How much money does Active Captain save you each year?

[O C Diver]

With the on going discussion about Active Captain on another thread, I thought it might be interesting to see what people think they save using it. Clearly some of the information can be sourced elsewhere, but here would be some areas that it might help you save money:
Anchorages and free docks as opposed to always staying in the marina
Fuel pricing comparison
Transient dockage pricing
Listing of boatyards when away from home for emergency services

While it varies from year to year, I'm sure my savings are in the hundreds of dollars per year.

Ted

 

[Northern Spy]

No money. Not big in my area. I tried. I was an early adopter and put in reviews years ago. Now I can log in and read my own reviews. ?

 

[kthoennes]

No money here, but then we're trapped above the first dam on the Missouri River with only two marinas on the body of water, so not much need for A/C. On the other hand in a few days we're leaving for a nine day charter in the Straits of Georgia and Juan de Fuca. I dug out my MarinaLife membership and they have a ton of marina and fuel discounts in the Vancouver/Nanaimo area. I was really surprised. I got that MarinaLife membership last summer just for our run from Newport to Albany and then thought I'd let it expire, but I renewed just to keep the magazine coming really. It never occurred to me that it would be useful for our annual charters too, but it looks like we'll save a pile of money as we marina-hop in BC.

 

[twistedtree]

It doesn't save me any money, but I still like it and find it very useful. The review are good, as is the general info about anchorages, marinas, inlet info, etc. I almost never use printed cruising guides anymore.

Fuel pricing and dockage rates I find to be completely useless. They are far enough out of date frequently enough that I completely ignore them. I know Jeff has been making efforts to improve this, but I have mentally written it off - at least for now.

 

[drb1025]

It hasn't saved me any money, but the reviews have steered me away from anchorages that I may have visited and been unsatisfied with in some respect, had I not read them.

 

[go-planing]

Not a penny. Active Captain actually places a cost burden on non-users who in effect, are forced to subsidize the business without their consent. Advertising spent with Active Captain is paid for by end users...the boating public. Likewise if marinas are engaged with Active Captain, their expenditures are passed along to the end user...the boater.

 

[ksanders]

Not a penny. Active Captain actually places a cost burden on non-users who in effect, are forced to subsidize the business without their consent. Advertising spent with Active Captain is paid for by end users...the boating public. Likewise if marinas are engaged with Active Captain, their expenditures are passed along to the end user...the boater.

Hmmm...

Technically you are correct in a way, since any money a marina for example pays to AC is money they need to recover from their customers.

But... You could say the same thing about any advertising, and AC is in fact an advertising media. Money paid out in advertising is a business expense that needs to be recovered.

But, from a business standpoint your assumption that if the marina didn't advertise (via AC or other venues) they would charge less is incorrect. The price a business charges for an item or service is what customers are willing to pay, regardless to some extent the cost of the item or service.

 

[FlyWright]

It hasn't saved me a dime. It seems there's not much of a following for it here on the west coast. Maybe it's more popular on the east coast.

Years ago I posted a few reports and reviews but seldom saw updates that were useful. Like TT, I've written it off as a tool for my purposes. I prefer the advise from my imaginary friends here on TF.

YMMV.

 

[psneeld]

Saves me a lot of time having a lot of boating info together where I can use it quickly.

I like that it will warn me of hazards as I drone along the ICW....that alone could equate to hundreds of dollars saved in time to repairs.

I have also gone to nice marinas, that are less expensive and more fun because where they are than I would have with my written guides...based on current and detailed descriptions of how to navigate there.

I fail to see how this is any different than any other waterway guide , electronic or paper......only 100 times better and free to me.

So talking to my marina manager...he agrees that it it worth 10X most other advertising...as more people here are using it than anything else.

My slip costs have not gone up..in fact they have gone down since Active Captain has come out.

I can't say there is a direct connection...anymore than someone can say it has driven UP costs.

 

[dhays]

It has not saved me any money. It has enriched my boating experience however by being able to get information about places that I might wish to visit. The real value for me personally with AC has been the reviews. I have written reviews and added comments about areas in Puget Sound as a way of passing on what I hope is useful information to fellow boaters.

 

[Steve]

I don't know that it has saved me money, I do use it a lot for trip planning, using the charts , satellite pictures and reviews of anchorages and marinas.
I think it is a very useful resource.

 

[angus99]

It's probably cost me money based on all the Defender stuff I've bought, but then how much would that gear have cost me absent the AC discount?

I find the notion that non-users subsidize AC through higher advertising costs absurd. Companies budget for ads each year and spend that money where they think it'll do them the most good. Which member of the Olympic basketball team do you blame for the cost of your Nikes?

