When Andrew Thompson co-founded Horizon Yacht Charters in 1998, he wanted to bring megayacht-quality service to bareboats. Thompson had worked as captain and crew aboard the larger yachts, and he believed that people chartering bareboats should have every right to expect similarly high standards for their own cruising vacations.

‘Our Mission statement in 1998, was ‘to offer immaculate yachts, exemplary customer service and value for money’, 25 years later, our mission remains the same, and we go the extra nautical mile every day to deliver on that’ he says.

Today, Horizon Yacht Charters has two locations: the main base at Nanny Cay on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, and a second location at Blue Lagoon Marina in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Both locations are known for their exceptional customer service. The base in the BVI is also popular for its restaurants, showers, hotel, beach bar and pool. This location is easily accessible with daily flights from Miami on American Airlines, arriving at Beef Island, Tortola.

“Our company takes great pride in being a local business with local operations, management and staff,” says Kim Struiken, finance and business development director. “Our local roots play a vital role in our success. We are committed to our community and to delivering an exceptional experience to our customers. This combination is part of the formula which sets Horizon Yacht Charters apart.”

Horizon Yacht Charters’ high-quality fleet of about 50 yachts in the BVI includes monohulls as well as catamarans from 34ft – 54ft.  The boats are maintained to a level that Thompson brings from his megayacht days, ensuring that guests can embark on their vacations with complete confidence in the seamless experience they’ll enjoy, regardless of the age of the yacht,(although most are 0-5 years old).

“We excel at providing yachts with all systems in order, with concours cosmetics and detailing “ Struiken says. “Most of Horizon’s staff have been here for many years. The first-ever employee of the company, Courtney Frett, our reservations manager, is still here, 25 years later. Our operations director, Henry Leonnig, has been here for 20 years, as have several other dock staff. They like what they do, and when people like what they do, they excel, and it allows you continuity of service – to offer real quality.” Struiken continues: ‘It is not just about the yachts, it is about the ‘boutique hotel’ level of personalized service you get at Horizon. Jalon Shortte epitomizes this as our larger-than-life Customer Service manager, who delivers boat and chart knowledge with a wicked laugh and a brilliant smile’.

Horizon Yacht Charters offers bareboat charters, skippered charters as well as luxury crewed charters with the added convenience of an all-inclusive package covering high-end gourmet meals, premium drinks, water toys, and more.

American Sailing Association (ASA) classes are also available at Horizon Yacht Charters Sailing School. Students can book a whole boat and cruise with a private instructor, or they can book a single cabin for a week on board a boat with an instructor and other students.

The instructors at Horizon Yacht Charters are top-notch. Just one example is Cara Brown, who, in 2022, was named one of ASA’s outstanding instructors. This award is given to the top 1 percent of all ASA instructors, as determined by student surveys. In 2022, there were 2,155 instructors eligible for the award; only 25 were named winners. And Brown was among just a handful of women in that already selective group.

“Cara is a terrific example of the outstanding team members we have at Horizon Yacht Charters,” Struiken says. “She’s originally from London, grew up in Italy, and has been sailing with Horizon in the BVI since she was a little girl—because her parents have had a series of yachts in our fleet since 2002, and they continue to do so to this day. Her own sailing experience includes the whole Caribbean as well as parts of Britain and Europe, she has a 200 ton yachtmaster licence in addition to her ASA qualifications. Cara is  also a qualified personal trainer, ski coach ( having been Britain’s women’s downhill champion for 5 years) as well as a PADI-certified open water diver. She speaks English, French and Italian fluently,  which means she can help so many people feel comfortable while learning to sail.”

Due to Horizon’s winning combination of top ASA instructors, a highly sought-after location, and exceptional customer service, it has been selected by the American Sailing Association as the destination for its 2024 Lenny Shabes Sailing Festival, scheduled from 16th to 23rd June 2024. Similarly, Jeanneau, one of the world’s leading monohull manufacturers, has also chosen Horizon for their Jeanneau owners rendezvous flotilla from 9th to 16th March 2024, driven by some of the same compelling factors.

Another way that Horizon Yacht Charters stands out is its additional charter broker services. While the staff at the base on Tortola can help clients book bareboat charters aboard sailboats in the Horizon Yacht Charters BVI and St. Vincent fleets, the team will also help clients book boats from other fleets all around the world—any kind of boat, anywhere the clients want to cruise.

“If we have clients who have been with us in the BVI and in the Grenadines, we can help them book a charter anywhere,” Struiken says. “Sometimes, people want to cruise somewhere different, and we are happy to assist with that.”

For clients interested in buying or selling a yacht, the Horizon Yacht Charters team is also available to help. The company is a distributor for Lagoon, Excess, FP and Nautitech catamarans, Jeanneau, Beneteau  and Bavaria monohulls, as well as ranges of centre console RIB’s and day boats. Horizon also maintains an active brokerage service with a wide range of listings, both in the BVI, and in Grenada, where Horizon also have a yacht management, refit and storage business.

“We are able to support our clients as their boating needs change throughout the years,” Struiken says. “Families grow, plans change, sometimes cruising ideas become bigger sailing ambitions. Our fleet, school, charters and yacht sales allow our clients to progress however they choose. And when they come back to us year after year, they see the same staff, ready to assist them. They feel like they’re coming home.”

