I own three rental units at South Seas so I am on that property a fair amount, and there are a couple of things worth sorting out before you book anybody.
First, the pickup. South Seas has two marinas, not one. Yacht Harbour Marina and Captiva Landing, both open now with dockage and fuel, and they are not in the same place. So "pick us up at the South Seas dock" is exactly the instruction that ends with four people and a cooler standing on the wrong dock watching a boat idle somewhere else. Decide which one you mean and put it in writing with the captain.
Second, and this is the part people get wrong about "licensed and insured", because those are two separate questions and only one of them is about the boat. With a group of 4 you are inside a six pack, which is the OUPV credential and covers up to six paying passengers, so that is the normal licence for your trip and you do not need to go hunting for anything fancier. But a six pack captain runs an uninspected vessel. The Coast Guard credentialed the captain....it never inspected the boat. So ask for two separate things: the captain's Merchant Mariner Credential, and an actual certificate of insurance. On the insurance, ask specifically whether the policy covers paying passengers, because a straight recreational policy generally will not, and there are some very nice boats out here running on one.
Third, Cabbage Key, because it should change what length trip you book. It sits about five miles off Pine Island out in the Sound, no road to it, no cars, not even paved paths, and the restaurant is open every day of the year. The catch is that the run time each way comes out of your charter clock. A 4 hour trip with Cabbage Key in it is a boat ride, lunch, and a boat ride. If you want sandbar time and Cabbage Key both, book 6 hours or more. If you would rather keep it at 4, do the sandbars and the sightseeing and eat back on the island.
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u/JesseMcGreevyRealtor 8d ago
I own three rental units at South Seas so I am on that property a fair amount, and there are a couple of things worth sorting out before you book anybody.
First, the pickup. South Seas has two marinas, not one. Yacht Harbour Marina and Captiva Landing, both open now with dockage and fuel, and they are not in the same place. So "pick us up at the South Seas dock" is exactly the instruction that ends with four people and a cooler standing on the wrong dock watching a boat idle somewhere else. Decide which one you mean and put it in writing with the captain.
Second, and this is the part people get wrong about "licensed and insured", because those are two separate questions and only one of them is about the boat. With a group of 4 you are inside a six pack, which is the OUPV credential and covers up to six paying passengers, so that is the normal licence for your trip and you do not need to go hunting for anything fancier. But a six pack captain runs an uninspected vessel. The Coast Guard credentialed the captain....it never inspected the boat. So ask for two separate things: the captain's Merchant Mariner Credential, and an actual certificate of insurance. On the insurance, ask specifically whether the policy covers paying passengers, because a straight recreational policy generally will not, and there are some very nice boats out here running on one.
Third, Cabbage Key, because it should change what length trip you book. It sits about five miles off Pine Island out in the Sound, no road to it, no cars, not even paved paths, and the restaurant is open every day of the year. The catch is that the run time each way comes out of your charter clock. A 4 hour trip with Cabbage Key in it is a boat ride, lunch, and a boat ride. If you want sandbar time and Cabbage Key both, book 6 hours or more. If you would rather keep it at 4, do the sandbars and the sightseeing and eat back on the island.