The Room 208 Blog

Chasing the summer months in the Mediterranean or the Caribbean and living the lifestyle of the rich and famous by sailing charter yachts is something most of us only dream about. But for Andrew Virieux it’s all in a day’s work. Virieux got his break into the luxury yacht business as a deckhand 2 1/2 years ago when he was backpacking in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Since then he has travelled the globe and rubbed shoulders with some of the world’s wealthiest captains of industry.

There are two types of super yachts to work on — privately owned yachts and charters. Virieux says the number of crew on each vessel is dependent on the size of the boat and can range from three to 60. The biggest vessel he’s worked on was 43m (141ft) and it had 11 other crew members. He says the bonus for the crew on a charter boat is big tips — often an extra $1000 a week.

Positions for eager workers on sailing yachts charter include captain, first officer, second officer, bosun (who gets to handle all the gear, such as the jet-skis, kayaks and windsurfers), deckhand and engineers. There is also at least one five-star chef on board, as well as stewardesses. ”Usually the starting [charter] rate for a boat is about $50,000 a week. That is the very cheapest boat that you can get; some of them cost a couple of hundred grand a week,” Virieux, 33, says.

Some boats can cost up to $500 million to build and generally the running cost is at least 10 per cent of the purchase price per year, making it a hobby of the uber-rich.

The working hours are long when guests or owners are on board, but when a boat is ”off duty” it’s normal Monday to Friday hours to keep the boat in trim.

”You get paid really well and it’s really hard to spend money because your accommodation, food and uniforms are provided,” Vieieux says. ”It’s hard work but the rewards are outstanding. I have been to so many places I would not have been to otherwise. And I made great friends for life.”

Virieux counts the French Riviera as one of his favourite trips; Monaco, Monte Carlo, St Tropez, Antibes and Cannes for the film festival. Sailing from New Orleans to the Bahamas and around the New England region in the US was also a highlight.

It’s time I got to work learning about Eurail Tickets and Reservations.
Travelng by train is the way to go over there. It’s cheap and fast.
After reading up on how to get Eurail Reservations, I can’t wait to go. I really need a vacation.
Italy, England, France, and more – I’m heading all over. I can’t wait!
Ok – that’s it for today.

It comes down to quantity and quality of your time.  If you want to spend 1.5-3 hours waiting for your plane to arrive, take your luggage to be screened, take your shoes off, wait for others to take their shoes off, scan all of your stuff through the xray machine, wait for everyone else to do the same thing, get held up by everyone else doing the same thing, then put all your stuff back together only to walk a few miles to get to your gate and compete with everyone else just to get a seat, which by the way is like 2 inches wide, and sit next to a much larger woman who just stuffed an extra large bag in the space above your head while the person in front of you is leaning his chair perilously close to your lap, then by all means, go right ahead.If you want to spend 15-20 minutes plus flight time, show your ID, get on board while crew loads your bags, wait 2-3 mins to spin up engine, enjoy an exquisite meal while enroute while you watch a movie of your choice, conduct a private corporate meeting, plug in your laptop, or just relax, a personal jet aircraft is what you need.  No screaming children, no loud pilots interrupting your concentration, nothing but peace while you stretch out and enjoy your nap before landing at your destination where you’ll be greeted by your driver.  You leave the airport most of the time within 5-10 mins.  This can be done without spending more than $5million on what is called a VLJ or Very Light Jet.It’s sorta up to you.

With the available cruise ships, you can practically choose where you want to go! A good example of a beautiful cruise would be the Eastern Mediterranean cruise package. You will visit places like Turkey, Malta, Egypt, and Cyprus. There are many interesting things to do at port as well. Istanbull, for example, is a must see with it’s amazing history and bazaars, mosques and unbelievable traffic!

Magica Cruise line is a favorite with their many amenities. You will never be bored with the ship’s themed bars, singers, dancers, swimmings pools, casino rooms, lounges and restaurants. You can even get your picture taken with the captain! You can find the prices for the cruises easily, however, it depends on several things. How long of a cruise, destinations, how many people in your party, etc. With the variety of ships, plans and discounts, you will likely be able to find an affordable cruise going just where you want it to go!

Travel agents have a number of great resources and perks to advertise when it comes to traveling Europe. Besides Europe being number one on many destination wish lists, the packages at travel agent can offer are numerable. Anything from the Eurail pass and/or Eurail timetable, to the world known discounted airfare, to the busabout touring guides. Many of these companies will grant certain travel agencies additional discounts, excursion packages or all inclusive packages at a price that is affordable to most anyone. This allows a travel agent to propose an offer that is hard to refuse. When your ready to travel Europe see a travel agent who is best prepared to guide you in the right direction.  Make sure you study your eurail pass timetable to familiarize yourself with the train schedules before you leave for your Europe trip.

All of the 7 bed and breakfast are in this century old Victorian mining town. Breckenridge is located 85 miles west of Denver and is the heart of Summit County. Staying at a Breckenridge bed and breakfast allows its occupants to enjoy wonderful sunsets, a beautiful mountain view, and a river that crawls through the valley. Breckenridge has many things to offer vacationers such as shops, galleries, lots of places to eat, and several night spots along with recreational areas and of course, the skiing. Any vacationer would be very satisfied with the choice of choosing this spot as their vacation spot.

A wedding anniversary is a special day. If it falls on a weekend, the celebration can be even more special. With a weekend in hand, you can plan your anniversary weekend getaway and have a gala time for 2 days. You can go for a weekend cruise. Or, visit a city that neither of you has been to before. This would make an unforgettable anniversary gift for both of you. An extremely romantic idea is to renew your wedding vows on your anniversary weekend. There are various inns and resorts that offer you weekend getaway packages in which you get to use chapel, wedding cake and several other perks to celebrate the day.

One of the most romantic cities is San Diego, CA. It is expensive to stay downtown or on the bay. But you can find some cheaper and elegant boutique hotels further up the coast. There, you can stay on Pacific Beach and watch the waves roll in while you enjoy your romantic beach getaway. It is a mild climate all year round. So you can go in the winter and still enjoy walking on the beach and watching the sunset. There is a boardwalk if you don't want to walk on the sand. Shop in the quaint shops or eat in the restaurants, then retire to your hotel for more romance.

I have always been one to believe that you should make your life as easy as possible, and this is especially true when you go on a camping trip. When I came to choose a tent a few weeks ago I heard that Pop-Up Tents were very popular precisely for this reason, in that they make getting the camping tent ready an absolute breeze. I didn’t believe it at first, but now I have used my tent just for one trip I can now say that I will never use any other type except a pop-up because they really do make your camping trip a joy.

Now I suppose I could turn the argument around and say that boys summer camps are incomplete. But the camps have anticipated me and brought in their computers and video cameras. They do not teach the nine-times-table, it's true, but even schools have problems with that one. And now that self- esteem is the ideal of education, it's hard to say who's better at drawing it out.