About Yacht Away Now
Luxury private yacht charters from St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg's Premier Charter Experience
Yacht Away Now is a St. Petersburg-based curated platform of premium private yachts. We started with one boat, our flagship 52ft Marquis Flybridge, and we are growing the same way: one hand-picked vessel at a time, only from owners who hold themselves to the same standard. Sunset cruises, bachelorette weekends, overnight Gulf Coast charters, all aboard a yacht we would put our own name on.
Yacht Away Now was founded by Captain Josh Wilson, a USCG-licensed Master 100-ton captain with more than a decade on Gulf Coast waters. Josh still runs charters himself, to the same standard he holds every captain in the fleet to.
52ft Marquis Flybridge
3 levels, 1,200 sq ft cabin, 800+ sq ft outdoor deck. Accommodates up to 13 guests in style.
Professional Crew
Experienced captain and crew included with every charter. Your safety and enjoyment are our top priority.
Bahamas Capable
600-mile range with high output 1320hp engines. The Keys and Bahamas are a weekend adventure away.
Premium Amenities
Premium high-quality stereo & Starlink WiFi, spacious accommodations, and a fully equipped vessel for any celebration.
How It All Started
Our founder, Josh Wilson, grew up on the waters of Florida's Gulf Coast. Weekends meant fishing trips with his father, afternoons spent exploring barrier islands by boat, and long summers where the horizon line felt like the edge of the world. That love for the water never faded.
After years in the marine industry, our founder saw a gap in the Tampa Bay charter market. Most operations treated guests like numbers, rotating passengers through cookie-cutter tours on crowded party boats with little regard for the trip itself. There was no real premium option.
So he started with one yacht. A 52ft Marquis Flybridge, hand-selected for its three decks of space, its 600-mile range, and the kind of presence that makes a sunset cruise feel like an event. The goal was not to scale fast. It was to learn how to run this the right way, charter by charter, guest by guest.
That's still the foundation. But the vision goes further. Yacht Away Now is becoming a platform: a hand-picked collection of premium yachts from owners who care about what they are handing their guests. Owners who want their vessel to be a destination, not a commodity.
This is not a directory. This is not a marketplace. There are no jet skis, no pontoons, no rentals-by-the-hour mixed in. Every vessel on Yacht Away Now is private, premium, and run to the same standard our founder set on day one, because that is the only kind of yacht we will add. If you're an owner who shares that bar, we want to talk.
Today we operate from St. Petersburg, Florida, serving guests from across Tampa Bay and beyond. Whether you're a couple celebrating an anniversary, a group marking a milestone birthday, or an owner exploring what your yacht could become, the promise is the same one our founder made on day one.
Our Mission & Values
Every decision we make comes back to one question: will this make our guests' experience better?
Excellence, Not Volume
We run two yachts, not a fleet. That means we never cut corners, never double-book, and never treat a charter as routine. Every trip gets our full attention.
People Over Profits
We have turned down bookings that were not the right fit and spent hours helping guests plan the perfect itinerary. Relationships matter more than revenue.
Safety First, Always
Our captain is USCG-licensed, our vessel is meticulously maintained, and we monitor conditions closely. A great experience starts with peace of mind.
Why St. Petersburg
There is a reason St. Petersburg is known as the Sunshine City. The city puts its average at 361 days of sunshine a year, and with some of the best waterways in the Southeast, it is a hard place to beat as a home port for a yacht charter.
From our marina, the entire Gulf Coast opens up. Head south and you reach the white sand beaches of Egmont Key and the protected waters of Terra Ceia Bay. Turn north and the Anclote Keys offer secluded anchorages surrounded by wildlife. Cross Tampa Bay and you are at the doorstep of Apollo Beach and the Manatee Viewing Center.
For longer voyages, our 600-mile range means the Florida Keys and the Bahamas are well within reach. St. Petersburg gives us calm inland waterways for sunset cruises and open Gulf water for offshore runs, all from a single departure point.
What Sets Us Apart
We are not a directory or a marketplace. We are a hand-picked collection of premium private yachts, and every boat on it is one we would step aboard ourselves.
The Standard, Not the Catalog
Marketplaces list everything: jet skis, pontoons, party barges, fishing skiffs, all mixed in. Every yacht on Yacht Away Now is picked by hand and run to a single standard. We do not carry commodity rentals, and we are not playing a volume game.
Truly Private Charters
When you book with Yacht Away Now, the entire yacht is yours. You will never share the deck with strangers or find yourself on a boat with 50 other passengers. The trip is built around your group, whether that is 2 people or 13.
Custom Itineraries
Want to anchor at a sandbar for a swim, watch the sunset off Egmont Key, then cruise past the Skyway Bridge lit up at night? We will make it happen. Every charter is planned around what you want to do, rather than a fixed route that runs the same way every day.
Owner-Operated, Not Outsourced
When you call or text, you reach our captain or someone on the crew, not a call center. The same goes for every yacht on the platform. We only work with owners who run their vessel like it is theirs, because it is. A marketplace listing cannot offer that kind of accountability.
Meet the Team
Our crew brings years of marine experience and a lot of local knowledge to every trip. Get to know the people who will be running your charter.
Meet the Full Team