Capt. John and Chef Rachelle Yoxall

John is a delightful Englishman who grew up in Toronto where he earned a double Bachelor of Arts in English and History. Before following his passion for sailing he was a partner with a leading management consultancy firm for 10 years. John is an experienced captain and holds a Royal Yachting Association Yacht Master license, a Canadian Yachting Association Sailing Instructor and a PADI Dive Master. John takes a keen interest in the finer points of wine and is also a qualified Sommelier. It gives him great pleasure to make suggestions for the wines which would best accompany Rachelle's culinary delights.

Lovely Rachelle is from Vancouver where she was deeply involved with yacht racing and teaching sailing children. She has a degree in Psychology, a Royal Yachting Association Yacht Master Offshore license, a PADI Dive Master Certificate and Catering Certificate from the Cordon Bleu Paris. Rachelle honed her culinary skills by working in tier one catering companies and popular restaurants around Toronto. Her specialty is preparing Italian cuisine.

John and Rachelle met while competing in yacht races on Lake Ontario. After getting married they decided to follow their love sailing and left home to run charter yachts in Greece and the British Virgin Islands; and have not looked back since. John and Rachelle are now the captain and chef for Zingara and they compliment each perfectly.

Frans Louw, Dive Instructor

Frans was born in South Africa and grew up on his family Game farm amongst the rhinos, giraffes and antelope. During his vacations he spent time on his family's holiday home on the Mozambique coast. This is where he developed his passion for the sea and his days were spent snorkeling, diving with sharks and catching large game fish. After completing his Financial Management degree in Cape Town he decided to complete an Atlantic crossing and ended up in the British Virgin Islands .

Frans is a qualified Dive Instructor and is eager to show his guests on board Zingara the delights of the underwater world as well as enhancing their skills Hobie cat sailing, water skiing, tubing, or wakeboarding.

Shan Ward - Stewardess

Charming Shan hails from a small coastal town in South Africa where she developed a great love and respect for the sea. From an early age Shan had an outdoor education and was always one to take up a challenge. She was a volunteer Surf Lifeguard on Main Beach in Jeffrey's Bay for four years and excelled in bush survival competitions. After completing her Marketing post graduate degree Shan decided to take the opportunity to join Zingara as the stewardess.

Give Shan a fishing rod, and you'll have a hard time getting it back give her a task and you'll have an easy time getting it done. Always with a ready smile, contagious laugh and a bounce in her step Shan is eager to dive in and help, no matter how deep the water!