G3 - Crewed Catamaran Yacht Charter

So much to say about our time on G3, but still so hard to find the right words. Nikki & Karl deliver so much more than we could have anticipated. The environment, of course, is amazing and the food is honestly better than any restaurant that I have ever been to in years. Also a perfect balance of activity options (hiking, snorkeling, sight seeing, etc.) and relaxation and down time. Nikki and Karl are the perfect combination and continually optimistic while maintaining anthentraits and realism. We were told this was one of the windier and rainier charters in memory, which has had no negative effect on our collective experience. If Karl and Nikki told us they were chartering a shipping container on the Hudson river with hot dogs and PB&J all week, but that it would be a good time, I would pull all the strings to be there. So hopeful that my family will be be able to share the same experience some time in the future. Thanks so much for letting us break in G3.

It is hard to describe the depth and breadth of gratitude I feel for this week. Paul, thanks for making this happen and including me and getting us all onto the G3 with Nikki and Karl. G3 is beautiful, incredibly comfortable and quickly felt like home. We are so lucky to be the first guests and appreciate how hard Nikki and Karl worked to get it ready for us. It was difficult at first to stop doing and just relax, but I can definitely say that this has been most relaxing and restoring week of my life. Nikki and Karl you felt like part of our group from day one. Thanks for making us feel free to just be us as well as participating and encouraging at times! I hope you enjoyed getting to know you. As much as I dont want this trip to end for me, I´m happy knowing that others will get to experience this and spend some time on G3 and your company soon! Mark

Surviving a global pandemic and milestone birthday makes a person reflect on the type of a lifetime experiences to prioritize. This was more than just a vacation because Karl and Nikki made it a once in a lifetime experience. IT was an honor to be the first charter back to the BVI after COVID and the first group to enjoy the experience Karl and Nikki provide on G3! You made every effort to put a thoughtful touch on each detail of our tie together with a smile, grace, and insights from your years of experience bringing joy and positive memories to all those whose stories are captured in this book and more. Thank you for having us aboard and contributing so much to making this rich memory ill treasure for a lifetime. Paul

What an absolute pleasure and life experience aboard G3! This week was a perfect mix of adventure, relaxation, laughing, and being among great friends. We started this week as strangers, but that lasted about 5 minutes before Karl and Nikki were friends. The meals were incredible and the company even more so. Thank you to Nikki and Karl for such a fun and welcoming spirit, for indulging our shenanigans, for the wonderful conversations, and memories that will last a lifetime. I certainly hope if your travels take you anywhere near Minnesota, you will come stay and build some more memories with us there! Thank you again and you can count on a couple surprises in the mail at some point to remember us by... Matthew

We enjoyed an unforgettable, extraordinary week of beauty, luxury hospitality and comfort, and decadent feasting every moment of this trip.

We have been on the Amar and the Four Seasons in Asia and the personal, genuine professionalism and Nikki’s intuitive attention to individual needs throughout this week is incomparable. She is at all times cool, relaxed, and accommodating with a clear passion to give her guests the best experience at all times possible.

We are a family of four with two kids, 13 and 9. We have a very diverse set of needs and wants and Captain Karl and Chief of Staff Nikki went above and beyond with passion, utmost professionalism, responsibility/safety, and knowledge at all times. You would not believe what can be done so seamlessly and gracefully by a team of two! The will, integrity they have to go above and beyond in all aspects of your experience will ensure their continued success and your desire to return again as soon as possible.

We thank them for their tireless hard work and look forward to our next trip together!

-Phillipe and Amy Glessinger

This was our kids first time on a charter trip. We all had a fantastic time. Nikki catered to many different and complicated needs to perfection! She’s a non-stop hard worker and every plate she made was not only amazing but carefully planned and plated. No request was a challenge or a problem for her!

Capt. Karl made sure we had a smooth sail. The waters were sometimes rough and he always had plan A, B, and C! It’s apparent he loves to sail and he is very knowledgeable. He managed to please us with all our requests!

Thank you for an unforgettable trip.

Love,
Karen & Warren and all the kids!

This was our first overnight charter, and we could not have been more pleased with G2.
The food was incredible! The meals Nikki created were absolutely delicious. Every dish was carefully thought out, and she even went above to make the birthday and anniversary dinner special. Nikki is incredibly talented!

Captain Karl is a true sailor. He was very knowledgeable about the islands and key attractions. We truly appreciated his dedication, not only to his job, but to giving us the “full” experience. Our favorite spot we visited was “SHARK” island :)

Thank you so much G2(Nikki and Karl) for making our trip the best ever.

