Friday 10/10/18

When I got invited to a Bachelorette party (BP) in Miami this year, my planning mode kicked in immediately.  While I have been to Miami & South Beach many times in the past, the idea of renting our own boat to sail around Miami never crossed my mind.  But I was committed to making this the most fabulous BP ever, so I did some research and found Luis & Mabel at Sailing on Biscayne Bay.

The first thing I found out by going on their website was that their pricing was transparent.  I compared them with bunch of other boating companies and many of them require you to email for a quote.  Then I learned that their pricing was very reasonable!  We chose the Bachelorette Party package for $600 + tax & tip (4 hr sailing, a bottle of champagne and soft drinks plus cheese plate & snacks).  The only limitation with this company is that they only allow 6 people per boat.  So if you have a larger group, it might be worth it to email Luis & Mabel directly for other options.

Now onto the day of the event…we arrived at the marina for our 10am departure. After snapping some photos by the boat and reading the warning sign showing there are crocodiles in area 🐊 , we departed into the bay with Captain Leo.

They encouraged us to bring our own bottles so we did! We connected our phone to the Bose speaker and popped open a bottle of champagne to kick off the party.

We were there the day after hurricane Michael made landfall in west Florida, so we were very grateful for the beautiful sky & warm temperature. 

After sailing for 45 mins, we arrived about 50 yards from the sandbar.  Captain Leo told us to jump right in..except none of us can confidently swim that distance to the sandbar.  Luckily, they had noodles and snorkeling gears for us to take on the challenge.  The water was warm and calm but we did not get to see any marine life.

Once we got back on the boat, Captain Leo poured us some more champagne and we were on our way to the next destination!!!

===== Welcome to Paradise ====

It was hard to believe that it is a public island.  But given it was only accessible by boat, we were the only people there.  If you ignore the backdrop of Miami skyline, you’d think you are starting in Cast Away! 

Alan delivered us a bottle of champagne so we can toast on the beach.

We explored this tiny island leisurely and even did some cleanup by collecting broken beer bottle glasses we found scattering around. After some drinking, laughing, and jumping, it was time to go. We said goodbye to the oasis and swam back to the boat.

Once we got back on the boat, there was a surprise for the bride to be - Captain Leo prepared a cheese plate with grapes and brought out bachelorette party items for us to take photos in.

It was all fun and game until we saw a patch of cloud approaching us.  “We are headed for the storm…" said Captain Leo. 

Captain Leo steered us back to shore safely in the midst of heavy rain and high winds…and here is a photo to prove it! We had a wonderful time sailing with Leo. Make sure you book with Luis & Mabel for your next special occasion!!