Yachtspeak - nautical phrases for charter guests

Sunday, October 25, 2009 by News SailAway

Taking a vacation by automobile doesn't require any particular vocabulary skills; however, when you go on a private yacht charter, whether it's a Virgin Islands yacht charter or Croatia yacht charter, it's sometimes nice to know some of the terminology used when onboard.

Here are some nautical terms for you that might be helpful to know.

BOW - The forward part of a boat.

STERN - The back of the boat.

BEAM - The greatest width of the boat.

BUOY - An anchored float used for marking a position on the water or a hazard or a shoal and for mooring.

CABIN (or "stateroom") - A compartment (bedroom) for passengers or crew.

CATAMARAN - A twin-hulled boat, with hulls side-by-side.  Can be sail or power, but is usually sail.

CHART - A map for use by navigators. 

HELM (or "Navigation Station") - The area from where the Captain steers/pilots the boat.

CLEAT - A fitting to which lines are tied.  They are usually in somewhat of a "figure8 shape." Cleats are located on the dock and on the boat. (They are often tripped over, if you don't watch your step!)

COCKPIT - An opening in the deck from which the boat is handled. (Visualize a large sailboat - the "steering wheel" of the boat is located in the cockpit.)

DINGHY (also known as a "tender") - A small open boat. 

"T/T BOATNAME" - Means "Tender To...[boatname]."   NOTE: Most yachts only have 1 tender.  Those with more than 1 tender (aka, dinghy) often have "TTT's....or tenders for/to their tenders."

FENDER (also known as a "bumper") - A cushion, placed between boats, or between a boat and a pier, to prevent damage.

Yacht fenders - bumpers - cushions placed between boats, or boat and pier, to prevent damage

GALLEY - The kitchen of a boat.

SAILBOAT - A boat powered by wind through sails (with ancillary engine).

POWERBOAT - A boat powered by engine and fuel.

STINKPOTTER - A powerboat enthusiast.

HEAD - A marine toilet/bathroom. 

DAY HEAD - The bathroom that is used by all guests, usually in main area of the boat and not located within a stateroom.

INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY - AKA, "The ICW."  Bays, rivers, and canals along the coasts (such as the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts), connected so that vessels may travel without going into the sea.  Evening charters in Florida often cruise along the ICW to see the holiday lights of the condos lining the waterway, for example.

KNOT (relating to speed) - A measure of speed equal to one nautical mile (6076 feet) per hour.

LOG - A record of courses or operation, kept by the captain/crew. (Charter guests often fill out an entry in a "guestbook" or "logbook" after a charter, as well, to describe their trip.)

PLANING ("on a plane") - As a boat evens out above the water when it is moving/underway, as opposed to still being partially underneath the water, as in before it starts moving. 

PORT - The left side of a boat looking forward. (Also refers to a docking location)

STARBOARD - The right side of a boat, looking forward.

SCREW - A boat's propeller.  (A "twin screw" is a boat with 2 propellers.)

UNDERWAY - Vessel in motion.

WAKE - Moving waves, track, or path that a boat leaves behind it, when moving across the water.

YACHT - A boat used for pleasure.

There are many other phrases used by "yachtees," but these are basics that will help you navigate your way when onboard a private yacht!

To book your private luxury yacht charter vacation (and practice your "yachtspeak"),
contact 1-800-YACHTCHARTER 
by phone via 1-800-YACHTCHARTER or 305-253-7245
by email via info@1800yachtcharter.com
via twitter @yacht_charters (follow us!)
via our contact form at http://www.1800sailaway.com/contact_us.html

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10 Reasons for Luxury Yacht Charter Customers to Purchase Travel Insurance

Tuesday, June 23, 2009 by News SailAway
Anyone who has booked a Benetti yacht charter or a Feadship yacht charter vacation knows that charter agents heavily promote trip cancellation insurance.

For mega yacht charter agents, trip cancellation insurance is a substantial profit point.  Commissions of 20% of the insurance cost for selling this product for a Feadship yacht charter or a Benetti yacht charter are common.

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 private yacht, a megayacht, or a superyacht, for a Caribbean yacht charter or elsewhere, or whether you plan crewed catamaran charters or sail boat charters - the facts remain the same: you are spending a lot of money and you may wish to protect your investment!

