yacht week cost

Matador Original Series

Everything you need to know before going to yacht week in croatia.

S o, you saw the videos of people floating through Croatia having the time of their lives; rounded up half a dozen of your best, fairly affluent acquaintances; and booked a charter for The Yacht Week . Congratulations. You’re in for a blur of good times, clubs, and parties on giant inflatable flamingos.

For the unfamiliar, The Yacht Week is a weeklong flotilla of motor-assisted sailboats meandering through the Adriatic with young people living like it’s spring break. But the booze is better, the scenery more spectacular, and the people hail from all over the world — not just all over the SEC.

If you booked this trip with your buds on a whim, chances are a lot of questions still remain: How much money will I spend on Yacht Week? What should I bring to Yacht Week? Will there be waaaay more guys than girls like my friend who went back in 2014 said it would? Don’t worry, we have all the answers from personal experience, from both male and female perspectives (a gender-neutral experience Yacht Week is not). Here’s everything you need to know, from how much to budget to what to bring and how much to tip the staff during The Yacht Week in Croatia.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

Here’s how much you will spend on Yacht Week.

Let’s make one thing perfectly clear: It’s called Yacht Week. Not affordable-bass-fishing-cruiser-week. Or rowboat week. YACHT week. And that means it’s gonna get expensive. For ease-of-reading purposes, we’ll break it down list style, assuming an eight-person crew with an even male-to-female ratio on the cheapest boat possible. Fewer people or more males and this number goes up.

Yacht, skipper, and parties: $9310 or $1163.75 each. This covers your boat; the person driving it; and admission to all the swanky, we’re-cooler-than-you Yacht Week parties at clubs you only saw on Rich Kids of Instagram.

Host: $750 or $93.75 each.

Gas, mooring fees, water taxis, and other boat-related expenses: $225 per person. Your skipper will gather this at the beginning for a cash “kitty” that he or she will use to pay for gas, water taxi transfers from the marinas, mooring fees, and other miscellaneous expenses. They’re required to keep receipts for all of it, too, and will refund anything that’s not used at the end.

Skipper and host tip: $160-$200 (80-$100 each, per person). This, of course, is dependent on how well you think they did. But $80-$100 from each of you, to each one of them, is customary.

Groceries and onboard alcohol: $200 per person. Your host will take you to the nearest grocery store on departure day and pick out everything you’ll need for them to make food. And for you to drink on board. It might be the longest receipt you ever get that isn’t from CVS.

Other meals and drinks during the trip: $450. Your host cooks you breakfast and one other meal a day. You’re on your own for the rest. And admission to those swanky parties might be free, but the drinks most certainly are not.

IF YOU’RE MALE: You’ll be paying for every drink you consume and may want to look into getting table service at those parties so you’re not goofball #67 trying to talk to girls on the dance floor. Your host can make table reservations, and table minimums are around $2000 for your group. Or you can spend the week nursing $6 beers. Whatever your budget allows.

IF YOU’RE FEMALE: You might pay for one drink a night. Tables are not at all necessary as you can find your way to a table without obligation to do much other than pour yourself a drink. If you’re not comfortable with that, well drinks run about $11. Again, budget accordingly.

Airfare: $1100-$1400. Split is not a cheap place to fly, especially during summer. If you see a flight under $1000, book it immediately.

Additional lodging: $200. Plan to fly in the day before, so on the minuscule chance your flight gets delayed, you have some cushion. You’ll also probably need to stay overnight somewhere on the way back as there are no nonstops flights from Split to the US. You’ll likely end up spending your last night in some European hub like Madrid or London.

Floaties: $50. You’ll need one of these.

Additional taxis and Ubers: $120. This would be rides to and from the airport, around the towns you stop in, or back to the boat in the morning from wherever you end up.

Total cash outlay: $3700-$4,000. Not the most expensive vacation of your life, but not the cheapest either. And if you have fewer people, or more guys than girls, or a boat with crazy stuff like AC and private bedrooms, it can cost over $5000. This is just the bare minimum.

The host might be “optional,” but you need one like you need water.

You might think, “I cook for myself all the time! I’m not wasting $750 for someone to make my morning coffee!” Ok, tough guy. Spend an entire afternoon taking rosé to the head on a unicorn floatie then try to cook anything more complicated than toast. It ain’t happening. We had a group of guys docked next to us who didn’t have a host and had been eating nothing but chips for the past two days. If you wanna live like that, by all means, skip the host.

However, if you’d like to have a lovely fruit platter, coffee, French toast waiting for you every morning/afternoon when you wake up, and dinner waiting for you every night, this will be the best $750 you ever spend. Your host also makes food that’s somewhat nutritious with salads, proteins, and carbs mixed pretty well. When you’re beating your immune system to death with Jager shots, proper nutrition makes a big difference.

It is, in fact, possible to shower and do #2 on board.

A lot of blogs and advice posts we saw for Yacht Week said you basically could never shower on board or do #2 in your bathroom. This is highly misleading. Yes, if everyone on board showered during days you’re not at a proper marina, you’d run out of water real fast. But if you space it out and mostly shower when you can easily get water refills, showering onboard is totally possible.

As is — as the ladies on my boat so euphemistically put it — “glittering.” The marine heads onboard might require some effort to flush, but so long as everyone flushes fully and DOES NOT PUT TOILET PAPER DOWN THE TOILET, you won’t have any problem using the bathroom for both liquids and solids.

That said, when you’re at a marina, use those facilities as much as you can. They’re better and keep the boat cleaner.

Bring your nicest clothes. And maybe an iron.

You didn’t fork over all that money for Yacht Week parties to show up dressed in flip-flops and shorts, did you? The parties on Yacht Week are some of the best you’ll ever go to. There’s a private garden party in a hilltop castle. There’s a white party at Carpe Diem , one of the most famous clubs in the world. There’s a party at a massive outdoor nightclub somewhere outside Bol and a closing party at a combination nightclub/swimming stadium in Split. Miraculously, people show up looking like they haven’t been living on half a mattress for five days.

So look the part and bring stuff you’d wear if you were going out in Vegas or South Beach. And an iron. The close quarters will have you looking like a wrinkle bomb went off in your suitcase, and that look will defeat the purpose of packing anything nice.

There will be dudes. A LOT of dudes.

Ever gone out in a military town? That’s more or less the odds you’re looking at during Yacht Week. Sure, the organizers TRY to regulate an even male-to-female ratio by charging exorbitant fees if your group skews male. And their promotional material might say they manage that strictly, but money talks and people pay. So the first comment you’ll get on any picture you post will be something along the lines of, “Wow. That’s a lot of dudes.”

If you’re a single girl, great news! You won’t pay for a thing all week. There’ll be men with sexy accents from all over the world competing for your attention, and you can spend the night in air-conditioned comfort any night you choose if your boat is less-than-stellar.

If you’re a single guy, this doesn’t mean you won’t have the week of your life. It means don’t go expecting to break your six-month dry spell. That’s what Thailand is for. Go expecting to hang out on boats in one of the most beautiful countries in the world, meet interesting people, and drink with reckless abandon, and you’ll have a great time. Any ladies you meet will just be a bonus.

There will also be WiFi, and it’s not bad.

It is truly amazing that in 2018 you can be out in the middle of the Adriatic Sea and still be perfectly connected to all of the interwebs. After all, this is a flotilla full of millennials, so going on vacation isn’t so much about getting away but letting everyone else KNOW you’re getting away. The onboard WiFi is fantastic when it works but will shut off sometimes and can get blocked when you’re tied up to other boats. It works best when you’re sailing in the open sea, so if you’re a remote worker, plan to work then.

Croatia is safe. No Liam Neeson rescue will be necessary.

As we headed into the trip, the ladies in our crew were a bit anxious about safety at night and in the clubs (a la Taken ). However, the majority of the nights, our skipper and host escorted our crew to the water taxis — and handled the payment from the aforementioned kitty — as well as to the parties, which were private, Yacht Week-only events at rented-out clubs. The hosts and staff on site were welcoming and fun (and really good with names), and after the first night or two, you walk into the party and immediately recognize a handful of faces. There were fellow partygoers at nearly every water taxi and plenty of TYW crew there to keep a mindful eye on the inebriated masses. As with any club, keep an eye on your drink, but still feel free to let loose.

You won’t do any actual sailing.

If you were planning on impressing all of Croatia with the tacking skills you learned in sixth grade at summer camp, it’ll have to wait for another time. Though Yacht Week does have a regatta on the final day, and promotional materials say this is a chance to “show off your sailing skills,” there is no actual sailing involved. You’ll use the yacht’s motor for all movement, all week, and usually, it’s on autopilot. So don’t freak out if you go above deck and see your skipper enjoying breakfast while the steering wheels move independently. Your boat, as far as we know, is not haunted.

You’re going to get sick. Period.

In case you didn’t major in human health, alcohol and minimal sleep don’t exactly boost your immune system. Neither does living in close quarters with people, sharing drinks, water bottles, and spit with strangers from other countries. Take all the Emergen-C you like, if you leave Yacht Week without a hacking cough, you should be studied by the CDC. Your flight back from Split will be like a cross between a Sunday flight from Vegas and a fifth-grade classroom in December. Accept the illness as the last price you pay for glory.

Do not shit where you eat. But if you do…

Given the close quarters during Yacht Week, you might think this is a literal statement, but you know what we mean here. If you’ve got a mixed crew, find someone on another boat to swap fluids with.

Easy to say, harder to do. If we’ve learned anything from reality TV, it’s that when you put boys and girls together in a confined space and add alcohol, bad decisions get made. Should you find yourself in this situation, don’t be awkward about it, lay out your expectations for the rest of the trip, and move on. Any drama becomes everyone’s drama, so do whatever you have to do to keep it to a minimum.

Budget 3x the amount of alcohol you think you’ll need.

Remember how you stocked your last fraternity formal? Ok, now imagine you’re doing that for a week.

And 5x the water.

It might seem excessive, but given the sun, booze, and general mayhem of Yacht Week, plan to drink a gallon of water a day. That’s roughly four liters if you’re trying to make quick conversions at the grocery store — 28 liters per person, give or take. We had a grocery cart and a half full of water bottles for our six-person crew and ran out on day six. You can always resupply when you stop in town, but it’s much easier to buy it all upfront. Now is not the time to try and minimize your plastic footprint.

Invest in a car-charger adapter.

On standard boats, oftentimes the only power outlets are the 12-volt, car-cigarette-lighter-style variety, which doesn’t do you a whole lot of good when all you brought was a standard European adapter. Head to BrandsMart or look online for a 12V adapter and have two or three on board. They’re invaluable for stuff like laptops, phone chargers, air pumps for floaties, irons, and other electronic equipment. Just don’t bring hair dryers; they suck up too much electricity for those outlets to handle.

You may not have AC, so bring some fans.

If you’ve opted for the cheaper yacht, get prepared to sweat. Most of the smaller boats don’t come with air conditioning, and though most do have small fans in the room, they’re not exactly “cooling.” If you can, snag a room with a skylight as those let cool air in, especially when the boat is moving. Otherwise, take frequent, refreshing dips in the Adriatic or consider swapping nights sleeping above deck with your roommate. Two people in a tiny cabin and no A/C can get reeeeeeeal cozy. If you’ve got portable, rechargeable fans, bring those along.

If you’ve got any girls in your group, bring mirrors.

As we said, the inside of the boat can get really muggy and downright uncomfortable. Below deck, especially before bed, it can be too steamy to handle — and the bathrooms become a claustrophobic sauna. So getting ready for one of six very dressy nights is a sweaty struggle. Do yourself a solid and bring a portable standing mirror, so you can get ready above deck with a breeze (and preferably also a drink). Our crew split two mirrors among five girls, but we could’ve been ready much faster (and enjoyed the sunset more) if we had brought one per girl.

Buy shampoo, soap, and other toiletries there.

If you’re trying to just take a carry-on bag to Yacht Week, remember you’ll be able to hit the grocery store before your trip and don’t need to pack full-sized shampoo, soap, and other toiletries.

Split is the worst airport on the planet. But still get there early.

OK, maybe not the whole planet. There’s probably one in rural Mongolia that’s worse. But rural Mongolia also doesn’t process 3000 passengers at a time on a summer Saturday, most of whom have splitting hangovers and a nasty wet cough. Lines literally run out the door to check in the day after Yacht Week, and the gates are smaller than you’d find at a tiny regional airport. It can take two hours minimum from the time you walk in to the time you clear immigration and get to your gate, so plan accordingly.

But if you don’t cut it close, you’re in for a long afternoon. Want to kill time at the bar? There’s a single beer tap with some bottles on the far end of the terminal, with exactly one seat and some trash cans you can flip over to sit on. Lounge? There is one just past security, but it’s only open to elite fliers of European airlines, and its amenities don’t extend much past coffee and Croatian newspapers. There’s also a snack stand and coffee shop with sandwiches you may recognize from school lunch.

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Revealing The True Cost of Yacht Week Croatia

• August 11, 2023
• 8 minute read

Dreaming of setting sail in the Mediterranean, swimming in sparkling blue waters, and dancing in outdoor clubs on private islands? The Yacht Week Croatia is an iconic, super fun event that draws thousands of people each year – but the Yacht Week cost can be overwhelming for some before they understand their options. 

The Yacht Week Croatia (the original Yacht Week route!) is on many, many people’s bucket lists. When I sailed with The Yacht Week Croatia, we had guests from as far away as the U.S. and Australia flying to Croatia to attend the event. If you’re dreaming about spending a week on the water, but aren’t sure how to start budgeting, I’m here to help you plan your Croatia Yacht Week adventure. 

