All of us will remember our early days at sea... discovering new places... heading out on that first ocean passage as Captain - with full responsibility for the vessel, her systems and her crew. Making a 'landfall' in any new port, one would always have the same two things to consider... a job list, and a time schedule. Dependent upon the time available and one's own personal knowledge / contacts within the port, one would then ask around any other yachts in the anchorage / marina, for their insight as to who to use, for which service... prior to calling them up, allocating the relevant time parameters and getting them started on the work. Beyond that, it would be a question of making a few follow up calls to monitor progress, and keeping one's fingers crossed that they would perform the all too easily spoken phrase and actually... 'do what they said they would '! - Yet how many times have we all contracted a 'new' service, only to find out - as the time slowly whittled away - that they weren't actually going to be able to make it... for whatever imaginative reason they had chosen to come up with!

The one factor that changes this scenario however, as time evolves, is our own 'business card file'/ databank, of reliable service contacts... that we have built up through different ports visited, worldwide. For each business card kept, we've probably thrown out two or three other 'contenders' in the same business... making the ones we do keep, extremely useful personal service contacts that we know we can count on the next time we come by. These quality contacts then, represent a proportion of our ability to perform our own role as Captain of the yacht; for we all know where the 'buck stops' as Captain on a charter or owner's cruise, when the outboard motor on the tender fails... when the generator goes down... or when the guests specially requested provisions don't arrive in time for the start of the cruise.

This need for a 'database' of reliable service contacts, is something that stays with us throughout our career afloat; for as boats / owners change, there are 'pastures new' for all of us regardless of our depth of experience... new destinations... new cruising grounds... and new ports... each bringing their own, new challenges. This then, was the very 'raison d'etre' for the books... to collate an 'Inside Guide' of Captains own 'recommended services', for each Captain to be able to access, in order to share the benefits of each other's collective experience. Every year, we consequently interview as many Captains / crew as possible, throughout the Caribbean, USA and Mediterranean regions, in order to determine just who these 'recommended services' are, and after being convinced as to their suitability by receiving enough positive feedback for them... we then research / visit every service, personally, to confirm the full extent of the services they offer and gain an insight into their background and history, in order to 'paint a picture' for any Captains / crewmembers considering using them.

As a 'Captains Recommended Service' they then receive a free 'editorial feature' in the relevant Guide and are offered the opportunity to advertise / promote their own service, should they so desire. It is important for Captains to understand the concept behind the advertising; for without it, there simply would be no Guide, as the relatively small number of professionally crewed yachts cruising the regions covered (and buying the Guides), could never support the cost of researching and publishing such a book. The advertising itself however, is ONLY made available to services recommended by the Captains / crew we interview (and the many Captains who email us directly); for we are frequently approached by companies who have heard about the Guide and want to advertise their service - but have not been recommended - so are consequently politely turned down. These books, then, simply represent an 'inside' trade Guide... put together by 'time served' professional yacht crew... for the use of professional yacht crew. They are your books, made up with your feedback and your 'recommended services'. We, as publishers of the Guides, are only too aware that our efforts can never result in the ultimate 'definitive version' of its kind, for there are always going to be a number of good quality services still unknown to us.

This then, is the very reason why the Guides are updated every season, and over the past eight years have now proved themselves to be incredibly useful volumes of reference for many yacht crews cruising in the Caribbean, Mediterranean and USA coastal waters. We gratefully invite all yachtsmen, Captains and professional crewmembers alike to send us your services feedback (see the ‘Send a Recommendation’ link on the header of this page) and we actively receive plenty of positive recommendations (and the occasional negative feedback also) as a result from Captains and crew, right through each season……And the best news here, is that these comments really do get listened to and 'actioned' accordingly by us at Superyacht Publications... for in just the same way that we have consequently followed up / researched all your new recommendations in 2010 - we have also dropped services (including advertisers) from last year, after receiving consistently poor feedback for them. So, in just the same way this coming season, do please continue to update us with your 'services feedback' on an ongoing basis... for if there are businesses already written up that give you a particularly good service, or equally, one that badly lets you down, please do let us know. This will enable us to keep the Guides accurately updated on an annual basis, for ultimately they are your Guides... and they are only as good as the information you can give us.

In order to maximize all your opportunities for the season ahead, I positively recommend taking a look at our custom 'Superyacht Events Calendars' for the season and also reading through the single introductory pages to each locational region, which will then help provide an overview as to the 'bigger picture' of all that is available throughout our regions of coverage. This will greatly assist in planning an owner's cruise / charter; by knowing the time, place and availability of all the most attractive guest facilities and events; and help the smooth running of the yacht, by assisting the Captain to plan ongoing maintenance (and the availability of any emergency works) in the different regional locations where they may happen to be. But for all there is, there will still be the odd 'gap' - so if you do come across something interesting, do please send us your recommendations through the link at the top of the page…. or simply email us directly and send in your suggestions... for this input really helps to enhance our publications – for your best use - year upon year.

Andrew C. Blatter
Publisher
Superyacht Publications
Email: andrew@superyachtpublications.com