YACHT DETAILS
Accommodation
3 QUEEN CABINS.Amenities
Price Details
BVI:
Yacht is able to charter in the BVI
ST. Thomas pick-up and drop-off.
CRUISING FEES:
BVI Cruising fees are excluded.
CHRISTMAS $24,000 (Up to 6 guests and must end by 12/26)
NEW YEARS RATES: $26,500 (Up to 6 guests)
HALF-BOARD RATES (7/4/3 BREAKFAST/LUNCH/DINNER): $150 discount per person
***4 lunches and 3 dinners ashore at client expense***
LOCAL FARE OPTION (7/5/6): $75 discount per person
***2 lunches and 1 dinner ashore at clients expense***
CHILD DISCOUNT: No child discount offered
LESS THAN 6 NIGHT CHARTERS DIVIDE BY 6 RULE: (Rate / 6 X #Nights)
***(Rate divided by 6N X number of nights*** For 6 nights divide rate by 7 X 6N.
Specifications
Layout
More Specifications
Water Sports
Crew
Captain: Chris Stubbs
Nationality: US
MEET YOUR CREW - Captain Chris Stubbs and Chef/First Mate Kaya Carrion
Chris has been sailing since he was a small child growing up surrounded by the barrier islands and marshes of the Carolinas. His first jobs were teaching sailing and then crewing larger monohulls which led to several months aboard a 120’ schooner in New Zealand at 18. At the College of Charleston, he doubled in Anthropology and Geology with a minor in Archeology while first working as a Divemaster and Aquarium Diver, and then later joining the scientific and marine crews aboard oceanographic research vessels. Chris continued working aboard research and survey vessels through grad school while completing his Masters in Geology at UCSB. In this time, he made the first maps of tens of thousands of seafloor methane seeps in offshore California, the Gulf of Mexico, and Siberia. He also began taking friends on epic bareboat sailing adventures in the Channel Islands while advancing his scuba background and exploring his new obsession of kitesurfing.
Following grad school, he continued working in the marine geophysical survey and oceanography industries beginning in Antarctica. In 2013, he established his own freelance consulting business, and to date has worked in all the world's oceans and continents while maintaining an excellent offshore safety record. A passionate maritime tour guide, Chris holds a 100-ton USCG Master Captain license and loves introducing his charter guests to the wonders of the Virgin Islands. A life-long extrovert, Chris loves meeting people from all walks of life and sharing stories. He spends his free time traveling, kitesurfing/foiling, trying to break out of the beginner ranks of free diving and wing foiling, and playing in the ocean with his fiance Kaya.
Kaya grew up in her family home in Culebra Island, Puerto Rico, Kaya spent her life fishing, crewing, and living aboard powerboats traversing the British, US, and Spanish Virgin Islands. Her childhood experiences on the water inspired her to pursue a career in marine science and she has since completed first her Bachelor’s and then her Master’s degree in Marine Biology. When Kaya began her undergraduate studies she was introduced into the world of scientific diving at Florida International University where she worked in a seagrass ecology lab and gained experience with research diving throughout the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, including Dry Tortugas National Park. Kaya graduated summa cum laude, with undergraduate research experience, and membership into Phi Beta Kappa honor society. Her marine biology career continued soon after in the Virgin Islands, where she worked as a research assistant and expanded her diving experience, becoming a certified technical diver with TDI advanced nitrox and decompression diving.
More recently, Kaya’s marine science career focuses on tropical coral and fish ecology. Her diving experiences have been incredibly unique with hundreds of scientific dives completing surveys for coral health, coral reef fishes, lobster, and more. Kaya is also a highly experienced boat operator and anticipates finishing her USCG 100-ton Master license in 2022. Apart from her ocean experiences, Kaya is fully bilingual and grew up in a family of passionate foodies including several professional chefs. Her food passion started with Puerto Rican cuisine, but grew after traveling the world where she learned and became passionate about authentic foods from Vietnam, Thailand, Mexico, Italy, Japan, Greece, and many other countries, cooking and learning from locals at homestays throughout her multiple backpacking journeys. Kaya can provide signature dishes from many regions of the world and cater to a broad array of pallets.