We set sail with The Yacht Week in Croatia in July 2023 – and despite the amount of research I did in advance, very few articles or budget breakdowns mentioned the true extent of the Yacht Week Cost. The Yacht Week boat fee is JUST the start – there are lots of hidden fees ! So how much does The Yacht Week cost, really? Let’s get into it with my detailed budget breakdown. 

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When is Yacht Week Croatia? 

The Yacht Week happens every summer – it’s the most iconic (and the original) rent-a-yacht-and-party experience in the Mediterranean. The Yacht Week runs what they call several different “routes,” meaning they sail in a couple different locations (more on that below). However, Yacht Week Croatia is the “original route” – and the one many people pick for that very reason. Each year, Yacht Week runs seven day routes from May to August . 

There are other Yacht Week routes. Nowadays, Yacht Week runs routes in Greece, Turkey, and even Tahiti! You can find a full list of their destinations here . However, the original route? That’s Yacht Week Croatia.  

How much does Yacht Week cost?

Most people know The Yacht Week costs a pretty penny – but just how much does it cost? 

The Yacht Week cost depends on several factors:

• Do you want a cabin on a boat, or will you rent out an entire boat with your group?
• If you do plan to rent out your own boat, how many people will be in your group to help split the cost? 
• Do you want a host, or will you handle your own food? 
• Do you want a simple boat, or will you upgrade to a luxury option (a bigger boat with air conditioning)?

Our group attended The Yacht Week in mid-July 2023 and opted to rent a single monohull with no A/C – the simplest, most affordable option. However, we did add a host to our boat to help prepare meals and tidy the boat, which added a small extra cost. It ended up costing us 10,500 USD for the entire boat with a host. 

The great part about The Yacht Week is that you have multiple price tiers to fit a variety of budgets. Let’s dive into the breakdown. 

The Core Yacht Week Cost (the Yacht Fee)

First things first: you’ll need to pick your boat. The Yacht Week offers four boat options:

• Classic Monohull
• Premium Monohull 
• Classic Catamaran 
• Premium Catamaran 

Each option comes with a skipper, entrance to Yacht Week parties, towels and linen, and boat cleaning at the end of the week post check-out. 

Though the costs change each year, generally, the classic Monohull is the most affordable option. When we sailed in 2023, the boat was 10,500 Euros total for the week. That’s the starting price, though a premium catamaran will cost quite a bit more (though it also fits more people!). 

You can see how small the classic monohull looks above, but don’t be surprised — it fits more than you might expect!

If you’re unhappy with these options, Yacht Week has a luxury option that allows you to pick your own boat – many of which are often more expensive. We won’t talk about that option here, as it changes a little each year, both price-wise and option-wise. 

Adding a Host to Your Yacht Week Experience

Above, we talked about the “Host” option for Yacht Week. What exactly is a host?

A host is your chef for the week – and she also helps keep the boat tidy and assists on deck when needed. The host will cook:

• All breakfast meals on board
• All lunch meals on board
• Two dinners on board

If you’re booking a single cabin on your Yacht Week boat, you may find the host is often, if not always, included in the price. 

However, if you’re booking your own boat to split with your friends, you’ll have the option to add your own host. The price of the host will depend on the amount of people you’re bringing on your boat. For six people, we ended up paying around 100 USD extra for the host each. 

Keep in mind your host and skipper will need their own cabin, so you’ll have fewer options to split the cost. Normally, the host will split a cabin with the skipper – taking 2 people off the total number of people to fill the boat.

Hidden Fees: Yacht Week Croatia 

There’s a significant amount of hidden fees many Yacht Week attendees don’t fully understand until they book their trip. Paying for the boat is only a portion of your full cost! Let’s dive into the parts of The Yacht Week they don’t discuss. 

• Refundable yacht deposit/ security deposit: One person will pay this amount upon check-in. This deposit covers damage to the vessel. Assuming there is no damage, you’ll get the deposit back at the end of the week. You’ll pay $2,500 Euros, and you will almost always pay by credit card. 
• The Cash Kitty : The biggest fee no one talks about? The Cash Kitty. The Cash Kitty is a name assigned to a group of miscellaneous fees collected at the start of your trip. These include port fees, yacht fuel, shore power, water, ice, and water taxis – among other things. The cash kitty will vary for each boat , because shore fees and fuel needs will be different for each boat. You can use this nifty calculator on their website (hidden way down at the bottom) to learn about your estimated fees. For a monohull on the Croatia Original Route, fees run around 1950 Euros total – or 200 Euros per person. For a catamaran, those fees run around 2500 Euros total – or 245 Euros per person. The breakdown assumes, of course, you’re filling the boat. If you don’t plan to fill the boat, each person will need to pay more. At the end of the trip, if your skipper has leftover money, they will hand it back to you. On our boat, we had no leftover money. 
• Tip : You’ll need to tip your crew at the end of the trip, too! Your tip should be around 10% to 20% of your total booking price . That means for a classic monohull, a 20% tip would be around 2,000 USD . You will need to tip your crew in cash. 
• Food & drink : If you’re booking your own boat, you’ll need to worry about food and drinks, too – no matter if you have a host or not. Not every spot you dock will have easy access to restaurants or food (though most major ports will, of course). That’s why you should go grocery shopping in advance. For an entire week’s worth of food and drink for six guests, a host and a skipper, we paid around 850 Euros. However, we also opted out of one dinner and therefore had less food. A word of advice about the food situation: the best grocery store you’ll find? It’s near the dock, about a 10 minute walk away. None of the other ports had as large or well-stocked stores. So stock up early, if you can – because there aren’t always food options everywhere you go. That’s also why I recommend a host: she’s familiar with the boats and storage space. There isn’t a ton of room in the fridge, so it’s usually a tough fit.  
• Host & Skipper Food Fees : During your charter, you’ll need to cover any costs for your host and skipper to have food. It’s tradition to invite them to dinner with you and cover their costs. If you don’t want to do that, you’ll need to give them cash to eat dinner. 
• Transport to/from the marina : You’ll need to get to and from the marina, which will be assigned to you closer to the date of departure. Don’t fret – if you can’t afford a taxi, there’s an excellent bus that runs often between Trogir, the airport, and Split for two Euros. 
• Additional speakers and/or cooler : I know the Yacht Week website says the boats come with speakers, but that’s normally not true. If you want to blast music, you’ll need to rent a speaker. The speaker will cost 250 Euros to 300 Euros, depending on size. The smaller cooler will cost 70 Euros, the bigger one, 90 euros. If you’re visiting in peak summer, opt for the bigger cooler for sure. Keep in mind these are provided by a third party and prices fluctuate year by year. Pro tip: You can’t actually play loud music at most ports past 8 p.m. or 10 p.m. And some days, you’ll be at port for the entire day.So keep that in mind! 
• Misc. Costs : Be sure to bring some spending money for miscellaneous expenses. That means dinners on shore, for the most part, and drinks when you’re out and about. This should cost around 100 – 200 Euros at most, depending on how much you drink and how much you eat. 

When you take the security deposit out of the equation, we brought around 500 to 1,000 Euros extra per person to cover the above fees – and spent all of it, too. 

How many people do you need for Yacht Week?

You can travel with as little people as you want – or as many (to an extent). 

If you want to go solo, you can book a bed in a cabin on a yacht. Alternatively, you can look on “Crew Finder” and other Facebook groups for groups looking to add people to their yachts. 

However, if you want to rent out your own boat, you can fill it up. The maximum depends on your boat and whether you opt for a host. Generally speaking, it’s a maximum of 6 to 12 people. You can bring less, of course, but everyone will have to pay more to cover the total cost. 

Do you need A/C?

Ah yes, the golden question. Do you need air conditioning when you’re booking Yacht Week? Let’s be honest: Yacht Week costs can add up, and it may seem a little pricey. 

Before getting on the boat, I read as many blog posts and forums as I could – and everyone recommended air conditioning. I was really worried because we booked a boat without air conditioning. 

We traveled in mid-July, and it was really hot. We’re talking 38 degrees Celcius our first two days. Did we make it? Yeah, it ended up being totally fine . Many boats have lots of space to sleep outside. You can bring cushions and camp under the stars. 

Half our boat opted to sleep outside, the other half, inside. Either way, everyone was surprised – it ended up being much easier to sleep than we expected. Later in the week, when it cooled off, most people ended up sleeping inside with no problems. 

So do you need A/C? It’s up to you. 

Remember: The reality is different, and not everything you read online is true. People we met with A/C on their boats told us the A/C had been broken…and was broken the entire trip and the entire season.

These are boats, after all. Things break, and they don’t always get fixed. If you book a boat with A/C, remember, there’s a chance it may be broken. In addition, remember you can only use the A/C when plugged into shore power (which was only 4 days on our route). 

Final Musings 

Yacht Week Croatia can be affordable – if you’re willing to skip out on some of the luxuries. One mentality shift? Think of it like camping! To optimize your Yacht Week Croatia costs, make sure to think about alllll the hidden fees and costs in advance. There’s nothing worse than being surprised with costs. Happy Sailing!! 

Samantha Tatro is a Czech-American third culture kid who grew up living and traveling abroad. Many years later, after living in California and working as a journalist, she decided to take the leap and move abroad again…this time to Prague, Czech Republic. Samantha started Undiscovered Path Home to help couples and solo female travelers find the courage to visit countries – and locations – off the beaten path. Her work has appeared in Bon Appetit, NBC News , The Adecco Group , and more .

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14 comments

Wow! This looks like an incredible adventure. My husband and I have been talking about spending a week on a catamaran around the Caribbean. This is definitely convincing me!

Thank you! Honestly, it’s so worth it (I even have sea sickness and loved it!)

Great tips and love the photos!

Thank you!!

Yacht Week sounds like so much fun! I love the idea of thinking of it a bit like camping if you can’t afford to splurge on all the luxuries. It’s good to know that it is an experience that most people can enjoy, even if you’re working with a smaller budget. Thanks for the comprehensive guide!

I had no idea about this. It looks very fun! 🙂

I would love to do this! Have not been to Croatia but have done flotilla sails in Greece, Caribbean and BVI. It is not cheap, but well worth it, I found. Thanks for the insights about this event.

That sounds amazing — it’s never cheap but it’s such a unique experience!

Have always wanted to do yacht week! Thanks for the info!

Oh this looks amazing! I’ve not sailed for years other than from a to b. I think I need to start considering more ways to travel around than the usual plane, train or car.

This looks like so much fun! I’ve always wanted to go on a yacht in Crotia. Looks like a great way to explore the area. Thanks for sharing your experience!

Thank you for reading!! 100% bucket list!

This sounds like so much fun! I will definitely have to try it with the hubby one day!

It’s such a unique experience!

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How Much Does Yacht Week Really Cost?

The cost of yacht week varies substantially depending on your choices of all the different options. So ask yourself these important questions.

• Are you getting a boat with AC? 
• Are you employing a host? 
• How many people are you splitting the cost with? 
• Do you want a private cabin? 

Overall, yacht week can cost anything between €3510 -€4700+ ($3700- $5000+) . The upper limit refers to choosing all the luxury options like AC, a private cabin, and having fewer people on your boat to split the cost between.

We will look at a breakdown of prices for yacht week, including the different tiers and what they include and don’t include. In addition, the extra costs involved over and above the yacht package price. 

I’ll also answer whether you really do need AC for yacht week (is it worth the extra cash?) and how many people you need to split the cost of a yacht.

So let’s get into this!

To give you an idea of the pricing,  the yacht itself costs between €650 and €2480  ($685-$2620), depending on the boat you choose and the dates you decide to go.

And whether you split the cost of an entire yacht or book as a cabin duo on someone else’s boat. These costs are gleaned from using the Original Route in Croatia as an example. They also vary according to different routes. 

There are three ‘tiers’ that you can choose from classic, premium and luxury.

The  classic option costs €700-€900  ($740-$950) and includes:

• Free date changes. 

The  premium option costs around €1100-€1840  ($1160-$1940) per person and is in the middle of the range. It includes:

• Host(ess) who buys food and cooks it for you
• Free date changes

The luxury option is the premier option. This  costs around €1450- €2510  ($1530- $2650) and includes:

• Air Conditioning
• Host(ess) who buys the food and cooks it for you
• Free Date Changes

All premium and luxury packages include a host who does all the shopping for food ingredients and whips up the below meals:

• 6 (six) breakfasts
• 6 (six) lunches
• 2 (two) dinners
• Mineral water

This  costs an extra €1025  ($1080) on Build Your Own (BYO) packages. These are packages where you add all the services you want individually and pay for the total.

If you want to add preselected drinks to your BYO package, the  additional cost starts at €850  ($900). Regardless of which package you choose, the following are included in the fee for all tiers of yacht week:

• Skipper’s wages
• Yacht accommodation for 7 days
• Access to all exclusive events
• International DJs
• Professional photographers
• Stereo speakers onboard
• Final yacht cleaning
• Bath towels & bed linen
• Festival VIP tickets
• Food basics for breakfast and lunch to be prepared by yourself if you choose the classic ‘tier.’

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Not included in yacht fee ( Hidden / Extra Costs)

1. Refundable yacht deposit/ security deposit, which is paid for in case of damage to the yacht. If there is no damage to the vessel, this deposit will be returned to you at the end of the week. The amount varies between €250 and €350 ($265 and $370) per person. This can be paid in cash on arrival.

2. Transport to and from the airport (remember to bring cash for taxis as they may not accept cards).

3. Flights to and from Croatia

4. Food and drinks for yourself if you select the BYO package, which doesn’t automatically include food.

The premium and luxury tiers include food purchased and cooked by your host. Still, if you choose the classic tier, you will need to prepare your own food. And buy groceries for dinner and any extras apart from the basics provided for breakfast and lunch.

Food and drink for the host(ess) and the skipper when you are away from the yacht.

