Dear Shari, Lorraine and Ian,
The reason that we continue to come back, year after year, is that you three are just “flat-out” the best! This year completes our 29th bare boat chartering experience, including such diverse locations as Tonga, Croatia, Australia, Thailand, all Virgins – British, Dutch, Spanish and USA, Turkey, three Greek ‘s – Dodecanese, Cyclades, and Sporades, French and Italian Rivera’s, Corsica, the Northwest’s Gulf Islands, San Juan Islands, Sunshine Coast, and Desolation Sound.
The reason that your relatively new Nanimo Yacht Charters operation runs circles around Moorings, Sunsail, and the others, is the experience that you three have had running global yacht chartering operations for decades. Ian and Shari pioneered Sunsail’s operations in the Med and Caribbean for years. While entrepreneur Lorraine built a very successful personnel operation in South Africa for many years. You bring this experience, along with the joy of finally running your own new Company.
I like the fact that you also have the family involved in servicing your clients. Your daughter Beth and her team provided our Beneteau 473 in absolutely mint condition. Ian, personally made sure that all of the electrical and mechanical gear was working to perfection. As a result, our boat handled beautifully during two heavy weather conditions, (25 to 30+ knot winds) unusual for that time of year in Georgia Straits.
Lorraine and Shari’s knowledge of the various marinas, adventure tours, great restaurants, anchorages, and sightseeing opportunities enhanced the pleasure of our sail. Thanks again, dear friend Ian! You’ve always been available to me, real time night or day, to help me solve any small weather or equipment related issues. You have been a dream companion in the planning and thinking through various float plan alternatives. Our crew member friends loved your suggestion.
We began sailing your beautifully prepared and seaworthy boats July 2003, after Ian opened Sunsail’s Vancouver base. Our migration to your new Nanaimo Yacht Charters, with your team’s legacy of skills and personal service, was one of the most positive things we have ever done. Keep up this great tradition.
Thanks and see you again next year,
Jerry Crowley
Chairman and CEO Treehouse Ltd.
(A Silicon Valley Venture Capital Company)
( Beneatu 47 Yacht Rental )
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We had a great time and you and your crew made it all the more relaxing.
All the "little extras" meant a lot to us, and we'll be back again!
Thanks again for the great charter! Here are some photos of our time in
Desolation Sound
The one of the prawn trap shows the size of the octopus that we caught (we
let it go, didn't have the appetite for tentacles that day).
Cheers,
Tilo & Jeannette - Switzerland 3 weeks on Atlas
(Charter Hunter 30 Boat Rentals )
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Hi Shari and Ian and the rest of the Gang,
I am writing to let you know how much we enjoyed the charter experience with you. Belle Serena was in top shape and very well equipped for our cruise in the gulf islands. I have chartered quite a few boats in the past s and must say that this one was the best shape I have ever seen a charter boat in! Kudos for a great job.
Well - and then there are the cruising grounds which are such a difference to the Caribbean, Med or Dutch coasts I have sailed in the past. Thanks Ian for the excellent briefing and valuable tips.
For those who might read this and have not chartered with Nanaimo Yacht Charters, they do not just show you the boat and go through the equipment list and off you go - they actually spend an hour or two to go through your planned cruise outline, something I have never experienced before. I am sure one of the reasons why the boats are in good shape and return that way. We did a modified version of the proposed 1 week Gulf Islands Itinerary. Skipped the very south, went around Prevost Island and stayed in James Bay - lovely spot. Water is warm enough for swimming and a bit cleaner than Pirates Cove we visited later and which is fabulous for a hike, just like Ian said.
Thanks again,
Jochen and the other 9 members of the Koenig family USA and Germany – August 2009, - (Beneteau 50 Boat Rental)
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Dear Shari Lorraine & Ian -
I want to express how very pleased I am with our recent experience of
chartering two yachts from you. At every step of the way you and your team
were extremely professional and helpful. The vessels were both in top
shape, clean and fresh, and everything worked. The two skippers you
provided were great additions to the experience and instantly became part of
our family. You can count on us being long time clients and friends.
