Boat Charters

Back before I was fortunate enough to live on St. John, one of my favorite days while vacationing here was spent out on the water. I would spend hours looking for the perfect boat charter, researching destinations, reading reviews, etc. Well today I’d like to take away some of the legwork for all of you and tell you about our friends over at Love City Excursions.

Love City Excursions is owned and operated by Joe and Katie Zachary. Joe and Katie are no strangers to the island, as they have lived here for more than 10 and 11 years, respectively.

Love City Excursions features a 33-foot World Cat power catamaran – “Catzilla” as they call it – which features high quality snorkeling gear for adults, pool noodles, fresh water shower, two large coolers, plenty of dry storage and can seat up to 12 people. It’s definitely one of the larger, private day charters. They even provide Painkillers, water and ice for each charter. The boat is built to handle the winds that sometimes breeze through here during the winter months, which makes it a very comfortable ride. It also has several comfy bean bag chairs to lounge on and is very spacious and comfortable throughout.

Love City Excursions offers full day trips in both the US and British Virgin Islands. They also offer half day trips in USVI waters only, sunset cruises, a water taxi service, as well as all inclusive private charters.

Not on St. John but want to keep in touch with the happenings of Love City Excursions? Well you can check out their blog in which they highlight stuff like rainy day activities and the top Virgin Islands cocktails. Click here to check out their blog. 

You can also bring a bit of Love City Excursions home with you. They have dry fit shirts, tanks and even drink tumblers. Click here to check out their online store. 

For more information on Love City Excursions, visit their website at www.lovecityexcursions.com. You can also “like” them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lovecityexcursions or follow them on Instagram at www.instagram.com/lovecityexcursions

I know I’ve said it before, but one of the very best perks of running News of St. John is the amazing excursions I get invited on. Take two Fridays ago – I was invited out on Calichi, a beautiful 53′ SunSeeker Portofino. I grabbed a friend and had a fantastic day over in the British Virgin Islands. And today, I’d like to tell you all about it. 🙂

It was yet another gorgeous day here on island. We met at the National Park dock around 9 a.m. and joined a few other locals on the boat. We were immediately greeted by Captain Ty, Connor and Charlotte, who almost immediately offered us a mimosa … yes, please!

One of the great perks of Calichi is that it includes open bar, a continental breakfast and an afternoon snack. So needless to say, the champagne and drinks were flowing all day.

After indulging in a few cocktails and checking into Customs, we head on over to Pirate’s Bite. After that, we spent a little time over at B Line on Little Jost Van Dyke. One of the great things about Calichi is that no destination in the area is really out of reach. Calichi can comfortably accommodate up to 10 guests, and it has plenty of seating for relaxing in the shade or on its huge forward and aft sun pads, so it’s a great ride wherever you choose to go.

So by now, you’re probably all wondering price… Calichi charges $2,395 for up to six guests. That breaks down to just under $400 per person, but it includes an open bar, breakfast, a snack and fuel. So as far as charters go, it’s a pretty good deal. Additional guests beyond six are charged on a per-person basis. So yes it’s a bit of a splurge, but it’s well worth it.

Interested in learning more about Calichi? Check out their website at calichi-charters.com

Some of my favorite days in the Virgin Islands are the days I spend out on the water, so needless to say, I get pretty darn excited when a new charter option pops up. I get even more excited when I have the opportunity to take a cruise around St. John on a brand new boat. Well both of those things happened recently, and I’m stoked to tell you all about it.

BoatDay V.I. is a newly launched charter boat business that’s comprised of two boats – Sol Searchin and Isle Mon. Sol Searchin is a brand new 36-foot vessel that was just completed in December and was designed specifically to accommodate BoatDay V.I.’s guests. At 36-feet in length, Sol Searchin can carry private groups up to 24 passengers, so it’s the ideal option for larger groups who prefer a private charter over a larger, group trip. They can, however, carry less should you prefer that.