Eating out and alcohol will be extra. Budget the same amount you would typically for a holiday, considering how often you will feast on the yacht and how often you will eat out.

5. Yacht fuel, water and shore power. In addition, there are the Port Fees and security post. You can pay for these on arrival at each island. These vary depending on the date, location, and the size of your yacht.

6. Water taxis to transport you and your squad to/from the yacht on days/nights when you go shoreside. 

7. Tips for your skipper and host(ess). You’ll want to factor in the fantastic service you’ll be treated to.

Extra costs for the Original Route with 1 0 people on board.

On a Monohull:

• Water Taxis: €400/$420
• Fuel: €400/$420
• Water: €50/ $52,70
• Port Fees: €600/$632,60
• Total: €1450/$1530

On a Catamaran:

• Fuel: €550/ $580
• Port Fees: €800/ $844
• Total: €1800/ $1900

For more essential tips on preparing for yacht week, read our article how do I prepare for yacht week? Where we outline what to pack and what a typical yacht week itinerary might look like.

How many people do you need for yacht week ?

Depending on the yacht, the maximum number of people you can have on your boat is 10 (ten) to 12 (twelve).  

You can either gather enough people to split the cost between yourselves (usually between eight and twelve people). Or you can book a cabin with a friend (two of you to fill a cabin) on someone else’s yacht.

In which case, you are placed on a yacht that needs extra people to split the cost. This you can do through the yacht week website using the ‘crew finder.’ 

You can also use the crew finder to find more people for your yacht to fill up any spaces to help split the cost further. However, it is usually more cost-effective to go with the first option of getting an entire yacht and splitting the cost with friends.

Do you need AC for yacht week ?

Air Conditioning may be costly, but it’s pretty much  the consensus that it is essential to have AC for yacht week- especially if you are going in the heat of summer.  

The cabins are small and compact with very little fresh air. Get AC if you want any hope of sleeping and don’t want to be trapped with the scent of sweat permeating the air!

F i nal Thoughts

Overall, yacht week can be extremely pricey if you let it but can also be affordable if you are willing to cut back on the luxuries. 

The difficulty in the decision comes in choosing whether to get AC. Which is only part of the luxury tier and not part of the classic or premium tier, but you can fix this problem by choosing more budget options for other aspects of the trip.

Still unsure if yacht week is for you or if the cost suits your purse? Then, why not look at these two articles comparing Yacht Week with  Bucketlust  and  Sail Week ? They are competing companies with similar offerings so that you can make an informed choice.

Written by:

I’m a travel enthusiast seeking unique adventures off-the-beaten-path. With my camera, I capture genuine moments and prioritize authenticity in both writing and photography.

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How much does it cost to charter a yacht?

There are many things to consider and first time charterers can be left confused, that's why we've created a comprehensive guide to yacht charter prices (with a checklist).

The good news: It’s easy to grasp the basics of yacht charter pricing. And with one of our experts in your corner, we can help you more accurately estimate the cost of your next once-in-a-lifetime vacation.

The cost of a yacht charter is dependent on a number of factors, including the type of yacht, the charter destination, local taxes, and the base cost. (If the yacht has a celebrity owner, well that too, can add to the cost.)

Therefore, yacht charters have a wide range of base prices. That’s why charters can cost from $10,000 per week on smaller sailing yachts and catamarans, up to $150,000+ per week on the most luxurious motor superyachts.

What else can you expect to pay? This overview – a part of our planning resource, the Charter Advice Guide – offers an in-depth look at charter yacht costs.

Yacht Charter Price Structure: “All-Inclusive” vs “Plus Expenses”

In the world of yachting, two types of crewed yacht charters are available to you – “All-Inclusive” and “Plus Expenses” charter experiences. What do these terms mean exactly? Here’s a quick look:

• All-Inclusive Yacht Charters – Some charters (mainly catamaran and monohull charters in the Virgin Islands) offer all-inclusive rates. That means rates are based on the number of guests, and they include all food and drink, water sports, and fuel costs. Dockage and taxes, though, are usually charged separately.
• Plus Expenses Charters – Rates for larger motor yachts do not include running expenses, which must be paid separately. For these luxury charters, the base price is for the yacht only. Additional expenses, i.e. food, bar, fuel, dockage, port taxes, and other expenses, are charged separately. Most frequently, the running expenses are paid by an Advance Provisioning Allowance, or APA, which is typically 35% of the base price; this is an amount that’s paid prior to the charter.

Our chart below offers a quick overview of what’s included in both of these types of charters.

Average Yacht Charter Cost: Base Prices

What can you expect to pay for a catamaran, a sailing vessel, or motored yacht? Here’s a quick overview of the average cost to rent a yacht (not including extra expenses) for the most common types available:

Factors that Affect Yacht Charter Prices

Since charter yachts are privately owned, prices are set by the owner. This can explain, in part, the wide range of differences in price between boats of similar lengths. Yet, several other factors can significantly impact price, including:

• The Yacht – The year the boat was built, the builder, previous owners, and the boat’s selection of water toys can also increase the cost of a yacht. Boats can also develop a reputation, i.e. the largest or most luxurious, or having a famous builder or previous owner. Reputation can also affect pricing.
• Season – Prices typically increase in the high season – i.e. high summer in the Mediterranean or winter in the Caribbean – and decrease in low seasons.
• Destination – Your charter destination also plays a role in charter cost. For example, prices increase in areas without large charter fleets (i.e. the Galapagos), whereas Bahamas yacht charters,   BVI charters , or Mediterranean yacht charter are priced more competitively.

Additional Costs Considerations on Yacht Charter

In addition to the cost associated with running the yacht and provisioning, there are a number of other costs that must be considered. These are the most significant:

Advanced Provisioning Allowance

The APA on Plus Expenses charters equals roughly 35% of the yacht’s base price. This is a fee that’s collected prior to charter, and it’s similar to an expense account the captain can access during the charter. At the end of the charter, you will receive a detailed accounting of your APA account, plus any unused APA funds in cash.

In the case of overages, you may be required to replenish the APA account during the charter. This can be done with cash, although many choose to set up accounts with their charter brokers , which can be accessed if requested by the captain.

Taxes and Value Added Tax (VAT)

Most boats – whether all-inclusive or Plus Expenses – will not include local taxes or a Value Added Tax into their charter rate. The charterer will be responsible for paying those taxes. Taxes range significantly by destination; here’s a look at some of yachting’s most popular destinations:

• The Bahamas – Tax: 4% plus 10% VAT
• BVI – Tax: between $6 and $16 per person per day, depending on the flag of the boat
• Croatia – VAT: 13%
• Florida – Tax: 6% for Broward County, 7% for Miami-Dade County
• France – VAT: 20%, however, 10% can be applied when an itinerary includes International Waters
• Greece – VAT: 12%
• Italy – VAT: 22%, however 6.6% (over 24m) and 8.8% (under 24m) can be applied when an itinerary includes International Waters
• Montenegro – NO VAT
• New England – NO TAX
• Spain – VAT: 21%
• Turkey – NO VAT

Charterers can purchase cancellation and curtailment insurance – which is similar to traveler’s insurance. This insurance can help cover costs if a charterer must cancel or shorten the charter. Charter brokers can help you weigh insurance options, and often offer several different options.

Crew Gratuity

While crew gratuity is certainly not mandatory, it is recommended, particularly if you were truly impressed with your charter experience. In general, crew gratuity is roughly 15-20% of the base charter rate, which is handed to the captain at the conclusion of your charter.

Delivery Fees

While these fees do not apply on most charters, you may be asked to pay delivery costs if you are not chartering in the yacht’s normal cruising ground. In most cases, you will only be required to cover the fuel for the trip.

Call Worldwide Boat today to learn more. Our Charter Specialists are here to assist you with every detail and explain all charter costs. Or read our Charter Advice guide for more information and tips for planning your charter vacation.

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Serenity 236

236.3ft / 70m

Additional Charter Cost FAQs

What are standard private charter yacht prices?

There are a number of factors that affect charter yacht pricing. However, on average, a week-long private yacht charter costs anywhere from $10,000 on luxurious sailing yachts and catamarans, and up to $150,000 for superyachts.

What affects charter yacht prices?

There are several things that influence how much your yacht charter will cost. The type of vessel, charter destination, length of trip, base cost, time of year, and local taxes all make a difference.

How much does it cost for a crewed vessel?

Charter yacht prices do increase when hiring a crew along with the boat. At Worldwide Boat, we offer two types of crewed charter experiences: all-inclusive and plus expenses. An all-inclusive charter yacht includes accommodation for all guests, food and drink, water sport activities, and fuel costs – dockage fees and taxes are charged separately. A plus expenses experience accounts for just the yacht’s base price. Things like food, drinks, fuel, dockages, taxes, and other expenses are charged separately and are usually estimated to be about 35% of the base price.

What’s included in all-inclusive boat charters?

At Worldwide Boat, your all-inclusive charter experience includes a diligent and friendly crew, water toys, food, drinks, fuel, water and electric services, and occasionally diving experiences.

What are some additional charter boat costs to consider?

After finding a base price you’re comfortable with and evaluating your package, you’ll also want to consider delivery fees, crew gratuity, insurance fees, taxes, and Advanced Provisioning Allowance rates. If you are responsible for these fees, your crew will handle the necessary transactions on your behalf.

What does it cost to rent a 100- foot yacht charter?

This depends on what type of vessel you’re looking at and how long you’ll need it for. The average weekly cost of a 100-foot sailing yacht is between $50,000-100,000. A weekly 80-foot catamaran charter runs around $40,000-100,000, and a week-long 100-foot motor yacht rental is anywhere between $50,000-80,000.

Does the price to rent a yacht change depending on what type of boat it is?

Yes. Worldwide Boat offers sailing yachts, catamarans, and motor yachts. All of these vessels have different capabilities, but there are other factors that determine the price beyond what type of boat you choose. The year the boat was built, owner, availability of water toys, onboard amenities, and the ship’s reputation can all change how much the ship is priced at.

When is the high season for yacht charters?

The price of a yacht fluctuates depending on the season. A Mediterranean yacht charter cost rises in the summer and drops in the winter, whereas Caribbean boat charter prices are high during the winter and lower in the summer months.

How does my destination affect charter yacht cost?

The more remote an area is, the more expensive it will be to charter a yacht there. That’s because prices go up in areas that have fewer boats. If you were to travel somewhere like the Galapagos, which isn’t a typical yacht destination, you’d pay more than you would if you were traveling to the Caribbean.

How much do I tip the crew when reviewing my yacht charter expenses?

It’s not required that you tip your crew, but it is recommended and appreciated. If you had an enjoyable experience it’s considered polite to tip your crew anywhere from 15-20% at the end of your charter.

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Help Center

How Much Does Yacht Week Cost? (A Comprehensive Guide)

Are you ready for an unforgettable vacation? Yacht Week is the perfect way to experience a luxurious getaway with friends or family.

But before you set sail, you may be wondering: how much does Yacht Week cost? In this comprehensive guide, we’ll discuss the various factors that influence the cost of a Yacht Week vacation, as well as provide an overview of the costs and different experiences available.

We’ll also provide some helpful tips for planning your Yacht Week vacation and saving money, plus reviews from real Yacht Week travelers.

So, get ready to set sail on the experience of a lifetime!.

Table of Contents

Short Answer

The cost of Yacht Week varies depending on the destination, the length of the trip, and the type of yacht you choose.

Generally, a week-long charter starts at around 2,500 and can go up to 10,000.

For example, a one-week charter in Greece can range from 2,500-4,000 for a basic yacht and up to 10,000 for a top-of-the-line yacht.

What is Yacht Week?

Yacht Week is a popular sailing holiday destination that has become increasingly popular over the years.

It is a unique experience that allows travelers to explore the worlds most beautiful and exclusive destinations in style.

Taking a Yacht Week trip can be an unforgettable experience, allowing you to sail the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean, Caribbean, and beyond.

Each charter offers a range of activities and adventures, such as swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, jet skiing, and sightseeing.

Yacht Week is perfect for groups of friends, families, or couples looking for a luxurious and unique holiday experience.

With a range of options to choose from, Yacht Week is the perfect way to explore the world in a unique and memorable way.

Factors that Influence Yacht Week Costs

When considering the cost of a Yacht Week experience, there are several factors to consider.

The first factor is the destination.

Different locations will have different rates, with some being more expensive than others.

Additionally, the number of guests and the type of yacht chosen can also influence the cost.

If a larger yacht or a more luxurious yacht is chosen, it will cost more than a smaller, basic yacht.

Other costs to consider are end cleaning fees, fuel, and skipper fees.

End cleaning fees refer to the cost of having the yacht cleaned and prepared before and after the trip.

Fuel costs can vary depending on the number of guests, the duration of the trip, and the type of yacht chosen.

Skipper fees are the cost of hiring a professional to sail the yacht during the trip.

Ultimately, the cost of a Yacht Week experience will depend on the individuals budget and preferences.

Those who are looking for a more luxurious experience will likely find that their costs are higher than those who are looking for a more basic trip.

There are also discounts available for groups and those who book early.

So, its important to consider all of these factors when determining the cost of a Yacht Week experience.

An Overview of Yacht Week Costs

When it comes to planning a holiday, one of the most important factors to consider is cost.

Yacht Week is no exception.

Depending on the destination, the number of guests, and the type of yacht chosen, the cost of a Yacht Week experience can vary greatly.

Generally, a one-week charter can range anywhere from 3,000 to 10,000, not including food and drinks.

Additionally, other costs that may be incurred include end cleaning, fuel, and skipper fees.

The cost of the Yacht Week experience is ultimately determined by the individual’s budget and preferences.

If you are looking for a more luxurious experience, you may opt for a larger, more luxurious yacht with more amenities.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a more affordable option, there are smaller, more affordable yachts that can offer a more budget-friendly experience.

