Sail The Caribbean This Winter

Happy Holidays Corfu Magazine

Articles and Features (published quarterly) about Corfu and its many attractions

Vol. 2, No. 1; September 15, 2005

Sail The Sunny Caribbean This Winter!

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Enjoy world class yacht charter throughout the Caribbean chain from the

British Virgin Islands in the Leewards to St. Vincent and the Grenadines in

the Windwards.

Discover seven destinations where you can enjoy warm, steady trade winds

and perfect surroundings. Choose from short and easy hops with line-of-sight

sailing or an open ocean yachting adventure in lesser sailed areas for more

of a challenge. In the BVI the rum flows, the steel drums play and there are

plenty of new friends around on this sociable sailing holiday. It’s a popular

choice where the stunning anchorages are shared with friendly fellow sailors

and welcoming locals. Further south in the Grenadines explore from our

St. Vincent base and step back to the Caribbean some thirty years ago

in towns and harbours not so used to tourists.

You’ll find sunshine and blue skies, perfect snorkelling and diving, watersports

and endless activities… enjoy a barbecue on board as the sun sets or venture

ashore to find a bustling bar or a hidden local treasure…

The Caribbean is wide open for adventure and waiting for you…

GUADELOUPE

ABOUT THE ISLAND

It’s the island on the map that looks like a butterfly – the French island of Guadeloupe is perfect for sailors with calm lagoons and coves, easterly trade winds and line-of-sight sailing. A fusion of two landscapes; Grande-Terre has the commercial capital and the main port and Basse-Terre has the administrative capital and is a vast, fertile, nature reserve. On Grand-Terre enjoy the classic Caribbean beach holiday on white coral sands, while in contrast on Basse-Terre find yourself in a green land of tropical rainforest and mountainous slopes.

The 74,000-acre Parc Naturel on Basse-Terre contains the Soufriere volcano, the beautiful 350ft Carbet Falls and is marked with nature trails and information centres through the island’s magnificent tropical rainforest. Enjoy a good day’s walking and be rewarded by spectacular views of the landscape at the end of your climb or take a dip in the many rockpools, some containing water warmed by the volcanic activity.

On Grand-Terre’s beautiful beaches

enjoy café society and join in the

windsurfing, waterskiing and other

watersports. Grand-Terre has 650

acres of mangrovre swamps and a

marine park where you can see such

birds as pelicans and doves. And if all

that activity works up your appetite,

you’ll find excellent cuisine heavily

influenced by Gallic flavours and why

not dance it all off to the lively and loud

sounds of zouk and ragga in the discos!

MARTINIQUE

ABOUT THE ISLAND

Martinique is one of the showcases of

the French Caribbean. The capital,

Fort de France, fully lives up to that

description celebrating every aspect of

the island’s all-encompassing French

culture with style and panache. Shops

sell the latest goods from France, art

galleries, theatres and museums

encompass French culture and old

men play boules in the squares whilst

crowds sit at the pavement cafés

watching the Citroens and Renaults

drive by!

If it weren’t for the tropical climate, it could almost be Paris, and while the capital and other towns provide the comforts, elegance and sophistication of France, other parts of this popular tourist destination offer visitors the classic Caribbean package. There are flawless beaches – white sand on the south coast, black in the north, secluded coves for swimming and snorkelling, reefs, unspoiled fishing villages, hot springs, lush rainforests, rugged peaks and exotic flowers and fruit everywhere.

ST. MARTIN

ABOUT THE ISLAND

Good winds and medium seas allow sailors to enjoy exhilarating open-water sailing in this

stunning yachting haven. Rivaling the BVI as the Carribbean’s most popular destination,

St. Martin provides a good mix of island hopping and open blue water cruising. St. Martin

is divided between two principalities: French in the North and Dutch in the South, which

makes for a perfect combination of Caribbean style with European food and flair.

Sint Maarten is the smaller, Dutch part of the island shared peacefully with France’s

St. Martin. It’s the world’s smallest island on which two separate nations, with two very

different characters and sets of laws and customs, co-exist on either side of a border

marked only by welcome signs.

