Sunreef Yachts announces the launch of their largest custom-built superyacht catamaran, the Sunreef 114′ CHE, the third largest catamaran in the world. Although details have not yet been made public the sloop-rigged catamaran promises to be an extremely popular option for chartering in the Caribbean this winter. An open architecture floor plan allows for unobstructed central social areas plus three staterooms and two crew cabins nestled comfortably within the hulls. CHE benefits from expansive and beautifully appointed exterior space ideal for sun worship, dining al fresco, or having fun on one of two trampolines. CHE will be completed at the Sunreef docks in Gdansk, Poland, within the next couple of months.

Sunreef 102′ Double Deck IPHARRA, the second largest build launched from the yard last April, has successfully completed sea trials, achieved systems certification by Bureau Veritas and has set sail. Most notably, her double deck flybridge brings this yacht to a whole new level, comfortably furnished for dining, relaxation, or taking a turn at the helm. IPHARRA can currently be spotted in the Eastern Mediterranean prior to making her way to the Caribbean for the winter charter season.

Click here for more about Sunreef Luxury Catamaran Charters.

Repeat Charter Discount

Boatbookings is delighted to announce a program where our bareboat clients receive repeat discounts when you book a 2nd bareboat sailing yacht (monohull or catamaran) through us anywhere in the world. As part of our “Boatbookings Sailing Discount Club”, we will give you 5% off of your next charter (and any ones after that!) anywhere in the world where we have yachts. If you chartered in the BVI last year, why not explore Croatia or Phuket this year, and save 5%!

Tell a Friend and Save!

Also, we want to give you a nice incentive to “spread the word” about our service. If you recommend friends to book a charter through us, we will give you a credit of 5% of their charter cost toward your next charter. Tell enough friends, and you could charter for free!

Please see our full program description and terms and conditions on the site, and start planning that charter for next year!

Meg Toppa from our Fort Lauderdale office, made her annual visit to Newport last week and reports that there are fewer places she’d rather be in the summer!  She visited a Swan 56 that is available for the BVI spring regattas that was race ready for the Newport-Bermuda race which started on Friday, June 18.

She also viewed several of the bareboats in our Newport charter fleet, such as the Beneteau 42 and Jeanneau  45 & Jeanneau 49 .  These yachts are in pristine condition and still have some availability this summer; why not book  a Beneteau 46 for July 4th weekend!  We also recently added a second Jeanneau 50 and will add a third next summer as well as a Jeanneau 53.  See all of our Newport Bareboat Sailing Yachts.

We have a great itinerary for Newport and Southern New England to get you in the mood for your summer Newport/New England bareboat charter.

The Maldives Ministry of Tourism has extended the period that a visiting yacht is allowed to stay in the Maldives with a cruising license from 30 to 90 days, effective 1st of June 2010. The full regulations are as follows:

All foreign vessels categorized as yachts must pay an entry permit fee of MRF 5000.00 to the Ministry of Tourism Arts and Culture

A Captains Declaration describing the crew and passengers onboard must be submitted to the Ministry

A Government Passenger Tax is charged for each passenger on a charter yacht in the Maldives

Fees for Charter licenses are the following:

Vessels less than 25 m in LOA – USD 15.00 per day
Vessels from 25 meters to 35 meters in LOA – USD 200.00 per day
Vessels from 36 meters to 46 meters in LOA – USD 350.00 per day
Vessels from 46 meters to 75 meters in LOA – USD 450.00 per day
Vessels above 75 meters in LOA – USD 600.00 per day

Read more in our Maldives Yacht Charter Guide.

The Genoa MYBA Charter Show, one of the highlights of the year for those of us in the yacht charter business, has opened this morning under cloudy skies, but with many exclusive and amazing yachts to be viewed. This is an exclusive industry-only show that is not available to the general public, but we have two brokers there this year reviewing all of the yachts and meeting the crew.  This will allow us to assure we have the most up-to-date information possible for our clients who are interested in chartering any of these luxury yachts.  The show has just opened, we will have regular reports about it throughout the week.