It is important to note that the cost of a Yacht Week experience is not just limited to the charter fees.

Additional costs may include food and drinks, fuel, and skipper fees.

Additionally, some destinations may require a deposit for the yacht, which is typically refundable upon the yacht’s return.

Finally, it is important to note that the cost of a Yacht Week experience is not just limited to the charter fees.

The cost also includes the cost of food and drinks, fuel, and skipper fees.

Ultimately, the cost of a Yacht Week experience depends on the individual’s budget and preferences.

With so many options available, it is important to plan ahead and research the cost of the Yacht Week experience to ensure that it fits within your budget.

How to Save Money on Yacht Week

For those looking to save money on their Yacht Week experience, there are a few ways to do so.

First, booking early may be beneficial as many yacht companies offer discounts for early bookings.

Additionally, booking a smaller, less luxurious yacht can help to reduce the overall cost, as smaller yachts usually cost less than larger ones.

It is also important to consider the number of guests on the trip, as the cost will increase with the number of people on board.

Finally, keep an eye out for special offers and discounts from the yacht companies, which may be available from time to time.

Another option for those looking to save money is to book a package deal.

Many yacht companies offer package deals that include a variety of services, such as food, drinks, and fuel.

These packages can help to reduce the overall cost of the trip and make it more affordable for budget-conscious travelers.

Additionally, many yacht companies offer discounts for groups, which can help to further reduce the cost of the trip.

Finally, it is important to consider the destination when planning a Yacht Week experience.

Different destinations have different prices, and those looking to save money should aim to book a destination that is more affordable.

Additionally, some destinations may offer discounts for those booking multiple trips, so it is always worth checking with the yacht company before booking.

Different Yacht Week Experiences

When it comes to Yacht Week, there is no one-size-fits-all experience.

Depending on your budget and preferences, there are a variety of options to choose from.

From luxury yachts to smaller boats, there is something for everyone.

The most popular way to experience Yacht Week is by chartering a yacht for a one-week stay.

The cost of the yacht depends on the size of the boat, the number of guests, and the destination.

Generally, you can expect to pay anywhere from 3,000 to 10,000 for the week, not including food and drinks.

If you plan on staying at an exclusive location, such as the Greek Islands or Croatia, you can expect to pay a higher rate.

For those on a tighter budget, there are also shared yachts available.

This is a great option for solo travelers or those traveling in smaller groups.

The cost of a shared yacht is typically lower than that of a private charter, and there are usually more people on board to share the experience with.

In addition to the cost of the yacht, there are several other costs to consider when planning a Yacht Week holiday.

These include end cleaning, fuel, and skipper fees.

End cleaning fees are usually mandatory, and can range from 50-200 Euros.

Fuel fees depend on the size of the yacht and the distance traveled, and can range from 2-10 Euros per nautical mile.

Skipper fees are also required, and can range from 500-2,000 Euros per week.

When planning a Yacht Week holiday, it is important to keep in mind the additional costs that come with it.

These costs can add up quickly, so it is important to do your research and create a budget to ensure you have a stress-free holiday.

Tips for Planning a Yacht Week Vacation

When it comes to planning a Yacht Week vacation, there are a few tips and tricks that can help make the experience more enjoyable and cost-effective.

First, its important to determine the size and type of yacht that best suits your needs.

Many companies offer a variety of packages, so be sure to research the available options to find the best fit.

Next, consider the destination and the time of year.

Yacht Week charters are generally more expensive during peak season, so try to plan your trip during the off-season if possible.

Additionally, while some destinations may be more expensive, they may offer more amenities or activities.

Finally, its important to consider the cost of food and drinks.

Depending on the size of your group, these costs can quickly add up.

Consider bringing non-perishable items or pre-made meals, as well as snacks and drinks to reduce the overall cost.

By taking the time to do your research and plan ahead, you can ensure that your Yacht Week experience is both cost-effective and enjoyable.

Yacht Week Reviews

Yacht Week is a great way to experience the open seas with friends and family, and it has become increasingly popular over the years.

With its amazing destination spots, fun activities, and great company, its no wonder why people continue to flock to it.

But its only natural to be curious about how much Yacht Week costs.

The cost of a Yacht Week experience varies depending on the destination, the number of guests, and the type of yacht chosen.

Generally, a one-week charter can range from 3,000 to 10,000 depending on the amenities and features of the yacht.

On top of that, additional costs may include end cleaning, fuel, and skipper fees.

To get an understanding of Yacht Week rates, its best to read reviews from past participants.

A quick search on Trip Advisor or Google will yield plenty of Yacht Week reviews, offering insight into the cost of the experience and the quality of the services.

Reading reviews can help travelers determine the best yacht for their budget and preferences.

Reviews can also provide an idea of the amenities offered, such as air conditioning , a hot tub, or a great sound system.

Its important to take reviews with a grain of salt, though, since everyone’s experience is different.

Some people may have had an amazing time, while others may have had some issues.

Its best to read reviews from multiple sources and take an average of the costs to get a better understanding of the Yacht Week rates.

Ultimately, the cost of a Yacht Week experience depends on the individuals budget and preferences.

With careful research and a bit of luck, travelers can find the perfect yacht for their needs and make their Yacht Week dreams come true.

Final Thoughts

Yacht Week is an exciting, unique way to explore the world and create lifelong memories with friends and family.

With a wide range of options, destinations, and budget-friendly options, there is something for everyone.

Taking all the factors into consideration, there is no doubt that Yacht Week is an unforgettable experience that will stay with you long after you leave the shore.

So what are you waiting for? Start planning your Yacht Week adventure today!.

James Frami

At the age of 15, he and four other friends from his neighborhood constructed their first boat. He has been sailing for almost 30 years and has a wealth of knowledge that he wants to share with others.

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A seven-day or one-week yacht charter is an ideal introduction to a luxury yacht charter or when you want to enjoy a short but truly meaningful getaway. A one-week vacation offers plenty of time to relax and make the most of your boat’s many onboard amenities. Aboard a high-performance boat, you will also be able to visit multiple destinations.

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Charter a luxury yacht for one week

Whether you opt for a sailing yacht , a luxury motor boat , or a multi-hull vessel, on a seven-day yacht rental , you are guaranteed an incredible vacation on the water.  A crewed boat charter offers a highly exclusive and private experience, with itineraries and experiences tailored to your precise needs.

Northrop & Johnson has access to every luxury yacht charter on the planet. Our team of charter specialists can arrange incredible one-week itineraries in any destination in the world. Browse our yachts for charter for one week or contact our team.

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Seven day luxury boat rentals

How much does it cost to charter a yacht for one week.

A luxury yacht rental for one week or seven days starts from around US$50,000 for a 98.4ft (30m) boat and rises to more than $2 million per week for the world’s most luxurious superyachts and mega yachts.

Where can I cruise to during a one-week yacht charter?

Popular one-week cruising destinations include the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. Elegant one-week itineraries can be arranged along the French Riviera, the Amalif Coat, the Greek Islands, and the Balearic Islands, to name just a few destinations. Superyacht hotspots for a one-week boat rental in the Caribbean include St Barts, the British Virgin Islands, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Jamaica.

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Home > Croatia > Yacht Week Croatia Review – The Straight Facts

Yacht Week Croatia Review – The Straight Facts

The Yacht Week Croatia Review: Know Before Your Go

Perhaps you've heard to rumours, the stories, and the legends about the Yacht Week. It sounds awesome. But so did the Taco Bell Cheese Roll-Up burrito . It is all hype, or is it the real deal? This Yacht Week Croatia review has the answers.

In the interest of educating the masses, I sacrificed myself. From Aug 9-17 ten buddies and I embarked on the Yacht Week Croatia in search of the truth.

We found it.

My Yacht Week Croatia review summary is that it's awesome…  b ut   i t's not for everyone.  And there are definitely some things you should know in advance. Here are some key figures to shed light into the inner workings of the mayhem and help you prepare for your own experience:

And for those of you who don’t know what the Yacht Week is, watch this video:

The Yacht Week Croatia Review by the Numbers:

Number of nationalities represented at Yacht Week.Somewhat surprisingly there was nobody from Russia, the Middle East (not even Israel), or Asia. Nevertheless, the chance to cavort with and befriend people like you from around the world was definitely a highlight of the Yacht Week.

Number of nationalities representing 80% of the yacht weekers: American, Australian, Brazilian, Spanish, and German. In other words, while the Yacht Week Croatia draws a worldwide clientele, it's not THAT diverse.

Nationalities we had on our boat, “The Love Boat”: German, Swedish, Swiss, Canadian, Portuguese, South African, and Namibian. This definitely played to our advantage in drawing the attention of other boats.

Estimated age of the average yacht weeker. The youngest were 22 and oldest closing on forty, but most were in the late 20s to early 30s range.

Average age of the skippers, who are supposed to keep everything in control. No wonder chaos ensued.

This may be crude, but no Yacht Week Croatia review would be complete without sharing how much sex goes on. Fifteen is the number of girls the eight single guys in our crew “got intimate” with during the week. Just under two girls per guy might not seem like a lot, but most of our crew settled on “Yacht Week girlfriends”, meaning they hooked up with the same girl each night. If getting laid is one of your objectives at Yacht Week Croatia, you're in luck. It is very easy.

Percentage of yacht weekers who were female. At least. If anything, there were more girls than guys. Everyone—guys and girls—seemed to agree it was an ideal ratio.

Estimated total number of hours we were actually at sea. And some of that was early in the morning while we were sleeping. The vast majority of our time was spent anchored or at harbor. The Yacht Week is not about boating; it's all about partying.

Hours we actually had the sails up. We only put our sails up twice in the whole trip.

Estimated average sleep quality score, out of 100 during the trip. The cabins get unbearably hot at night. This forces you to sleep on deck, which is not designed for sleeping. And sleeping outside leads to an inevitable early wake up as soon as the sun comes up. I’d recommend following the skippers’ lead: bring a hammock and something to cover your eyes.

Number of full meals we ate per day. With the exception of one egg salad, that meal was always pasta. Other than that, for sustenance we snacked on fruit, cereal, pizza, sausages, bread, and booze.

Boats doing the same route as us, the Yacht Week Croatia Black Route. At the same time, 46 other boats were doing the Red Route, which is the same route but in the other direction. That’s a lot of boats and a lot of partiers.

$850 (4900 kuna)

Total spent on groceries at the Getro by the marina before sailing off for the first time. We ate it all and then some.

$35 (200 kuna)

Amount we were extorted into paying for the 250 meter taxi ride to bring our haul of groceries from the Getro supermarket to the Marina Kastela. Bring some dollies or carts from the marina so you can push the stuff back yourselves and avoid being ripped off.

$10, $1, $0.5

Approximate cost of a bottle of vodka, a can of beer, and a kilogram of bananas respectively at the supermarket by the marina where we started our trip.

$30, $2.50, $3

Cost of the same vodka, beer, and bananas at the harbor by Hvar where we spent two nights. Buy as much as you can at the begging in order to save money.

$260 (1500 kuna)

Amount each of the eleven in our crew contributed to the pot, which was used to pay for joint expenses like groceries, gas, and harbor fees.

$4.50 (25 kuna)

Typical cost of a can of beer at the Yacht Week parties. If you’re a cheap-ass like me, be sure to pre-drink, or make a party mix that you can stash nearby.

$350-$900 (2000 to 5000 kuna)

Cost of getting tables at the parties. Don’t get tables. The parties are free-for-alls and you won’t be spending much time at your table anyways. If you want drinks, buy them individually or take advantage of other people’s tables.

Number of skippers (the guys we paid to captain our boats for us) who said Yacht Week Croatia is their favorite. Without exception, they said they thought the Yacht Weeks in Greece and the US Virgin Islands were better. That’s not to say Croatia is bad at all – it’s awesome – but food for thought for those considering signing up and deciding where to go.

Number of times in my life I will do the Yacht Week. It was an even better time than I expected, but it's the polar opposite of the type of traveling I prefer (blending in) and I’m not sure my body could survive another. Plus, it’s expensive and there are plenty of other experiences and parties to be had in life. I recommend everyone do it once at least. And if you’re crazy, you’ll be back for more.

Disclosure: Whenever possible, we use links that earn us a cut if you pay for stuff we recommend. It costs you nothing, so we'd be crazy not to. Read our affiliate policy .

10 thoughts on “Yacht Week Croatia Review – The Straight Facts”

Just did The Yacht Week Croatia. Wish I read this before going there to be a little bit more prepared. Really liked your article and all the numbers – especially the cost for taxi and food supply. Actually, all the numbers were quite accurate and interesting!

SUPER HELPFUL, thank you!

Glad to hear it, Alexandra! Enjoy the summer

All the guys and girls are so shredded and ripped. Does this mean that the less attractive bodies don’t get a fair chance to get laid ?

Hi Kamlesh. I'd say it's no different from the non Yacht-week world.

Thanks for sharing! Was searching info for the yacht week and found this article helpful.

You're welcome. This post is getting old, so hopefully some of the info in it remains reasonably accurate.

Hi, two things:

1.Im planning to travel in July, should I opt for an AC yacht or non AC one? is the heat really unbearable? 2. A bit embarrassing but I am a snob in these How well equipped are the toilets of the yacht like?

THANK YOU FOR THESE GREAT TIPS. The company emailed my friends and I that our boat is no longer available. Im hearing the ac yacht is not worth it. Some nights the boat ran out of fuel and they didnt have ac until later that morning. What is your opinion?

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THE TRUTH ABOUT YACHT WEEK | 6 Things To Know Before You Go

Last summer, my friend and I spent a week exploring Croatia, Slovenia and Montenegro then met up with Kiersten ‘The Blonde Abroad’ and the rest of our all-girls crew for a week of sailing in Greece with The Yacht Week . As a whole, I loved the experience, but there were several things I wish I would have know prior to booking the trip that would have allowed me to enjoy it to the fullest. So here are 6 things you should know before you go on Yacht Week.

