Imagine Sailing Tours

#109Thank you Capt. Dennis and companion (dog) for an amazing trip around the city via the Bay. We saw so many things up close and personal--in a way I have never experienced the Bay Area before--even after 11 years here. The weather was a little cooler than normal, and then on the water it was that much cooler, but it really did not bother any of us as we brought jackets and wore warmer clothing--Bay Area in July, right? While everyone else, everywhere else is in short shorts and tank tops, we are out here in Uggs and sweaters (oh yeah, and our short shorts ;) A friend told me about this sailing tour and I actually got super excited. I asked two of my close friends to join me and we were off for our "day on the Bay". We entered by way of the Berkeley Marina and parked easily. We brought wine, cheese, fruit and a few other snacks for the tour. It was a whole day event, so I was glad my friend told me what to bring. We saw the Gold Gate Bridge from underneath as we crashed on the egregious waves and held on tightly to the boat. We saw beautiful Angel Island and toured past Alcatraz too. Strange to think that this prime piece of real estate was used to house America's worst criminal minds. I guess everyone deserves a view of nature. We could see the East Bay as we set sail and ventured over to the other side--and then around the whole thing almost. It was so amazing.I would highly recommend this tour to anyone who loves sailing, loves water, loves the Bay--yeah, I guess I would recommend it to anyone. Capt. Dennis we will be back to ride with you again. Thank you for a wonderful day.Stephani Smiles for Imagine Sailing Tours :)#captdennisisarockstar

I have never been on a sailing tour so I thought these would be a good experience for us. Since there were three people in my family that was celebrating birthday in July so I thought hmm.. this would be a great presents for them and be with the family to have fun. Purchase the tour from Groupon.com which was a great deal and I must say this is one of the best experience so far. When I called to make the reservations I told Captain Dennis I have seven people in my family that wants to go. He was nice enough to accomodate all of us. Captain Dennis I must say is a very nice, friendly and pleasant character, he gave us instructions on what to expect and made sure we are comfortable, he is amusingly funny man, he asked us if we would like to navigate the sailboat and even have us wear his captains hat. lol... Lot's of fun! My daughter and her husband who was vacationing from Florida, who is one of the BD celebrant said, this is one of the highlight of their vacation trip in California. They loved it! I would definitely recommend this tour to everyone! Happy Sailing!

This was AMAZING! I've been taking advantage of a lot of Groupon/Living Social/Amazon Deals lately and this was the best, most fun by far.Started out at 9:45AM, met Captain Dennis and his dog, Sandy, outside the dock and was informed that we were waiting for two more. He told us that one couple told him a week ago that they couldn't make it and he hadn't filled the spot and one other couple wasn't answering their phones (that afternoon they called to say they were sick, glad we didn't wait for THEM!). So at 10AM we took off, just the four of us.It was a great day, sunny and clear, we could practically see the GGB from Berkeley! As we set off, Captain Dennis asked where we would like to go or what we'd like to see. We opted to just sail around the whole time and avoid land. Captain Dennis is hilarious, a really great guy. I read some other reviews and can't really see where they're coming from. He strikes me as a guy that will be rude if you're inconsiderate or just dumb...No offense to my fellow Yelpers.We chatted for the first part of the trip, until the wind picked up. Then he gave us blankets and pillows when we wanted to sit at the bow when we started going. We got great views of SF, Alcatraz, all the bridges, Sausalito and even saw dolphins and sea lions :D We were taking plenty of pictures, but he also offered to take pictures of us with his phone and texted them to us. We took a 5 minute video and all you can hear is the wind and our giggling. Some tips: If you want to sit at the front, definitely be prepared for an ab workout! In the beginning I could lay out there, no problem, but once the wind started picking up, it was a great ride. I suppose you could sit on the seat cushions by the captain, but where's the fun in that? Bring good shoes and rain gear, we got WET! I LOVE IT!It was just a fantastic trip. He even taught us a thing or two about sailing. We are definitely making plans to go again and bringing friends. This experience must be shared!Captain Dennis knows his stuff, he's been sailing the bay for 20 years and was able to point out all the places to see the cool stuff (like dolphins). I can't wait for my next trip!

Buyer Beware!!!!!!! (Less than 1 Star) ~Proceed with Caution; Shop Around~Horrible experience! Don't waste your money or time! Dennis was VERY rude and Unprofessional! I called the day before our trip to confirm the details, only to find out that Dennis had canceled our trip without any notification. The description states that you can create your "own itinerary"; however, when doing so you are asked to "pay" more money because he (Dennis) would lose money just taking out 2 people. This is a bait and switch groupon!!!!! ~The writing lures you in, and the captain changes the deal once purchased!!~

My girlfriend and I purchased a 6 hour bay cruise through imagine on Living Social as part of a weekend we spent in Berkeley. It was the best trip we ever took. We are from the Bay area and don't get to the east bay much but definitely will go more now for cruises with Imagine. Captain Dennis and his crew were fantastic. They were funny, warm, friendly, and skilled. Took us all around the bay and provided us with 1st class service. Pointed out best spots to be on the boat for views and despite tough sailing conditions, he made sure to take care of anyone on the boat who felt sea sick (not his fault, the wind's). We got this as a deal but were happy to tip and will definitely be going again. I HIGHLY recommend him because of his flexible schedule and nautical knowledge for anyone in the bay area looking to go on a cruise around the bay. He also does fishing trips! WINS!

