BVI Conch Charter

[sturmunddrang]

I've chartered with Conch (and may do so again), so I can confirm a lot of what has been said here. We had a good time with a worn boat and a suspicious dock crew.

They are the low-price leader. You get what you pay for. They, unfortunately, probably attract a good amount of riff-raff with the low prices and need to be suspicious.

If ownership has been pushing up the prices to par with the other small operators, they will need to step up the quality to match.

[familyofun]

Brig-boat...Regarding your comments that attempt to disqualify the statements of others as not 'really' sailers, I'm not quite sure what nationality has to do with it, and secondly, when we chartered with Conch, One member of our group owns his own boats (2) in Vancouver area, One member of our party grew up crewing his dads boat in the BVI, and the rest have had plenty of experience on various boats. I do not think any members of our party had unrealistic expectations what-so-ever or lack of knowledge on boats prior to our TERRIBLE experience with CONCH.

What was said about saving some money by going with Conch and then having your vacation ruined with their staff searching for any way to ding you is absolutely bang on. Absolutely no decency in these proceedings, they take your deposit and do not even provide any proof of damage, receipt or even a THANK YOU note for the $1500 tip they just gave themselves. There is NO value in having this kind of experience and you get what you pay for and pay for and pay for....

[zboss]

The labor laws in the BVI just recently changed. In the past it was very easy to bring in very skilled labor from outside when the skilled labor required was not available on-island. This is no longer the case... any labor (with some exceptions) brought in must only be in the position long enough to train a local to do the job. Work permits are a political affair more so now then ever. Forget firing someone... it is not going to happen.

If your experience with Conch charters was not good, there is nothing you can do about it. I strongly recommend a different charter next time.

[GeorgeDog]

We've used Conch in 1997, 2002, and 2005. All three times the boats developed problems serious enough to need a mechanic. In every case Conch did a good job of resolving the issues. If you arrive expecting to meet a predetermined schedule without some hiccups then Conch might not be for you. Running on Island Time they are great. If we make it back to the BVI I'd use them again.

-Chris