-Erica, Pete, Lauren, & Dan

We just took an incredible family trip to St Thomas and St John and chartered on G2. The boat accommodations were wonderful for a family of 5 (adults). Captain Karl and Nikki were such a blessing- serving us with amazing home cooked meals, sailing, snorkeling, scuba diving, and hiking. They took us to see the beautiful yet secluded bays on the islands. They were a joy to be around for our 5 day vacation. We can´t wait to go back soon!

From the moment Karl and Nikki welcomed us on board G2 with painkillers and a scrumptious platter of snacks and fruit we felt pampered, and we knew they were committed to us having a fabulous time with them out on the water.

First off, a few words about the food. To say it is restaurant quality does not do Nikki’s culinary delights justice, since there are many mediocre restaurants in the world. Each of the wonderful meals we were served were truly exceptional. The stuffed mushroom appetizers, crepes with three fillings, marinated steak salad with home-made tostones, and chicken roti were all big favorites with our family. Nikki thoughtfully reached out to us before the trip and asked us for our meal preferences — and she happily accommodated the requests we made. We loved the food so much we asked Nikki if we could take photos of her recipe book before leaving.

G2 is a great boat. With five cabins and three different gathering or lounging places (including a cool rooftop great for sunsets) it feels spacious, even with 8 or 10 people onboard. The boat sails beautifully and fast for a boat of this size. It was especially relaxing to sail downwind with just the large “gennaker” sail (kind of like a spinnaker). The boat is well equipped, with a great sound system you can connect your phone to, along with fishing rods and water toys like paddleboards and floating mats. Our boys had tremendous fun being pulled around on the paddleboards with the dinghy and surfing in the wake wave.

Karl is a terrific and fun captain. He definitely places everyone’s safety first, but making sure everyone has fun is a close second. He clearly has a lot of sailing expertise, which we found he was happy to share with us. Karl and Nikki were both eager to share their love and knowledge of the islands with us, from pointing us at great places to snorkel to telling us the background of some of the places we saw.

In the pandemic era we are currently in it’s worth pointing out that Karl, Nikki and the management company have gone to great lengths to keep guests healthy and safe. The boat was immaculately clean, and they keep onboard a stock of disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizer and face masks (for going ashore).

Given the events of the past few months our family definitely needed a great, relaxing vacation, and Karl and Nikki delivered in fine style. We would not hesitate to highly recommend them and G2 to anyone looking for a fantastic time on the water.

Yacht & Crew
Please answer the following questions pertaining to the yacht you chartered and the crew.
Rating of Yacht & Crew:
(5 Being the Highest) 5
Was the yacht comfortable and clean?
Yes. Great yacht.
Was the yacht well ventilated?
Yes. Excellent.
Was the crew friendly and accommodating?
Crew was awesome!! Could not imagine a better crew.
Was the food good and well presented?
Yes. Food was excellent and presented and plated very well.
8. Additional comments about the yacht and crew?
Can´t say enough positive things about the crew. Informative, engaging, fun, professional, experienced, safety focused, environmentally aware, .... I could go on and on. They were the best!
Cruising Area
Did you like the area you chartered in?
Yes. The crew knew where to go and when. Great itinerary.

This experience has been so amazing! When my friends Regina and Jim told me our St. Barths trip was cancelled...but plan B was a charter sailboat in the USVI I was so happy - but - after spending a week with Nikki and Karl on the G2 - I am overjoyed with happiness and the wonderful memories we have all made together. All the food´ drinks and fun will be a memory that I will never forget! The G2 is lucky to have such a fantastic chef and captain in Nikki and Karl! They anticipated our every need before we even knew we needed it! We are all planning our next trip on a charter sail boat. Thanks for sharing your awesome G2 cat with others. ❤
-Sallye
Austin, TX

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April 23, 2021
One of the best vacations I have ever taken. Always wanted to charter a boat and sail the virgin islands. It did not disappoint!! Thanks to G2 and the outstanding efforts and skills of Captain Karl and Chef Nikki!! Sailing with Karl and Nikki was like being with good friends. So warm and friendly. Karl put together an awesome itinerary. He always knew the best place to go based on his extensive knowledge of these beautiful islands.
And the food!! OHH The Food!! Every meal whether it was breakfast, lunch, appetizers, dinner or dessert was amazing!! Chef Nikki was incredible!! What a great team they made!! I can´t imagine a better crew. I certainly hope that my wife and I can do this again someday and if we do, you can bet we will be calling Karl and NIkki!!
Thank you for such a wonderful experience. We love you guys!!

-Jim
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Best friends...Best Captain...Best Chef..
What else is there? We felt so safe with Karl at the helm and Nikki had perfect timing, perfect plating perfect and perfect menus! Can´t wait to recommend G2 to all my clients and friends. Thanks for an amazing week!

XO Regina

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Ditto, Ditto, Ditto!
We had such an amazing week. Thank you for your attention to details and the care we received.
See you again soon I hope.