The Dutch section of the island, only 17 square miles, has become one of the Caribbean’s

most popular holiday and shopping destinations. Not only can visitors hop across the

invisible border to get a taste of French Caribbean life, they can also enjoy the advantages

of shopping in one of the world’s few completely tax-free ports.

In the capital Philipsburg there are more than 500 stores in pastel-coloured, clapboard

Dutch-style buildings selling luxury goods at 25% to 50% below normal prices. For truly

local shopping with a Caribbean flavour, don’t miss Philipsburg’s Saturday market.

The sporting highlight of Sint Maarten is the March Heineken Regatta which draws yacht

crews from across the world providing an excuse for parties and steel bands shows on both

the Dutch and French sides of the island. The annual carnival, after Easter, is an extrava-

ganza of calypso competitions, costume and dance, as is the official holiday celebration

marking Queen Juliana’s birthday on April 30. If that isn’t enough partying, islanders and

visitors can pop across the border to the French side to enjoy the festivities on Bastille

Day – June 14. Another advantage of this one-island, two-nation destination.

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS

ABOUT THE ISLANDS

Welcome to one of the finest and most protected sailing areas

on the planet. The Virgin Islands in the Lesser Antilles is a

well-known and much-loved “sailor's playground”. It's the ultimate

Caribbean yachting destination for those who know how to sail

and anyone who has yet to try. With a brand new RYA sailing

school at our base here on the BVI capital of Tortola, you can

learn to sail from scratch in one of the world's most idyllic settings.

These islands have everything you could wish for in a sailing holiday. All year round, you can enjoy short hops from one blissful anchorage to another with easy line-of-sight cruising in steady, comfortable trade winds. This is a great choice for people of all ages and abilities, families or groups of friends and couples looking for a romantic getaway. If sailing isn't a passion already, you will fall in love with it by the time the BVI has finished with you.

Located in the northeast Caribbean, 60 miles east of Puerto Rico, the BVI stretch more than 30 miles around the Sir Francis Drake Channel. The waters between these tightly clustered islands are almost like lakes. Low-lying Anegada to the north has the furthest distance at 10-15nm from the rest of the island group. All cruising guides will advise you to give a good, wide berth to Horseshoe Reef that lies between Anegada and Virgin Gorda.

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

ABOUT THE ISLANDS

The two separate islands that make up the joint country of Antigua and Barbuda may be

within a 30 mile easy reach of each other, but they are world’s apart when it comes to

character and lifestyle. Antigua is a party place where you can join the locals in a ‘jump up’

dancing to steel drums all night and enjoy duty-free shopping and all kinds of watersports.

The unspoilt sister island of Barbuda with perfect pink sandy beaches and wild birds is

where to go when you really want to get away from it all.

With warm, steady trade winds and so many idyllic safe harbours, Antigua is a fantastic

yachting destination. The wonderful conditions make it an ideal venue for one of the world’s

biggest sailing event, Antigua Race Week, renowned for world-class racing and all night

partying, Caribbean style.

Neighbouring Barbuda is so undeveloped that it sometimes seems deserted, a tranquil paradise with pink beaches and complete solitude. Both islands offer a great range of anchorages.

ST. VINCENT

ABOUT THE ISLAND

Enjoy exhilarating sailing in steady, warm winds

through a chain of more than 30 islands of varying

beauty and character. The spectacular St. Vincent

cruising area offers line-of-sight sailing and wonderful

beaches with excellent snorkelling. Don’t be

surprised to see turtles, and at certain times of the

year, you may be accompanied by dolphins and

even whales while out on the water.

The wild beauty and theatrical scenery of

St. Vincent itself incorporates alluring landscapes

of towering peaks with an endless variety of stunning palm-fringed beaches and superb snorkelling and diving. Our base on the southern tip of St.Vincent at the Lagoon Hotel and Marina, enjoys a delightful, protected anchorage, perfectly positioned for your sail south and for trips around the island itself. Capital of and gateway to the Grenadines, St.Vincent has adventure instore with a hike up La Soufriere volcano through the banana estates and rainforest for a breathtaking view. The tropical vegetation of the island creates a stunning backdrop for a powerboat trip to the Falls of Baleine, a quick drive to the Botanical Gardens or a trek inland on one of the nature trails.