I have chartered twice and the first time they will send you out with someone and get you to do a few circles, can raise the main tack, jybe. The second time, they gave me the keys and off I went. I think they are less concerned with whether you can sail well as opposed to whether you can handle the boat safely, know the rules of the road, understand navigation signs, boeys etc.

If they deem the "captain" to not have enough skill or experience they will assign a captain. What experience does your captain have? Has he sailed/ chartered in the BVIs before, does he have a sailing certification of some type, does he have a boat, has he bareboat chartered in other areas?

My friend and I chartered successfully after taking a bareboat sailing course in the BVIs, Did we have a lot of experience, no. Did we know what we were doing, yes. Did we know the sailing grounds and the harbours and approached, yes. Were we scared s**tless when we first took the helm and had that captain watching over us, you bet! Was the trip a success, yes!

Three charters later and an ASA 101-104 certification I feel pretty confident about chartering a boat in the BVI, Grenada and working on gaining experience and knowledge every chance I get to expand my sialing ground .... Greece here we come!