to sailing yachts, including monohulls and catamarans. Bareboat hire has become increasingly common since the mid-1990s and in particular since the early 2000s. There has been increasing demand for yacht vacations and many experienced and semi-experienced ‘yachties’ now consider it easier and cheaper to hire a bareboat, rather than own their own yacht. While both the international leisure travel industry (particularly outdoor activities based vacations) and the boating industry have boomed in the last decade, so too has the bareboat charter industry which incorporates both of these pursuits. Bareboat chartering is extremely common in Caribbean islands such as the British Virgin Islands. In the USA there is an additional legal distinction with regard to bareboat versus for hire, or "skippered" charters. When persons pool their finances to bareboat so that the qualified master among them may skipper for the group, even though the master is not ostensibly a paid skipper, he/she now takes on the legal responsibilities of one. This can have far-reaching consequences in the event of negative occurrences at sea. See also Yacht charter broker Luxury yachts Yacht charter Skippered charter Bareboating Dry lease References Further reading External links "Ruling could end sweet 'bare-boat' deals", SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, November 10, 2004 Yachting Ship chartering Leasing