The one charter business which immediately pops to mind is DoubleHeader which runs out of Sapphire. They have an excellent catch reputation and from all accounts offer a splendid trip. If you can't find people to share you might contact them and see if they have any inquiries from interested parties looking to split the cost.

www.doubleheadersportfishing.net/

I would double that recommendation (pun intended). They have multiple boats of different sizes so they can fit the trip to your needs.

DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing wiht Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

jmack wrote:
DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing wiht Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

I'm not questioning you just for the heck of it as I've no stake in DH's operation but when you say, "half the price and twice the fun" does that mean that you went with both in order to make that comparison? Just curious!

STT Resident wrote:
[quote=jmack]
DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing with Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

I'm not questioning you just for the heck of it as I've no stake in DH's operation but when you say, "half the price and twice the fun" does that mean that you went with both in order to make that comparison? Just curious!

Did both. DoubleHeader when my son was 7 and Swashbucklin last year when he was 10. My son caught the only fish with DoubleHeader out of 4 guys...with Swashbucklin caught 12...kept 3 to eat on the grill.

With DoubleHeader it was $800 plus tip but with Swashbucklin it was $300 plus a really big tip because Rick was great.

STT Resident wrote:
[quote=jmack]
DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing wiht Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

I'm not questioning you just for the heck of it as I've no stake in DH's operation but when you say, "half the price and twice the fun" does that mean that you went with both in order to make that comparison? Just curious!

jmack: Thanks for taking the time to post the video and facts and figures about your experience. Constructive opinions like yours are always helpful when planning family activities.

STT: Perhaps you'd like to back-up your recommendation with some first -hand info? Since you live on STT, should we assume that you frequently fish with them?

blu4u wrote: STT: Perhaps you'd like to back-up your recommendation with some first -hand info? Since you live on STT, should we assume that you frequently fish with them?

In this particular instance my recommendation of DoubleHeader's operation is based on the following:

1. Several years of reading many customer reviews.
2. Several years of hearing first-hand reviews from many visitors who've shared their experiences.
3. Several years of hearing first hand recommendations from local fishermen.
4. Getting to know several of DoubleHeader's employees over several years.

No, there is no assumption to be made about my personal experience fishing with them. Although I've enjoyed many a local fishing excursion over many years, the old bones now just don't work too well at keeping the aging body stabilized in rough seas. C'est la vie. My apologies if you feel that my"credentials" for recommending them are lacking. What suggestions do you have?

None. I don't participate in the practice of reccomending/defending "friends" when I have limited knowledge of the service....

Mixed Bag and Double Header are the most reputable in my opinion. People have great things to say about their service and overall experience. The best part is that they catch fish. Double Header has the best captains. I live on St. John and get alot of good feedback about them.

blu4u wrote:
None. I don't participate in the practice of reccomending/defending "friends" when I have limited knowledge of the service....

It would really behoove you to stop acting the village idiot with your persistent and totally unwarranted innuendoes. My island recommendations have never and will never be based on any "friendship" connections. Trust me or not, I have several friends in many businesses here but there are a few (both owners and employees) whose businesses I don't recommend because I don't feel they offer the consistency of good service which is pretty much a pre-requisite at least where my role as an island ambassador is concerned.

And before you even think about jumping on that last sentence with some sort of a caustic comment, I most certainly do in a sense consider myself an island ambassador. I've lived here now longer than I've lived anywhere else in my long life (22 years in the UK, 17 years in Connecticut and coming up 28 years now on St Thomas) and, despite enormous upheavals and some very major ups and down, I'm proud to be a resident of the USVI and promote it as a vacation destination, something I do out of love? but certainly nothing which reaps me any financial benefits!

This sort of an issue shouldn't even be addressed on a visitor's forum but you seem bound and determined to (for some reason which I've yet to figure out) niggle and kvetch at, and question everything I say of late. This needs to stop because it's not what the forum is all about. Whatever personal issue you have with me then keep it to a PM. Thanks.

jmack wrote:
DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing wiht Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

Thanks for sharing. The video is hilarious and your son is a very brave boy.

