First Impression: Carib Queen

Date toured: December 2006

Carib Queen immediately struck me as a good option for first-time charterers who want to try a larger crewed yacht without paying a stratospheric price.
     The yacht is 100 feet long, built in 1998 in Brazil by a company called Inace. That’s not a build we see often in the charter industry, which in terms of pricing means you’re not paying for a fancy brand-name boat—even though you are likely to enjoy a similar level of comfort and service onboard.
     Carib Queen’s captain, Peter Martin, showed me around the yacht, which he’s been onboard as crew for five years, working his way up to captain in 2005. As if reading my mind, he explained, “We get a lot of first-time clients. Some of them become repeats.”
     The yacht takes 10 guests, though one of the cabins has bunk-style beds. The good news there is that the stateroom is ideal for children—and so is the crew, since the yacht’s owner has little ones himself. (There are even baby gates onboard.)
     Each of Carib Queen’s three “adult” guest cabins has a double bed, and they are real beds, the kind you’d find in a furniture store as opposed to ones that are built into the décor onboard newer motoryachts. They’re the centerpieces of each cabin’s decoration theme, which are Santa Fe (Southwest U.S., shown in the photo at right), Shoji (Japanese) and Neptune (all things marine). The master cabin is more traditionally styled, and it has a king-size bed (see the photo at the top of this page).
     Capt. Martin also pointed out to me that Carib Queen’s draft (her depth below the water) is 6 feet, which is less than some other 10-guest yachts. That means the yacht can get into shallower coves and harbors, often away from the crowds.
     Carib Queen is part of the fleet at The Sacks Group. Her weekly base rate with five crew is $42,000, or about $5,250 per person with 25-percent expenses included. Contact any reputable charter broker for information.—Kim Kavin