Sun Charters
Blue Haven Marina, Leeward, Providenciales
Sun Charters is the longest-running sailing charter in the Turks and Caicos, having spent nearly 30 years cruising its clear waters. The charter provider and its beloved flagship vessel, the Atabeyra, is a popular choice for visitors and residents looking to explore the Turks and Caicos Islands by sailboat.
Sun Charters' fleet of vessels offers private and public charters as well as multi-day sailing trips (term charters). These trips of three days or more explore remote areas in the archipelago that typical day charters don't visit, such as French Cay, Ambergris Cay, and even the southwestern Bahamas.
Around Providenciales, the many possible sailing destinations for day charters include Grace Bay, Leeward Reef, Half Moon Bay, the iguana sanctuary of Little Water Cay (Iguana Island), the white-sand beaches of Water Cay and Pine Cay, and the famous sandbars and cannons of Fort George Cay.
For many years, the Atabeyra has offered a popular shared sunset tour and glowworm cruise as well as a day trip to the Caicos Cays, where guests can spot Dreamer the Dolphin and JoJo the Dolphin. All day trips include complimentary rum punch, beer, soft drinks, water, snacks, and (on applicable trips) snorkel gear.
The Fleet
Sun Charters has three vessels: the Atabeyra sailboat, the sleek Mamba runabout boat, and the brand-new Marie Helene luxury catamaran.
The Atabeyra
The Atabeyra (named for the supreme mother goddess of the islands' indigenous Lucayan and Taíno people) is an elegant 77-foot (23 m) schooner that began life as a rum runner. It kept Providenciales stocked with rum, fruits, and vegetables during the Haitian embargo of the early 1990s. Retrofitted into a beautiful charter yacht in 1997, the boat now offers private and public charters to the incredible cays, beaches, and reefs of the Turks and Caicos aboard her spacious deck.
The Atabeyra can hold up to 50 guests. Public beach cruising and sunset trips aboard the sailboat run several days per week, while glowworm cruises are offered around the full moon.
Marie Helene
Marie Helene is a 65-foot (20 m) Privilege cruising catamaran that offers guests a smooth, luxurious journey to islands in and near the Turks and Caicos archipelago. The vessel has five spacious cabins and can comfortably accommodate 10 guests on term (overnight) charters or private day trips.
Aboard Marie Helene, you can cruise to the incredible snorkeling spots off French Cay, explore uninhabited West Caicos at your own pace, and see up close the humpback whales that migrate to the Turks and Caicos during the winter months. If adding the southeast Bahamas to your Turks and Caicos itinerary sounds appealing, Marie Helene is the boat to get you there.
Mamba
The company's fastest and most nimble ride is Mamba. This black Technohull Explorer 40 boat is ideal for beach cruising, island hopping, snorkeling, wakeboarding, tubing, and more. Private charters aboard Mamba, which can hold up to 15 guests, explore off-the-beaten-path locations in the western Turks and Caicos Islands and are a great way to try a new water sport. Mamba also serves as a tender and runabout boat for overnight charters aboard Marie Helene.
Private Charters
Booking a private sailing charter is a great way to explore the incredible marine environment of the Turks and Caicos Islands at your own pace.
Sun Charters can customize its private excursions to suit what your group wants to do, whether it's relax on a secluded beach, snorkel the reef habitats of colorful fish and turtles, or simply sail over crystal-clear water.
Beyond the usual charter stops of Little Water Cay and Half Moon Bay, there are several other islands you can discover on a private day charter from Providenciales. The less-visited Fort George Cay, found in the middle of the chain of cays between Providenciales and North Caicos, features a network of scenic sandbars and 18th-century cannons in shallow water where a fort once stood. On Dellis Cay, there's calm water and a beautiful beach.
