Yacht
“We like to keep it aggressively priced,” Capt. Tom Hartman explained when I raised an eyebrow at Sovereign’s weekly rate. She’s a heck of a lot of boat for the money, with six guest staterooms and sleeping quarters for eight crew, if that many are required.

Sovereign was built in 1993, and she’s always been in charter—but not with the same crew. In fact, Hartman says, previous crew did not live up to the standards of service that now are being set. A few bad charters with other captains and crew gave the yacht a less-than-stellar reputation, which is something the new captain and crew are working diligently to overcome.

The yacht’s owner is doing his part, too, having completed a substantial refit in June 2004. The interior is completely new and elegant, including details like flat-screen televisions in every guest stateroom. Mechanical renovations were made as well, including the addition of an extra generator, to ensure all ship’s systems are up to par with expectations in the worldwide luxury yacht charter market.

Our New England charter did not include the use of Sovereign’s water toys, but rest assured they all looked to be in great condition should you decide to charter this yacht in the Bahamas or Caribbean.

Crew
Some other 12-guest yachts may offer a more formal level of service, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a better level of service than Sovereign’s crew provides. No, they don’t wear dress-white uniforms, but they serve you with the same attention to detail as crew on other boats who dress in uncomfortable epaulets.

Perhaps what helps the Sovereign team offer such terrific service is their level of teamwork, which is a function of their long-standing personal relationships. Chief Stewardess Kelly Collins is the sister of First Mate Sean Collins, and several other crewmembers have been friends of theirs for years. They genuinely want to help one another do the best possible job, all with an eye toward giving you whatever you want or need throughout the duration of your charter.
 
Chef
Christopher Wear is all about flexibility. He doesn’t want to be the kind of chef who plans every meal beforehand, instead preferring to show charter guests what he can do and then adapting his skills to their tastes. “I stock my galley with plenty of stuff so that it doesn’t have to be, ‘It’s this and this on every night,’” he says. “Usually by their second lunch, they’re ready to turn it over to me. They say, ‘Whatever you want!’”

He’s diligent about making fresh breads, ice creams and pastas whenever they’re on the menu, instead of serving the same old stuff you can buy in any grocery store. Instead, he prefers to shop for provisions that will satisfy guests both in their bellies and their bank accounts. “I’m price conscious,” he says. “I don’t play with their money. I provision appropriate portions. If a chef cooks too much, that’s not just bad for your waistline. It’s also bad for your wallet.”

A typical three-course meal includes:

• Curried cauliflower soup
• Turkey piard stuffed with wild mushrooms, chorizo sausage and blended cheeses, served with a roasted chicken demi-glace and a summer sautee of zucchini, tomato and feta pesto with roasted red pepper couscous (paired with a Fuisse 2002 white Burgundy wine)
• Godiva chocolate puff pastry filled with bananas foster and Kahlua whipped cream

Christopher’s resume also includes working at The Boathouse in New York City’s Central Park, and at Lundy Brothers in Brooklyn. He previously owned and served as executive chef for two catering firms in Westport, Connecticut.

Accommodations
Sovereign has six staterooms, an unusual number for a yacht her size (most boats in her range take eight or ten guests, not 12). The master cabin has a king-size bed, there are three cabins with queen-size beds, and two cabins have twin-bed configurations. 

This makes for great versatility in accommodating all kinds of charter parties. Four couples, for instance, could split the cost of this yacht and all have excellent accommodations, reserving the two twin cabins for children. Or, a multi-generation family could charter this yacht easily, with plenty of sleeping options for children and grandchildren.

Destination
Most people who charter in this part of New England tend to veer off to the yachting hot spots of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, but if you’re interested in American history, the route that includes Plymouth, Salem and Gloucester is far better.

Don’t expect a typical scene of beachfront bars and luxury marinas. Instead, prepare to go ashore and find real communities that are incredibly steeped in history. From the actual Plymouth Rock to the artists’ colony near Gloucester, you’ll have more than enough unique tourist attractions to keep guests of all ages enchanted for the week.