Who would’ve thought a fish could create such havoc? And what lousy timing, just as boating season is about to begin.

If you saw the front page of the Chicago Tribune on March 2^nd, you probably noticed the big headline “Asian carp fight could shut down tour boats.” Not the best of news for Chicago charter boats or Chicago tourism.

Without Chicago River access, we lose Chicago’s fabulous narrated architectural tours, the fun, commuter-friendly water taxis and a number of other Chicago tour boats. This would make it very tough on our local economy since so many vendors depend on Chicago River access during the summer season.

Our charters cruise Lake Michigan so we’re not affected by the river traffic bans…. other than getting our boats in and out at the beginning and end of each season. Our Gypsy Spirit does occasional Chicago lake and river charters but we’re a lake charter company, spending the season out on Lake Michigan.

Some of our colleagues, however, will suffer tremendously without Chicago River access. We don’t want to see this happen.

For the sake of our city, our business community and our all-too-brief summer tourism season, we hope the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers takes local business owners into consideration when they make their recommendations later this month. Chicago doesn’t need to lose more jobs or close any more small businesses.

Carpe diem. Carpe da carp.

We’d love your feedback!

And boy are we ever ready to get back on Lake Michigan.

Crazy. There’s snow in Chicago. But, spring is only a few weeks away. 

Regardless, Joe and I are busy planning all sorts of fun new cruises for the upcoming season. By next week, we will be in the boat yard getting our yachts ready for launch. Spiffin’ up the Free Spirit and Gypsy Spirit so they’re perfect for your special event and locking in our slips at Burnham Harbor.

We can’t wait to “Get Your Party Started!”

Our private charter calendar is already filling up with wedding celebrations, birthday bashes, graduation gatherings, post prom cruises, corporate luncheons, company outings and more. It looks like it’s going to be a fabulous boating season!

We’re planning a number of open cruises this year, starting with our 2nd Annual Mother’s Day Cruise on Sunday, May 9^th. So don’t forget to bookmark our events calendar to make sure you don’t miss anything.

And if you friend us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, you’ll be among the first to learn about upcoming cruise parties and any specials we might offer.

Stay tuned!  The Free Spirit and Gypsy Spirit will be in Burnham Harbor around the beginning of April. Less than two months away.

All of us at Free Spirit Yacht Cruises are excited to share another fabulous yachting season with you.

Of course you are!

Valentine’s Day is over. Days are getting longer…it’s now light till 5:30p. And it’s only a matter of a few months before winter is a distant memory.

Here at Free Spirit Yacht Cruises, we’re thinking (what else!) CRUISES. Specifically Mother’s Day cruises. Not just cause we love our moms, but we know how hard it is to find something special to do that mom will really enjoy.

That’s why we’re already booking reservations for our 2^nd Annual Mother’s Day Cruise, which falls on Sunday, May 9^th this year.

Three hours relaxing on our cozy and inviting Free Spirit luxury yacht. Mimosas. Bloody Marys. Mouthwatering brunch buffet.

What better way to tell mom how much you love her than spending time together cruising Lake Michigan. It’s a perfect family afternoon.

Tickets go quickly so if you’re interested, don’t wait to reserve yours.

Free Spirit Yacht Cruises Mother’s Day Cruise

Chicago’s most inviting yachts!

(708) 361-2220

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Puttin’ around the Marco waterways, and all you feel is the warm sun melting your stress away, the dazzling water gently motioning underneath and an innate calmness from being around water.

And then you see “No Wake.” What does that mean? In boating terms, “slow down”.  But it could certainly apply to more than your speed on the water.

Being in Marco Island (sometimes referred to as “God’s Waiting Room”) put’s a totally different perspective on life. Every day we hear pearls of wisdom like “You can’t buy time”…. “Time and tide waits for no man”….. “You can’t roller skate to heaven with your money”….and so on.

The message is always the same though the words may differ. Slow down and enjoy yourself. Take the time to note the good things in your life. Sometimes we take them for granted.

We really enjoy meeting people, being on the water, and sharing special moments. This is how we have fun.  But we always find great pleasure in seeing other people slow down and relax as well. That’s why we love seeing our clients enjoying time with their friends and family when they’re on a charter with us.

We hope you’ll keep Free Spirit Yacht Cruises in mind for celebrating the good times in your life.

Much as we miss being out on our yachts on Lake Michigan, winter is the time when Captain Joe and I get time to work on planning fun events for you.

We are saying “Au Revoir,” “Ciao,” “Adios,” and “Good bye” to 2009!  Amen to 2010!  Our Zen is, “2010 will be better than it has been.”

Seems so, considering I just got off the phone with a church group that booked a Saturday night fireworks cruise in July aboard the Free Spirit.   A great way to start out the New Year.

