Sailtime – Fractional Use for Sail and Power
Become a member of Canada’s boating lifestyle at a fraction of the cost.
Canadian statistics suggest that the average boater goes boating 10-12 times each summer. If your summer is two months long, that’s 6X a month. Although the pride of ownership is half the fun, SailTime offers you and your family and friends another way to experience the joy of boating with all the joy and none of the pain.
With an annual investment of less than $10,000 – the cost of a one-week vacation for four – you will have access to either a Hunter sailboat or a Rinker powerboat more than 6X each month from May until September…and you can reserve that time up to one year in advance. And that’s not all. If you want to plan a 7-day cruise, you can access unused hours from the previous month or borrow shifts from the next. As a member of the SailTime community, you can join with other members and extend your trip even longer.
Imagine arriving at your boat knowing that it is ready to go right when you are! Clean, pumped out, gassed up and systems fully operational thanks to the mandatory maintenance process carried out after every trip. All you really need to do is show up. SailTime has recruited the best service providers available to take care of everything else. All the fun and none of the hassle.
Even non-boaters can join the SailTime’s community. All you have to do is take the CYA Basic Cruising Course that covers the skills required to cruise safely in familiar waters as both skipper and crew of a sloop rigged keelboat of 6 to 10 meters in moderate wind and sea conditions by day. SailTime will assist in finding you the right instructor and the right program. Some prefer to do this over an eight-week period. Others prefer the fast-track method. Both are available for about $800.
The only other cost is a one-time initiation fee of $1,500. This includes your new member orientation session that allows you to meet other new and existing members, a demonstration of the innovative E-Scheduler and Maintenance Checklist software, and, of course, a comprehensive onboard tour of your boat.
In addition to access on your own boat, SailTime operates many worldwide bases. As a SailTime member, you can also reserve a SailTime boat in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Holland, Ireland, Italy, France, Turkey, the United States and Puerto Rico. As a bonus benefit, SailTime has partnered with Sunsail Charters to offer special SailTime rates for charters wherever Sunsail operates including several Caribbean islands, the French Polynesia, Tonga, Croatia, Greece, Malaysia, Thailand and the Seychelles.
Each member, whether an individual, couple or family will share a SailTime boat with 6-8 other members (including the owner†) thus providing each member up to seven slots every month. For the more spontaneous in nature, unreserved times can be booked with 24 hours notice at no additional fee, even if you’ve already used your total allotted time. But remember, you can also collect unused hours and/or borrow future hours, subject to availability.
Obviously, this is all on a first-come, first-served basis, however, to be fair, every member is allocated the same prime time slots every month. For instance…
Today, SailTime operates out of the Greater Toronto Area with six sailboats and one powerboat, however it plans to expand its market to include Bay of Quinte, Kingston and the Niagara area in the near future. SailTime boats are strategically located along the northern coast of Lake Ontario – some at yacht clubs, some at marinas. The choice is yours!
However, joining a local yacht club can be an added perk. As a crew or social member, you can also gain access to all the club’s amenities without the mandatory initiation fees and (in some cases) the food and beverage minimums.
Whether you join a club or not, being a member of SailTime is a community unto itself. Throughout the year, SailTime hosts social events to bring you and other members and owners together to swap stories, learn something new and even help you plan your next cruise.
SailTime offers you and your family the opportunity to enjoy a boating lifestyle with a minimum investment and a maximum of pleasure.
www.sailtime.com
† For those of you who dream of owning a sailboat or powerboat, SailTime opportunities also exist.
