One-way deliveries, owners optional
With or without you aboard. Owners and family are welcome to join for all or part of the passage, and most who do come off the boat knowing her far better.
Yacht delivery
Repositioning sail and power yachts, over the water.
Local runs and long passages: the Atlantic East and Gulf coasts, the Intracoastal Waterway, the navigable US inland rivers, the Great Lakes, Florida, the Bahamas, the Caribbean and Canada.
What we move
Vessels we take on
- Sailing yachts
- Motor yachts
- Powerboats
- Cruisers
- Trawlers
- Sportfishermen
- Catamarans
- Commercial vessels
For long distances that means sailboats over 27 feet and powerboats over 30 feet, and anything larger of either kind. Crew is scaled to the boat and the passage: sailboats take a captain plus one or more deckhands, more for round-the-clock running or anything over 65 feet. Powerboats take a captain plus one or more, scaled up with size.
A significant share of our clients are new boat buyers moving a freshly purchased vessel to her home port — often across water they have never run.
How we run
What a delivery includes
Weather windows, bridge and lock schedules, fuel stops and dockage all get planned before departure — and re-planned as the water dictates.
Inspections before, during and after
The vessel and her systems are checked before departure, monitored under way, and handed over in a documented condition at the other end.
Regular progress updates
You hear where your boat is and how she is running, without having to chase anyone for it.
Observations and recommendations
A written report on what we found. Several days of continuous running surfaces things a dockside survey never will.
Daylight transits where the schedule allows
We run in daylight wherever the passage permits it — it is the single biggest safety lever on an unfamiliar boat.
Living aboard for the duration
The crew lives on the boat for the voyage. That is what the provisions line on the estimate covers.
Waters we know by name
Passages with their own rules.
Some routes come with locks that keep office hours, a lift bridge that decides whether your mast fits, or a current that turns a pleasant crossing into a bad one.
The Great Loop
A 6,000-mile circuit of America’s eastern waterways. Wherever you are on it, we can come to you.
Bahamas crossings
Florida to the islands and back — the Gulf Stream, the weather window, and the customs paperwork on both ends.
Okeechobee Waterway
The 154-mile canal route straight across Florida — five locks, and an air draft limit that decides everything.
Inland rivers
The Mississippi system and its tributaries — currents, tows, locks and very few fuel stops.
Gulf crossing, Florida’s Big Bend
The open-water shortcut across Florida’s Big Bend — and the one leg where you are properly offshore.
Florida
1,300 miles of coastline, every navigable inlet, and the state 90% of deliveries touch.
Coverage
31 regions, and the list is not exhaustive.
The full Atlantic seaboard from Canada to the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast, every navigable inland river from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes, both Intracoastal Waterways, the Bahamas and the Caribbean.
If your port is not on the list, ask anyway — the list is where we have been, not where we can go.
On passage
What owners ask before they book.
Can the owner come along?
Yes. Owners are more than welcome to join the relocation, and so is family. Riding along is also the best training you will ever get on your own boat.
How many crew are on a delivery?
A minimum of one captain and one deckhand, scaling up with the size of the vessel and the demands of the passage. There are normally two people up and on watch at almost all times.
Can I provide my own deckhand?
No. Our deckhands are trained professionals and employees of Captain James Lowe. Crew selection is a safety decision, not a cost-saving one.
How many hours a day do you run?
We start at the crack of dawn and aim for at least 10 to 12 hours of travel each day. In winter the days are shorter and we are limited to daylight hours, which lengthens the trip.
What route will you use?
Whichever route is safest for the boat and the conditions. The captain reserves the right to alter course and route at any time in the interest of safety.
What happens if there is a mechanical problem?
Mechanical concerns are handled case by case, and we will fix it on the spot where that is possible. Delays for repairs are charged at the agreed daily rate.
Start here
Ready for numbers?
Send the vessel details and the route, and I will send back an estimate. Most go out within 24 hours.
We do not share, rent or sell your information. Data is collected only to produce the estimate you asked for.