Fun fact: In her free time, Kaya loves underwater photography! Check out some of her favorites on instagram! @kayacarey
Kaya and Chris met on a marine science job in Culebra, PR in 2015 and were soon spending every free moment together. After the job, Chris followed Kaya first around Puerto Rico, and then began visiting her between jobs. Conspiring with her sisters, Chris surprised Kaya during a visit to see family in Ireland when she finally agreed to be his girlfriend. They have since crossed the US via campervan, traveled through an additional dozen countries, and lived in CA, FL, PR, and the USVI together. They have made a point of taking regional cooking classes as they have traveled the world, and take pride in being adventurous eaters. They are both passionate marine scientists with teaching experience at the university level, and love introducing their guests to the wonders of the ocean world. Their combined skills and experience offer travelers a broad array of options for indulging in all aspects of life at sea. Avid photographers, they can offer guests add-on packages of drone and underwater photos from their trips. While both at home in the USVI, they specialize in the BVI and Spanish VI where Kaya grew up cruising and they both know intimately. Chris and Kaya got engaged on a trip to Australia in 2022.
Reviews
Before we boarded, a friend said, “you are going to learn so much this week.” Indeed I did. I am so much more knowledgeable about all things ocean VI thanks to these incredible humans.
You keep going Kaya and Chris, the experience you are creating is something of magic.
Kaya’s knowledge of the seas and its inhabitants is amazing and Chris’ captaining, dive leadership, and knowledge of everything is incredible, but be warned that you may have to ask Chris to repeat an explanation because the depth of his geological knowledge was over our heads once or twice.
The trip could not have been better. Thank you for showing us the best of the BVIs and USVIs above water and below.
Chris and Kaya were the best hosts! So many things about this trip were amazing because of them. Their knowledge of the area, and of the sea and sea life, gave us insight we would not have had elsewhere. They were so kind, so patient with all our questions, and so flexible in adapting to our likes, dislikes, and limitations. AND - I CAN NOT SAY ENOUGH GOOD THINGS ABOUT THE FOOD!!!!! I have been blessed to eat in many excellent restaurants, and the food this week was better than all those experiences. The flavors, the variety, the presentation, all absolutely top notch!
The Virgin Islands are absolutely beautiful all day, every day, but what made this an unrivaled experience was the choice of Physalia, Chris, and Kaya! Thank you for everything, and we hope to visit again in the future! 🙂
“Muchísimas gracias por tener la suerte de estar en Physalia. La mejor comida hecha por Kaya y el mejor capitán, Chris, que nos dio mucha seguridad en la navegación. ¡La comida mejor, imposible! ¡Lo mejor de lo mejor! Cariñosos, buenas personas, gracias por todo y por tan linda experiencia!”
English translation:
“Thank you so much. We are so lucky to have been on Physalia. The best food prepared by Kaya and the best captain, Chris, who gave us so much security while sailing. ¡Better food would have been impossible! ¡The best of the best! Loving, good people, thank you for such a beautiful experience!”
The Rhone shipwreck was awesome, and learning about the history of the ship made it even more awesome. Each and every spot that Chris and Kaya chose for our journey was unbelievable, and the beaches and clear water left me speechless. Everything that we did this week was truly amazing, and they are things that I will cherish forever.
Something else that I will never forget is the sensational food that Kaya cooked. Every single thing that I ate on this charter was phenomenal. Kaya cooked, prepped, and baked everything to perfection. I truly can’t decide what my favorite dish or dessert was, because they were all so so so good. Kaya’s cooking was by far my favorite food of anything I ate on this trip. The techniques and cuisine that Kaya cooked was mastered to perfection. It shows you how much she cares about her guests and loves to cook when she wakes up at 4:30 AM to make a fresh loaf of sourdough bread.
In conclusion, all of Kaya’s food was out of this world delicious, and I can not speak more highly about her abilities as a chef.
This fishing was also awesome, and we caught and released many different kinds of snappers and jacks. We even caught and released a stingray and an awesome bar jack. This was one of the highlights of my trip. And again, Chris and Kaya’s knowledge made fishing here even more fun. All in all, this trip was such a fun time. Being able to spend time with my family in maybe the best place in the world is something I’ll never forget.
I’m so glad that Chris and Kaya were our captains, and I’m so glad that I got to spend time with them and my family in this unbelievably beautiful place. Thank you Chris and Kaya!!! I really hope to do this again, and maybe next time become SCUBA certified by Chris. I will never forget this trip, thanks again Chris and Kaya!
We chartered this boat for our daughter’s high school senior family trip, and it was the best decision ever. Chris and Kaya were absolutely amazing. Their knowledge and experience far exceeded our expectations, and only made the voyage even more perfect than we had hoped. It’s hard to pick the best part of the trip, because we saw so many amazing places.