Beside the fact that Sol Searchin is brand new and can accommodate a ton of guests, it’s also fast. Sol Searchin can cruise at speeds of 20+ knots comfortably, and I can attest to that personally. I recently took a spin from Cruz Bay over to Maho and it only took us minutes to get there … and I didn’t even spill my beverage along the way. Bonus!

Sol Searchin has plenty of room for both sun and shade, and it features an extra large swim platform and oversized ladder providing easy water access to all guests. Check out these pics and see for yourself:

BoatDay V.I.’s second boat, Isle Mon, is 27-feet long and can take up to eight guests. Like Sol Searchin, it’s also spacious and comfortable. Both boats are captained primarily by Kevin McKinney, who has more than 30 years of experience as a captain on St. John.

Both Sol Searchin and Isle Mon excursions include snorkel gear, and a bottomless cooler of water, soda, beer and Painkillers – yes, please! BoatDay V.I.’s goal is to take its guest “away from everyday.” I think a bottomless cooler of Painkillers can easily do just that…

Rates for Sol Searchin’ start at $1,200 for eight people. The rate increases per additional guest. Rates for Isle Mon start at $695 a day for six guests. That rate also increases per additional guest.

For more information on BoatDay V.I., please visit its website at www.boatdayvi.com. You can also check it out on Facebook by clicking here.

From what we’ve been reading online lately, it’s getting pretty darn chilly up there in the States. So we have to ask (although I’m pretty sure I already know the answer), how many of you’d like to hop on a boat and cruise around the US and British Virgin Islands today? If your answer is yes, and I’m pretty certain it is, then you’re going to want to check out this new boat charter available here on island – Sunshine Daydream Boat Charters.

Sunshine Daydream boat charters is owned and operated by Rob Woodworth, a licensed US Coast Guard 100-ton captain, as well as a certified Padi rescue diver. Rob moved to St. John about two-and-a-half years ago from the mountains of Colorado where he spent 20+ years living the life of a “professional ski bum” in Steamboat Springs and Telluride. In his younger days, Rob lived on Maui where he worked on large sailboats and also in the scuba diving industry. His love of the sea ultimately brought him to St John where he has been captaining boats around the islands for the past few years. In October 2015, he decided it was time to have his own boat, and Sunshine Daydream Boat Charters was born!

Captain Rob’s boat, Sunshine Daydream, is a 2010 World Cat 270SD with fuel efficient twin 2010 Suzuki 225 engines. She has been meticulously maintained with all new upholstery from bow to stern in 2015. Sunshine Daydream’s spacious open bow plan offers lots of seating for sun lovers, along with three comfy bench style seats in the stern covered by a large bimini that extends over half the boat for those of you who prefer the shade. There is a wide and sturdy three-step step swim ladder on the back, making getting in and out of the water very easy for everyone.

The boat has a huge dry storage locker to keep all of your belongings safe and dry throughout the day. Sunshine Daydream has a top of the line Clarion Bluetooth sound system to provide the perfect soundtrack for your memorable day at sea. The cooler will be stocked with ice and water to keep you hydrated throughout the day, and Captain Rob encourages you to bring along any additional snacks or beverages of your choice.

Captain Rob offers full-day trips in both the US and British Virgin Islands, half-day trips in US waters only and sunset cruises around St. John. He even has the ability to take day trips to the Baths at Virgin Gorda, an excursion not offered by many smaller boat charters. Click here for a full list of Captain Rob’s trip offerings plus information on cost. 

And a little side note: We had friends go out with Captain Rob on Sunshine Daydream last weekend, and they had a blast!

For more information on Sunshine Daydream and to book a charter, please visit its website at www.sunshinedaydreamvi.com

For those of you who’ve lived on or visited St. John for quite some time, you may recognize Joe and Katie Zachary. The couple has lived on St. John for more than seven and nine years respectively, and during their time here have been fixtures out on the water. Well today we’re happy to tell you that Joe and Katie have just launched a new charter boat company, and we’re super excited for the both of them.

Love City Excursions features a 33-foot World Cat power catamaran. “Catzilla” features a fresh water shower, a fully functioning head, plenty of dry storage and can seat up to 12 people. The boat is built to handle the winds that sometimes breeze through here during the winter months,which makes it a comfortable ride. It also has several comfy bean bag chairs to lounge on and is very spacious and comfortable throughout.