All of us at Free Spirit Yacht Cruises are wishing you a Happy New Year!  And can’t wait to sea you next year.

We want to wish you a wonderful Happy Holiday – filled with joy, peace, health and all good things for you and your family.

As my sister-in-law Dawn, put it, FUN is what we had…for ten glorious, sun-drenched days!  

Thanks to Joe’s parents, Rich and Judy (the original owners of Free Spirit Cruises) we celebrated Judy’s birthday on a fabulous Caribbean cruise. Talk about dream vacation!

I was so excited that I didn’t sleep for the first three days. There was always something happening on board the ship:  dancing, rock climbing, shows, gambling and of course all the food you could eat! 

Every day, whether we stopped at a port or were at sea, we all met up in the dining room and shared stories, laughed, toasted and really got to enjoy each other.

I was able to meet and spend time with Joe’s siblings and spouses…a rare opportunity since we live in Chicago and they’re in Florida and Idaho. We had such a good time together that we’re planning to do it more often. Thanks to Deborah, we’ve all been invited to Idaho next Thanksgiving. I might even try skiing….on snow!

While it may seem a stretch to compare a ten-day Caribbean cruise to a three-hour yacht charter on Lake Michigan, if you’re talking about celebrating important occasions, it’s one and the same.

There’s something very special about gathering a group of friends or family members on a yacht. Whether you’re celebrating a wedding, birthday, anniversary or reunion, an afternoon or evening spent laughing and relaxing on Lake Michigan makes for magical memories.

Joe and I aren’t the only ones who will tell you that. Here’s a quote from the Sertoma organization who sailed with us in July 2008:

If you missed our 40th anniversary party – you “missed the boat.”  It was a beautiful night – the lake was perfect - food and hors d’oeuvres were scrumptious….

Frank J. Tomecek, Chicago Ridge

So if you’ve been kicking around the idea of celebrating your special event on a private yacht charter, call us to lock in a date. We’re already booking into 2011. 

With all the buzz about social media (which we use and find extremely valuable), there’s still nothing better than face-to-face networking. 

This past Thursday, we attended the Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce (we’re members) LPBDI Networking Extravaganza at Goose Island BrewPub. The place was rocking with energy and people.

Cleverly we were guided into small groups where a facilitator had each of us share info about our business. What a great way to get everybody comfortable mixing and mingling the rest of the evening.  So much so that Joe was cruising around the room making connections (he’s quite the networker…and hard to miss in his orange Hawaiian shirt!)

From the interior designer to the international insurance company agent, I enjoyed meeting people from a wide variety of business and industries. 

While speaking with one man, who had recently moved to Chicago, we discovered he had cruised aboard the Gypsy Spirit this past summer.  Now we are connected on LinkedIn and he mentioned, “I will definitely be on one of your boats again during the summer.” Now that’s what I call a terrific way to build relationships via networking.

Speaking of business, have you ever thought of starting your own? Dream of being an entrepreneur but need a push in the right direction? Then this is for you. Start Up! Chicago is an excellent program to get you on track. This ten-week course will take you step-by-step through the process to help make your dream a reality.

Even though I had my own business for ten years (Angela’s Charter Service), I took Start Up! Chicago a few years ago because I knew we would be merging with Free Spirit Yacht Cruises. I found the program extremely valuable and came away with the knowledge that whether you’re family-owned yacht charter company or a large manufacturer of widgets, you need a plan.

We all need to deal with the day-to-day operations, and ultimately, the sale of our product or service. Start Up! Chicago will help you in developing and executing your plan.

Here’s to living your dream!

Are you starting to feel SAD?  Even though the weather has been nice the past couple of weeks, it’s dark by 5:00pm, Christmas decorations are popping up and there are a lot of bare trees…winter is inevitably on her way!

Just because Chicago’s yacht charter season is over, doesn’t mean you have to quit cruising.   Joe and I are starting winter off on a family cruise celebrating Joe’s Mom’s Birthday; cruising through paradise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Jewel of the Sea.  The anticipation of experiencing exotic places like Columbia, Panama and Costa Rica is a great escape in itself!  Thanks Judy!

Additionally, we would like to introduce a good friend of ours that is a yacht charter broker specializing in customized private charters in the Caribbean and BVI.  Passionate about sailing, Dennis Dori, aka Capt. Denny, is in the Virgin Islands inspecting a variety of yachts for you to charter.

Capt. Denny is also participating in fun social events, creating great opportunities for the brokers and crews to spend some quality time together.   Joe and I attended this boat show a few years back and it was incredibly fun and the people are awesome!

Thank you for choosing Free Spirit Yacht Cruises for your Chicago charters and keep on cruising this winter.