You watched all the beautiful scenery during the 2010 Olympic coverage and now you want to see it all for yourself aboard your own charter yacht. Clearing Customs by boat is a user friendly experience and we here at AYC make it very trouble free. For all the details, please look at AYC's website at www.ayc.org (Reservations/Charter Details/U.S. & Canadian Customs).

Charterers new to the Pacific Northwest will appreciate that crossing the border is a truly unique experience. For starters, customs locations are charming outposts of civilization such as Roche Harbor on San Juan Island in the U.S. and Bedwell Harbor on South Pender in British Columbia. In addition, both of these points of entry make it easy for cruisers to clear customs and top off provisions, alcohol and fuel. Coming and going, AYC charterers relish the adventure of traveling to a foreign country that welcomes boaters with open arms.

AYC’s Yacht Management Program continues to attract the best and brightest sailboats and power vessels to the charter fleet. As a result, the fleet has grown significantly and by the summer season, clients will see an increase of 20 percent to bring the total to about 85 boats.

New sailboats in the 30’ to 50’ range bring the sail fleet to about 27. The power fleet will number about 55. "We would love to see more sailboats to bring us up to about 35," reports AYC’s Mike Lovell. "We are also looking for more entry level powerboats such as Bayliners and Meridians in the 30’ to 34’ range. This size family boat makes charter cruising available to a broad range of boaters."

As always, AYC is looking for charter boats that are new as well as sport a great layout and name recognition. According to Mike, boats with all three factors typically see bookings that exceed the fleet average of eight weeks a year.

New Brokers Join the AYC Team

It’s interesting how things work out. Just as Anacortes Yacht Brokers’ David Motherwell was deciding to move on, brokers Vann Chinchen and Fritz Peiffer have joined the AYC brokerage team. While we will miss David and wish him all the best, the new guys bring decades of combined experience as well as tremendous energy to the equation.

"Our brokers have a unique relationship with clients in that they do a lot of fleet development on top of sales," observes Mike Lovell of the 40-boat and growing brokerage fleet. "It’s a challenging and exciting opportunity for Vann and Fritz."

Contact our brokerage whether looking to buy a boat or sell yours and let Vann and Fritz make it happen!