Love City Excursions offers full day trips in both the US and British Virgin Islands. They also offer half day trips in USVI waters only. The cost for a full-day charter is $750 and includes a cooler with ice and bottled water.

For more information on Love City Excursions, visit their website at www.lovecityexcursions.com. You can also “like” them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lovecityexcursions or follow them on Instagram at www.instagram.com/lovecityexcursions

Everyone likes to island hop, right? Well there’s a new boat available for charter called Magnum VI. We had the opportunity to take a cruise to the BVIs with them on Saturday, so we can say firsthand that it’s a pretty amazing boat. It was very spacious, comfortable and Captain Connor was great. Here are the details…

You can explore the beaches and surrounding cays of St. John or nearby British Virgin Islands of Jost Van Dyke, Tortola, or Virgin Gorda on Magnum VI’s 32’ Ocean Pro, which underwent a total renovation in 2014. Its brand new padded port and starboard seating offered a comfortable ride as we hopped from stop to stop, while the huge padded sun deck was an ideal spot for soaking up the sweet Caribbean sun (especially after a long afternoon in White Bay). For those of you looking for some shade, it has a large Bimini top, so there’s a comfy spot for everyone.

The boat has a custom JL Audio stereo system, so you’ll have great tunes to entertain you throughout the day. Its swim platform and ladder make getting in and out of the water easy (again, even after a long afternoon at White Bay 🙂 ), and its fresh water shower is perfect for a refreshing post-snorkel rinse. Magnum VI pretty much has everything you need for a fun, comfortable day on the water.

The boat is captained by Conner Masterson who is a St. John native. Growing up here, he gained firsthand extensive knowledge of the U.S. and British Virgin Islands so he’s a great guide out on the water.

Magnum, VI can take up to 10 guests. The cost for a full day charter is $950 and includes fuel, snorkel gear, water, ice and the use of a GoPro camera. (You will have to bring your own memory card or purchase one onboard.) A half-day charter costs $650. Magnum, VI is also available for two hours sunset cruises. That costs $450.

Interested in booking a charter with Magnum, VI? Visit their website at www.magnumvicharters.com or check them out on Facebook here. You can also call them at (417) 827-4692 or email them at [email protected]

Some familiar faces recently took ownership of a popular charter business and lots of great changes are in store.

Captain Jay Rushing and his wife Stephanie, along with Ted and Kathee Kramm recently purchased Ocean Runner, a small fleet of powerboats located in Cruz Bay harbor. Captain Jay and Stephanie live aboard their sailboat in Cruz Bay with their two daughters. Ted and Kethee live in Overland Park, Kansas, but own Isla Vista, a popular rental villa on St. John. Ocean Runner has been a fixture in St. John waters for nearly 20 years.

The sale occurred after Steve Crum and his wife Kathy, who owned the business for the past three years, decided to leave island.

Ocean Runner’s fleet, which currently consists of two 33-foot Power Plays, two 25-foot Makos and a 34-foot sailboat, has already undergone a pretty sweet little makeover that includes fun new decals, new motors and new upholstery on the two larger boats. The fleet is expected to expand even further, according to Captain Jay, and will soon include a larger boat that can bring people to Anegada and Culebra.

For those of you interested in renting through Ocean Runner, boats can be taken out with a captain or bareboat. For those interesting in bareboating, a screening process will occur and a cash deposit must be left prior to taking out the vessel.

And for those of you looking for the ultimate convenience, Ocean Runner has also been working with St. John Beach Bum, which is located right next to the ferry dock, so guests can easily rent snorkel gear, GoPro cameras, fishing poles and other accessories.

Ocean Runner is holding a meet and greet event on Sunday,. December 21st from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at High Tide. Everyone is invited to meet the new owners and check out the boats while enjoying great food, drinks, company and live entertainment.

Want to keep in touch with the changes happening at Ocean Runner? Click here to follow them on Facebook.