-Jana

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Thank you G2 crew (Nikki/Karl)
This has been an unforgettable week. Great friends, great food, great weather, great sights. Everything was on point. Nilli/Karl along with good friends made this whole trip.


-Trish

Overall, how would you describe your charter?_The charter was outstanding in every way. It was relaxing and we felt pampered in all respects. The boat was in great shape and the staff made everything perfect for us.

Was the crew professional, accessible and accommodating? Carl and Nikki were very professional and accommodating. I can’t believe all they were able to put out of such a small galley. The food was incredible and Nikki was wonderful about making sure that everybody was satisfied with meals and drinks. For his part Carl was great about offering to take us snorkeling or into the beach, etc. Both are very social and we enjoyed their company.

Was the yacht well maintained? Very well maintained; clean and everything worked

How did you find the quality and presentation of the meals? Shockingly above my already high expectations. We ate better than we would have had we found the best restaurants in every port. Great variety and balance as well as high quality.

Were you satisfied with the cruising itinerary? We were restricted to USVI due to COVID but Carl made the best of it by offering different locations and fighting poachers for the best moorings. There wasn’t a place in the USVI that I wanted to go to that we didn’t visit.

Nikki & Karl -

As a single family for a week, there were plenty of personalities and needs to field.
The youngest, Norah and Bella wanted plenty of watersports while the rest wanted a combination of relaxation and snorkeling. You two were able to give a wide variety of activities for all of us to be able to have the most fantastic vacation we could have asked for. We began our trip off with a bang at Buck Island where we immediately saw turtles and were able to snorkel and old shipwreck. That night began a string ´out-of-this-world´ meals via Nikki. Nearly all of us finished every meal, and don´t even get us started on the desserts...it was a brawl to see who could sneak a spoonful of the others dessert when they weren´t looking. We will be dreaming of this food for months...years!

Below was our itinerary and a brief description of what we did.

Charlotte Amalie :
Began the adventure here where we were picked up and greeted with celebratory Prosecco.

Buck Island:
Snorkeling around a shipwreck

Christmas Cove:
Ordered lunch from a boat equipped with a pizza oven - yes, that´s right...pizza...from a boat!

Maho Bay:
An incredible number of turtles were found here.

Caneel Bay:
Honeymoon Beach was easily swimmable with the most beautiful water you will see.

Little Lameshur Bay:
Wonderful snorkeling can be found around the edges of the bay.
The most incredible stargazing can be seen here.

Coral Bay:
Limeout is here and perfect for lunch - great craft cocktails and out-of-this-world tacos.

Salt Pond Bay:
Luckily, Karl has far reaching friends who saved us a mooring for this bay that you cannot miss out on.

Magens Bay:
We ended our trip here with a day of water sports (tubing, paddle boarding and sub-winging).
We saw plenty of turtles and even saw Dolphins!


A huge thank you to this incredible crew, Nikki and Karl! We could not have asked for a better crew...thank you thank you for a vacation that we will not forget.


- Hannah, Conor, Bella, Norah, + Jolene & Rick

April 23, 2021
This experience has been so amazing! When my friends Regina and Jim told me our St. Barths trip was cancelled...but plan B was a charter sailboat in the USVI I was so happy - but - after spending a week with Nikki and Karl on the G2 - I am overjoyed with happiness and the wonderful memories we have all made together. All the food´ drinks and fun will be a memory that I will never forget! The G2 is lucky to have such a fantastic chef and captain in Nikki and Karl! They anticipated our every need before we even knew we needed it! We are all planning our next trip on a charter sail boat. Thanks for sharing your awesome G2 cat with others. ❤
-Sallye
Austin, TX

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April 23, 2021
One of the best vacations I have ever taken. Always wanted to charter a boat and sail the virgin islands. It did not disappoint!! Thanks to G2 and the outstanding efforts and skills of Captain Karl and Chef Nikki!! Sailing with Karl and Nikki was like being with good friends. So warm and friendly. Karl put together an awesome itinerary. He always knew the best place to go based on his extensive knowledge of these beautiful islands.
And the food!! OHH The Food!! Every meal whether it was breakfast, lunch, appetizers, dinner or dessert was amazing!! Chef Nikki was incredible!! What a great team they made!! I can´t imagine a better crew. I certainly hope that my wife and I can do this again someday and if we do, you can bet we will be calling Karl and NIkki!!
Thank you for such a wonderful experience. We love you guys!!

-Jim
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Best friends...Best Captain...Best Chef..
What else is there? We felt so safe with Karl at the helm and Nikki had perfect timing, perfect plating perfect and perfect menus! Can´t wait to recommend G2 to all my clients and friends. Thanks for an amazing week!

XO Regina

___________________________________________________________

Ditto, Ditto, Ditto!
We had such an amazing week. Thank you for your attention to details and the care we received.
See you again soon I hope.

