We booked a large, expensive catamaran with them. We had a very experienced skipper. On our first day, they had him take us out and spent an unnecessarily LONG time having him show he can maneuver the boat. Then, after we left the port for the day, Mark sent us an email telling us that we can't go beyond certain (fairly close) boundaries without paying $250 fee. We sent an email back stating that we would pay the fee since we didn't know where we wanted to go. Then he replied back and said it was too late. That made no sense. We know what he was doing. He was trying to keep us from hanging out with another group of yachts that were doing a tour of the Abacos. We were not affiliated with them, but Mark kept suggesting that we were. There's nothing in the contract prohibiting us from hanging out with other yachts and we did want to hang with other people. He had our full deposit well before the trip and we are a very responsible group of people. This caused us to have to dock our boat for a few days and adjust plans, which in turn cost us more money. Then, the last day we were able to meet back up with the group of yachts for a night. As soon as we returned to the dock, Mark came by and said he saw us from his house the night before with the group of yachts. He wasn't mean at this point, his mood changed because he realized that the yacht was in perfect condition, spotless, and we were extremely responsible.

All in all, I understand that Mark was worried, but he handled the whole situation in a poor manner. Mark should not expect people to check email when already out on the water. He really disrupted our trip, made us worry when we didn't even do anything wrong, we felt watched and monitored the whole trip, and it was just overall uncomfortable and not enjoyable. For those reasons, I can't recommend Cruise Abaco.

I chartered the Helia 44, Torosay, bareboat from Dec. 28- Jan 6th, 2018, and experienced the same winter storm referenced by the poor review below. We had purchased the $250 "area extension" in advance, the necessity of which was clearly communicated to us beforehand. However, when we got to the boat, Mark immediately informed us that he was revoking the extension through the Whale Cay passage because seas would be unsafe. This was disappointing (and overly conservative, in my opinion) because the storm was not to hit for another 4 days. I do understand their worry, and Mark refunded us the $250, which was equitable. As it turned out, the storm did churn up some very bad weather later in the week (25+ kts. in the Sea of Abaco), so we would not have wanted to be making that passage by then.

As the skipper, I was very grateful to Captains Joe and Vince for going out of their way to advise us during our charter. I talked to both of them during the week (via cell and chance encounters in port) for recommendations and advice regarding passages and anchorages (and good bars!) to take refuge during the storm. Joe called in a favor to secure us a slip at a Hope Town marina so we would have a guaranteed berth during the storm in case the mooring field was full. We are indebted to them and appreciate their experience and good natures!

Overall, we really enjoyed ourself on this charter. The boat was in great condition and the Abacos were very beautiful. We also appreciated Mark and his staff accommodating us as we loaded scuba tanks and gear for 7 people, and for driving it back to the dive shop for us at the end. That was not necessary, but was a kind gesture.

My only real complaint is that Cruise Abaco does not offer a "sleep aboard" night at a reduced rate, which covers the day you spend loading gear and checking in. This is a common practice at other charter companies in the BVIs and on the Chesapeake Bay. Given that Cruise Abaco starts their checkouts at 3pm, there is almost no chance of sailing the first day, yet you are still charged for that as a full day. Similarly, you are requested to be back in port by 10am the final day. Alternatively, it would've been great to be able to begin the checkout process earlier, so as to make use of the first day; however, that was not possible given their current structure.

Thanks again to Mark, Joe, Vince, Bonnie and the rest of the staff. We had a great time and hope to be back!

Joe