Yachts scheduled to be at the show are:

Meg Toppa, who is our Sailing Yacht Expert for the US and Caribbean, just attended the Oakland Boat Show last week.  Here is her report:

I just attended the West Coast’s only all-sail show, which was held  at Jack London Square in Oakland, CA.  “Big deal” you say, “just another boat show”.  Well in some respects, that’s correct.  There are monohulls and catamarans, sail makers, riggers and everything else that makes a boat show.  The thing about this show is that it is in the back yard of the new home of the America’s Cup!  The actual cup was on display from 12-6 today and show attendees were encouraged to take advantage of this unique opportunity to view the America’s Cup.

This past February, BMW Oracle Racing became the first American team to win the cup since 1992.  Larry Ellison and skipper Russel Couts have decided to take the cup on the road to promote the sport of sailing in the U.S.  The event includes sailing and design team members in an open and interactive Q & A session.  Video highlights of the winning campaign for the 33rd America’s Cup were shown.

Seeing the cup gave me goosebumps!  Growing up in Newport, RI, where the cup was contested for years, I have sailed on a 12 meter and worked for one of the syndicates during the 1983 campaign.  BUT I had never seen the cup until today and it was pretty cool.

Besides ogling the cup, Meg did find some great new yachts for charter in San Francisco and the San Juan Islands, as well as learning all about new models on the market that will soon be chartering in the BVI, Bahamas, Grenadines and the rest of the Caribbean. Feel free to give her a call in our Ft Lauderdale office for any questions you may have about a sailing charter.

With a record breaking fleet of 39 megayachts, the 2010 St. Barth’s Bucket has come to a close. At the end of it all, it was the J-Class Ranger that took the 2010 Bucket. John Williams and his crew raced consistently and well, earning a well-deserved victory. Second place belonged to the Perini Navi Andromeda la Dea (which you can charter through Boatbookings.com), with the Perini Navi P2 in third place overall.

The sailing and the shore side activities were of the customary caliber. Conditions included sunny skies and fluky winds from 10-15 knots. Shoreside festivities included a yacht hop on Friday night, Bucket Bash on Saturday and Awards Presentations on Sunday.

Though St. Barth’s has long been considered the playground of the rich and famous, the local communities are solidly behind the bucket regatta. President Bruno Magras greeted the crowd at the Awards Presentation on Sunday to thank participants and invite them all back next year for the 25th anniversary of the bucket regattas.

Due to the austerity measures being implemented in Greece at the moment – the VAT rate on yacht charters has risen from 4.5% to 5.0%. But we certainly hope that won’t discourage charterers from visiting this Mediterranean charter paradise. In fact Greece is putting out the welcome mat more than ever to attract visitors.

To remind you of the wonders of sailing in Greece – Mykonos, Santorini, Corfu, etc. see our Greece yacht charter guide.

Not all yacht charters are in the well-traveled ports of the Mediterranean and Caribbean. Increasingly, charterers are looking to cruise in remote areas such as Alaska, the Galapagos, Patagonia, Myanmar/Burma and Belize – areas where nature is essentially untouched and yachting is truly an adventure that will never be forgotten.  This type of yachting is growing for many reasons, one of which is man’s increasing understanding of how fragile our planet is.

Expedition Yachts tend to be sturdier and have a longer range than typical charter yachts, and may contain scientific equipment and tenders designed for exploration. But this doesn’t mean that you have to be “roughing it” on this type of charter. Quite the contrary, many expedition yachts have plush interiors with all the amenities including internet, a vast array of entertainment options, water toys, saunas, etc.

Key Expedition charter areas include the Galapagos, where we have both expedition sailing yachts and motor yachts, Belize, the Mergui Archipelago, Patagonia, even the Arctic Circle.  The commonality is untouched nature and a desire to immerse oneself in it.

We have compiled an exclusive listing of some of the world’s most amazing Expedition Charter Yachts. Look at them, dream of the ultimate escape vacation, and then please contact us to discuss some alternatives!

In a 14 February 2010 article in the New York Times about chartering with large groups, Boatbookings.com was featured both for its Gulets and experience with large group charters.  You can see the Article here: Is This How Cleopatra Felt? and you can read about Gulet Chartering in our Gulet Charter Guide. Please feel free to contact us if you are interested in arranging a group charter in Turkey (or just about anywhere, for that matter!)