Definitely see you next year!
Best regards,
Anthony Sandberg,
President OCSC Sailing, California - July, 2009 Belle Serena and Skookum Chuck (Beneteau 50 & Oceanis 400)
Photos courtesy of Larry Ledgerwood
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Shari,
Here is the first of several photos I will send you. This was taken while
waiting in the small cove North of Patrick point in Queens Reach while
waiting for slack water at Malibu Rapids.
Thanks for a great holiday.We will need to contact you about a booking for
next year.
Ray, Vancouver July 2009 (Beneteau 50 Yacht Rentals)
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Hi Shari,
THANK YOU FOR CONTRIBUTING TO A GREAT SAILING EXPERIENCE !
We all have been talking about our wonderful sailing this summer and wanted
to thank you and Nanaimo Yacht Charters for providing such a great boat and
in particular the efforts you folks went to to respond to our needs and in
especially your flexibility with the return date which allowed us to take in
the last day of our flotilla.
This is the second time we have chartered from Nanaimo Yacht Charters. We
were so satisfied with the boat and service last year that we did not even
bother to contact anyone else. We weren't disappointed!
I expect we will be chartering on the coast in the future and I can assure
you that Nanaimo Yacht Charters will be the first place we will call.
Thanks again.
We wish you a successful season
Martin
on behalf of Kaye, Lawrence and Joyce
Alberta - June, 2009 , Baraka
(Beneteau 40 Boat Rentals)
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Shari,
Just a quick note (as I know you are super busy), to again thank you for the
charter of Tectonic. As I mentioned in our debrief, Erin and I had a
fantastic time cruising the southern Gulf Islands and are already dreaming
about Desolation Sound for next summer (I ordered the Dreamspeaker guide on
Amazon a few days ago...) We appreciate the professional approach you bring
to the business and were highly impressed with the attention to detail that
was obvious in your upkeep of Tectonic.
I have attached a few photographs from our journey.
Take care and good luck with the rest of your season,
Andrew and Erin Cole - July 2009 (Catalina 32 Boat Rentals )
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Dear Shari,
The boat was great - as I noted on the comments, very well equipped with
good quality stuff (which certainly makes a difference when it comes to food
prep and eating!)
Tony was a lovely man and we certainly enjoyed his company. I've already
sent him a card with some pics he might enjoy.
Thank you again to your whole crew .. your friendly (and understanding) help
was very appreciated.
Cathy
(on behalf of JoAnn, Jim, and Murray .. of course!)
Yacht Rental Delphina June 2009 (35 Hunter Boat Charters)
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"We loved Baraka and were very impressed with Nanaimo Yacht Charters and
staff"
Ken McKeen and crew July 2009 (Beneteau 40 Yacht Rentals)
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Hello, Lorraine and Shari,
We've been reviewing some photos of the summer, and thought we'd drop you a
quick note.
Our time in the southern Gulf islands aboard Tectonic was definitely the
high point of the summer - she was a lovely vessel and we found her to be in
top-notch condition, with all the little amenities that make such a
difference already sorted out. We appreciate the high level of
professionalism you bring to the business as well, from the initial
arrangements to the preparation of the boat and review of the region we
would be sailing in - your people did a good job of both alerting us to
local navigational concerns, and sharing their enthusiasm for the many
wonderful places we would be visiting.
We're happy to recommend you to anyone who might be considering chartering
in your area, and look forward to the next time we can do so ourselves!
Best wishes,
Paul Newhouse and Helen Johnson (Catalina 32 bareboat rentals)
 
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"Nanaimo Yacht Charters were excellent to deal with. The packages for the
kids, the assistance of your staff during crew changes, and the assistance
with planning an itinerary was above and beyond what I've seen from any
other charter company on the west coast. We'll see you again soon."