1) The Yacht Week will be more expensive than you think!

I budgeted around $75 a day for food and drinks for our seven day trip and quickly realized that that was not going to be enough. Upon arriving, we were told we needed to go shopping for costumes for the sailing competition and parties. Next, we had to put money in for the “Kitty Fund,” which is food and drinks for the boat for the week. We also had to pitch in money to tip our skipper and pay for gas for the boat. At the parties you usually get 1 or 2 free drinks with your wristband, but after, that you pay for your drinks. So it can get expensive, especially if you want to splurge on bottle service. It’s nice to have a heads up on all this so you can budget accordingly. Bottom line: if you plan to drink and eat out and don’t want to worry about running out of money, you should plan to spend around $130 USD/day. Here’s a quick budget breakdown…

$150 Kitty $50 Costumes $525 ($75/Day Restaurants + Drinks x 7 Days) $100 Gas/Tip for Skipper $100 Bottle Service _______ $925 TOTAL

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2) The Yacht Week is more about partying and less about sailing

Yes, you will sail from island to island (my favorite part of the trip!), but the main focus of Yacht Week is the parties they throw. There is a big welcome party the night you arrive, and for the rest of the trip, there are day parties and night parties every single day. I didn’t fully understand this coming into the trip so I wasn’t in the right frame of mind, but once I realized the basic agenda was sailing from party to party, I was able to just go with the flow and also plan some other stuff I wanted to do, without feeling like I was going to miss out.

With that said, I highly recommend skipping one or two of the day parties and exploring instead. On the Greece Route , forget the day party at Love Bay Beach (it’s a dirt beach and not that pretty) and check out Poros! There is a lot to see and you only get one night there, so skip the day party and wander around this cute little town. Also, Hydra Island ( my favorite stop on the Greece Route ) is another must see! Definitely ditch the day party and spend your time exploring this magical place. There are so many gorgeous spots to take photos on both islands.

3) Unless you splurge on a bigger, nicer sailboat, you will not be able to use the toilet onboard for #2!

You can go pee on all the sailboats, but you can’t flush toilet paper down the toilets, and on many of them, you cannot go #2. I am sorry. I know this is a disgusting topic, but it is even more disgusting and horrifying to find yourself on a boat, sailing for hours or docked somewhere overnight, and realize there is nowhere that you can go to the bathroom. My friend Misha and I stayed at several hotels along the way because neither of us wanted to handle not having proper use of a toilet for days on end, but many girls were not as lucky, and there are some very embarrassing stories that I will not repeat here. Had we known about the bathroom situation prior, we would have splurged on a bigger sailboat that could accommodate people using the toilet. So make sure you look into this before you book your boat!

4) Your boat will get dirty real quick!

We had an all-girls crew and our cabin still got crazy dirty every day. Make a pact to all help clean. If everyone pitches in, it takes just a few minutes a day to keep your boat clean. Stay on top of dishes. Do them right after you are done eating, and try to keep all your personal stuff in your own cabin. The last thing you want is to spend a week in a tiny cramped, filthy space. This is the real Yacht Week v. your Instagram Yacht Week…

5) There is no air conditioning on the smaller sailboats

This is really not a big deal but when it’s very hot, it is hard to sleep in the cabins. I recommend bringing a yoga mat or buying one the first night you are there, so you can lay it out and sleep on the deck of the boat at night. And if you do choose to sleep on the deck, make sure someone sleeps next to you. A lot of people will be walking to and from the boats at all hours of the night, so it is safer to use the buddy system, especially for girls.

6) You will have the time of your life!

Just go!   If you can’t find a friend to go with you, just go on your own. Every single girl on our boat was amazing and our skipper,  Gregor , was one of the kindest and most responsible guys I have ever met! I had the time of my life and I can’t wait to go on another Yacht Week trip, especially now that I know what to expect. It is nothing like the real world and it will be an amazing experience!

Do you have you been on Yacht Week? Please share your stories, tips, and questions in the comments below! 

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Vanessa Rivers

Hi! I’m Vanessa Rivers, a California surfer girl living in Malibu after seven years in London. I started Glitter&Mud to share my adventures around the world to help my readers make the most of their travels. I am a Founder of the popular travel community We Are Travel Girls and a proud mom to a little travel girl named Sadie. I hope my stories inspire you to travel more, see the beauty in the world around you, laugh more, love more and believe that anything is possible! EXPLORE. DREAM. DISCOVER. BELIEVE. LOVE.

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46 comments.

Great article Vanessa! I have been on Yacht Week a couple of times now, its super fun, but its definitely good for newbies to Yacht Week to hear how to prepare to make sure they really enjoy it! Completely agree on splurging on a bigger better boat, we went for a much larger yacht for BVI than we had in Croatia and it made such a difference! (Having a stand up cubicle shower next to my cabin was a treat!!) Thanks for sharing your tips! You girls and the bikinis are really cute too!! xoxo

Done yacht week three times – great experience. But as you said its about party. Now moved on to Sailing Nations which focuses more on sailing and has super interesting sailing destinations.

Hi Bob! Thanks for sharing! I will have to check out Sailing Nations. Sounds very cool! I love being out on the water. Sailing makes you feel so free!

I’ll be leaving in a few weeks. Wondering what the currency will be like and how much to exchange. Did you use Euros? Or Kuna?

Hi Liz! Greece is on the EURO. Are you coming from the US? Right now 1 USD = .90 EURO – Enjoy your trip! X

Croatia is on the Kuna.

Great article ! really helpful for rookie yacht weeks . I will leave in a few weeks for the Italy route. Do the budget shown here applies for italy as well?

Hi Gil! I haven’t bee on the Italy route yet but the activities and cost will probably be similar. Have fun!!!

What currency is your estimated cost list in? Thanks so much!

Hi Eloise! It is in USD! X

Hello Vanessa. I’ve got a group of 4-6 guys who want to go to Croatia next June and definitely want a higher end boat. I assume we should be able to set this up as their must be others who are willing to spend more to get more. A couple of questions; are all boats single sex boats? Would it be wise to get a few hotels at some of the ports/stops? How about paying for a single cabin? Basically I’m trying to gather as much information as possible before booking starts in a couple of weeks. Thank you, Chip

Hi Chip! If you just want the boat to be your 6 friends I am sure you can find a high-end boat that will work for you (you’ll just need to pay more for a nicer boat) but generally Yacht Week wants there to be at least 50% girls on the boat. So there are all girl boats and mixed male/female boats but rarely all male boats. However I am sure it is possible to have an all male boat. I would contact Yacht Week directly to ask about this: [email protected] | As far as hotels, if you get a nice boat with proper bathrooms you won’t need to rent hotel rooms. I would recommend putting the money you would spend on hotels rooms towards getting a nicer boat with nice, proper bathrooms. Have a blast on your trip! X

Hi Vanessa, excellent piece of work! I wanted to ask you few things because i’m planning to go with some friends of mine from Argentina. If you can answer, that will be appreciated. 1. I read that a Hostess is really helpfull. But, the captain that is not included, is 100% neccesary? 2. How much is the bottle service approximately? 3. How much did you spend, between food, drinks, extras and yatch during the entire week? 4. It’s recommended to make a reservation just for me and my friend, and then the company join us with another group for the 50% rate of men?

Hi Juan! Thanks for your questions! 1) You don’t need a hostess but I am sure it would be nice to have one. You absolutely need a captain or a skipper to sail the boat. 2) Bottle service prices vary depending on where you go. We did the Greece route and I think our bottle service was about 150 EURO for 1 bottle but again this varies. 3) In my post you will see the price breakdown. It was approx $925 USD for the week for my trip. 4) Yes, I would book spots for you and your friend and the rest of the boat will be filled with a mix of males and females for a 50% female/male ratio.

Your review was so helpful! We just booked a yacht for Greece!! Cannot wait!

Hi Sharita! I’m glad my post was helpful! Have a blast in Greece!!! X

Hi Vanessa. Thanks for your blog post # 1 was most important for me as I definitely wanted to know how much additional cost I would be spending. I typically budget $100 per day for trips. Great blog post in general. I will be sharing this with my crew.

Thank you Orane! Glad you found the post useful! And thanks so much for sharing it. If you or your friends have any questions about The Yacht Week you are welcome to post them in the comments section here and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible. X

Hi! When I think of yacht week, I want those typical parties where the boats link together in the ocean and create a mini village to mingle for the day. I’ve only heard of this on Croatia routes. Does this happen for Greece at all?

Also what’s the age range like?

Hi Arly! This does happen on the Greece route, and I think all of the routes! The age range is typically a majority of people in their early to late twenties, with some people a little younger and some people in their early to mid thirties. Most people you will be in there twenties. I think I was twenty-nine when I went, which is on the older side! Have a blast!

Hi Vanessa! Great article. My best friend and I plan on doing Croatia this summer! The $130/day you estimated, does that include the port fees and electric fees at each port? Thanks!

Hi Lindsey – thanks for reaching out. I don’t remember specific cost for port fees or any electric fees but I know our Kitty Fund that everyone pitched money into at the start of the trip cover all the boat related costs on the trip, so yes, all your boat fees are included in the $130/day! X

Hey Lindsey, are you and your friend booking your own yatch? We’re looking for two girls to join our crew for week 25.

Question: the catamarans seem a lot more stable (and thus probably a better place to gather people for the party) whereas the Beneteau Oceanis 60 is just a sexy beast. We want to make sure we can have people over at our boat to party (and that it is stable enough for it). Which one do you think is the way to go (from your observations)?

Hi Kay – I am not a boat expert but I think any sailboat would be fine to have people on to “party” as long as you don’t go over the max weight limit for the boat. The skipper will let you know how many extra people you can have. X

Have you reviewed or compared the two routes? I can’t decide between Croatia and Greece. I have visited both and loved them both for different reasons. But, I am so torn between the two routes.

Hi Jami! I have been to both Croatia and Greece but I have only done Yacht Week Greece. I can personally say YW Greece was amazing but don’t have any experience with the Croatia route. However I am sure it is amazing too! My friend Kirsten – The Blonde Abroad – has done both and she gives a good review here: http://theblondeabroad.com/2014/11/03/best-route-yacht-week/

Hope this is helpful!

Hello Hello, may I ask what marina did you leave from and did you happen to see any yacht week prop stores near the marina are on your route? Someplace to buy floaties, temporary tattoos, UV body paint, and the like. We’re trying to maximize our carry on space by strategizing what we can buy in Athens.

Hi Lynette! I took this trip a few years ago so sorry I do not remember the name of the marina but I remember stores for everything we wanted to buy were within walking distance of our boat including a place to buy floaties, body paint and costumes etc! So unless there is something specific you want you can just go buy stuff with your boat crew when you arrive! 😉

Where do the floaties go after Yacht week? I leave in about 3 weeks and am purchasing floaties now. But every photo I see everyone is on a floatie. Would it make sense to just buy some off of them instead of lugging them half way accross the planet in a carry-on? Or is somewhere in Split just the location of the worlds largest floatie graveyard

Hi Jason! On the Greece route there was a store right in the harbor where we bought floaties the day before we set sail. I don’t know what people do with their floaties after yacht week. Mine got holes along the way and deflated so I threw them away but I would have given them to someone if they made it to the end! You can probably just wait and buy them when you get there. Maybe buy one floatie before and then get the rest when you arrive that way you know you at least have one!

Vanessa, Great article. I’m planning on doing this with a few friends. I noticed that you kept bringing up bottle service as being expensive. What if we ended up buying a lot of supplies (booze included) before getting on the boat. Would that be an issue? Maybe you pointed this out already and I stupidly missed it. Thanks.

Hi Allen! Thanks for your comment! I just mentioned that if you want to splurge on bottle service it is expensive and can add up quickly. You can also of course buy supplies and just drink on the boat and not spend money when you go out to the parties but you can’t bring alcohol with you the clubs obviously, so if you want to drink while there you will need to factor in the extra cost of drinks. TYW gives you a wrist band that usually gives you at least 2 free drinks at each party but you have to buy your own drinks after that so just be sure to factor in the cost if you plan to drink when going out!

Great read, very helpful! I noticed you mentioned 100$ for tip/gas (how many people were on the boat total?) Just trying to get a rough estimate on how much we should tip our skipper, including myself, we have 7 people.

Hi Jade! We had a crew of 8 girls. I think the amount you tip should depend more on how good your skipper is/ how much he does and how much your sailboat cost to rent. We had a small, cheaper boat but our skipper was really awesome so we wanted to tip him well. He went above and beyond to make sure we were all safe, happy and having fun! Hope this helps. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have more questions! Have fun!

Is there a farewell party Friday night on the Greece route?

Hi Alyssa – Thanks for your comment. I don’t remember there being a farewell party on Friday night! X

Thanks for the help! Does anyone have any recommendations for other cities/countries to visit before/after Croatia yacht week? Trying to book a 2-week trip overall, and there are so many options! Would love help narrowing it down! 🙂

Hey Vanessa, There are 8 of us girls looking into booking this summer, Greece or Montenegro route but we are concerned about the age range. We are between 30-35…what was the age range like? Also, we were debating on if we book in pairs (cabins) and be on separate boats or if we book our own, what are your thoughts?

