Jaclyn Baumgarten’s happiest memories involve being out on the water. As a child, she spent summers boating in Fox Lake, Illinois, with her dad and brothers. As an adult, she’s turned boat access into a business—from little pontoons to luxury mega-yachts. The company she founded, Boatsetter, has been described as the AirBnb of boats.
At the top end, customers can spend $300,000 to charter a 164-foot Mondomarine super yacht for a 10-day sail among such Greek isles as Mykonos, Paros, Santorini and Sifnos. (The ship comes with a chef and masseuse.) $1,300 will get you four hours out on the water from Miami Beach in a 45-foot crewed yacht. At the more affordable end, you can spend $150 an hour for a cruise around Chicago’s Lake Michigan in summertime. “It’s one of the best cities in the US,” Baumgarten says. “But only for a few months a year.” She says boating can be for everyone, not just for those who own boats—a group that skews toward older men. Among her fastest-growing types of Boatsetter users are millennial women.
Baumgarten, 44, is based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, now, having lived in Argentina, Córdoba and Madrid in Spain, and Berlin. She thinks more Americans need to get out of their comfort zones and spend time abroad if they can. She’s frequently on the move between South Florida and Boatsetter’s offices in Seattle and Ibiza, Spain, as well as jetting around to meet investors in her company—one of which is Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. Baumgarten is a million miler on American Airlines. “This year, they’ve even met me at the gate to help guide me when there’s been a delay. American keep leveling up their support for their top customers, and I appreciate that,” she says. “Even when I’m going to Portugal, I’ll take an American Airlines flight with a transfer in Spain and backtrack back to Portugal because I’m so loyal.”
She spoke with Bloomberg before heading to the Miami Boat show, where yachts such as the 378-feet Ahpo will be on sale for $355 million. Here are her travel tips, just in time for you to start planning a spring break out on the water.
The best experience she’s had on a boat involved a karaoke machine.
With my work at Boatsetter, I have access to the most luxurious yachts and extravagant experiences. But if I’m being honest, my happiest memories on the water are grabbing a pontoon with eight of my friends on a weekend and heading to the sandbar in Fort Lauderdale. We’ll bring out a karaoke machine and roll out the mat and by the end of the day, everyone’s having a blast and singing to the point where people on other boats somehow make their way over to ours to join the party.
There are a few key ways for first-time boaters to see what all the fuss is about.
If you’re new to boats, stay near the shore, where you get the best views and the activities are prevalent. Most of all, be willing to get in the water. I think a lot of people are afraid to do that, but that’s part of the experience. Try anything from snorkeling, diving, water-skiing to lily pads (floating mats) out on the water. Lily pads are a must, they’re giant floats that can be the size of your boat. The one I have is 25 feet long, and I can have 10 people sitting on it in the water at the same time, and people can just lay out and enjoy their drinks right next to the boat.
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For a surfer experience without being a surfer, get a Radinn. It’s a giant electric jetboard you can take out into the ocean. It’s so big, you don’t need balance like a surfer to enjoy yourself. It’s perfect for beginners, and they can go more than 30 miles per hour. I just stand on it without moving, and it’s fine.
Bring ingredients for fresh cocktails aboard.
I always like to plan a signature cocktail for an outing, depending on who's coming out on the boat. But consider the motion of the boat; don’t make anything with too many steps. Palomas are easy to make, and I typically tend to lean toward tequila-based cocktails because they're easier. So I do a variety of margaritas, of course, and recently I've been playing with a bourbon blend with fig jam. I always bring fresh ingredients.
Madrid is her favorite European airport.
It’s super accessible. It’s got these beautiful high ceilings. If I'm going to Europe and I need a stopover, I will do it in Madrid, as opposed to Heathrow. There’s something special about it, like having a great memory of a childhood friend and you meet somebody who looks or sounds like them—and you automatically have this affinity toward them. That’s how I feel about Madrid, and the airport is just so peaceful and easy to navigate.
Ibiza is one of her biggest markets, but she prefers Mallorca.
It’s well known in Europe, but still an underrated gem for Americans. I especially love the north part of the island; it’s otherworldly. I love the mountainous terrain that goes right up to the ocean. It’s great because you can have a such a different experience, depending on where you go on the island. Palma is such a lively city, with cafes and cute shops and a nice marina like many cities out on the Med, but if you head outside the city, it’s a completely different experience. I rent a villa in Sóller on the northwest, and take a boat there once I’ve arrived on the island.
Pick a boutique hotel over a big chain.
I’m not into brands, I prefer little boutique spots when I’m traveling for work. I just stayed at the Hotel Sanders in Copenhagen and loved all the care and thought put into the design and the lighting. The hotel used a lot of neutral palettes and embodied the Danish concept of hygge: everything was so cozy. I need a super soft, flat pillow and smart lighting that puts you at ease immediately.
Don’t overpack.
I’m a carry-on person. I avoid checking luggage; it just speeds up the whole process. The longest I’ve gone is two weeks in Europe without checking luggage. The thing is, all you really need when traveling is your passport and a credit card. You can buy underwear, you can buy whatever you need on the road, so don’t worry so much about what you’re taking with you. The only things I can’t go without are my cosmetics and skin care. SkinCeuticals is my go-to for looking fresh while you’re traveling.
