We just returned from our 8th trip to BVI a couple of weeks ago. Four couples on a Mooring's 4800 cat. Trip report was made last month.

We are now looking at a return next year end of January/early February with two couples on a 40' cat. We have generally cruised almost exclusively in BVI and not made it to the USVI due to the hassles of checking in/out between the two countries. After taking a hard look at the beaches and lack of crowds on the north side of St John, we are committed to splitting time in both the USVI and BVI next year. On this past trip, we spent the first evening at Olga's on St Thomas directly adjacent to the CYOA base. We have always used the Moorings out of Tortola and have always had an excellent experience with that base, so diverting from this known source is difficult. That said, we see some potential benefit in considering a charter from CYOA to avoid the time/expense of shuttling between St Thomas and Tortola (we always fly American based on convenience and thus now end up in St Thomas). I am aware of and have the CBP Roam app on my phone so realize one hassle of checking in/out of USVI may be minimized.

I am specifically looking for input from any of you out there who has direct experience with both CYOA and the Moorings to get your input as to the advantages/disadvantages between the two operators. Bottom line, these are the two choices we will be looking at. From my initial look at CYOA, it does appear as though their pricing is a bit higher than the Moorings as we do get the standard Moorings discount as repeat customers and generally some discount during the boat show. As we have no experience with CYOA, looking to see if their pricing is either discounted comparably with the Moorings or if their pricing may be negotiable. Also, fuel is included in sailing charters from the Moorings-is there a charge for fuel from CYOA? Last, we generally provision our boat ourselves through a combination of the Moorings, RiteWay/Bobbys/Caribbean Cellars. Is there an equally suitable/.convenient option in St Thomas?

This group has been a fountain of information these past several years, so I am looking forward to the experiences of any of you who have chartered with both the Moorings and CYOA. Thanks in advance.