Had a great time with Dennis out in SF bay!! He was a real pro out on the water and an all arround great guy! Highly recommended!! Can't wait to do it again!!

I surprised my boyfriend for his birthday last month, with the help of Captain Dennis, by taking this fantastic sailing adventure. We had an absolute blast!! Captain Dennis was completely lovely and knowledgeable, and ensured we had a truly wonderful sailing experience. Can't recommend this enough!!!

My wife and I went on our very first sailing tour, along with our 3 children (daughter, age 9, and boys ages 8 and 6). We were not sure what to expect, but Captain Dennis certainly did not disappoint! He was awesome! Without going into every single detail, I would rate the service for Imagine Sailing Tours a 5 out of 5. The Captain offered some sailing suggestions and let us customize our day. We sailed to Pier 39 and got off for an hour and a half to go have lunch... then continued to sail around Alcatraz, Angel Island, Sausalito, and Tiburon... it was absolutely fabulous and the views of the city from the water were amazing. Perhaps we got lucky with beautiful weather, but I recommend this to anyone who hasn't tried sailing yet. Captain Dennis's friendly demeanor made us feel at home, and he joked with our kids the entire time. He also let them "sail" the yacht after a few pointers (and himself not far from the wheel). The kids has a blast, and thus made it that much more relaxing for myself and my wife. Not once did our kids get bored... he also has video games and other things on board to keep the kids occupied, just in case. We ended up sailing for 7 hours, even though originally we paid for 6. The time just flew by, as we all enjoyed the day. Positives:- free parking- experienced, accommodating captain- great price- snacks included with tour- will happily reschedule at no charge in case of bad weather- knowledgeable, friendlyNegatives:- We honestly have nothing negative to say! It was just a fantastic sailing trip for my family and we would recommend him to our friends/family. We will certainly be sailing with him again!-Paul Pannu

Just sailed with Imagine Sailing Tours yesterday and had a fantastic time. Winds were up above 25 knots which added alot of excitement. The captain (Dennis) was very professional and everyone was comfortable and safe on the beautiful Imagine sailboat. He was very good tour guide of the SF Bay. The trip is a "must do activity" if your in San Francisco and it was well worth the time and money well spent. We could not imagine a better sailing day and we saw more of the bay than we ever realized. Looking forward to another day sailing with Inagine.Walter Z from Alameda,CA 7-23-12

Bogus. Spoke to Dennis for details by phone, when he said right from the start that he preferred to communicate by text because he's out on the water most of the time. OK, that makes sense. A day or two later, we booked by leaving a voice mail and sending a text. No response. Two weeks later, we sent another text to him to confirm. This time he responded by text that we were on. OK! We responded one hour later by text asking for directions. No response. 2.5 weeks pass.We smelled something fishy so, three days before the date we texted again to confirm, exact quote: "Hi Dennis- looking forward to our bay tour Sunday at 5. Where's the dock? Thanks" No response.One hour later, we texted: "Also, would it be too crowded on board with 7 adults and two 5-year olds?" No response.After some googling to figure out where the dock was, we drove to the dock on the day, honestly not sure if this was happening. On our way to the dock he called us. It turns out the boat is not kid-friendly.We met him at the dock and talked it out. He's a mellow guy but shady. We left our stuff in the car since it was looking like we were not going out on the water. As we talked about our rescheduling options, he was evasive and rude, and kept coming back to the weird point that we weren't dressed warmly enough. Inferring that if we were dumb enough to show up for a sail on the bay without jackets, maybe we were somehow wrong in our assessment of the situation or didn't know how to use text messages. Of course our layers were in the car with the kids, Captain Shifty.We totally understand if there are legal or safety reasons that kids under a certain age can't go on the boat, that's fine. But he clearly screwed up by not telling us that ahead of time, and we were proactive in asking up front, three days ahead. He dropped the ball by not replying to our texts. If text is not a reliable way to communicate, then let us use the phone, man! And to make it worse, he wouldn't take responsibility and tried to blame us for the mixup. So we tried to arrange for a refund but because it was a "groupon" type of deal, it was too late. Also, he complained about the coupon deal being tough on him.So, rather than give it away to friends or go out without the kids, we would rather let the money go to waste.Buyer beware.