 

[Bacchus]

Don't feel like it saves me anything....
We have been happy w reviews & others opinions.
Lately had an issue as the free app used on tablet won't show updated data one whole tile is now not accessible. AC says use another app...but I see others are now not free...at least what I've been able to research while cruising. Sorry I updated data at least before I had access to prior reviews now while map is gone.
What app are others using on Android tablets/ phones to access AC?
Any suggestions re free apps?
We cruise once / summer find it helpful but not worth much if I have to pay for access.

 

[drb1025]

"I find the notion that non-users subsidize AC through higher advertising costs absurd. Companies budget for ads each year and spend that money where they think it'll do them the most good."
-----------

Exactly!

 

[cardude01]

It saved me some money on my trip from FL to Texas. Got a deal on some diesel I think. Saved a bit on some marinas. Not a huge amount.

It was more of a convenience thing for me, being able to look everything up in one easy format. I used it constantly because I was a new boater and didn't know squat (still don't!). It was so nice to have the names of all the bridges as you came up to them so I could call them, and the anchorage info was a lifesaver for me since I would't know a good spot from a certain death hole. ?

 

[CPseudonym]

I tried it a couple times but echo the other left coasters. The problem here really is the lack of an inter coastal waterway. West coasters "IF THEY" cruise at all tend to spoke and hub cruise meaning essentially to swap marinas and cruise from there. Most don't do that though.

Looked like a great tool for east coasters who seem to travel in larger herds in predominantly calmer waters than us out west.

I read Fly and Spy's reviews too. Sorry guys but they didn't help much

 

[twistedtree]

Like TT, I've written it off as a tool for my purposes.

Just to clarify, the ONLY aspect of AC that I have written off is the fuel and dockage pricing info. That aside, I use AC all the time and find it indispensable.

 

[dhays]

Don't feel like it saves me anything....
We have been happy w reviews & others opinions.
Lately had an issue as the free app used on tablet won't show updated data one whole tile is now not accessible. AC says use another app...but I see others are now not free...at least what I've been able to research while cruising. Sorry I updated data at least before I had access to prior reviews now while map is gone.
What app are others using on Android tablets/ phones to access AC?
Any suggestions re free apps?
We cruise once / summer find it helpful but not worth much if I have to pay for access.

I am still trying to figure it all out with the iPad. My iPad is the cheap variety with no gps and no cell connection. I can't use the AC website with it because the iPad lacks flash support. I am sure that there are ways around it but I haven't pursued it to actively. I didn't bring my laptop this trip so am limited to Android phone and iPad.

 

[FlyWright]

Just to clarify, the ONLY aspect of AC that I have written off is the fuel and dockage pricing info. That aside, I use AC all the time and find it indispensable.

Thanks for clarifying. Didn't mean to misrepresent, but when I read it back...

 

[hmason]

I use AC extensively. We have anchored in numerous places that I did not know of and thus saved marina costs. I also search fuel prices and have found that even if out of date, I'm guided to the place that is likely the best price. A simple phone call gets me the current price. Fuel prices can change daily so the phone call is mandatory. I have also been to marinas that offer an AC discount. The Defender offers are, on occasion, just what I need. Yes, I've saved a bunch of money.

I can't speak to the west coast but if you are a full time cruiser on the east coast and you're not saving money then you are not using AC to its full potential.

 

[DavidM]

You guys are all missing the point of Active Captain. Yes, AC does save me some money, but that is irrelevant.


When we started long range cruising a hundred years ago, before wifi when cell phones were analog, we got our cruising information from: Captain Bob (pretty good along the ICW), cruising guides (some good, some not so good) and word of mouth from a few cruisers we passed in the night.


Today we get that information, mostly from cruisers but now in the thousands, through Active Captain. One simple example: You are cruising down the ICW in a somewhat remote area. Your fuel tank is getting low. Before I would look up marinas in a cruising guide, call them (if they answered) to see if they had fuel and then fuel up. Today I just look at AC, find the marinas and yards with fuel along the way and (sometimes) get pricing information. It is now much simpler and more reliable with AC data.


So don't focus on how much money AC has saved you. Focus on the value it brings to you.


David

 

[fryedaze]

Just finished 13 months and over 6000 miles of cruising. AC assisted in planning and picking cheaper marinas with discounts indicated on AC. I planned fuel stops based on AC pricing data. Going forward it will save me on cruising guides that I probably wont buy. Putting a figure on what it saved us is tuff. A better question is whats it worth to you if you had to buy it. I would gladly pay $100/year when actively cruising for the service. That would be a good question for the poll. Would you pay a fee for the service?

 

[HenryD]

Ted - interesting question. I do not have a way to quantify the answer. I do know I used Active Captain and Waterway Guide to select where I took in fuel. Top Rack in VA and then Winter Harbor in NY - some of the best prices I could find. When I get south of Chicago, I will take on another load of fuel and will be checking AC for pricing.
We do not anchor without at least seeing if others have written a review on the area. For us, the Active Captain is another reference along with Skipper Bob for travel.
On marinas, I was disappointed in the rating or tagging of marinas as 1st Choice- I learned these are not the highest rated but those that participate with Active Captain. We have had good and bad results there.

