Best time ever in Key West after 40 years of visiting Key West

Guest: Mike (Panama City, Panama)
Date of Stay: 03/10/10 Review Submitted: 08/08/10

I am a vistor of the Keys for more than 40 years and staying with KW Sailing Adventure is the best. You get the best of everthing Key West and it´s surrounding seas have to offer. Old Town Key West, the Hemingway house, the Mel Fisher museum, the Aquarium, the arquitecture, the ambiance, Historical bars and eateries, great shopping and Maollory Docks with it´s sunset show. And this is just the beginning. You get to enjoy the real reason we come to the Keys, the ocean. You get to enjoy the true wonder of the keys on and below the sea, sleep under the stars, eat FRESH seafood with pampering second to none. I will not stay anywhere else.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, pet owners, adventure seekers, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+, people with disabilities, girls getaway, families with young children, romantic getaway.

Had a BLAST with Key West Sailing Adventure!

Guest: Cheryl (Michigan )
Date of Stay: 12/15/11 Review Submitted: 01/04/12

Thank you Albert for customizing our five day stay with Key West Sailing Adventure! You were right; converting one night for an overnight was really a fun choice! Being at anchor along with the extra sunset, and a half day gave us a lot more to our "adventure" and we came back to Michigan with wonderful memories!

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, adventure seekers, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+, people with disabilities, girls getaway, romantic getaway.

Great Fun on the boat at the docks, and at sea!

Guest: Tony G.
Date of Stay: 12/15/11 Review Submitted: 01/03/12

HI Captain Albert, Thank you for customizing our five day stay with Key West Sailing Adventure! You were right; converting one night for an overnight was really a fun choice! Being at anchor along with the extra sunset, and a half day gave us a lot more to our "adventure" and we came back to Michigan with wonderful memories! All of our best!

Recommended for:

Hot nights ! No refund

Guest: Bruno (Paris, France)
Date of Stay: 08/29/11 Review Submitted: 11/14/11

We spend 2 nights the the 08/29 and the 08/30 on the boat called "the wild thing". When we arrived, we found a boat which was quite grimy : smelly, and the dish was not that shiny.. In the middle of the first night, the air condionning fell down and did not work at all the second night. As Captain assistants were unable to fix it, they proposed us to sleep on the other boat "Obession" ; this boat was very dirty and stinked because the loo has not been cleant ! So we refused. The assistants gently drove and bought electric vans that we had to set up at 22 pm. After these hot nights, as we met Captain Albert the last day, he told us he would give us back a refund. 2 and a half months later I did have my money back though Captain promised to give me.

Owner response:There are many things you can do to maintain all the machines on a boat. And we do them all. When and if there is a problem we respond immediately. As in this case. The clients called us at 10 PM saying the Air conditioner was not working. I dispatched a crew immediately. Our crew showed up at their boat to find that no immediate cure was available. Not leaving the clients uncomfortable; our crew looked for a late night Drug Store and bought 2 high output fans. They delivered and installed the fans at 1130 PM. We care about our clients. As far as their other compliants; We would have dealt with them in the same manner; immediate response action. They were offered to re-locate. they did not.

Recommended for:

IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR MARGARITAVILLE, LOOK NO FURTHER