Public Charters
Sun Charters' popular shared beach cruises allow you to discover the best beaches, cays, and snorkeling reefs near Providenciales. These trips visit sites like Half Moon Bay (an amazing beach with iguanas and a sheltered lagoon) and the unbelievable white-sand beaches of Water Cay and Pine Cay.
Public charters aboard the Atabeyra often visit Leeward Reef. This site is home to a wonderful array of vibrant corals and colorful reef fish as well as larger creatures, including turtles, stingrays, eagle rays, dolphins, and small sharks.
Sunset and Evening Charters
Sun Charters offers several types of evening trips aboard the Atabeyra. A long-time favorite of visitors and locals is the Atabeyra’s sunset downwind sail. Sunset excursions come with bottomless rum punch and an epic view of Provo's sunsets. Both private and public evening sails are available.
The company also offers star-gazing excursions that visit the sheltered channels in the Princess Alexandra Nature Reserve near Mangrove Cay and Donna Cay, which experience very little light pollution. The captain and crew point out stars, constellations, planets, and satellites with a powerful laser pointer.
For many years, the Atabeyra has run a glowworm cruise every third, fourth, and fifth night after the full moon in the Leeward and Princess Alexandra Nature Reserve area. An hour after sunset, these marine creatures light up the water like stars with their phosphorescence. All sunset and evening excursions come with complementary drinks.
Snorkeling Charters
The incredible turquoise waters of the Turks and Caicos hide amazing snorkeling reefs. Depending on weather conditions, day charters on the Atabeyra typically visit either the barrier reef off Grace Bay, Leeward, and Water Cay or the more sheltered reefs in the bay.
Underwater sightings vary, but commonly seen sea creatures include many types of colorful reef fish, stingrays, spotted eagle rays, turtles, small sharks, and sometimes even dolphins.
Snorkeling equipment is provided for guests.
Weddings
With a spacious deck and capacity to hold 50 passengers, the Atabeyra is a unique venue for a Turks and Caicos wedding. The crew has a long track record of providing wedding services for visitors and locals. Captain Dave and Jenny, owners of Sun Charters, were married on the Atabeyra themselves over 20 years ago.
You can either exchange your vows while sailing downwind at sunset or let the boat transport you and your guests to a secluded sandy beach for the ceremony. Sun Charters offers a two-hour, all-inclusive wedding package that includes:
- All marriage licenses and permits
- A minister or justice of the peace
- Flowers for the bride and groom
- A wedding cake
- Refreshments
- Canapés
Drinks and refreshments include champagne, wine, beer, rum punch, soft drinks, and water. Photography and videography from one of the professional local studios can be arranged.
Before getting married in the Turks and Caicos, see Turks and Caicos Islands marriage regulations.
About Sun Charters
Captain David Douglas
David is the owner and skipper of Sun Charters and the Atabeyra. He originally built the boat as a freighter in 1990, refitting her as a charter yacht in 1997. Atabeyra kept the island stocked with rum during the Haitian embargo of the early 1990s and traded fruits and vegetables from Hispaniola through a farmers market that once operated in central Providenciales. She is now a classic sailing yacht offering all comers access to the Caicos Cays and secluded beaches of the Turks and Caicos.
The good ship Atabeyra (also spelled as Attabeira or Atabey) is named after the supreme mother goddess of the Taíno people, the first-known inhabitants of the Turks and Caicos Islands, Bahamas, and other regional islands. Not much is known about these pre-Columbian peoples, and not much evidence has been left behind. It’s thought that they arrived to the archipelago as early as 700 AD.
Guest Meeting Location
Sun Charters and the Atabeyra operates out of Leeward on the eastern side of Providenciales. Meeting time varies by charter.
Located at Blue Haven Marina
The luxury Blue Haven Marina is located at the beautiful Leeward Going Through channel off the east end of Providenciales. This extensive complex offers the full range of amenities, including fuel, water, and electricity services, restaurants, a market grocery store, and concierge services, along with the onsite resort. Yachts up to 220 feet (67 m) can be accommodated.