I like having the anchorages, marinas, hazards on my chartplotters and ipad.

I appreciate what Jeff has done in developing AC and that he has moved the industry forward. The eCards, Locations, and messaging have some improvements coming that will make it work easier.

 

[Panacea123]

With the on going discussion about Active Captain on another thread, I thought it might be interesting to see what people think they save using it. Clearly some of the information can be sourced elsewhere, but here would be some areas that it might help you save money:
Anchorages and free docks as opposed to always staying in the marina
Fuel pricing comparison
Transient dockage pricing
Listing of boatyards when away from home for emergency services

While it varies from year to year, I'm sure my savings are in the hundreds of dollars per year.

Ted

Does it save me money? Well don't know, I've never hit an obstruction listed, never gone aground where listed, never had a bad thing happened by watching the hazards listed.
Never saved money by which laundry to choose, but damn glad to have info on where they are! As well as the services and amenities listed so I know what to expect, replaced most of my cruising guides 90%
This is an interactive program and I'm embarrassed to say I have not put in my fair share of input

In short Active Captian is one of the most useful cruising tools ever developed, with a wealth of information that can not be duplicated in printed media.

Jeff, if your reading this hats off too you, great job, keep up the good work!

Money wise it Hey it's free. But peronally I'd pay for it! If this is a back door survey, Yes I'd pay a reasonable amount per month, worth every penny!
Gerry
Hope to see all of you on the water!

 

[Panacea123]

With the on going discussion about Active Captain on another thread, I thought it might be interesting to see what people think they save using it. Clearly some of the information can be sourced elsewhere, but here would be some areas that it might help you save money:
Anchorages and free docks as opposed to always staying in the marina
Fuel pricing comparison
Transient dockage pricing
Listing of boatyards when away from home for emergency services

While it varies from year to year, I'm sure my savings are in the hundreds of dollars per year.

Ted

Not a penny. Active Captain actually places a cost burden on non-users who in effect, are forced to subsidize the business without their consent. Advertising spent with Active Captain is paid for by end users...the boating public. Likewise if marinas are engaged with Active Captain, their expenditures are passed along to the end user...the boater.

It's called advertising
Every business does it
Business 101
And provides a valuable service to the cruising community>
Have you ever left the dock?

 

[Jeffrey S]

Great comments - fun to read.

The goal of ActiveCaptain was to make your cruising adventures safer and more enjoyable. If it saves money along the way, so much the better.

There will never be a fee for using it as long as I'm the one making the decisions. I can't imagine anyone else changing that either.

 

[Steve]

I use MX Mariner on my Samsung Galaxy Active Captain markers and comments/notes are overlaid. The chart regions are downloaded onto a chip. It works fine so far.

 

[twistedtree]

You guys are all missing the point of Active Captain. Yes, AC does save me some money, but that is irrelevant.


When we started long range cruising a hundred years ago, before wifi when cell phones were analog, we got our cruising information from: Captain Bob (pretty good along the ICW), cruising guides (some good, some not so good) and word of mouth from a few cruisers we passed in the night.


Today we get that information, mostly from cruisers but now in the thousands, through Active Captain. One simple example: You are cruising down the ICW in a somewhat remote area. Your fuel tank is getting low. Before I would look up marinas in a cruising guide, call them (if they answered) to see if they had fuel and then fuel up. Today I just look at AC, find the marinas and yards with fuel along the way and (sometimes) get pricing information. It is now much simpler and more reliable with AC data.


So don't focus on how much money AC has saved you. Focus on the value it brings to you.


David

Thanks Dave, you nailed it. That's what it's all about.

 

[twistedtree]

I can't speak to the west coast but if you are a full time cruiser on the east coast and you're not saving money then you are not using AC to its full potential.

I've been using it on the west coast (lower 48, BC, and AK) for the past two years and find it just as helpful as on the east coast. There aren't 5000 reviews for each marina, but after a small handful the additional reviews are of very rapidly declining value.

 

[rclarke246]

We are (still) new to boating and AC was mentioned to us in a navigation class back in 2012 in Annapolis, when we bought our first and only boat. That little tip ranks up there with the best we've ever gotten.

It is clearly our #1 resource when we cruise. Since we don't anchor often we usually switch that info off, but the hazards, local info., and marina info is essential!

Jeff & Karen, along with the thousands of commenters, have really helped us with all the easily accessed information!

Right, as others have mentioned, don't miss the point. It's not about savings to us, but rather about safe and knowledgable boating- which we find invaluable. We need all the help we can get and AC provides us with abundance.

AC is a great product! Thank you!