Adam

I recently purchased a Beneteau 45 from Castaways Marina in April 2024. I am no stranger to the boating community, having operated and owned various boats since 1981. As an attorney, I represented several boating businesses and marinas, so I understand the business from both sides. My first experience with Castaways was at the 2024 New York boat show where I met Chris and his daughter on the boat that I would eventually purchase. Ironically, at the time that I saw the Beneteau 45, which I liked, I did not think it was the right size boat for me as I was looking at larger ones. Chris and I stayed in touch until the time of the Palm Beach boat show in Florida. After not finding a boat at the show, I decided to purchase the Beneteau 45 from Castaways. Prior to that, I had read some of the negative reviews of Castaway and it did concern me but nevertheless I went forward with the purchase. Chris and his staff put everything together quickly and correctly [contracts, insurance, federal registration etc.] so that I could close on the boat within 10 days. At the closing in April, I met Bill, who is the owner of Castaways; he introduced himself and told me that this is not the end of the relationship and only the beginning. I had wondered whether this was going to be a good relationship. So here has been my experience since April 24. In order to deliver the boat, there were a number of things that needed to be done by the yard which were done both quickly and professionally. I got to know the rest of the staff at the yard including Joe and Tom and from my experience these were seasoned well informed technicians who knew their business and trade and were able to address teething issues of a new boat [some of them were on me because the electronics were above my pay grade!] with dispatch. As for Bill and Chris, they spent many hours with me because both of them [Chris was the Coast Guard Captain] had to certify me to my insurance company because this boat was more than 12 feet larger than anything that I was able to establish that I owned in the past even though I operated boats much larger than the boat that I purchased [I had recently made an ocean sail on a Jenneau 54 from BVI to Annapolis with college roommate]. A real friendship began with both Chris and Bill as they spent many hours with me for my certification, which happened in June. Whenever I was unable to figure something out while underway, either Chris or Bill was only a phone call away and they would walk me through the solution [usually locating the correct breaker on a French boat] that I needed to correct. Anything that I needed to do on my boat they were there to address and get it resolved quickly. When I moved the boat near my home across the sound to Long Island, if anything needed to be looked at, they would take a service boat across the Sound to address the concern at my boat’s home port. In terms of service, I could only say the most positive things about Castaways and its staff. I would recommend Castaways to anyone thinking of purchasing a boat or docking it at their facility which is first class. Even the food at their restaurant was good. My earlier concern about doing business with Castaways based upon other reviews was unfounded and the experience is similar to dealing with the service center of a luxury automobile dealer…one that you really like!!