Martha’s Vineyard boat charters: who runs them
Somebody here has the boat you want. We’re not a charter company: we know which captains still answer the phone in August, and we’ll tell you who to call.
- 13operators listed
- 6guests on most boats, by law
- May–Octcharter season
Six letters a year, late April to late October. When the boats go in, when the stripers arrive, when the good boats stop having Saturdays left. Nothing in winter, because nothing happens.
Get the letterWhat people charter here
Private charters
You pick the harbor, the hours and the direction. Most boats take six, so a party of ten usually goes out as two boats that stay together, or on one of the few inspected boats that take more.
Sunset cruises
Three hours, usually leaving around six in July. The Aquinnah cliffs go red from the water in a way they never do from the road above them.
Places with no road
Cape Poge, Tarpaulin Cove, the Elizabeth Islands. You can’t drive to any of them.
Fishing
Striped bass in the rips, bluefish off Wasque, bonito and albies when they turn up in late August. Rods and bait come with the boat.
We're your guide, not the captain
We don’t own boats and we don’t run trips. We keep the list of who does, and you book with them.
Where the six comes from
It’s a federal Coast Guard rule, so the captain can’t bend it, however big the boat looks. Almost every charter on the island runs under it.
Seven or more
Usually that means two or three boats leaving together. Ten people go as two boats of five on the same route, so you all see the same sunset. A few inspected boats take more. See who runs what.
Your guide to the water
We have called thirteen outfits running charters off this island, and know of more we have not reached yet. Most of them are one captain with one boat and a phone that goes to voicemail in August.
We keep track of who is still going out, what they charge and which ones answer. Then we tell you, and you call them.
How this startedThe kinds of trip people take
Sunset cruises
Out past the Edgartown light and into the Sound, timed so you are on the water when the cliffs turn.
Private charters
The whole boat and the captain’s time. Where you go and how long you stay is a conversation, not a menu.
Places with no road
The far shore of Chappy, the coves at Cape Poge, the Elizabeths. Ask the captain where they would anchor for lunch.
Sailing
Under sail on the Sound. Slower than the motor boats, quieter, and you can take a turn at the helm if you want one.
Fishing
Bass, blues and bonito, depending on the month. Gear is on the boat and they will clean what you keep at the dock.
Some of these can be booked online. The rest of the island answers the phone.
We don’t own a single boat
We know the water
Which coves are sheltered in a northeast wind, when the stripers move into the rips, which sunset route is worth the money and which one just goes in a circle.
We check the license
Everyone we have called holds a current USCG license, and we checked it. Past the license we can’t vouch for a boat, so we don’t pretend to.
We tell you who to call
Give us the date and the size of your group, and we’ll name the operators who fit. Sometimes the answer is that nobody is free and you should move the date.
We add nothing to the operator’s price. Where a booking site pays us a commission we say so on the page. It comes out of their margin, never off your side of the invoice.
Questions people ask
If yours isn’t here, find the operator and ask them, since they know their own boat better than we do. Or write to us.
Nothing here routes through us. Every operator’s own number is on the list, and phoning it is faster than any form, including ours.
The list, with numbers →What can you actually do out there?
+Sunset trips, private charters by the hour, fishing, and sailing. Most leave from Edgartown, Oak Bluffs or Vineyard Haven. Which one suits you depends mostly on how many of you there are and whether anybody gets seasick.
How does booking work?
+Not through us. You book with the operator, pay the operator, and if something goes wrong you deal with the operator. We are the step before that: telling you which number to call.
Do I need boating experience?
+No. Every boat here goes out with a licensed captain aboard. On a sailboat you can take the helm if you ask, and most captains are glad to hand it over.
When is the season?
+May to October. July and August book up first and Saturdays go earliest; a Tuesday in late June is the same trip for less trouble. A few captains will go out in April or November if you ask.
What if there are more than six of us?
+Usually not on one boat. A boat the Coast Guard has not inspected may carry six paying passengers at most, which covers most charter boats here, and no fee changes that. Two boats leaving together is the normal answer, and on this island that usually means two operators. The few inspected boats that can carry more are marked on the list. Tell us how many of you there are and we will suggest who to call.
How do I get to Martha's Vineyard?
+The Steamship Authority runs Woods Hole to Vineyard Haven in about 45 minutes; Edgartown is a quarter of an hour from the slip. Book the car deck early in summer or leave the car on the mainland, which is what most people should do anyway.
Tell us the date and how many
Two things get you a useful answer: the date, and how many of you there are. Everything else we can work out from there.
Tell us the date