Hi Kelsy! Thanks for your comment! Most people are in their 20s on yacht week but there are lots of people in their 30s too so you girls won’t feel out of place. I would try to rent your own boat all together. It will be easier if you are all together otherwise you will spend most of the trip just trying to meet up. Yacht week is about relaxing and having fun so you don’t want to work about stuff like that on your trip. You will also have plenty of time to mix and mingle with other people at the parties and when you are docked together or anchored during the day together! Hope you ladies have a blast! If any of you want to write a guest post about what it is like to do yacht week in your 30s I would LOVE to publish your story here! X, Vanessa

how much was it for each bottle for bottle service? would it be liter bottles or standard US 750ml bottles?

Hi! Bottle service in Greece when I went was around 150-200 EURO for US 750ml bottles. Cheers!

Is there a ‘best’ month to do yacht week? My friends and I don’t want to do the Ultra music festival. Curious if July or August is better. Thanks!

Hi Kelly! I don’t think there is really a best month but you might find cheaper flights and the places you go to might be a little less crowded in August. June and July are peak high season so best to try to avoid touristy spots during those months if you can.

Do you remember how much of your budget you were able to pay for with credit card, or how much of it had to be paid for with cash? I want to avoid converting too much of my money into cash euros for the Greece trip.

Hi Kurt! I paid for my spot on our boat with my credit card online prior to the trip. Everything else I paid for in cash. It is much easier if you have cash on hand to pay for meals and drinks etc. If you get bottle service at a bar you will be able to pay with a card but a drink here or there and meals where you are in a group it is much easier to each just throw in some cash. I would suggest taking maybe $300 out before you start the trip then getting more at one of your stops along the way that way just to be safe. I did not have anything stolen from me on the trip but it is always a risk if you have too much cash with you. Have fun! X, Vanessa

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Rent a Yacht for a Week | Price for Paradise

Renting a yacht for a week can transform a regular holiday into a memorable journey...

Table of Contents

Table of contents, brief overview of yacht chartering, understanding costs when renting a yacht for a week, why rent a yacht for a week, types of yachts available for weekly yacht rental, top destinations to explore when you rent a yacht for a week, cost of renting a yacht for a week, how to book a yacht, tips when you rent a yacht for a week, advantages of renting a yacht for a week.

Renting a yacht for a week can transform a regular holiday into a memorable journey across stunning seas. Moreover, choose a yacht to explore secluded coves, dine under the stars with gourmet meals, and indulge in water sports that match your preferences.

Yacht chartering has become popular for those seeking a unique and personalized vacation experience. Whether you want to explore hidden coves, dine under the stars, or enjoy water sports, chartering a private yacht provides the freedom to create your perfect tour. Yacht vacations cater to diverse preferences, from intimate getaways to family adventures and corporate retreats.

When planning to rent a yacht for one week, it’s essential to understand the costs involved. This helps you budget effectively and ensures there are no surprises. Costs vary widely based on the yacht's size, destination, and the season. Being informed about these expenses you can choose a yacht charter that fits your needs and preferences.

Inclusive Charters

An inclusive yacht charter covers most of your expenses upfront. This typically includes the yacht, crew, fuel, food, and drinks. Inclusive charters are ideal for those who prefer to have everything planned out in advance, allowing you to relax and enjoy your vacation without worrying about additional costs.

Typically these charters are in the British Virgin Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, and a few other Caribbean countries. Many motor sailors (gulets) in Croatia, Greece , and Italy include 4 hours of fuel per day during a charter.

Plus Expenses Charters

On the other hand, plus expenses charters require you to pay for the yacht and crew initially, with additional costs for fuel, food, beverages, and dockage charged separately. This option offers more flexibility if you plan to manage your consumption and activities closely. The additional expenses are known as APA - Advance Provisioning Allowance. Prepaid and calculated as a percent of the base charter fee.

Taxes and Additional Costs when renting a yacht for a week

When renting a yacht for a week, it's crucial to account for taxes and other potential additional costs. Depending on the destination, you may encounter VAT, local taxes, and environmental fees. Understanding these charges upfront ensures you can enjoy your yacht rental vacation without unexpected expenses.

Explore Luxurious and Memorable Yacht Experiences

Embarking on a yacht charter vacation promises luxury and adventure at every turn. From the Mediterranean's crystal-clear waters to the Caribbean's vibrant islands, renting a yacht for a week opens the door to memorable experiences. Therefore, why wait? Dive into the world of yacht chartering and create memories that will last a lifetime.

Rent a Yacht for a Week Unique Experience

A yacht charter vacation offers a unique experience that can't be matched. Renting a yacht for a week allows you to immerse yourself in the serenity of the open sea while enjoying the exclusivity and luxury that only a private luxury yacht charter can provide.

Number of Days for the Best Experience

To appreciate the yachting lifestyle, a minimum of seven nights / 8 days is recommended. For the best experience, consider extending your yacht charter to ten nights. This extra time allows you to explore more destinations, ensuring a more relaxed and enjoyable vacation.

Privacy during your Yacht Rental for a Week

One of the main reasons to rent a yacht for a week is the unparalleled privacy it offers. Unlike crowded resorts and hotels, a yacht charter vacation provides a secluded environment where you can unwind without interruptions. Your private sanctuary on the water.

Exclusivity

Renting a yacht means having exclusive access to the vessel and its amenities. This exclusivity adds a touch of luxury to your vacation, making it a special experience. Enjoy sunbathing on the deck, swimming in pristine waters, and dining under the stars, all in complete privacy.

Customized Itineraries when renting a Yacht for a Week

With a yacht charter , your trip is completely customizable. Whether you want to explore bustling coastal cities, remote islands, or hidden bays, your captain can tailor the route to your preferences. This level of personalization ensures that your vacation is exactly what you want it to be.

Luxury and Comfort

Yacht charter vacations are synonymous with luxury and comfort. High-end yachts have state-of-the-art amenities, including spacious cabins, entertainment systems, and elegant lounges. Every detail is designed to provide the utmost comfort and enjoyment.

High-End Amenities and Services on your weekly yacht rental

On a yacht, you can expect top-notch amenities and services. From jacuzzi tubs and on-deck pools to water sports equipment and high-speed internet, every feature is designed to enhance your experience. Professional crew members are dedicated to ensuring comfort and satisfaction throughout your stay.

Gourmet Dining and Personalized Crew Services

One of the highlights of a yacht charter vacation is the gourmet dining experience. Skilled chefs prepare exquisite meals tailored to your tastes, using the finest ingredients. The personalized service extends beyond dining, with a crew ready to cater to every need, from organizing activities to providing local insights.

Flexibility and Freedom when you rent a yacht for a week

Yacht charter vacations offer unparalleled flexibility and freedom. You decide where to go and what to do each day. Whether exploring new destinations, trying out water sports, or simply relaxing on board, you have complete control over your itinerary depending on the weather and time.

Choosing Your Destinations when renting a yacht for a week

When you rent a yacht for a week, you choose your destinations. Sail to vibrant ports, secluded beaches, or picturesque islands. The choice is yours, and the possibilities are endless.

Activities Like Snorkeling, Diving, and Island Hopping

Yacht charter vacation has world-class activities. Snorkeling, scuba diving, water toys, and island hopping are just a few of the adventures you can enjoy. With direct access to the water, you can explore marine life, discover hidden coves, and visit multiple islands, all at your own pace.

Motor Yachts

Luxury Motor yachts offer speed and luxury. They are perfect for those who want to cover long distances quickly. These yachts feature powerful engines, plush interiors, and expansive decks for sunbathing and socializing. They combine comfort with performance, making them a top choice for private boat charter vacations.

Sailboats provide a classic yachting experience. Using wind power, they offer a serene and eco-friendly way to travel. Ideal for those who love traditional sailing yachts, sailboats bring a sense of adventure and tranquility, perfect for a peaceful getaway.

Catamarans are known for their stability and spaciousness. With two hulls, they offer a smooth ride and plenty of room, making them great for families and groups. The wide beam provides large cabins and ample deck space, ensuring a comfortable and relaxed yacht charter vacation.

Motor Sailors

These yachts are found in Croatia, Greece, Turkey, and southern Italy. Both the classic and modern motor sailors are spacious and a good value based on the space and size of the yacht.

Super Yachts

Super yachts are the pinnacle of ultra-luxury. They have extensive amenities like swimming pools, jacuzzis, and private cinemas. With a dedicated crew, super yachts offer unmatched comfort and service. Superyacht rental for a week promises an extravagant and memorable experience.

Mediterranean - Weekly Yacht Rental

French Riviera

The French Riviera is synonymous with glamour and luxury. Charter a yacht here to explore chic cities like Nice, Cannes, and Monaco, where you can enjoy upscale shopping, dining, and vibrant nightlife.

Greek Islands

The Greek Islands offer stunning landscapes and rich history. Sail between islands like Mykonos, Santorini, and Crete, and experience beautiful beaches, ancient ruins, and charming villages.

Italian Coastline

The coastline of Italy is dotted with beautiful destinations. Explore the Amalfi Coast, Sicily, and Sardinia, where you can indulge in delicious cuisine, picturesque towns, and crystal-clear waters.

Adriatic coast of Croatia is a yachting paradise. Discover the historic city of Dubrovnik, the lively island of Hvar, and the serene Kornati National Park.

Spain (Balearic Islands)

The Balearic Islands , including Mallorca, Ibiza, and Menorca , offer a mix of vibrant nightlife and tranquil beaches. Enjoy the Mediterranean sun, clear waters, and Spanish culture.

US Virgin Islands - Weekly Yacht Rental

Saint Thomas

St. Thomas is known for its bustling harbors, duty-free shopping, and stunning beaches like Magens Bay—a lively starting point for a yacht charter in the USVI.

Mostly covered by a national park, St. John offers pristine beaches and excellent snorkeling spots like Trunk Bay and Cinnamon Bay.

St. Croix combines rich history with natural beauty. Explore its historic towns, beautiful beaches, and vibrant coral reefs.

British Virgin Islands (BVI) - Rent a Yacht for a Week

Tortola , the largest island in the BVI, is known for its lush landscapes and beautiful beaches. Don’t miss the vibrant harbor of Road Town and the serene Cane Garden Bay.

Virgin Gorda

Virgin Gorda is famous for The Baths, a unique beach area with giant granite boulders. It also offers luxury resorts and secluded bays.

Jost Van Dyke

Jost Van Dyke is a laid-back island known for its beach bars and stunning White Bay. Best spot for relaxation and socializing.

Bahamas - Weekly Yacht Rental

The Exumas are a chain of 365 islands offering crystal-clear waters and secluded beaches. Swim with the famous pigs at Major Cay or explore the Thunderball Grotto.

The Abacos offer a more laid-back experience with charming colonial towns, beautiful beaches, and excellent sailing conditions.

Grenada , known as the "Spice Isle," offers lush landscapes, beautiful beaches, and vibrant culture. Explore its pristine waters and the charming capital, St. George’s.

St. Vincent and The Grenadines

This chain of islands offers unspoiled beauty and excellent sailing conditions. Visit Bequia, Mustique, and the Tobago Cays for a tranquil escape.

St. Lucia is famous for its dramatic Pitons, lush rainforests, and luxury resorts. It is the perfect destination for both adventure and relaxation.

Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua boasts 365 beaches, one for every day of the year, while Barbuda offers pink sand beaches and untouched beauty. Both islands provide a luxurious charter yacht experience.

Central America

Costa Rica’s Pacific coast offers stunning landscapes, diverse wildlife, and excellent surf spots. Explore Manuel Antonio National Park and the Gulf of Papagayo.

Panama is known for its vibrant culture, stunning beaches, and the famous Panama Canal. Explore the San Blas Islands for a unique cultural experience and pristine waters.

North America

Newport, rhode island.

Newport is a historic destination with charming coastal scenery, grand mansions, and a lively sailing culture. Perfect for a summer yacht charter.

Alaska offers breathtaking natural beauty with glaciers, wildlife, and rugged coastlines. Explore the Inside Passage for a memorable adventure.

Maine’s coastline has picturesque lighthouses, quaint towns, and beautiful islands. Enjoy fresh seafood and scenic sailing in this charming destination.

New York offers a unique yachting experience with stunning views of the Manhattan skyline, the Statue of Liberty, the iconic Hudson River, and Long Island Sound.

Factors Impacting Cost

Type and size of yacht that you can rent for a week.

The cost of renting a yacht week-long largely depends on the type and size of the yacht. Motor yachts, sailboats, catamarans, and super yachts with different price tags. Larger yachts with more onboard amenities will generally cost more.

Season and Location

The time of year and the location also significantly impact the cost. High season, typically during summer months in the Mediterranean or winter in the Caribbean , will have higher rates. Off-season charters can be more affordable.

Sample Price Ranges when you rent a yacht for a week

Here are some example price ranges:

• 40-50 ft Catamaran : $15,000 - $25,000 per week
• 50-60 ft Motor Yacht : $25,000 - $50,000 per week
• 60-80 ft Motor Yacht : $50,000 - $100,000 per week

Additional Costs

Fuel, food, and beverages.

For non-inclusive charters, additional costs include fuel, which varies based on distance traveled, and food and beverages. Provisioning can be customized to your preferences, but it's an extra expense to consider.

Tipping the crew or your yacht charter guide is customary and usually amounts to 10-20% of the charter fee, depending on the level of service provided.

Docking Fees

Docking fees vary by location and can accumulate, particularly in popular ports and marinas. These fees are not typically included in the base charter rate.

Understanding these costs helps you plan a realistic budget for your yacht charter boat vacation. By being aware of the various factors and potential additional expenses, you can make informed decisions and enjoy a seamless and luxurious yachting experience.

Choosing a Reputable Charter Broker Company

Selecting a reputable charter broker ensures a smooth experience. Look for firms with a strong track record, extensive experience, and positive client feedback like CKIM Group .

CKIM Group One of the Best Yacht Charter Brokers

With over 25 years of experience, CKIM Group is renowned for its expertise in matching clients with the perfect yacht and crew, offering personalized service and attention to detail.

