San Juan Sailing & Yachting

Just got back from another stellar charter with San Juan Sailing/​Yachting on «Eye Sea Forever» — a lovely and spacious 2007 American Tug 41.
Perfect weather (8÷1−8÷7), lots of orcas sighted (follow the whale watching boats), and a vessel exceedingly comfortable for 4 adults, 1 teenager, and 1 child. As expected, the boat was perfectly maintained, clean, and the customer service was outstanding.
Looking forward to our next charter on another American Tug! In my opinion, the perfect power boat for Northwest cruising.

We took their week long cruise and learn class. From the support before the trip, to the awesome instruction, to the follow up afterwards this place is great!
In addition to completing the first three ASA sailing classes we got to enjoy parts of the San Juans not assessable by ferry. They also treated us to a day pass for a resort on Orcas Island that had a pool, gym, hot tub, steam room, and a good restaurant.
The only negative was the food. Canned meat sauce for spaghetti full of chemicals was the biggest. Overall a lot of the food wasn’t healthy, but at least there were a few fresh vegetables. We only started out with a dozen eggs and the supply run we had in the middle of our trip wasn’t used to replenish what we had suggested, it didn’t seem to replenish much at all.
But this trip wasn’t about the food it was about learning to sail a big boat safely and that’s what it accomplished. Our fellow classmates were great, and our shore excursions to hike and explore the island were amazing.

I chartered «Mariah» there a few weeks ago. Its a 42′ Nordic Tug. The boat was in excellent condition and had clearly been professionally maintained. Our cruise went off without a hitch– In fact, the cruise was spectacular. If only I had chartered it for another week or two!
San Juan Sailing did a decent job of getting us on our boat in time, answering all of our questions, and generally steering us in the right direction.
We would have benefited from clearer communication from them regarding checkout and check in procedures at the beginning and end of the charter, but everything worked out.
Although they seemed to be priced higher than some of the competition in Annacortes, the price difference was not enough to cost them a star and the old adage «you get what you pay for» probably rings true in this case.
For anyone considering a charter in the San Juans, San Juan Sailing is clearly a top notch operation and should be considered a source for a quality charter boat.

San Juan Charters delivered my wife and me a 5-​Star ***** Vacation: Friendly service, beautiful location, and a perfectly-​maintained boat. And, of course, the sailing experience! (Some say the San Juans offer the best destinations in the world…)
As a relative sailing novice, I was impressed with how Rick enriched our trip with his guidance on the alternatives for a five-​day cruise. And Susan’s coordination of logistics to ensure our on-​board comfort was perfect!
PS It’s not just me: The more experienced sailors we spoke to commented on the pristine condition of every vessel in the fleet!

I captained the 46Ft Jeanneau ‘Misty Blue Yonder’ with 4 other brave souls (who didn’t know me) on the 2009 ASA Flotilla for a week in June. SJS had a great welcoming bar-​b-​Que upon arrival (I drove in from Grand Junction, CO) and had 9 boats in our flotilla checked out and tucked in by early evening. I could see the potential for a complete fur-​ball with 9 boats and 9 crews from all over the country but SJS got’er done with a responsive, courteous and knowledgeable staff.
The real pleasant surprise was the condition of every boat in our fleet as reported by the flotilla participants. Misty Blue Yonder was in great shape, sailed very well, and she endured a few of our neophyte sailor moments with ease; spinnaker sock release wrapped around the radar head (hand tied bosun’s chair to the rescue) and life vest straps tangled in the steering gear (my bad).
When we returned SJS had more than a dozen young adults (summer hires?) in recognizable SJS tee’s buzzing around the entire dock assisting in every way. There was help with every part of returning to port after a week on the water — very well done and much appreciated!
It really was a 5-​star experience, the staff, the service, the marina, the location, the sailing grounds, and especially the boat, Misty Blue Yonder made for an awesome experience. It was so good I returned with my friends in August to do it all over again!