Plan for Caribbean Yachting Season

Caribbean Yachting Season Has Begun

Caribbean Yachting Season starts this month, be prepared for any situation. When Yachting from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean, count on AeroMD.  To follow are recommendations of Caribbean Yachting Season events to attend; what to do in case of a medical emergency during your travels; the best islands to add to your custom itinerary; logistic recommendations; and weather resources.

Make Event Reservations

Mark your calendar for these Caribbean Yachting Season events that you may want to attend:

• October 25, 2016 – Art Walk – Bermuda
  • This annual festival celebrates unique Bermudian visual and performing artists.  Look forward to seeing pottery; cedar carving; painting; weaving; jewelry; installation; film; singing; dancing; instrumental performance; and spoken poetry.  This self-guided tour takes place in the old town of St. Georges.  The mission of the annual Art Walk is to celebrate the “uniqueness and vibration” of local culture, art and community.  Art Walk Bermuda is family- and pet-friendly.
• November 3-7, 2016 – Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show
• November 4-26, 2016 –Pirate’s Week Festival – Cayman Islands
  • An 11-day festival of music, dancing, food and drink capped off with a glittering parade.  The Pirate’s Week Festival has been held in the Caymans for nearly 40 years.  The celebration kicks off with a steel pan competition, crowning of a festival queen and a firework show.  On the first Saturday, there’s a mock pirate invasion, during which the Cayman Island’s Governor is “captured.”
• December 4-10, 2016 – Antigua Yacht Charter Show
• December 26, 2016 – Junkanoo Carnival Parade – Bahamas
  • This event is on the “unmissable” list of annual Caribbean events and festivals according to The Culture Trip.  The day-after-Christmas (Boxing Day) parade is known as first rush and takes place between 2 and 10 a.m. filled with music and dance.  New Year’s Day is also heavily celebrated in Downtown Nassau.
• January 13-15, 2017 – Water Island Music Festival – Water Island (St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands)
  • World-class jazz and classical musicians come together to play this free concert in the Caribbean when they’re not playing Carnegie Hall.  This will be the 12th year for the festival led by resident Alexander Randall and Pianist Julian Gargiulo.  Also scheduled to perform the 2017 show is renowned Violinist Hae Ji Kim, a graduate of Juilliard.
• February 27-28, 2017 – Carnival – Trinidad
  • Touted as one of the best carnival’s in the Caribbean.  Highlights include the J’Ouvert kick-off parade on Rose Monday at 4 a.m., in which participants paint themselves with chocolate, cream, oil and paint.  Later that day is Pretty Mas, which means beautiful masquerade.  These events and others build-up to the main parade on Tuesday.
• March 17, 2017 – St. Patrick’s Day – Montserrat
  • A national holiday on this West Indian island is actually a week-long celebration including a music festival.  The island’s tie to Ireland dates back to the seventeenth century, when Irish Catholics used Montserrat as a safe haven when they were shunned elsewhere in the Caribbean.
• April 7-10, 2017 – Food & Wine Experience Week – St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
  • Named one of the top international food and wine festivals by Forbes Travel.  A wide variety of events and locations showcase each corner of this gorgeous island and all its culinary talent.  The founding / capstone event is A Taste of St. Croix, held on Thursday of the week at Divi Carina Bay Hotel and Casino.  Celebrity chefs (primarily from the U.S. mainland) sit on a panel of judges for this competitive showcase of cuisine and beverages.  Also a consistent sell out is Wine in the Warehouse, held at Bellows International mid-island.

Prepare for Emergencies during Caribbean Yachting Season

Should you become ill or injured at sea or in-port, you need a plan in place for reliable medical services.  Be sure everyone on-board is equipped with basic first aid knowledge and skills (see the WebMD guide to first aid here).