Guest: Dave (Delray Beach)
Date of Stay: 06/18/11 Review Submitted: 07/07/11

Although I live in Delray Beach, Florida, I like to visit Key West every so often. I have been going there since I was a young man (I'm now 63). A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I, along with our grown daughter and her boyfriend, rented WILD THING. And what a blast we had! The boat is beautiful and well cared for. It is tied up in what is probably the best boat slip in Key West. The Historic Seaport is a really cool area with great restaurants and bars. In fact, within 100 feet of our boat was the Seaport Wharf bar and restaurant which is as good as it gets. Great food, fantastic view, and excellent music. Oh, and cold beer. Lots and lots of cold beer! But back to the boat. We were met by "Frenchie", a lovely young lady from Canada. She showed us around the boat and explained everything to us. Turns out she was also our first mate when we sailed out to the reef for an afternoon of snorkeling. She is definitely a sweetheart and was very helpful. Once on board, we picked up some cold beer at the nearby grocery store and stocked our refrigerator. Then, we sat back on our beautiful boat, downed a few cervezas, and watched the people walk by. The marina is great and could not be better located. You can walk most places you want to visit, but we opted for renting bikes nearby. Once mobile, we were off and exploring. What fun! After a day biking and drinking, we turned in early. The master stateroom was very nice, with a most comfortable bed. We turned on some soft music, shared some wine, and dozed off to the water gently lapping at our hull. The next morning we were up early as we were planning to sail to the reef. Captain Albert came by to check on us and make sure the boat was ready for the sail. He then introduced us to our captain for the day (Chris) and along with Frenchie, off we went. Frenchie even brought an underwater Seedo for us to use. We had great fun, saw some fantastic fish, and hated to leave the reef. The remainder of our vacation was great and one of the best times we have ever had. I highly recommend this boat if you want a different type vacation. My daughter (26 years old) had a blast, along with her boyfriend and agrees with my recommendation. Why stay in a hotel room or bed and breakfast when you can stay on the water in a beautiful Morgan sailboat? Thank you Captain Albert for such a great time and please give our regards to Captain Chris and Frenchie. See you next time and happy sailing!

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, adventure seekers, sightseeing, age 55+, girls getaway, romantic getaway.

An honest review of a fun vacation in key west, a nice boat, and great crew.

Guest: Dave (Edgewater, Maryland)
Date of Stay: 09/26/10 Review Submitted: 10/03/10

My wife, 11 year old daughter, and I stayed aboard the Wildthing for four wonderful nights. We did an overnight with Captain Albert and First Mate Nancy on my wife’s birthday. Nancy cooked us a great fish dinner and breakfast the next day. The weather (i.e. beginning of Tropical Storm Nichole) changed our itinerary somewhat, but Captain Albert was on top of the approaching weather and gave us sound options. We ended up with a great sail, sleeping under the moon, and watching the storms off in the horizon. Once the storm passed, we were able to make it to the reef two days later for a great snorkel (thank you Captain Brad and First Mate Rich). Truly, a great sailing and snorkeling adventure all around. We found the boat to be in very good shape and Nancy had it ready for our arrival. Yes, the boat has only the basic amenities, but this is what we liked about it. We were not looking for a cruise ship or the Hilton, but a solid sailing vessel that promised an adventure; and we found it at Key West Sailing Adventures. Wildthing sails well, is very comfortable, has a good air conditioning system that kept us cool on the hot and humid nights, a refrigerator that kept our drinks and snacks cold, a stereo system so we could listen to our MP3 and IPod, clean bedding and towels, and most importantly, character. Ok, you have to pump the heads and keep them drained, but this is a boat after all. The marina restroom and showers were very clean and convenient. You really can’t beat the location. Dante’s offers a great swimming pool, bar and restaurant; there is excellent coffee and breakfast at the Cuban Coffee Queen; terrific bread, cheese and cake at the Old Town Bakery (I highly recommend the chocolate ganache cake); and bike rentals from Eaton Street Bike Shop all within a few minute walk from the boat. Try the El Siboney restaurant for authentic and affordable Cuban food, the conch ceviche at the Turtle Kraals, fried fresh fish at the B.O. Fish Wagon, the great local crowd at the Schooner Wharf, and don’t forget the wild and crazy times on Duval Street a few blocks away. Everything you will want to see in Key West is a short walk or bike ride from the marina. All three of us give Key West Sailing Adventures (a.k.a. Boom Boom Charters) its captain(s) and crew, and the experience two thumbs up. Thank you for a great vacation. P.S. my daughter is hooked on snorkeling and loved the boat, the dolphins, sea turtles, rays, and plentiful fish.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, adventure seekers, sightseeing, tourists without a car, families with young children, romantic getaway.

Great Location But The Boat Has Issues

Guest: Steve (Denver)
Date of Stay: 08/11/10 Review Submitted: 08/16/10

The Obsession is located in a great location - but an open, not secure marina. The boat has no amenities. The on-board lights are 50% non-operational. The boat smelled like a septic tank and it was not set up for guests. Capt. Albert is a gem. He tried to make our stay comfortable but it was not. The boat is full of storage and boat parts - but the galley was not prepared and set up for live-aboards. The stereo system did not work, and there is no television on board. I am an ex-captain and live-aboard boat owner and there are many things that could be done to make this sailboat a great vacation. But even when I advised the captain/owner after two days aboard that the lights inside the boat did not work I was told "I know, I have to get to that". If you are going to pay premium prices for an on-board vacation, EVERYTHING should work properly, be set up ready for guests, and not smell like an out-house. The cruise with Capt. Albert was wonderful and he knows the area waters. However, that doesn't make the rest of the stay worth it. The boat, as stated many times on Expedia, was not ready for guests. Additionally - although minor - we had asked for a blender to be on-board for our use and it was not provided along with the other normal kitchen amenities.