I have fished with Double Header and many of the other sport fishing boats here in STT - I recommend Double Header all the time because they do catch fish -- taught me some excellent techniques - their reputation is well deserved - they work hard at their job and maintain some clean and comfortable vessels. There are many locals here who haven't fished with them but still recommend them because of personal contacts with satisfied customers and many of us have eaten the results of their catch at our local restaurants who proudly boast "Double Header caught this fish today". It is a small island and people know who does a good job without having been aboard so a recommendation from a long time STT resident will always have merit. That is the nature of this forum -- to provide helpful information.

blu4u wrote:
[quote=jmack]
DoubleHeader is good but expensive. Had a blast with Captain Rick at Swashbucklin Tours last time we came down http://swashbucklintours.com Half the price and twice the fun.

Found the video of my son after fishing with Cptn Rick...kind of gross but he thought it was awesome. http://youtu.be/2V7AWDLVHCU

Thanks for sharing. The video is hilarious and your son is a very brave boy.

Thank blu! My son is fearless!

For everyone else...Doubleheader was not a bad experience...just pricey.

Our first time on STT the boys wanted to do some fishing. We were there to lay my mother-in-laws ashes to rest. She wanted to be in the waters of STT.

DoubleHeader is the most advertised on the island. Every hotel/villa/condo and paper/flyer you go to/read they are advertised. This is not a bad thing but you pay for the advertisement in the price.

The boat captain was good, young guy who knew the waters...we actually stayed on the water longer because he would not let us go back in without catching a fish. They just were not biting that day. Not Doubleheaders fault.

The last time we came down my cousin who captained her own boat on STT many years ago put us in touch with a fried of hers on the island that chartered 2 big boats. He wanted 1k to go fishing (it was a really big boat). Not wanting to spend that kind of money the fishing was was not on the top of the priority list for this trip.

After meeting with a local downtown and mentioning wanting to go fishing she recommended Swashbucklin and explained that Rick just recently moved to the island and isn't well know and gave us his card. After calling him and finding his cheap rate the fishing trip was back on. We did not much of an expectation for $300.

High level of service and not a touristy type of trip. Just raw fishing with the boys. He was great with my son since he has young ones. A real family man!

I recommend them for price and service. The captain is a family man trying to live the Island dream. Would rather put money is his pocket to pay the mortgage than the price of advertising for the big guys.

We are coming back down in June and will be doing another trip with Swashbucklin. Hopefully get in some snorkeling while out on the water.

I have yet to be dissapointed with a service on the island. Everyone is hard working and willing to do whatever it takes to make you happy and come back again...and again...and again.

""I Would rather put money is his pocket to pay the mortgage than the price of advertising for the big guys. ""

/quote
I would absolutely hesitate to call the Captains of the Double Header boats ""the Big Guys"" -- they are just regular folks!!!

exit zero wrote:
""I Would rather put money is his pocket to pay the mortgage than the price of advertising for the big guys. ""

/quote
I would absolutely hesitate to call the Captains of the Double Header boats ""the Big Guys"" -- they are just regular folks!!!

Brings to mind the same scenario when people say they'd rather "spend money locally" in explaining why, for instance, they don't utilize a rental company here such as Avis or Budget, as though those franchised operations were owned and operated by anyone other than locals! :S

Capt Rick here from Swashbucklin Tours. Thank you for recommending myself and DH. The crew of Double Header are some of the best in the world. I would and have many times recommended them to visitors and friends. Blue Fin II, Black Pearl, Marlin Prince, Abigail lll and About Time are some other really great charters here on St. Thomas. Everyone of those boats have had really great days, so my suggestion would be to try us all out. But you should visit some of the boats, meet the captain and crew and then decide before you go. Some charters are located in Red Hook and a couple in Sapphire. Swashbucklin Tours is located in Hull Bay and we look forward to meeting new friends and catching fish.
St. Thomas is the greatest and most fun place to fish in my opinion.
Thanks for reading and I wish all anglers and crew the Greatest Luck this year.

Tight lines my friends.

Capt Rick

Thanks for all the suggestions. I decided to go with Swashbucklin tours. I'm all setup for a trip on Feb 9th with Captain Rick. Here's hoping for great weather and lots of fish!

Roberre