability at anchor. Her equipment includes just about everything you would expect on a high end bareboat, including generator and air conditioning.

Bareboat fleets are always changing, often "on the fly", so feel free to contact your bareboat broker for the most up to the minute offerings and an independent opinion.