What’s Included on a Crewed BVI Charter, and What to Pack
MAVERICK's charters are fully all-inclusive: gourmet meals, an open bar, snacks, fuel and all the water toys, plus complimentary Starlink Wi-Fi. Across the crewed-charter industry, the usual extras are crew gratuity, meals and outings ashore, flights, and sometimes park and mooring fees, which vary from boat to boat. Pack light, in a soft bag, and bring a passport for every guest.
What MAVERICK's rate covers
MAVERICK is a Sunreef 70 sailing catamaran with a crew of three: captain, chef and stew/mate. Up to nine guests share four ensuite cabins (three king suites, plus a twin with two singles and a pullman), and there's air conditioning throughout.
The rate covers gourmet meals, an open bar, snacks, fuel and all the water toys. Starlink Wi-Fi is on board and complimentary. Answering email from the swim platform remains optional.
Meals are planned around your preferences, from breakfast and easy lunches through sunset canapés and dinner. The cuisine page has more on how the chef works.
The toys could fill a post of their own. Per the adventure page, there are two Seabobs and a Lyft eFoil, water skis in adult and kids' sizes, a wakeboard, two paddleboards and two kayaks. Add towable inflatables, noodles and floaties for the lazier end of the afternoon, and light-tackle fishing gear. Snorkel gear comes in all sizes. A 14.5-foot center-console tender does the runs ashore.
The full spec is on our luxury catamaran charter page, and pricing is under current rates.
All-inclusive or plus expenses
When you compare boats, check how each one is priced. Caribbean charters are usually quoted on all-inclusive terms. Under the Charter Yacht Brokers Association (CYBA) model, that typically means crew wages, food and drink, fuel, cruising taxes and permits, and use of the onboard toys.
The Mediterranean mostly runs on MYBA "plus expenses" terms. There, the charter fee excludes VAT and an Advance Provisioning Allowance (APA), which is paid on top to cover fuel, food and drink, mooring costs and the rest of the running expenses. A plus-expenses yacht with a lower headline number isn't necessarily the cheaper week.
What usually costs extra
Every contract differs. Industry guides tend to list the same handful of extras, though.
Crew gratuity is the big one, so it gets its own section below.
Meals and outings ashore are normally on you. If the group wants dinner at a beach restaurant or a taxi tour across an island, budget for it.
Flights and airport transfers are generally the guest's cost too. MAVERICK can coordinate pickup at different islands to fit your arrival plans, which helps with the logistics, if not the airfare.
On the bar side, Caribbean all-inclusive terms commonly exclude fine wines and premium beverages. If a particular vintage matters to you, raise it with your broker before you sign rather than after.
Park, mooring and dockage fees vary by boat. Some operators include harbor and mooring fees, while others list dockage as an extra. Travel insurance isn't part of any charter fee, and we'd recommend it anyway.
Your charter broker can confirm the exact inclusions in your contract.
Tipping the crew
Gratuity is customary in the industry and always at your discretion. BOAT International says brokers generally advise 5 to 20 percent of the base charter fee, toward the higher end in the US and the Caribbean. Several Caribbean charter guides put it at 15 to 20 percent.
It's worked out on the base charter fee, not on taxes or provisioning. Industry guides say it's typically handed to the captain at the end of the charter for the crew to share.
It's a thank-you, not a line item.
National Parks moorings
The BVI National Parks Trust maintains mooring buoys at protected sites such as Devil's Bay on Virgin Gorda, where they sit outside the bay to keep anchors off the coral. Using them requires a mooring permit. Overnight mooring balls in the popular anchorages are a separate, per-night cost. Who covers which fee depends on the boat, which makes it one more question for your broker.
Luggage
You'll spend most of the week in a swimsuit, so the fourth outfit can stay home.
Bring soft bags. Charter guides recommend soft-sided luggage or duffels over hard-shell suitcases, partly because hard cases can scuff teak and other finishes, and partly because a soft bag folds flat once it's empty. A hard case just sits there being a hard case.
Shoes
On most crewed yachts, street shoes come off when you board. Boats usually keep a basket or locker for them, and on board you go barefoot or wear clean, light-soled boat shoes that haven't been on the street. Heels and yacht decks have never gotten along.
For landings, bring water shoes or sturdy sandals. The trail from The Baths to Devil's Bay has you crawling between boulders, climbing ladders and wading through water.
Sunscreen
NOAA lists oxybenzone, octinoxate and octocrylene among the sunscreen chemicals that can harm marine life. It considers mineral sunscreen the better option, though nano-sized zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are on its list too, so look for a non-nano formula.
If your trip routes through the US Virgin Islands next door, sunscreens containing those three chemicals have been banned there since March 2020.
Lotion beats spray. Spray has a way of landing on everything except the person holding it, deck included, and many yachts prefer creams over sprays and oils to protect their finishes.
The sun here is strong. A hat that ties on and a long-sleeve rash guard save a lot of reapplying, and NOAA recommends UPF clothing and midday shade anyway.
Evenings
Evenings are mild all year, but a breeze on deck feels cooler after a day in the sun. Winter lows average about 73 to 75°F, and the Christmas winds of mid-December into January can blow 20 to 30 knots. A thin long-sleeve or a light windbreaker covers it.
Dress is casual. One smart-casual outfit takes care of a dinner ashore. For the weather season by season, see the best time to charter a yacht in the BVI.
Passports
Every guest needs a passport. The BVI Tourist Board says visitors must present one to enter and depart, by air or by sea, and visitors from some countries also need a visa. Rules change, so check the official BVI entry requirements before you fly.
Keep prescription medicines and anything you can't replace in your carry-on. For flights and ferries, see Getting to your BVI yacht charter.
The packing list
A soft duffel or soft-sided bag
Two or three swimsuits and a cover-up
A long-sleeve rash guard, a hat that ties on, sunglasses
Non-nano mineral sunscreen, in lotion form
Water shoes or sturdy sandals, and soft-soled boat shoes if you'd rather not go barefoot
A light layer for the evening and one smart-casual outfit
Passports, any visas, prescription medicines
Leave the snorkel gear at home, since it's aboard in every size. For ideas on where it gets used, see A 7-night BVI yacht charter itinerary.
Plan your week
To check MAVERICK's availability, ask your yacht charter broker. You can also send an inquiry through our Inquire page.