FYI

On two different charters from Sunsail, the boat I paid for was not ready when I arrived. Their contract states the boat will be fully commissioned and ready for service on the day you are to start your charter. I do not pay thousands of dollars for a yacht that is in need of repair and missing essential equipment when I am suppose to start my vacation.

Sunsail's brochure states " By maintaining our yachts to the highest standards we ensure that you make the most of your vacation time on the water. We strengthen this promise with our Four Hour Guarantee."

"Should you experience a breakdown/technical problem during your charter, we will complete repairs within four (4) hours of notification of our nearest base, or we guarantee a credit towards a future Sunsail product, based on the daily flight exclusive charter fee."

What they don't tell you is that your yacht may be broken when you get there and they will do what is needed on your vacation time. Also, if you really read their four hour guarantee, the credit is toward a 'future' charter, not a credit for your troubles. In other words you can give them more money in the future for the same lack of "maintaining their yachts to the highest standards", whatever that might be. If their yachts are not maintained to the standard they claim, how can they 'ensure that you make the most of your vacation time on the water"?

On both charters the yachts had broken, defective and/or missing equipment resulting in hassles and loss time. Most of the issues should have been fixed on the dock prior to chartering the boat. Their maintenance is less than adequate. They promise a four hour response time for problems but don't tell you that apparently it is their maintenance procedure to do it on the go, your time on the water, while you deal with whatever was not fixed from the last charter. Almost all of the issues I experience should have been fixed before I got there. Despite inspecting the boat before leaving, it is impossible to find everything, especially equipment that is missing, or discover things that don't work till you go to use them. There is no excuse for Sunsail to charter a boat that is not what they claim.

I have been sailing for 40 years and hold a USCG 100 ton license. And yes, I was offered a 'credit' to do it again.

For those who don't know, Moorings, Sunsail, and Footloose are all owned by the same parent company.

Paul:

Not that it matters or excuses your experiences but just curious, what base(s) did the failures occur?

Paul,

My experience is diametrically different then yours with Sunsail. I bought owners time 3 times already always in BVI and always had a great time.