Rent a Yacht for a Week Booking Process

Inquiry, availability check, and reservation.

Contact your CKIM Group Yacht broker to discuss dates, preferences, and destinations for your Luxury and Crewed Charter . The broker will confirm availability and assist in securing your reservation promptly.

Important Considerations

Insurance, contracts, and cancellation policies.

Ensure the yacht and crew are fully insured. Review and sign a detailed charter agreement outlining terms, payment schedules, and cancellation policies to avoid surprises.

Planning Your Itinerary

Plan your tour carefully to include must-see destinations and activities that suit your interests, whether exploring historic ports or enjoying water sports.

Packing Essentials

Pack light with essentials like comfortable clothing, swimwear, sunscreen, hats, and sunglasses. Don’t forget any medications or personal items for a comfortable stay onboard.

Communicating with the Crew

Communicate clearly with the crew about your preferences and expectations for meals, activities, and any special requests to ensure a tailored and enjoyable experience.

Renting a yacht for a week offers unparalleled advantages:

• Luxury and Privacy : Enjoy luxury amenities and the privacy of your own floating paradise.
• Customizable Experience : Tailor your itinerary to explore stunning destinations and engage in activities that suit your preferences.
• Personalized Service : Experience top-notch service with a dedicated crew catering to your every need.

Ready to embark on your yacht charter adventure?

Contact CKIM Group today for expert booking assistance and start planning your dream vacation on the water.

Their experienced team is ready to assist you in creating a memorable Private Yacht Charter experience.

CKIM Group specializes in matching clients with the perfect yacht and crew. Trust their expertise to ensure a seamless and enjoyable booking process.

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FinanceBuzz

16 Yacht Charters That Make for a Strangely Affordable Family Vacation

Posted: December 11, 2023 | Last updated: December 12, 2023

While a yacht may be the first thing that pops to mind when you think of the ultra-wealthy, chartering one might not be as expensive as you think. When you're splitting the costs between several family members or friends you are paying for transportation and stay and it can make sense financially.

You can also  keep money in your wallet  by selecting an older vessel or taking charge of sailing yourself (hiring a crew always costs extra).

So let’s take a look at options that may be within reach for people who aren’t living paycheck to paycheck but aren’t brunching with the Kardashians either.

Editor's note: prices are subject to change and may vary depending on the time of the year.

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San Antonio motor yacht

The San Antonio is a luxury motor yacht measuring 146 feet in length that was built in 2018. This huge vessel is capable of accommodating 36 guests in 18 cabins.

The cost to charter it starts at $21,000 per week plus expenses, not including a crew of eight (which we recommend).

Divide the cost by capacity, and that’s only $583 per person per week to start. That’s practically unbeatable for a boat of this size, allowing you to make other savvy moves with your money .

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Virginia Mia motor yacht

Constructed in 2001 (with several subsequent refits), the Virginia Mia is another luxury motor yacht that’s 95 feet in length.

Custom-designed by Nuvolari Lenard, this vessel can sleep eight guests in four cabins as well as an additional crew of four.

Still, thanks to the age of the yacht, the cost of chartering starts at $15,000 plus expenses per week, or just under $2,000 per guest sans crew.

Nautilus sailing yacht

White motor yachts are convenient and luxe, sailing yachts promise a more traditional experience.

At nearly 125 feet, the Nautilus is a large option styled by Robert Delus. Built in 2008, it sleeps 10 guests in five cabins. At this size, you'll likely need a crew of six.

The cost to charter this beauty starts at $17,500 per week sans expenses, again just under $2,000 per person — which really isn't bad for all you're getting.

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Aegean Clipper sailing yacht

The Aegean Clipper is another sailing vessel, this one built all the way back in 1999 — which translates into cost savings for you.

The yacht is another biggie at nearly 135 feet. With 11 cabins, the boat can accommodate up to 24 guests plus five crew members as needed.

In total, your group will have to shell out a minimum of $13,000 plus expenses per week — just over $379 per person. That's a great deal, comparatively speaking.

Silver Fox expedition yacht

If you're looking for something a little smaller that can go the distance, the Silver Fox expedition yacht might be for you.

Built in 2009, the 72-foot yacht accommodates six guests in three cabins for a more intimate experience. There's room for a crew of two if you need their expertise.

With a starting cost of $16,500 per week, the Silver Fox will run each person over $2,700 per week, but the small group may be worth it.

Tivoli expedition yacht

Traveling with a group of the same size but want more length and a bigger crew?

The Tivoli expedition yacht, constructed in 2001 and remodeled in 2010, can fit four crew members. This stunner is just over 90 feet long and can take you on those long hauls.

Yes, it will cost more at $25,000 per week, or over $4,100 per person. But if you can afford it, it’s a dream come true out on the open water.

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Shangri-La classic yacht

Classics are classics for a reason, as they stand the test of time. Such is the case with the Shangri-La, a vintage yacht sure to take you to that magical place.

This vessel sleeps six in three cabins and promises to be child-friendly. The Shangri-La was constructed way back in 1965, and it is 82 feet long with space for three crew members.

A week on this rig will cost you $16,500, or just over $2,700 a pop.

Sai Kung classic yacht

Another vintage beauty, the Sai Kung classic yacht was born in 1975 and got a makeover in 2015. That updated this 79-foot vessel that can sleep nine people in four cabins.

Be sure you’re a nautical whiz, as there’s no room for additional crew here, but that will only save you money.

All told, the Sai Kung will set your group back $17,500 per week, just under $2,000 per person.

Glorious open yacht

Outdoor yachts are designed for those who truly want to live outside, which you can do easily on the Glorious.

This sporty 72-footer is ready to help you dive, scuba, and more, with room for six guests in three cabins. You can bring a crew of two for extra help, of course.

Built in 2007 and remodeled nine years later, chartering the Glorious will run you $16,500 per week, again $2,700 per person.

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Speedy T open yacht

Looking for a bigger open yacht that’s perfect for swim buffs? Charter the Speedy T, a vessel that’s 80 feet long and primed for dips in refreshing ocean waters.

Like many of the yachts on this list, it accommodates six guests in three cabins and has room for three crew members.

All told, one week on this sleek ship — built in 1994 and renovated in 2011 — is $19,500 before expenses, translating to $3,250 per head. But the adventure promises to be unforgettable.

Etoile Magique catamaran yacht

With extra stability even at higher speeds, catamaran yachts like the Etoile Magique are great options for adventure.

This 80-foot vessel is roomy for its size, with room for 16 guests in eight cabins. There’s space for a three-person crew, too.

Constructed in 2004 and remodeled a decade later, this is a budget-friendly adventure in the making. At $18,710 per week before expenses, that shakes out to a bit over $1,100 apiece.

Fuerte 3 catamaran yacht

Meaning “strong” in Spanish, the Fuerte 3 catamaran yacht — built in 2004 and renovated in 2010 — offers a more intimate experience than the Etoile Magique, with space for nine guests in four cabins.

On the smaller side, at 67 feet, you can bring two crew members along if you need them. The price tag for one week is around $22,000, or just over $2,400 a pop. This vessel is best in shallower waters.

Astrape sport fishing yacht

If your idea of the perfect vacation is sport fishing, this boat is for you. The Astrape sport fishing yacht comes with top-of-the-line fishing equipment so you can catch your dream fish.

Built in 2008 and remodeled in 2016, the 76-foot vessel sleeps eight in four cabins. It also has room for three crew members.

On the pricier side at $29,000, a week will cost each person nearly $3,700 — worth it if you can show off that once-in-a-lifetime catch, though!

Barefoot sport fishing yacht

Giving us some real Orca energy, the Barefoot sport fishing yacht was built in 2006 — much later than that famed vessel from "Jaws."

The 64-foot boat is designed for fishing in shallower waters, perfect for you and five friends who will share three cabins. Two crew members can fit, too.

This yacht is cheaper than the Astrape at $17,500, so six folks will pay just under $3,000 a head per week.

Prenses Lila gulet yacht

Gulet yachts are known for their tall masts, ample deck space, and Turkish origins — perfect for a Mediterranean voyage.

To that end, the Prenses Lila is an excellent option for groups of 18. At 114 feet with eight cabins and space for five crew members, this boat beckons.

You can charter Prenses Lila — built in 2009 and remodeled in 2009 — for $17,500 per week in September.

Dreamland gulet yacht

The second gulet yacht and the final boat we’re covering is Dreamland, which will surely take you there. 

Constructed in 2006, 12 guests can sleep in six suites on this 105-foot vessel as well as five crew members.

You can book Dreamland for around $26,000 in high season. Divide that by 12, and you land on about $2,200 per person. That might require some financial fitness , but yachts like this don’t come around every day.

Bottom line

Spending your days sunning and swimming aboard a luxurious yacht may seem like an out-of-reach proposition, but we’re here to tell you it’s possible.

In fact, with planning and savvy budgeting, you can score your dream seafaring adventure. You can even use your favorite credit card to book and earn travel rewards .

Traveling by charter yacht is also more environmentally friendly than flying, which means you can feel good about your sailing vacation.

More from FinanceBuzz:

• 6 genius hacks Costco shoppers should know.
• Can you retire early? Take this quiz and find out.
• 7 things to do if you're scraping by financially.
• 9 simple ways to make up to an extra $200/day

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The most fabulous yachts to charter this summer

There are an estimated 6,000 superyachts — vessels that are more than 100 feet long — at sea in 2024

As summer reaches its peak across the Northern Hemisphere, it’s hard to imagine a better way of spending a vacation than channeling your inner ship captain and sailing across the ocean.

In recent years, yacht companies have reported a boom in sales — far from the decline that many in the industry feared, due to both the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic realities of the Russia-Ukraine War.

“I spent my days [in 2020] doing worst-case scenarios and drawing up the budgets to go with them,” Giovanna Vitelli, chairwoman of Azimut|Benetti, the world’s largest yacht manufacturer, told the Economist in 2023.

Instead, her company reported a 23% growth in production value in 2023 —a reality that is not unique to just one yacht manufacturer. The luxury yacht market is expected to grow in value from $7.67 billion in 2023 to $17.33 billion by 2032, according to a recent report from Fortune Business Insights .

Analysts attribute the ships’ rise in popularity to the increasing number of extremely wealthy individuals . Yachts have long been considered a status symbol — a reality that has only increased as wealth becomes concentrated in the hands of a small group of high status individuals .

There are an estimated 6,000 superyachts —vessels that are more than 100 feet long — at sea as of this year. This is nearly quadruple the number of yachts seen in the ocean just three decades ago, according to Bloomberg .

Aside from an increase in popularity, the yacht industry has seen other changes in recent years. Increasingly, those in the market for a luxury ship are turning to alternate means of powering their vessels, as critics point to the excess emissions traditional yachts produce simply for recreational use.

In their 2024 report, Fortune Business Insights highlighted the growing trend of electrification as a significant area of growth in the coming years.

“A tough regulatory environment for traditional yachts and rising fuel prices will pave the way for the solid growth of electric yachts in the future,” the report reads. “Huge investments from various manufacturers and government support measures will accelerate the demand for electric yachts.”

Read on to learn more about the most luxurious yachts available for chartering in 2024.

Carinthia VII

Originally constructed in 2002, the award-winning Carinthia VII was recently remodeled and reimagined specifically for private charters. The 319-foot ship spans six decks and can accommodate up to 12 guests in eight staterooms. Among the ship’s amenities are two bars, a fully equipped gym and an outdoor projection screen that allows for an “immersive cinematic experience like no other.” The cost of chartering the Carinthia VII is $1,525,700 during both the winter and summer seasons.

The Lady S yacht boasts a number of exciting water toys, including jet skis, water skis, wakeboards and kayaks for athletic guests on the 305-foot ship. For those who prefer more indoor-oriented activities, however, you can also catch a film on the ship’s IMAX Dolby cinema — the first of its kind on any yacht in the world. Accommodating 12 guests, in seven cabins, the cost of chartering the Lady S begins at $1,743,328 a week.

The interior of the Ahpo yacht seems more reminiscent of a luxury hotel than a simple ship. Accommodating 16 guests and 36 crew members, the vessel features a full-size gym, a winter garden and a spa complete with a Himalayan salt sauna. The 378-foot long yacht was first manufactured in 2021 by the German shipyard Lürssen. Excited sailors can charter the Ahpo from superyacht broker Edmiston, beginning at $2,833,376 a week.

500EXP Para Bellum

This 154-foot-long yacht can accommodate up to 12 travelers in its six cabins, along with up to 10 crew members. The ship was specially designed to enable “guests a 360-degree experience and relationship with the sea” through its unique stern and sundeck that allow travelers to safely stand “almost at sea level,” according to its Italian manufacturer San Lorenzo . Interested travelers can rent the ship for $359,609 a week.

The Renaissance

The Renaissance lives up to its grandiose name by going beyond traditional private yachts and bridging the gap between a personal vehicle and a full-on cruise ship. The 367-foot long ship features five decks and can accommodate 36 guests in 19 cabins. The Renaissance’s amenities include a 19-seat movie theater, a sushi-bar, and a full spa deck featuring a wellness area, plunge pools and a hair salon. The cost of chartering the ship from Burgess Yachts ranges from $3,269,280 to $3,814,160 a week.

Here's where to get your Boat Week merch this week

Whether you’re participating in Saturday’s historic Port Huron-to-Mackinac Island Sailboat Race or visiting downtown to join in on the Boat Week fun, there are plenty of places to pick up a T-shirt or nautical souvenir to commemorate the occasion.

This year marks the second that MI Passion, 229 Huron Ave., has carried T-shirts with the Bayview logo for the Mackinac race — now with the emblem for its 100th anniversary.

But they’re going fast.