“Whether charter client or yacht owner, from the moment of first contact until the final wave goodbye, whether that is a week or decades later,  our top priority is the customer experience. We look forward to welcoming you aboard”.  Struiken concludes.

How to book: Contact the Reservations team at res@horizonyachtcharters.comHome .

How to buy: Contact Robin at robin@horizonyachtcharters.com to find your new dream yacht or explore the selection of brokerage yachts available through Giles at giles@horizonyachtcharters.com.

For more information, please give us a call  on our toll free number (+1 877-494-8787) or visit our website Home .

The post A Winning Bareboat Experience appeared first on Cruising World.

Philip Barnard’s family arrived in St. Vincent and the Grenadines more than a century ago, in 1902. His grandfather sailed the local waters. His father then grew up on local boats, and his mother started Barefoot Charters in 1991—an unusual, if not monumental, achievement for a woman in those days. Barnard followed his family’s lead and, today, owns the company known for its well-developed charter base and sailing school.

“We have relationships that go back generations with service providers,” Barnard says. “I know every inch of water down here, taught to me by my dad and granddad before we had GPS. That allows us to show people an experience that’s a little different.”

St. Vincent and the Grenadines is in the southern part of the Caribbean, which is far less developed than the northern charter meccas such as Antigua and Saint-Martin. The experience in this part of the Caribbean is often described as untouched—much like the other, busier islands were decades ago.

Still, there are modern conveniences. The $259 million Argyle International Airport opened just a few years ago on the eastern side of St. Vincent, giving visitors a first-class travel option for accessing the tranquility of the archipelago. American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada and other providers offer service here.

The islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines run north to south, like an unfastened string of pearls. Conditions are different from other charter hotspots such as the British Virgin Islands, and sometimes include sailing in pure Atlantic Ocean winds.

Barnard describes the locale as ideal for bareboaters who want to step up their sailing game with a bit more of a challenge.

“It’s not like the fishpond sailing in the Virgin Islands,” he says. “Down here, the winds are stronger. This is better-suited for intermediate and advance sailors—and it’s why our sailing school is so good. We can access just about any conditions we want.”

Barefoot Charters offers American Sailing Association and Sail Canada classes that start at beginner level and go up to teaching people how to become instructors. The company also has specialty programs focused on living aboard offshore, preparing for offshore passages and learning how to make decisions in high-stress situations, such as major storms. In some cases, instructors include former participants in the Vendée Globe singlehanded, nonstop round-the-world yacht race.

“These extra courses are for people with bigger aspirations, who want to take the family and go all around the world,” Barnard says. “These techniques make you a better sailor in everyday situations too.”

And Barefoot Charters has a well-established base that not only has a restaurant and rooms for bareboat clients, but that also can handle repairs on everything from sails to fiberglass to diesel engines.

“It’s not a dock with three boats and a guy in a little office,” Barnard says. “We don’t have a chandlery in St. Vincent; although it’s a sailing location, there’s no sail industry, so we have to be self-sufficient.”

Teaching boaters to be self-sufficient is also part of the Barefoot Charters operation. The company offers a program that it calls a mentor charter, where clients are on their own chartered bareboat, fully in command and control, but moving through the islands on itineraries that are like a flotilla, so there is always help nearby if needed.

“It’s for confidence-building the first time out,” Barnard explains. “You can say that you sailed a boat for a week. You got your first 50 miles. That’s the prerequisite a lot of the charter companies have.”

That kind of sailing—and all other types of bareboating—can be done aboard the diverse fleet of boats that Barefoot Charters offers. Unlike other companies that focus primarily on, say, only one type of catamaran, Barefoot Charters offers cats as well as monohulls that are built for different purposes.

Barnard says that the fleet breaks down into two general categories: performance boats and boats that offer luxury comfort at anchor. The idea is that different boats are meant to do different things, so bareboaters should be able to enjoy whichever aspect of cruising appeals to them most. Want to go fast on a broad reach? You’ll need a different type of boat than one packed with amenities for use at anchor. At Barefoot Charters, clients can choose either one.

“Our philosophy is to let the fast boats do what they do, and let the other boats be more comfortable,” Barnard says, adding that some clients come back year after year, chartering different styles of boats to learn what they like best. “I have owners here who learned to sail here, and they’re getting ready to go off cruising now that their kids are graduating.”

Barnard also says that Barefoot Charters takes its obligation to the natural environment seriously. Stewardship of St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a major part of the company’s philosophy, so much so that each charter guest receives a tree to plant while they’re in the archipelago.

“We give a casuarina or flamboyant tree—they’re hardy and can grow here,” Barnard says. “It’s to offset the emissions from the flight down to the islands.”

All in all, Barnard says, the experience that charter guests can have with Barefoot Charters is unlike any other. As just one example, there’s the island of Mustique, which often closes to the public because it’s a favorite haunt of the rich and famous. Here, as with other locations throughout St. Vincent and the Grenadines, clients of Barefoot Charters enjoy special privileges.

“We’ve been able to negotiate access for our clients to Mustique,” Barnard says. “They can go horseback riding, rent a Mule—the golf cart, not the donkeys—and go all around the island. The same is true at Palm Island, which is also exclusive. Our guests can access the hotel grounds and spa with a day pass.

“Because we know so many people around these islands,” he adds, “we have access to a lot of back doors.”

To book a vacation with Barefoot Yachts, visit barefootyachts.com.

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