High-seas honeymoon
Virgin Islands adventure custom-designed to fulfill couple's dreams
Planning a wedding is a really big deal. Planning a honeymoon is a close second.
Like many engaged couples, Jared and Kelly Staver of Old Town tossed around a bunch of ideas for their post-nuptial getaway.
(Courtesy)
(Courtesy)
Their wedding was in December, so they wanted to head somewhere warm. It had to be romantic, of course. They didn't want to be tied to one place, either. And they were looking for "something different," too.
So after they tied the knot, the newlyweds flew to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, walked about 300 yards from the airport and stepped on board their own private yacht.
"I'm not necessarily a fan of the big cruise ships," said Kelly Staver, 38. "This was something completely different."
Their spacious 45-foot catamaran, named Madiba, had four bedrooms and bathrooms. Stocked with their favorite food and drinks (and that meant lots of Bud Light), Madiba would serve as their floating home for eight days as the couple sailed the Atlantic and Caribbean to deserted beaches, hidden coves and primo snorkeling spots.
The only other people on the boat were the crew: Dave and Glywnnis, a husband-and-wife team from South Africa. Dave was the captain and Glywnnis, a former restaurant owner in Cape Town, was the chef.
The Stavers worried about spending their honeymoon in such close quarters with a couple they'd never met. Turns out their worries disappeared as fast as the shoreline.
"We really lucked out with these people," said Jared, a partner in the Loop law firm Staver and Gainsberg. "They were extremely fun and friendly. They were like a sister to Kelly and a best friend to me."
The fact that everyone hit it off came as no surprise to Kimberly Curtis of Indigo Yacht Charters in Chicago. The Stavers worked with Curtis, a luxury yacht broker, to find the right boat to fit their honeymoon dreams.
"I hold people's hands and walk them through the process of picking the best yacht for them," said Curtis, who has about 1,200 boats in her database.
Madiba, which is Nelson Mandela's nickname, is a perennial favorite -- largely because of the personable crew and relatively affordable price, Curtis said. Madiba's 2008 winter rates cost $9,950 a week for two and go up to $12,800 for six guests. The price includes all meals, a full bar, activities such as snorkeling and kayaking -- and Curtis' commission.
"A lot of people hear 'private yacht charter' and think it's way out of their price point," Curtis said. "That's not necessarily so." Couples about to be married can set up a honeymoon registry with Indigo. That way their guests can help offset the cost of the trip in lieu of giving the lovebirds a toaster.
Curtis said she arranges about 50 charters a year, and the sailing trips are "getting really popular for honeymoons but also just couples in general. It's so private and romantic."
It's hard to get more private or potentially romantic than Sandy Spit, one of the secluded spots the Stavers visited during their high-seas adventure. A pair of palm trees, clusters of seagrape bushes and powdery sand are all you'll find on this deserted island, which is smaller than a football field.
"We were the only two people on the island that day," Kelly said.
Each morning, they'd wake up to a gourmet breakfast, have a swim and decide which spot to hit next on the British Virgin Islands archipelago. Not a bad routine.
One afternoon they hiked on Norman Island, thought to be the basis for Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. Another day, they splashed around in the protected baths on Virgin Gorda.
"Several of the islands we visited are only accessible by boat," Kelly said. "We liked the idea of running into people doing the same type of thing we were doing. We had our romantic time alone but we could also go ashore and meet people as much as we wanted to."
They fished and snorkeled over stingrays, sea turtles and the 1867 shipwreck of the RMS Rhone off Sir Francis Drake Channel.
When the sun started heading for the horizon, the Stavers toasted the occasion with early evening cocktails on the deck. They'd then sit down to a candlelight dinner of scallops, salmon, sashimi, crab cakes -- the kind of food they specified on their 10-page questionnaire of likes and dislikes, a form that gets filled out before clients set sail.
Neither of the Stavers has a propensity for seasickness, but for those who do, catamarans like Madiba may be a good choice. These boats have two hulls and a wide base, making for a smoother ride.
"When we sailed from one island to the other, we hit some waves, but that was fun," Kelly said. "When we were anchored at night, you couldn't tell that much that we were on a boat."
On Dec. 18, the honeymoon, as they say, was over. But not so for the Stavers' sailing days on Madiba. The yacht will be based around Turkey this summer and fall, and the Stavers plan on being there.
"This time," Kelly said, "we might bring some friends along as well."
Find out more about Indigo Yacht Charters at (888) 807-8947 or Indigocharters.com.