-Jana

____________________________________________________________
Thank you G2 crew (Nikki/Karl)
This has been an unforgettable week. Great friends, great food, great weather, great sights. Everything was on point. Nilli/Karl along with good friends made this whole trip.


-Trish

Nikki & Karl,

Now is time to leave, and we don’t want to go. Who would want it?
Now, we will keep in our backpacks of unforgettable memories…
The impressive “G2´ aka “the Great Two” = G2.
You are an incredible captain & chef but more than that you are amazing people. You both work so hard to make our trip unforgettable.
How will we forget all the unique dishes, 5 stars.
How can we forget the brownies or the lemon pie with gluten-free crust (I didn’t even know you can do that).
How can we not remember the fish tacos with the hot sauce.
Karl, how can we forget your wisdom about the sea and the amazing sailing stories from your grandpa and dad. Thank you for protecting us, watching over in any swimming we did. Your eyes were over us like a protector angel.
Nikki, how can we forget your beautiful smile in the morning. How can we forget the unique breakfasts like from a magazine picture. How can we forget your creations. Now I’m in trouble coming back at home and Gabby ask me “How can I repeat Nikki’s meals?”
Guys, do you know why it was such a magnificent week? Because you put so much love and your whole heart into what you do for us. So in the day of gray skies after a long day of crazy passengers, look at each other and say loudly “We are the Greatest! The Greatest Two!”
You are the best! Thank you for your love, dedication, and beautiful smiles. We will carry these forever in our hearts.
We wish you smooth sailing, constant winds, and beautiful days.

-The Hxxxxs
3/20/21

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Thank you Nikki & Karl for everything!
Karl, you have taught me more than my teachers have taught me this whole month. Thank you for being so incredibly patient throughout this week with our constant lateness & bickering. I hope I can hear more of your music soon!
Nikki, I swear I have been blessed by the gods for being able to eat a slice of your key lime or rum fudge pie(or brownies oh.my.god.)(omg or banana bread)…all to die for!!!! I seriously think you put some magic or something in your food because it is ALWAYS insanely delicious.(maybe it’s love, omg I’m melting:)!) Thank you, as well, for always being so so sweet throughout the day, even while putting up with our incessant needs.
You guys are seriously the best. Houston in no way compares to the beautiful Virgin Islands, but if you are ever in town, you know where to stay.
We love you guys & thank you again for everything!

-Gabs
March 20, 2021

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This was a really great experience and I am grateful to have been with Nikki and Karl. Gabby pretty much summed it up. Thank you guys for making this the best possible week for us especially the food lol but more because both of you were very warm and welcoming. Thank you Nikki and Karl!!!!

-Sara A.
3/20/21

What a once in a lifetime experience. Nikki and Karl have turned a 50-foot catamaran into a 5-star hotel. From swimming with sea turtles to enjoying decadent meals, these two provided world-class hospitality. Karl’s intuition as a captain, and his years of hard work really show. His seamanship made us feel safe, curious, and amazed each day. Nikki’s knowledge within the kitchen and beyond was delightful. She is a rockstar and a real steward of the environment, which helped us feel connected to the sea. This dream-team duo cultivated the vacation of a lifetime for our family, and we all have a friend-crush on both of them! We hope to meet again, whether on the high seas or dry land, for a reunion in the future. Thank you both for an unforgettable trip.

-The Bxx Family
March 31st, 2021

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Bye Felicia!
-Tiger

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Crushed it! Amazing!
-Mark

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We’ll miss you!!!
-Simone

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Nikki, I hope you get to live your dreams and swim with the orcas! Karl, I wish you luck in the exploration of the stars!

XOXO
-Vanessa

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Without a doubt this has been the best trip I’ve ever been on. I’ve traveled with the Bye family many times (and it’s been great each time) but having Capt Karl & Chef Nikki with us I feel we’ve added 2 new family members. The food has been outstanding & Karl brought us to fabulous places. I will truly miss our USVI family and feel sure we’ll meet again. Karl & Nikki added so much to this trip. I’ll remember this trip forever!

Much love,
-Carol C.

The trip was outstanding. Boat was perfect. Crew was better. Karl was very good captain and low key. Nikki was ridiculously great chef. We gained almost ten pounds lol.

We had an incredible week exploring the USVI with Captain Karl and Chef Nikki! Chef Nikki prepared the most delicious meals for our family and catered to all of our specific needs. Great kids meals Favorite dinner was lobster tails, mashed sweet potatoes and the kids loved the S’mores dip Captain Karl took us all around St. John and we loved hitting up all of the incredible beaches. Our favorite beach was Hawks nest. We loved swimming off the back of the boat, playing on Matteo(floating mat), paddle boarding, and just cruising. THANK you Captain Karl and Chef Nikki!!