Islas Vírgenes Españolas Frequently Asked Questions

Pre- and post-charter overnights are recommended on either side of the route. On St. Thomas, the Frenchman's Reef Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton on the east end are the standard picks within fifteen minutes of Yacht Haven Grande. On Puerto Rico, Dorado Beach, A Ritz-Carlton Reserve and the Condado Vanderbilt in San Juan are the closest five-star options to the airport, and Puerto del Rey on the east coast has on-site accommodations if you're embarking from there. Many guests like a full day on land before stepping aboard, especially after a long flight.

Both work; the right answer depends on your group, your flights, and what you want the first and last days of the charter to look like. The USVI option (St. Thomas, Yacht Haven Grande): this is where the yachts that work the SVI live. No relocation fee, the largest selection of boats and crews, and a downwind start — the trades blow east-northeast at 15 to 22 knots and put the run from St. Thomas through Vieques and Culebra mostly off the stern. The trade-off is the upwind beat back across the channel on the last day; a captain who knows the loop calls the timing around the morning's forecast. The Puerto Rico option (Puerto del Rey, on the east coast): more convenient for groups flying into San Juan (SJU), and shorter to the southern end of the chain — the boat starts close to Vieques rather than crossing the channel from St. Thomas. The trade-off is a yacht-relocation fee from St. Thomas, since none of the inventory is permanently positioned there, plus a one-hour drive from SJU on PR-3. For most groups, the call is which airport works best for your flights. Larger US East Coast groups typically default to St. Thomas; groups already in Puerto Rico, or with non-stop SJU service from their home airport, often default to Puerto del Rey. We walk through both routes with you before booking and lay out the cost and itinerary differences either way.

December through April is the high-season window — east-northeast trades at 15 to 22 knots, low humidity, and daytime highs in the low 80s. The constraint in the SVI is yacht availability rather than weather: the boats that work the chain come from the BVI and US Virgin Islands, and those grounds peak the same weeks. Christmas, New Year, and Spring Break book 6 to 12 months ahead. May, June, and the back half of November sit between peak and the heart of hurricane risk. The trades soften slightly to 12 to 18 knots, water temperatures climb into the 80s, rates fall 15 to 25 percent from peak, and the BVI/USVI inventory bottleneck eases. Tropical activity is statistically rare in those months. For guests choosing between windows, this is typically the best the Spanish Virgin Islands offer.

We recommend a week. The standard route runs roughly ninety-five nautical miles — St. Thomas downwind through Vieques and Culebra, with a final upwind day back across the channel — and seven days lets a typical itinerary visit Bahía de la Chiva, Sun Bay, Green Beach, Cayo Luis Peña, Playa Flamenco, Culebrita, and the Dakity reef anchorage with time to settle into each. Shorter trips work too. For a 5-day charter, the captain typically trims the Vieques south coast to one night and may skip the Magens Bay overnight on the return. The upwind day back to St. Thomas stays in the route either way — the wind direction is the one logistical reality of the loop, and a captain who's worked the route calls the timing of that final day around the morning's forecast.

Included: a professional crew (typically captain, chef, and stewardess), all meals and a standard bar (beer, wine, and spirits), water sports equipment, fuel for normal cruising, customary mooring fees, linens, and towels. Not included: crew gratuities (15-20% of the base charter rate), premium drinks or specialty provisions, onshore dining (Mamacitas in Dewey, El Quenepo on Vieques, kiosko lunches at Flamenco), the optional Mosquito Bay bioluminescent kayak tour, and transfers to and from the yacht. Larger motor yachts and select sailing yachts run plus-expenses instead, where food, beverages, fuel, and dockage are paid through an Advance Provisioning Allowance. Your broker will tell you which model applies to the yachts you're considering.

APA stands for Advance Provisioning Allowance — a pre-paid fund (typically 25-35% of the base charter rate) that covers food, beverages, fuel, mooring and marina fees, and other running costs during your trip. Your captain keeps an itemized account, and any unused funds are refunded at the end of your charter. On a Spanish Virgin Islands charter, APA covers the basics plus a couple of route-specific items: pre-charter dockage at Yacht Haven Grande on St. Thomas, the optional Mosquito Bay bioluminescent kayak tour from Esperanza if you take it, and the relocation fee on the rare charter that embarks from Puerto del Rey on the Puerto Rico mainland (the boats live in St. Thomas; positioning to Puerto del Rey is an APA line item rather than a separate invoice). There are no per-island customs or marine-park fees in the SVI. Both Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are US territory, so the entire charter clears as a domestic trip.