It's widely believed that captains can marry that is, perform weddings for their passengers.
That's a myth - at least for most captains in California. BUT Captain Dan's other hat is a chaplain's. It's not as fancy as a Bishop's miter, but Captain-Chaplain Dan can legally perform marriages in California, and, as long as there is sailing involved, he's happy to do it. Why not get married in a ceremony at sea? Or at least near the sea, on the beach?
The wedding ceremony is simple, some would say austere, and it is mostly secular. The Deity is welcome in the ceremony, but the message usually is that people have to make their own marriage work, much like it takes crew coordination, cooperation, understanding and insight to sail a fine yacht handsomely. Chaplain-Captain Dan works with you to develop that special wedding ceremony message and helps you draft your words of marriage commitment.
The ceremony can be at sea, dockside or in whatever venue you choose. Captain/Chaplain Dan recommends a brief champagne cruise aboard our luxury sailing yacht Sancerre following the wedding ceremony, but that's only a recommendation. If you wish, come back a week, a month or even a year later to revisit the magic of the Santa Barbara Channel.
We can sail with up to six passengers, but pierside can accommodate about 20.
We had a marriage ceremony to remember - one that was unique, intimate and amazing!!!!
Thanks, Capt. Dan for incredible memories that will last a lifetime!
The peace and beauty of the waters were the perfect setting for our wedding! Nature provided all the decorations we needed! The boat was beautiful and Capt. Dan's humour helped ease any jitters!!!! His crew was amazing and everyone was truly excited about OUR wedding, not to mention Capt. Dan's patience with our many planning questions!
The video and still pictures we were provided have been looked at a million times already! It was amazing!!!!
Getting married on a sailboat at sea was incredible and being married by Capt. Dan made it even better (who knew that could be possible??!).
Thanks Capt. Dan and Crew for an amazing lifetime memory!
Bill & Mary Silvestri
"We had the perfect afternoon and the wedding sail was exactly what we hoped it would be."
Sun dappled waters, a gentle breeze, sea lions frolicking in our wake, the soft hum of the rigging in the wind. It was a delightfully romantic setting in which to profess our love for each other.
Captain Dan provided the perfect venue for marriage, and went the extra distance on the little things to make our experience memorable.
My wife and I and our children enjoyed the sail immensely.
Captain Dan was an excellent host. He performed his chaplain duties with humor and grace. He even swapped his Wiley Crew shirt to match our Hawaiian motif.
We could not have asked for a better way to conduct our nuptials.
Chuck Smith & Flour Powder Pollen
My wife and I had been engaged for about a year and decided, somewhat on the spur of the moment, that it would be good to get married at the end of the summer. We tossed around many ideas of what kind of ceremony would suit us and ultimately decided that something simple, serene, and without too much fanfare would be the best for us.
We wanted something memorable though and a friend mentioned something about how people get married on cruise ships. Neither of us are usually seafaring folk and we really aren't interested in cruise ships, but something about the idea of being married at sea sounded very romantic. After a fairly short search, I found the well-appointed sailchannelislands.com website and Captain Dan. I was naturally a bit trepidatious at first, but Captain Dan was very forthright and serious about our marriage ceremony at sea and made me feel like my fiance and I were in good hands.
A good friend of my fiance came with us for the ceremony and we ended up having what I will always think of as "the perfect wedding".
We were hopeful that we would have nice weather, no seasickness, and no last minute surprises like forgetting the dress, but had few expectations beyond that. Captain Dan and his congenial crew really made our day extra special though, no doubt due to his experience in these matters.
From initial correspondence to the follow-up after the marriage, Captain Dan and his crew were absolutely fabulous. Early on Captain Dan worked with us to understand what we wanted and that really showed through throughout our time in the Pacific.
The Sail Channel Islands team is a perfect match of experienced sailors, naturalist guides, & great cooks! The team was attentive to all the fine details and knew exactly what moments to catch on film for future enjoyment. The team even worked with us to accommodate a kayak adventure so that our first steps on land as a married couple were on Anacapa Island!
We would not change our wedding ceremony for the world!
Thanks again Captain Dan!!!!
Cheers, Amber & Ben Baylor PS:We'll be sure to return as a married couple - hopefully with friends, and for a longer period of time!
My (now) wife and I had been together for a bit over five years when we decided to get married. Being a little untraditional and a lot into sailing, we decided to forgo the normal hullabaloo and tie the knot on a sailboat. We wanted a wedding that was elegant and unpretentious. Our special day on Sancerre fulfilled these criteria and exceeded our expectations.
Like other weddings, ours started with a planning phase. It took about an hour to sit down with Captain Dan and hammer out a plan for our wedding. This relaxed planning phase was a welcome divergence from the months of stressful planning many people go through. Throughout the whole process, the most difficult decision we had to make was what to wear.
The wedding itself was intimate and effortless. Dan did a great job delivering a ceremony tailored to us. It was a bit witty, unaffected, and captured the love that my wife and I share. After the ceremony, the Sancerre crew set the table with a delectable lunch spread. When all aboard were satiated, we set sail for the channel and sailed of into the sunset (literally).
Thanks again Captain Dan!!!!
Our experience goes to show that a modest (read stress-free) wedding ceremony can be magical. All of our guests agree that ours was a very memorable wedding.
Many thanks go to Captain Dan and First Mate Wayne for making our day special.
Phil & Reese
Wow, what a day!
Even though we were only with you for two hours on the sunset cruise, our time on your yacht was the highlight of what was an incredible birthday and engagement day.
The boat was beautiful, we lucked out with perfect weather, and crossing paths with the regatta made it spectacular as well, but it wouldn't have mattered if you guys hadn't been so great. Your accommodation and understanding allowed for a perfect and personal proposal and your friendly personalities made it easy to share in our excitement. Thanks again and all the best!
It's widely believed that captains can marry that is, perform weddings for their passengers.
"We had the perfect afternoon and the wedding sail was exactly what we hoped it would be."
cruise ships, but something about the idea of being married at sea sounded very romantic. After a fairly short search, I found the well-appointed sailchannelislands.com website and Captain Dan. I was naturally a bit trepidatious at first, but Captain Dan was very forthright and serious about our marriage ceremony at sea and made me feel like my fiance and I were in good hands.
What an experience!
Elegant and Unpretentious
Wow, what a day!