There are hundreds of circumstances that could cause you to cancel your trip, return home early, or force you to seek emergency medical treatment while traveling.  What if you booked a MIPIM yacht or a Monaco Grand Prix yacht for the yearly event in Cannes and Monte Carlo, and suddenly you could not attend?

To demonstrate the importance of purchasing travel insurance, and emergency travel services, here are 10 common examples of what could go wrong.
 
1.  It's 10 p.m. and you and your immediate family arrive at the airport for a connecting flight, only to find that your flight has been cancelled. Who can assist you with finding new flights to get everyone home?
 
2.  Your bag is lost with your insulin inside. You need help to locate your bag as soon as possible and have your emergency prescription filled. Who do you call?
 
3.  It's your first visit to Europe, and your passport and wallet are stolen before you board your Monaco Grand Prix yacht. Where do you turn for emergency cash, and how will you get your passport replaced?
 
4.  You're involved in an accident during your Benetti yacht charter, and adequate medical treatment is not available. Who will help arrange and pay for a medical evacuation?
 
5.  Your sister-in-law becomes seriously ill and you must cancel your MIPIM yacht trip. What happens to your non-refundable deposits or pre-payments?

Reason for purchasing travel insurance for your MIPIM yacht charter - illness
 
6.  You arrive for your Feadship yacht charter in Jamaica, and your luggage doesn't. If it's lost, who will help you find it? If it's delayed, who will pay for your necessities? If it's stolen, who will pay to replace it?

Reason for travel insurance - lost luggage

7.  Your luxury sailing charter tour operator goes bankrupt. Who will pay for your non-refundable expenses? Who will help get you to your destination?
 
8.  You're walking down a street in Rio and twist your ankle. Who can help you find an English-speaking physician?
 
9.  Three weeks before your scheduled arrival for your Croatia yacht charter, a terrorist incident occurs in the city that you are planning to visit. Who will pay if you want to cancel your trip?

10. You are at a beach resort in the Florida Keys during your luxury sailing charter vacation, and you are forced to evacuate due to an approaching hurricane. Who will help you evacuate and who will reimburse your lost vacation investment?
 
There are so many circumstances where your vacation may be interrupted.  It's important to understand your options to safeguard your holiday investment.  Remember travel insurance is optionaland should be analyzed before each vacation begins.
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Bareboat or crewed yacht charter?

Wednesday, June 17, 2009 by News SailAway
Yacht charter vacations fall into two categories - bareboat charter and crewed charter.

A bareboat charter is where you rent a sailboat or powerboat that has no crew. It is similar to renting a car that you drive yourself.  Bareboat charters are for experienced sailors or yachtsmen and can be "self-drive" (where you do all the work and driving), or you can hire a skipper to drive the boat for you for either part of the trip or for the entire trip.

Crewed charters are where you rent a sailboat or powerboat that has a crew that consists of a captain/skipper to drive the boat and any number of other members.  Additional crew members can be such positions as hostess/stewardess (waits on the charter guests), chef (prepares all meals), first mate (helps with the operation of the vessel), and engineer (handles the engines), for example.

The largest yachts (megayachts and superyachts) can have as many as 18 crew members, and some even have more crew members than guests onboard at any time!

Charter guests select bareboat yacht charters for a number of reasons;  bareboats are more affordable than crewed yachts, an independent customer can pilot the yacht him/herself, or the customer owns the same kind of boat and wants to enjoy it in a different location than he/she does at home, for example. Florida yacht charters are often bareboat charters, as guests like to experience sail boat charters and pilot the boat around the islands of the Florida Keys. Bareboaters will often participate in Virgin Islands Yacht Charter flotillas, where multiple Beneteau sailboats or Robertson and Caine catamarans will sail together throughout the islands, stopping in port to enjoy the Caribbean flair of such popular Virgin Island landmarks as Pusser's or Foxy's, or visiting the must-visit, no dock, swim-up Soggy Dollar Bar in the British Virgin Islands (aptly named Soggy Dollar because once you swim up to it, your dollars are soggy - thanks Charles Tobias)!

