I wish I'd seen this thread a couple of weeks ago while the discussion was going hot. But for what it's worth, I'll humbly weigh in. We have chartered the BVI 20+ times over the last 30 years and have used a number of different charter companies out of both St. Thomas and Tortola. But the vast majority of our trips have been with CYOA out of Charlotte Amalie. We're headed back to CYOA in February. Here's why:
1. Not a huge fleet, but terrific, and at competitive prices.
2. Extraordinarily friendly and skilled staff, with terrific personal attention.
3. It's almost always substantially cheaper to fly to STT (for us) than EIS.
4. We love sailing, so we don't mind getting ourselves to the BVI one bit.
5. St. John is one of our favorite islands, and it makes a terrific first night/last night option.
6. Super provisioning options, either through CYOA directly, Fresh Foods (which we have used with great results), or self-provisioning near the CYOA base.
7. Clearing in and out of customs at JVD is (usually) a breeze.
8. Although I assume other charter companies are offering the option as well, we really like CYOA's sleep-aboard option for night of arrival.
Meanwhile, it's been a couple of years since I've followed this site. Great to be back and looking forward to getting down to the VI!
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