You can travel confidently when you’re far from home with AeroMD.  Headquartered in the Caribbean with dedicated medevac planes on St. Thomas and St. Croix (U.S. Virgin Islands), they can reach you anywhere in the region in a matter of hours.  With carefully selected medical teams located on-island who regularly complete training exercises together, AeroMD offers superior service to those who in need of medical attention and their families.  They specialize in bedside-to-bedside transitions, to ensure every detail is handled and focus can be on the patient.  Even if you don’t need a medical airlift, AeroMD can provide exceptional on-site medical services if you are traveling to a remote or medically under-served location.

Plan Your Island Itinerary During Caribbean Yachting Season

Boat International magazine boiled it down to these top criteria for mega-yacht owners:

• Best Caribbean Island for Partying: Cuba
  • The largest island in the Caribbean can also rightfully claim invention of the mojito.
• Best Caribbean Island for Exclusivity: St. Barts
  • The perfect combination of luxury and style in eight perfect square miles.
• Best Caribbean Island All-Around: Barbados
  • Offering a unique blend of cultures between Europe, Africa and East India reflected in their delicious cuisine.
• Best Caribbean Island for History: Dominican Republic
  • Known as a hidden jewel of the Caribbean with influences from America, France, Haiti and Spain.
• Best Caribbean Island for Romance: St. Lucia
  • Between the Piton Mountains (volcanic plugs), beautiful sand beaches and crystal-clear water, this island is a top honeymoon destination.
• Best Caribbean Island for Families: Cayman Islands
  • Stingray City isn’t the only option for keeping little ones entertained.  The Caymans have a wealth of family-friendly activities and offer an exceptionally safe environment.
• Best Caribbean Island for Dining: St. Martin
  • Dubbed the culinary capital of the Caribbean, the Dutch and French sides of St. Martin offer a stunning array of cuisine.
• Best Caribbean Island for Beaches: Aruba
  • Get spoiled to seemingly unending, white sand beaches and still water to boot.  Aruba’s unique position in relation to the equator also eliminates much rain and humidity.
• Best Caribbean Island for Diving: Bonaire
  • Leading the sustainable tourism movement, Bonaire strictly protects its beautiful surrounding reef.  Driving along the coast, look for the yellow stones marking dive sites.
• Best Caribbean Island for Music: Jamaica
  • With musical heritage made famous by Bob Marley, the music scene on Jamaica continues to thrive with Negril known for dance clubs and Montego Bay for a laid-back scene.

Iron Out Logistics

Here are the essential IGY arrival guides and dockage maps to finalize the details of your itinerary.  AeroMD is a preferred partner of IGY.

Island Global Yachting (IGY) Caribbean Yachting  Marina Locations:

• Columbia (Caribbean) – Marina Santa Marta
• Panama (Caribbean) – Red Frog Beach Marina
• St. Lucia (West Indies) – Rodney Bay Marina
• St. Maarten (Dutch Caribbean) – Simpson Bay Marina
• St. Maarten (Dutch Caribbean) – Yacht Club at Isle de Sol
• St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands) – American Yacht Harbor (Red Hook)
• St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands) – Yacht Haven Grande (Charlotte Amalie)
• Turks and Caicos – Blue Haven Marina

Watch the Weather

As the start of the Caribbean yachting season overlaps hurricane season for a few months, keep an eye on the weather.  A great resource for storm tracking used by many Caribbean residents is the Weather Underground.  Specific to marine conditions in the Caribbean, check the Marine Weather Center.

Through the composition, training, and expert capabilities of our medical flight teams coupled with the state-of-the-art advanced medical equipment on-board, AeroMD is able to provide in-air intensive critical care.  With dedicated on-island medically equipped aircraft, and our own highly experienced Flight Medical Teams, AeroMD provides high-acuity Critical Care services to patients needing Air Medical Transport to off-island medical facilities with rapid response times, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.  AeroMD maintains aircraft, flight crew, and medical teams on rotating stand-by duty 24-hours-a-day, every day of the year to ensure that life-saving care can reach the patient within hours, not days of an illness.  Click here to see our affordable membership plans: