Catamaran Moon Blossom

Jamie and Thea were great, very friendly attentive and accommodating. Blossom was kept extremely clean. Enjoyed that there was a front and rear comfortable seating area which provided sun or shade, whichever you preferred.

Food was way above our expectations and very plentiful.

Itinerary fit our wants well. Lots of snorkeling and hiking, but a bit too much wind for paddle boarding. Kayaking was mostly exercise rather than sightseeing.

We had a great experience. We were worried about motion sickness but were pleasantly surprised. We enjoyed Anegada the most and would strongly recommend to others to go there. Baths were fantastic, allow time to explore. Caves a must also.

Bob L, aboard Catamaran Blossom May 2019  sailing the Virgin Islands

It is hard to put into words what a fantastic time we had and what a fantastic time that we had with Jamie and Thea on Blossom Catamaran. We wanted to do something different to celebrate our retirement after 37+ years of working and our time on the boat really hit a “grand slam”.

Jamie and Thea were a pleasure to sail with. Most importantly was their focus on operating the boat safely and very professionally. They did an excellent job spoiling us with our favorite foods, taking us to the best snorkeling spots, and suggesting activities that they thought we would enjoy. Jamie and Thea were always willing to adjust plans to meet our interests. Suggestions they made related to taxi drivers, restaurants, places to visit when we went ashore were all great. They were very comfortable to be with – easy to talk with and never made you feel like a request was unreasonable. I would choose to sail with Jamie and Thea again.

Blossom was spotless, exceptionally well maintained. We enjoyed having the windows open at night but knew the air conditioning was available if needed. Favorite aspect of yacht was sitting and watching the sunset from the table at back of boat.

Food was exceptional. Thea and Jamie had read our preferences and planned a menu based on our preferences – we felt very pampered. Amazing attention to detail in watching what we liked. Great variety and extremely well prepared – both in taste and presentation. We were with them for 2 weeks and got to try a great variety of meals – hard to pick a favorite as there were so many good ones.

Except for the first and last nights moored off St. John, we sailed within the BVI and primarily places that had good snorkeling, nature, or hiking – fit our interests well. We liked the variety of places. Jamie and Thea were great in getting us moorings that matched our interests. At Little Jost, we had prime area to watch Turtles. At Waterlemon Cay, we had best access to prime snorkeling area. At Cooper we were positioned to snorkel off the boat but still be able to take easy dingy ride to beach.

We really appreciated all the upfront information when we as “first timers” were trying to decide which boat and length of trip. Although we started due to finding Blossom Catamaran on internet, the other boat options that Sailing Directions provided as well as getting us connected with Jamie & Thea to talk about options helped us decide on best option for us. It was nice to have someone who was working to match our interests to boat & crew. We could always count on quick response. We felt very prepared for trip.

Jamie & Thea made the trip exceptional by their knowledge on sailing, great itinerary based on our interests, fabulous food, and just being fun to be with. As first timers celebrating a recent retirement, our trip convinced us that we need to repeat the experience. We had such a great time on charter that we are looking at options for friends to join us the next year.

Marilyn T, aboard Catamaran Blossom April 2019  sailing the Virgin Islands

Jamie & Thea were wonderful hosts, and complement each other very well. Jamie was always gracious in accommodating our requests for water sports, or for being dropped or picked up ashore, for example. And he was very open to chalking out and changing itineraries as desired. Thea was cheerful and very friendly. They gave us the space we needed, yet were there whenever we needed them. By the end of it, they felt like family.

Blossom was very well maintained, and quite spotless. We each found our favorite spots whether it was lying on the front trampoline gazing at the starry night sky, or sitting in the front seats with the wind in our face, or lounging in the rear dining area. Blossom is perfect for a family of 4. The main bedroom suite has a fairly long hallway with closets and drawers, so there was enough room to park our stuff. Definitely advisable to just carry duffel bags, though - leave your large wheeled suitcases at home.

This was our first yacht charter, so we didn't quite know what to expect, food-wise. Turns out we were in for a very pleasant surprise. Thea is a superb cook, and we had great variety day after day, starting with the shrimp salad the day we first boarded, which was so welcome after our flight in that morning. It is amazing that so much variety was presented, given they had to stock up for the entire week. Thea was very willing to customize the food to our tastes. And to top it all, the food was very elegantly presented each day, whether it was breakfast, lunch or dinner. Proper silverware, cloth napkins, candles, decorations on the table, and the plating was done with care.

The itinerary was great. Jamie & Thea showed us some key highlights of the British and US Virgin Islands. We saw great snorkeling spots, some caves, nice hiking trails. Some islands were more populated (like St. Thomas), or had a night scene (like Jost Van Dyke), whereas others were absolutely pristine (like Leinster Bay in St John). So we felt we got a real good mix of scenes. Also, the seas were never rough, so we got a fairly calm sailing throughout.

Since we were booking this blind, all online, without ever having met anyone at Sailing Directions, we were a bit concerned however, the people at Sailing Directions, specifically John Lane, proved to be very professional. Every aspect was fairly described in the website. We tried doing a yacht charter the previous year, but unfortunately our boat ended up getting damaged in the wake of the 2 hurricanes that hit that year. Sailing Directions promptly refunded all our deposit, without us even asking for it.

Will definitely recommend Sailing Directions to friends.

Nikhil G, aboard Catamaran Blossom December 2018  sailing the Virgin Islands