I just received the newest edition of FYI, the monthly newsletter put out by Fraser Yachts Worldwide. It includes what is perhaps the most candid assessment I've seen of the current state of the crewed charter industry.

You might recall this blog post from last month, in which I reported from the Antigua charter show that brokers had widely differing opinions about how the Caribbean season might turn out. I followed up that blog post with this month's edition of Three Brokers Say, which again has brokers offering mixed messages about where the marketplace stands. Some indications are that business is looking up, while others hint that things might be worse than some major players are prepared to admit publicly.

Now comes the Fraser Yachts newsletter, which states unequivocally that Christmas and New Year's charter bookings were down for the current season versus years past, and that the current winter season overall has seen yet another drop in demand on top of last winter's slowdown.

"There has been a steadily decreasing appetite amongst charterers for the Caribbean," the newsletter states. "The recent economical climate seems to have further quashed demand and certainly hasn’t helped foster any kind of recovery."

Trying to look on the bright side, Fraser Yachts reports that bookings are coming in faster than at this time last year for summer charters in the Mediterranean, but that expectations are for a flurry of last-minute inquiries that will require yacht owners to once again give discounts over published weekly base rates. 

Stay tuned.

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