Canada built, U.S. documented. Jones Act MARAD waiver. What I’m asking about is an opinion on day or weekly rate for cruise type charter, taking people out and back for work related projects.
It seems you are not asking about fishing charter work or pleasure charter work? But supporting a bushiness that needs people moved to a work site and back? Chartering for sport fishing or pleasure cruising has been well covered by other posters, no need to add my $0.02 on that subject.
But if I read your post correctly this is a support business you are looking to start. That's another animal all together. Without any idea of what that work will be and for whom it's impossible to suggest a meaningful rate.
In your shoes I'd do a first pass at a business plan to come up with a rate then approach the business owner to discuss.
Some of the items I'd put in my first draft business plan would be:
- What I need to earn.
- Moorage.
- Maintenance and repairs.
- Fuel.
- Food. Will you be feeding your passengers? I would not allow booze in a working situation.
- Insurance.
- Income taxes.
- Business taxes.
If your boat will continue to be your personal pleasure boat as well then some of those costs will be shared between business and personal use.
It's damned hard to charge enough $$$ to make a living with a boat.
And probably the last job of my career.
I've worked on the water my entire career and the best way I've seen to make a living with a boat is to work on someone else's boat and draw a pay check. Of course there are exceptions, one being commercial fishing.
Taking a stab at it and making some wild assumptions about what you have in mind I'd expect my weekly rate for myself and my boat to be somewhere north of $6,000 for a 7 day charter before fuel and food. At that rate I would expect to pocket mid to low blue collar wages after expenses
IF everything went well. It's pointless show my arithmetic because I have to guess at so many parameters. And I suspect my costs are higher than yours because of where I live and boat.
An analogy I'll draw is employer owned vehicles vs worker owned for company errands. Time was when my employer owned and maintained cars and trucks for us to use. Then they decided to have us use our cars and trucks. They paid a rate of $0.50 / mile which back then, many years ago, seemed a good deal to some of my co-workers. I took the opposite view thinking that my employer was looking for the good deal. Pushing all of the costs and risks onto us for a rate that was less than what they knew it costs to own, support and run a vehicle. That's a long winded way of setting up for a question. Why does this business that approached you want to use your boat rather than a boat they own, support and pay the wages for?