Owner response:I remember these folks well. They were very nice but seemed out of step with us. If you look at the vast majority of comments about us they are good to excellent. However, allow me to address their issues: In 15 years at the same location the security has been great and unchallenged ( guards at night) A friendly atmosphere where we all watch out for each other. 15 years w/o incident. They are right about the amenities. We learned and added an amenities basket. Some people leave the 12 volt lights on all the time but there are several of them,. They had plenty of illumination, but they had a bustle of visiting people on the boat almost all of the time. I did not want to bother them. I don't understand about their comment on comfort. Ther is a 9" mattress topped with memory foam? The boat is active; it has sailed to Cuba, Mexico and local week-ends.In closed areas there are boat parts and charts. The galley is fully prepared. I don't understand unless they are talking about the Blender issue. My fault, when they booked they asked for a blender. I said I would bring one from my house. Not another word was said until I got to the boat. Why not remind me, I am friendly. I was like they were waiting for mistakes and complaints. The Stero system works fine and has a 10 disc changer. The smell was an issue for them and I apologize. I was training a new mate to clean. She did not know to put the " blue stuff" in the tanks. There have been no other complaints. In Closing boats need a lot of love. We just spent $8000.00 on upgrades and hired a new mate who knows boats. So if you are visiting and want something special, like a blender, please remind me. Don't test me and complain. I will do whatever i can to make your stay terrific.

Recommended for:

Great experience in the Keys

Guest: Tom (Los Angeles, Ca.)
Date of Stay: 03/22/10 Review Submitted: 08/07/10

My wife and I stayed for a few days to enjoy Key West and the area. We really enjoyed the stay aboard and the convenient location. The people were very helpful, accomodating, and even offered to take us to the airport when we left. Our sailing trip out to the reef was wonderful, they provided wine, appetizers, and a great meal. Next time we're in Key West, we'll be doing it again.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, sightseeing, romantic getaway.

Key West as a most memorable sailing adventure

Guest: Woe (Cape Cod, MA)
Date of Stay: 02/07/10 Review Submitted: 08/07/10

I didn't know what to expect when I booked with Key West Sailing Adventure and Capt. Albert. I knew Key West from years ago and was expecting a very changed city. Luckily for us the real FL Keys are best seen from the ocean and our stay on Wild Thing - one of the two fine sailing vessals available - was most rewarding and brought back the great memories of how it used to be. Whether a day trip diving on the reef or a simple sunset cruise past Mallory Pier, being on the clear warm seas and experienceing the quiet of being under sail was so relaxing and satisfying.. With magic sunsets and the laid back admosphere of Key West to return to it is hard to emagine anything like it in the USA. Dock side sleeping is a special treat and all of Old Town Key West only a few blocks away. Capt Albert and his crew are most attentive and charming and guided our party to what was happening both in town and on board - highly recommended.

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, adventure seekers, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+, families with young children, romantic getaway.

BEST of the Best

Guest: davejet (Miaimi, FL )
Date of Stay: 03/26/10 Review Submitted: 03/31/10

Key West at its Best!!!!!! We stayed on the Obsession! My two boys and by Fiancee! We were in the perfect spot of all of Key West. A short walk to Duvall St and Mallory Square!! The air conditionion on the boat when needed was perfect! Sleeping under the stars and rocking to sleep by the ocean waves was a dream!! The half day sail with Albert and his crew was unforgetable as he let my young boys steer the huge sailing ship as I snapped pictures was unforgettable. Go ahead and stay at a hotel and be an boring or go for an unforgettable adventure and call Albert and book and unforgettable adventure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Owner response:Thanks for the great praises! We had just renovated the Obsession and are so glad you enjoyed your time with us and hope that you will make us a regular destination vacation!

Recommended for:Families with teenagers, pet owners, adventure seekers, sightseeing, tourists without a car, age 55+, girls getaway, families with young children, romantic getaway.