We opted for half-board, but if we ever have the chance to do it again, we will go full-board. Kaya’s meals were AMAZING. Better than any restaurant we ate in, and easily on par with a high end chef. To say this was one of our most memorable, (if not THE most memorable) vacatio we have ever had, would be completely accurate, and we would tell anyone that has the opportunity to get on their charter, definitely take it!
Now for the food… just wow!!! Every meal was thought out so carefully and the flavors just out of this world! We really enjoyed watching her bake from scratch everything from corn tortillas to sourdough to bread rolls and so much more! The homemade sourdough and bread rolls were literally in the top 5 things I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating in my life and I lived in France so that is saying a lot!! My son said the lemon ricotta pancakes were the best thing he’s ever tasted!
Chris and Kaya worked so hard to make this an amazing trip for us and we are so grateful! We’ll be back for sure! We will really miss Waldo and are also so impressed with how well behaved and fun he was!!
Oh, and our 14 year old daughter is really interested in science and nature and it has been so fun that Kaya and Chris are both scientists! It’s been like having an encyclopedia onboard! We really enjoyed learning so much about all the birds, sea life, and topography of the area!
What an absolutely amazing trip we’ve had!!
My family took a trip on this yacht and it was amazing! This is the most beautiful and exciting trip I’ve ever been on.
I love boats so much and it’s so refreshing to be on this boat. We went scuba diving and Chris was my instructor. We saw 2 sea turtles and lots of fish! I was so excited to see the turtles because that was one of my goals for the trip.
Kaya is an amazing cook and I’m not usually adventurous as far as food goes - her food is so good!
We’ve also gone to the beach and that was really fun!
I would definitely take this trip again!
Chris is a wonderful dive teacher and very patient to assist my husband in re-learning to dive. The foil was a bonus as well. We never once worried for anything and all our expectations were exceeded! Well done and many thanks!
Overall, this was a top level experience. To say nothing of the fantastic gourmet food would be a serious oversight! Kaya is a gourmet chef and it really blew us both away! The way she paired up different ingredients, fresh herbs, so much flavor and variation! Every single day, every meal! Thank you guys so much!
For us it was the first time that we went on a charter vacation and we truly loved the experience.
The crew, Captain Chris and first mate Kaya, were incredibly lovable and empathetic, and especially the company of their pet, Waldo, was truly a joy. They were super attentive to all our necessities, Kaya prepared meals that were truly fabulous, and both being marine scientists with profound knowledge of the area, they gave us lessons on marine biology of the Virgin Islands and we were able to learn so much, especially our little Theo of four and a half years of age.
They were especially lovable and patient with Theo, respecting his schedule and tantrums, in addition to facilitating everything necessary for us to enjoy a vacation in the ocean.
We only have words of gratitude for this experience and we want to recommend the experience to all of our friends!
Thank you so much!
Para nosotros era la primera vez que realizábamos un viaje en un Charter y realmente nos encantó la experiencia. La pareja conformada por el Capitán Chris y su ayudante Kaya fueron super amables y empáticos, y especialmente la compañía de su mascota Waldo fue todo un encanto. Fueron súper atentos ante cada necesidad, Kaya preparó comidas realmente fabulosas, y al ser científicos ambos que conocen profundamente la zona, nos dieron clases de biología marina de las Islas Vírgenes que pudimos aprender muchísimo, sobre todo nuestro pequeño Theo de 4 años y medio. Especialmente fueron super amables y pacientes con Theo respetando sus horarios y berrinches, además de facilitar todo lo necesario para disfrutar unas vacaciones en el mar. Solamente tenemos palabras de agradecimiento por la experiencia y queremos recomendar la experiencia a todos nuestro amigos!
Muchas gracias!
We couldn't have had a better experience.
We snorkeled, paddle boarded, took the dinghy everywhere.
We couldn't have asked for more. We will definitely be using them again and recommending them to friends and family
Captain Chris and Kaya were the perfect crew for us. Chris exceeded our expectations! He found the perfect spots for our families to snorkel and enjoy the islands.
I would sail with them any day!
Kaya's meal preparations were exquisite and Chris' knowledge of the islands was vast. The sushi night was a fun event, thought of by Kaya!
We are eternally grateful for the professionalism that was extended to our family. Thank you, Chris and Kaya! Hope to see you again!
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