BVI Marina Reservations

[megit]

I am chartering a 402CC from the moorings the first week in December. Some of my passengers have never sailed before and I am a little concerned about them being seasick. I figure if they get sick, I can dock at a marina a couple of nights and this will allow them to feel more secure and get off the boat with ease.

The question is, how busy are the bvi''s during this time of year and do I need to plan out my itinerary now and make docking reservations before I go.

Thanks for your input.

P.S. This is my first charter, so any other advice would be appreciated.

Dan

[camaraderie]

There are very few marinas in the BVI..Sopers Hole, and Spaish Town on Virgin Gorda are the only ones I can think of off hand outside of Roadtown were you''ll be picking up your boat I presume. I don''t think you''ll need more than a 24 hour VHF reservation advance at this time of year unless there is some event going on at one of them...(Carib1500 etc.).
The main thing to know is that there are many protected anchorages with moorings and calm water so and you can easily dinghy into shore on give your guests their legs back if that becomes necessary.
It''s easy and wonderful with good wind, protected waters and super snorkeling/diving/exploring. Navigation is all by eyeball as the islads are quite close to each other...so if you''re reasonably competent on your own boat you''ll have few worries. Just get into your destination EARLY to pick up a mooring or set the hook well and dive on it to check as some of the anchorages can have questionable holding and you don''t want to be draggin'' in the dark mon! Have a great time..GB

[colorado_sailor]

Hey Dan,

There are several more marinas on Tortola and at North Sound Virgin Gorda. Fat Hog Bay and Maya Cove are very protected on the southeast coast of Tortola. North Sound has marinas at Levrick, Bitter End, and Saba Rock. We''re going the last week in November and from what I can tell, it doesn''t look to be too busy. Moorings used to have some presence at the Bitter End, that might be very nice for your crew.

[parrothead1957]

Like you, I chartered a 402cc in May 2002, I went with a woman who had been sailing only once and this was my first charter in the BVIs (yes it was just she and I).

I believe that you will do fine. Barring any storms ... the wind and sea state are great, the weather is fabulous and there are many mooring balls ($20 a night) throughout the BVIs that are well maintained (company is Moor Secure) and it protected anchorages. Pulling pierside is a lot more expensive (usually charged by the foot) and really unnecessary. As far as the seasickness goes my sailing mate had the patches and she did fine.

My only suggestion is to have a captain onboard for the first day in case there is any questions you have. Good luck and have one of Pusser''s mudslide for me at Marina Cay.