Soggy Dollar no dock/swim-up bar in the British Virgin Islands - Pusser's Painkillers

On the other hand, charter guests select crewed yacht charter vacations because they are celebrating a special occasion or enjoying a corporate event, they want to enjoy a vacation where they don't have to do any work, or they have a large group of people and want to spend a special vacation with them without having to do any of the vacation planning once underway. Corporate events include such things as Monaco Grand Prix yacht charters, where a company will rent a megayacht to be used as a meeting place (and floating hotel), as well as its being a perfect venue for entertaining clients and for watching the Monaco Grand Prix race. Crewed yachts are often selected for unique first-time vacation destinations like a Croatia yacht charter or Greece yacht charters, as captains and crewmembers know the waters, the locals, and the area.
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Itinerary: Venice and Croatia Beckon, and Motoryacht MARAYA Answers the Call

Tuesday, June 9, 2009 by News SailAway
The siren song of the Adriatic Sea has drawn luxury yacht charter mega yacht MARAYA to the area. The 54 meter superyacht just started a Mediterranean yacht charter vacation in the Adriatic Sea this morning.
 
Translated as "Many Mirrors" in Arabic, the luxury charter yacht MARAYA will then be available on 10th June for a Northern Croatia charter for one week. 
 
Motor yacht MARAYA

Co-Captains Richard Hodgson and Paul Were have prepared a suggested sample itinerary, beginning and ending in Venice, Italy, to maximize a mega yacht charter holiday in the Adriatic Sea:
 
June 10th
  AM: Venice Guest arrival 
  PM: Porec Port for custom clearance arrival
 
June 11th
  AM: Brijuni Islands
  PM: Mali Losinj
 
June 12th
  AM: Otok Havr
  PM: Hvar Port
 
June 13th
  AM: Otok Brac
  PM: Trogir Port
 
June 14th
  AM: Otok Kornat
 
June 15th
  AM: Unije
  PM: Rovinj Port. Custom clearance departure
 
June 16th
  AM: Venice
  PM: Venice 
 
June 17th
  AM: Venice. Guest departure
 
The Mediterranean yacht charter vessel, MARAYA, is priced at € 325,000 per week plus running expenses (like food, fuel, dockage, and bar).
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Genoa Yacht Charter Show Puts Spotlight on Mediterranean Yacht Charter Vessels

Sunday, May 24, 2009 by Special Events SailAway

May 8 marked the conclusion of the 21st Annual Genoa mega yacht charter yacht show.  The industry-only event that draws the top luxury charter brokers and charter journalists from around the world. Held at Marina Molo Vecchio, the Genoa boat show showcased 65 mega yacht Mediterranean yacht charter vessels, although it attracted 100 fewer brokers than last year, most likely due to the economy.

The number of megayacht and superyacht vessels that are actually in the show is based on the number that can fit at the available dockage. As is the case each year, several mega yacht owners were disappointed, as a few superyachts were left on the waiting list.

Organized by the Mediterranean Yacht Brokers Association (MYBA), many yachting-related vendors set up booths along the docks and represented diverse products, from yacht insurance to hotel and tourism destinations. The most common yachts desired for Mediterranean yachting vacations are motoryachts, in contrast with the private sailing yachts that dominate the Caribbean yacht charter marketplace.  Supporting this distinction, the majority of yachts in the Genoa show were motoryachts, with the largest being the 70+ meter superyacht models, Boadicea and Haida G.

Genoa Yacht Charter Show 2009 1800yachtcharter.com

There were also a number of new yachts with new crew at the show, which bodes well for an industry aching to expand beyond the economic downturn.  New private luxury charter yachts include LEOFUN, BIG CITY, PAOLYRE, SALU, SLIPSTREAM, and many more.

While the 2008 season was sluggish due to the global economic meltdown, many brokers in attendance cite an uptick in the number of inquiries for a summertime charter.  Indeed, brokers, owners, and crew are all optimistic for a rebound in luxury mega yacht charter vacations this summer.

The buzz on the docks this year seemed to be the increased interest by both yacht owners and charter customers to explore more areas outside of the standard cote d'azur yacht charter locale.  As potential charter customers inquire about Croatia yacht charter vacations and Greece yacht charter outings, the word begins to filter back to the yacht owners via the charter brokers.  As more clients express interest in a region, more owners are then willing to relocate their megayachts to non-traditional destinations such as Turkey, Greece, and Croatia, for a portion, if not the entire summer charter season.

To learn more, contact 1-800-YACHTCHARTER.  Prime high season dates remain available on many of the newest yachts and largest yachts in the world's best destinations.

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