Expert sailors and novices alike can enjoy the luxury lifestyle of holidaying on their own private yacht while island hopping among the loveliest islands in the Caribbean when they visit the 32 islands of St. Vincent & The Grenadines.

�Boats of all shapes and sizes can be chartered in St Vincent & The Grenadines,� says The Hon. Glen Beache, Minister of Tourism Youth & Sports. They will be provisioned ready for your arrival and experienced sailors will point out the features of every boat.

Seven generations of the Barnard family, which operates Barefoot Yachts, have sailed these waters and they have a fleet of 25 boats for rent. It�s a broad selection of boats that includes mono-hulls and catamarans

Many comfortably accommodate two couples but the larger Beneteau M505 has four double cabins and one twin, ideal for an extended family or group of friends. It charters for US$5,250 in high season, US$3,150 in low.

A captain will cost $110 per day (plus provisioning costs) and a chef/hostess $90. If you want to learn to sail, an instructional captain is available for $125 a day. Charter for two weeks or more in low season and Barefoot will throw in some free days.

The vessels can be fully pre-provisioned to deluxe standards for $35 per day, per person. The company also represents several much larger crewed yachts based in the Grenadines, such as the six-passenger Bonnie Lynn, a 72-ft schooner.

The Moorings, one of the world�s biggest and best-known yacht charter companies, recently established a new base on the island of Canouan, in the heart of the Grenadines chain. Moorings has a total of almost 800 boats in 26 destinations worldwide including Europe, Tahiti, and the Seychelles.

Canouan Island has direct air service by American Eagle from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and it is also the location of the new Raffles Canouan luxury resort with its Donald Trump casino and 18-hole championship golf course, the only one in the 32 islands that make up this fascinating, unspoiled country.

In Canouan, Moorings has catamarans and monohulls with from two to five cabins. The pride and joy of the fleet is the Beneteau 51.5, new to the Caribbean, and a family cruiser to satisfy the most demanding tastes. It has four double cabins, all with en suite facilities and shower.

Yachts ranging in size from 30 to 50-ft can be chartered from Sunsail in St. Vincent with rates that start at $250 a day. This company, which also has bases in Greece and Turkey, has nine monohulls and three catamarans for rent, with or without captain. You can choose a 35 ft Sun Odyssey or a 50-ft Beneteau.

Daily rates here range from $230 a day up to $1160.

JT Yachting also has 10 crewed yachts available for charter in the Grenadines, each with three or four ensuite cabins.

�If a week�s sailing is not your style, that�s no excuse for not getting out on the glorious waters of St. Vincent & The Grenadines, says the Hon. Glen Beache. �Sail, dive, snorkel or just lay back in the sun and soak up the castaway ambiance of this magic group of islands. There are plenty of opportunities for day trips or even shorter. Just explore what�s available and off you go.�

Upcoming events in St. Vincent & The Grenadines :

St.Vincent & The Grenadines has been awarded Cricket World Cup 2007 Matches to take place March 5 & 6, 2007 in St.Vincent at the Arnos Vale Sporting Grounds. Warm-up matches amongst the UK, Australia & Zimbabwe will take place on the above dates.

The 2006 Vincy Mas Carnival will take place this year on July 10 & 11 with the slogan of �Super Mas, Super Jam, Super Mix for Vincy Mas 2006�, said Mr. Denise Ambrose, Chairman of the Carnival Development Corporation (CDC).

GENERAL INFORMATION:

CHARTERS & DAY TRIPS

Barefoot Yacht Charters, St. Vincent. Tel: 001-784-456-9526; fax 784-456-9283" e-mail barebum@caribsurf.com

Sunsail, St. Vincent. Tel: 001-784-458-4308; e-mail: sunsail@caribsurf.com

The Moorings, Canouan. Tel: 001.800.535.7289

TMM Yacht Charters. Tel: 001.800.633.0155; e-mail: charter@sailtmm.com

Dive St. Vincent, St.Vincent. Tel: 784.457.4928; e-mail: billzs@divestvincent.com

Glenroy Adam�s Grenadines Dive, Union Island. Tel: 784.458.813; e-mail: gdive@grenadinesdive.com

Caribbean Schooner Cruises. Tel: 784.495.0886; e-mail: friendshiprose@mac.com

Grenadines Adventure Sailing, Bequia. Tel: 784.458.3917 e-mail:quest@bequiasvg.com

Tradewinds Cruise Club, Bequia. Tel: 784.457.3407

Passion Catamaran Sailing Cruises, Bequia. Tel: 784.458.3884; e-mail: passion@caribsurf.com

JT Yachting, St.Vincent. Tel:

Captain Yannis Day Cruises, Union Island. Tel: 784-458-8513; e-mail: yannis@caribsurf.com

Chantours, Union island. Tel: 246-432-5591; fax: 246-432-5540; e-mail: chan@caribsurf.com

Fantasea Tours, St. Vincent. Tel; 784-457-4477; fax 784-457-5577; e-mail fantasia@caribsurf.com

Friendship Rose Cruises: Tel: 784-495-0866/9; e-mail: friendshiprose@mac.com; website www.friendshiprose.com

HazECO Tours, St. Vincent. 784-4457-8634; fax: 784-457-8105; e-mail: hazeco@caribsurf.com

Scaramouche Day Tours, Union Island. Tel: 784-458-8416; fax 784-455-1362; e-mail: scaramouche@vincysurf.com

For more information, please contact:

The Tourism Office of St.Vincent & The Grenadines in London: 10 Kensington Court, London, W8 5DL. Tel: 020 7937 6570 Fax: 020 7937 3611 email: svgtourismeurope@aol.com Website: www.svgtourism.com