John Pedersen (Beneteau Oceanis 423 Yacht Charter)
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" Overall I was very pleased with the boat. It is well maintained and sails
great. I am also pleased with my experience with your company. Two thumbs
up!"
Eric Dufresne (Beneteau Oceanis 400 boat rental )
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Hi Shari,
Thank you so much for recommending we go up to Princess Louisa Inlet on our recent yacht charter. This was our fourth charter (third with you and Ian) and we have to say that PLI is the most awesome place we have ever seen in all our cruising. Words truly cannot describe the incredible beauty and serenity of the place. I later read that PLI and Chatter Box falls are considered a 'holy grail' of the cruising community, a label we think is most appropriate.
Kudos, too, to Ian for his most excellent support and your staff which were there for us from start to finish making us feel very welcome and special.
I'm attaching a few photos from our trip which we will remember fondly for many years to come.
Kind Regards,
Randy & Gloria Galisky ( 3288 Bayliner Charter )
Los Alamitos, California
  
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To the dreamers out there
This summer, my wife and three kids (15, 12 and 10) and I decided to try out sailing. My wife and I have been toying with the idea of sailing when we retire for a while now but had never actually done it before. With a couple weeks holidays available in the summer and no plans I started e-mailing around to the charter companies, originally planning on just a couple days out with a captain. After numerous replies we settled on Nanaimo Yacht Charters. Shari was very pleasant to work with and before you knew it, my wife and I were talking home courses (capable crew and day skipper). Anytime we had any questions, Shari was only an e-mail away from answering them.
Finally the day arrived and my kids took their first ferry ride (we live in Alberta) as our adventure began. The hospitality we were shown by all the staff there was amazing and we felt very comfortable right off the get go. We got on the boat for the night and for the first time realized what retirement could be like, and we loved it.
The next morning our instructor Paul showed up. He is a 30yr old from Tasmania with a laid back attitude and a playful spirit. We jumped right into learning as he guided us through our paces, never getting excited even if we did once or twice. Best of all he was absolutely great with our kids. He would get them involved in the sailing as much as they desired and kept them occupied with other games and things when they didn’t. It wasn’t long before he was part of the family.
We sailed down the coast to Saltspring Island and back over the course of a week at a nice leisurely pace. We stayed in quaint little bays and fancy marinas, all while sitting under a full moon at night and beautiful weather during the day. The kids fished, swam, explored shore lines, and had a blast, as did the rest of us. We can’t wait till next year to do it all again.
Thank-you Shari, Ian, Paul and Trevor and the rest of your excellent staff for our dream trip.
Gary, Jennifer, Emily, Sarah and Brian (Beneteau Oceanis 400)
Shari, here's probably my favorite picture from the trip. It's at pirates
cove at sunset, just after supper. Sarah is fishing on the deck.
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"Dear Shari & Ian
This is a note to thank you for your excellent and friendly service. The
boat we chartered was just right and your staff was helpful and completely
professional.
We have been kicking around the coast commercially for more
than 40 years and it was great to just kick back with no particular place to
go or problems to fix. It was also nice to know that had there been a
problem your crew would be available on short notice to deal with it. We had
a great time, the weather was perfect and there's no more convenient base
for cruising the islands than Nanaimo.
Thank You. Sharon & Peter Jonker" (Hunter 355 Charter)
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" Hi Shari,
Peter and I wanted to be sure that you know how much we appreciated the
great service we received for our cruising holiday.
The attention to detail
was obvious in all aspects of your business, and everyone we encountered
really seemed to have our best interests at heart.
Trevor’s knowledge and
expertise was very obvious and valuable in setting us up on the boat. And
you and your office staff were most accommodating We are happily letting our friends know what a great holiday we had, and
fantasizing about taking out a bigger boat with a couple of friends next
year, if the stars align properly.
Thank you again. Our congratulations to Nanaimo Yacht Charters for providing
a friendly and quality charter service.
Every success, Laurene & Peter Coleman
" ( 321 Beneteau Charter )
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