Boutique owner Anita Varty said she bought over 600 shirts, and by midday Thursday, had fewer than 200 left. Those include a women’s V-neck and a unisex shirt in white and gray colors. The race logo is shown enlarged on the back with a smaller version on the front chest of the shirts.

The shirts ranged in cost from $29.99 to $34.99. MI Passion was slated to be open until 8 p.m. Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Although they had plenty of other Michigan-made and nautical items, particularly themed for the lake and river, Varty said she was excited to be part of celebrating its 100th anniversary.

“The most exciting thing for me is seeing everybody out,” Varty said. “Like the energy downtown, I so looked forward to this week.”

Official Mackinac shirts can otherwise be purchased on Mackinac Island and through the Bayview Yacht Club in Detroit.

Port Huron Yacht club carrying 'Mac 2024' merch

The Port Huron Yacht Club’s women’s auxiliary is selling a variety of merchandise for both the club and specific items with a Mac 2024 logo, celebrating Port Huron’s spot as a start to the race but unaffiliated with the Bayview’s race merchandise.

Missy Smith, the auxiliary’s commodore, said the display of apparel would be out from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursday and Friday and Saturday morning with whatever items were left unsold. Typically, she said they only acquire enough to sell out, having first started selling items five weeks ago and on Wednesday for Boat Week.

“And it’s looking like this year we will probably sell out," she said. "… That’s what I’ve been telling everybody on their boats. ‘Oh, I like that shirt.’ If you want to get one, I would go now.”

As of midday Thursday, the merch included women’s V-neck T-shirts, regular unisex cotton T-shirts, and men’s long-sleeve sport tech shirts all in several colors, as well as hooded zip-up sweatshirts and tank tops. There were also yacht club sweatpants that didn’t have the Mac 2024 logo and sandals.

“And then, this year, we bought a new item, and it’s a T-shirt hoodie,” Smith said. “So, it’s T-shirt material, but it’s long-sleeved, and it has a hood. They’re really comfortable. And we have those in three colors.”

Prices for the local club’s merchandise, Smith said, ranged from $20 for tank tops to $60 for the zip-up sweatshirts with T-shirts falling in between.

Plenty of other stops with nautical-themed items to celebrate

Outside the official race shirt and local yacht club merch, a few other spots downtown had displays with boat-themed or items with anchors and other nautical symbols.

The Huron Lady II, for example, docked on the East Quay Street side of the Black River, had hats and T-shirts — the latter prompting you “take a ride” — on display for sale with small icons of the iconic cruise.

Elsewhere, the downtown shoe store District 43 also carried plenty of other items, such as through the Michigan Boat Company label.

“That’s our company,” said store owner Jorja Baldwin. “So, we have Michigan Boat Company. We have Motor City sun shirts, Michigan Boat Company tank tops, and an unofficial Michigan Boat Company Mackinac shirt.”

Baldwin said District 43 would be open from 2 to 6 p.m. Thursday and Friday and closed on Saturday.

When asked about their apparel, she said, “I like them all. It’s tank tops, T-shirts, sweatshirts because it’s Michigan. I feel like we have a little something for everyone. We have women’s tanks, and then, unisex things. The river mermaid because I like we can tie in the Black River and Lake Huron experiences.”

Contact reporter Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or [email protected].

Entertainment

A Charter With The 'Below Deck' Crew Will Cost You

From Lifestyles Of The Rich & Famous to MTV Cribs , TV viewers have always been fascinated by fancy houses, crazy-big yachts, and the contents of famous people’s fridges. In that vein, a whole new season of Below Deck is on deck (sorry, had to) on Bravo, and the previews already have me dreaming of winning the lottery and getting my very own yacht to cruise around the British Virgin Islands with. But how much does it cost to charter the Valor, Below Deck 's new yacht? Let’s just say that I’ll need to really hit the lottery hard to have a chance of taking out that bad boy.

According to Yacht Charter Fleet, the Valor, which was previously named BG, is 154-feet long, sleeps up to 12 guests , and has a crew of 10. Built in 1990 and completely refitted in 2015 in a “Hampton-style” interior, the Valor offers “the very best in amenities and lounging options.” And it can be all yours for the low, low price of €140,000 per week, or $158,000 per week, plus expenses. Chump change, right?

While I’m not going to be renting a yacht for a week at that cost (I think I could afford a rowboat, maybe), a gal can dream, so here’s what I would do with the new cast of Below Deck on my British Virgin Island adventure.

Make Ben Whip Up Luxe Meals Just For Me

Ben, the resident chef on Below Deck , has plenty of experience with picky eaters on the yacht. Lucky for him, I am the opposite of picky — I eat everything. I would want him to whip me up complicated, luxurious meal so I can dine while overlooking the crystal blue waters of Tortola and think about how fabulous I am.

Ask Kate To Iron My Most Wrinkled Pieces

I am really great with doing laundry — it’s a chore I don’t mind — but I am pretty hopeless at ironing. It’s the bane of my existence. Sure, I can manage to make a t-shirt look unwrinkled, but if there is anything with seams or pleats or starch, it’s an ugly mess and I end up having it dry cleaned. Kate, however, presses all of her stew uniforms and she always looks like a million bucks, so if I were on the Valor, I might bring some of my laundry just so she can put her trademark creases on my pants.

Chill Out With Captain Lee

The captain doesn’t really fraternize with the guests on the yacht, save for a cocktail or two, but I want to sit with Captain Lee and pick his brain about all of his life experiences. You know that the guy has seen more than his fair share of crazy places and faces, and I want to hear all about his life on the water. I also want to talk about his favorite and least favorite Below Deck crew members — what he really thinks about them.

Like I said, my wallet is a little thin right now to be chartering a yacht like the Valor, but if I ever manage to save up $158,000, I think a week with the Below Deck crew would be well worth it.

Images: Virginia Sherwood/Bravo; Giphy (3)

Tri-Rail express vs. Brightline: How prices food, ride, timing, other amenities compare

With South Florida's public passenger train Tri-Rail, launching its West Palm Beach to Miami express service last week, months after privately run Brightline hiked commuters' ticket prices, a Palm Beach Post reporter rode both to see how they compare.

Tri-Rail is much cheaper than Brightline , but it takes longer to get to its destination and offers a bumpier ride with fewer amenities. It's the budget version of express trains. Brightline feels far more comfortable and reaches Miami faster by about 20 minutes.

Read on to learn details about prices, time, available food and other amenities at each service's stations and onboard the trains.

Huge difference in cost for Tri-Rail, Brightline  

Tri-Rail costs $8.75 between West Palm Beach and Miami each way. Brightline’s cheapest ticket from West Palm Beach to Miami starting in the 6 a.m. hour for an adult costs $29 and $54 during the 5 p.m. hour coming back. 

The roundtrip on Tri-Rail costs $17.50. It's $83 on Brightline. 

The Tri-Rail roundtrip between the Boca Raton station and Miami is $12.50.

Previously: Tri-Rail to offer express trains to Miami to help commuters get to work for $17.50 a day

Tri-Rail offers a $110 monthly pass to ride as many times as one wants during the month.  

Brightline offers no unlimited monthly passes. It sells a 10-ride pack for $350. If a West Palm Beach-Miami commuter wanted to take Brightline each of the roughly 20 weekdays in each month, they would pay $1,400. 

Timing on Brightline vs Tri-Rail: How long does each train route take? 

Tri-Rail's morning express train leaves the West Palm Beach station on its only express trip at 6:30 a.m., arriving in MiamiCentral at 8:05 a.m., while the only express route back leaves MiamiCentral at 5:35 p.m., arriving in West Palm Beach at 7:05 p.m.

Brightline runs trains between West Palm Beach and MiamiCentral just about every hour of the day from the 5 a.m. hour to the 11 p.m. hour.

The Tri-Rail express couldn’t complete its inaugural journey on the morning of July 1 when another Tri-Rail train, heading north, hit and killed someone on Hallandale Beach Boulevard in south Broward County. But it has run on time each day since, a Tri-Rail spokesman said .

Brightline is also sometimes delayed because of pedestrians getting killed because they cross the tracks despite the oncoming train. Three pedestrians in Palm Beach County have died this year on Brightline's tracks, the latest happening on June 18 in Lake Worth Beach .

Tri-Rail's 95-minute trip is 15 to 20 minutes longer than Brightline’s early-morning trains to Miami and afternoon rush hour trains back to West Palm Beach.

 Tri-Rail stops at stations serving Boca Raton, the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, the Miami Metrorail and downtown Miami. Brightline from downtown West Palm Beach stops in east Boca Raton, downtown Fort Lauderdale, Aventura and downtown Miami.

Also: Brightline ending $10-per-ride South Florida pass program to make room for Orlando riders

Brightline vs Tri-Rail stations: Open air vs. metal detector 

Tri-Rail's West Palm Beach station, on the west side of Tamarind Avenue at Clematis Street, is open-air with metal benches and offers snackfoods from vending machines such as Twix, Snickers, Skittles and honey buns for a dollar or two.  

A small restaurant called Pizza Grill serves fresh slices but is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., so early morning commuters will miss out.

Tri-Rail shares its station with the Amtrak train and the Greyhound bus service. 

Brightline’s stations are all indoors and air-conditioned. Passengers must run their bags through metal-detecting machines to get in. The stations have bars and restaurants where a meal and a drink will cost at least $10.  

Passengers can buy a Tri-Rail pass from a ticket machine at the station or through the passenger rail’s app. The machines take cash or credit cards and dispense passes. Riders can also buy EASY Cards they can load money on, like a debit card, and can be used to pay fare for the train or Miami-Dade County public transportation. 

Buying a ticket for Brightline requires more personal information such as passenger name and date of birth. The easiest way to buy a ticket is through the Brightline app or online at GoBrightline.com. Passengers an also try buying tickets on tablets at stations.

How was the ride on Tri-Rail vs. Brightline? 

When Tri-Rail's inaugural express train chugged along almost to its maximum allowable speed of 79 mph, the ride got bumpy. Seats shook like the train was riding along small speed humps but never to the point that it felt like the cars would derail. 

Passengers gazing out the west-facing windows could see Interstate 95 commuters driving slower than the train as it whizzed past most of them.  

The view for most of the ride consists mostly of I-95 traffic on one side and warehouses and industrial buildings on the other. But the tracks rise upward between the Broward Boulevard and Fort Lauderdale airport stations, giving riders a high-up view of boats parked in the slips of yacht dealerships. 

Brightline’s ride was smooth even as it reached legal top speed, which was the same as Tri-Rail's. It runs along Dixie Highway or U.S. 1 for most of its journey, so passengers can see the downtowns of the cities born along the tracks, including Delray Beach, Lake Worth Beach and Boynton Beach. 

Brightline vs Tri-Rail stations: Food, WiFi, USB ports, seat size

Brightline’s amenities are more like an airplane’s but with more leg room. 

Both Tri-Rail's express train and Brightline offer cushiony, comfortable chairs and clean bathrooms.  

A 6-foot tall Tri-Rail passenger has about six inches of space between their knee and the back of the next seat.  

That same passenger on a Brightline train has more room than Tri-Rail, enough to stretch comfortably without having to get up much. And while Tri-Rail seats have cupholders between them, Brightline has those, along with a fold-down mini-desk from the back of the next seat that passengers can use to eat off or do work on. 

Tri-Rail seats are wide enough to seat one person. Brightline’s seats have more than enough space for one person, plus wiggle room. They also have foldable armrests and wings on the heads that make it more comfortable to sleep while sitting, rather than having one’s head hang off to the side. 

Brightline cars also have overhead shelves for storage, unlike Tri-Rail. But both trains have dedicated spaces on their cars for luggage or bicycles. 

Brightline sells bottled water onboard while Tri-Rail has free water fountains that sometimes lack water.

Brightline sells food, drinks and snacks onboard with basics such as salad, pastries and juices costing $4 to $6, and sandwiches costing more than $10. Tri-Rail does not offer any refreshments on board.

Each Brightline seat has electric outlets and USB ports for devices and charging. Trih-Rail cars have one for every four or five rows of seats. 

All Brightline trains have WiFi. Some Tri-Rail trains have WiFi; others don't.  

Both Tri-Rail and Brightline bathrooms have the usual necessities of a lavatory. But Brightline’s bathroom doors are button-operated, while Tri-Rail's have handles. And Brightline’s toilets can be flushed by waving one’s hand in front of a sensor, while Tri-Rail's activate by pushing a button. 

Chris Persaud is The Palm Beach Post's transportation reporter. You can reach him at [email protected] .

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How to Charter a Boat

If you want to sail off into the sunset, at least temporarily, you need to understand how to get aboard first.

By Lauren Sloss

This time of year, it’s an inevitable thought: Life would be that much better out on the water. Specifically, on a boat.

Even if you have neither a boat nor boating experience, it’s never been easier to make your nautical dreams come true — whether you want a day trip on your local lake or a fully staffed multiday voyage in a far-flung locale. Here are the initial questions that will help you plan an adventure on the water.

Whom are you traveling with?

Thinking about the size and dynamic of your group is an important first step, even if you are simply going on a day trip. Will children be on board? How old? What about elderly parents?

Dan Lockyer, the chief commercial officer of Dream Yacht Worldwide , strongly encourages travelers to determine group size — and, ideally, get people committed — before booking.

“The location that you want to go to, the time of year that you want to go, the type of boat that you want will entirely depend on the makeup of the group that you’re sailing with,” Mr. Lockyer said.

Do you want to captain, or do you want a captain?

Different charter companies specialize in certain locations, types of boats, itineraries and services. Some companies offer the opportunity for a “bareboat” charter, in which you rent the boat and take on the navigation and provisioning yourself, while others exclusively offer fully staffed options, including a captain and a cook.

If you want to captain the boat yourself, almost all outfits require some kind of proof of sailing or boating experience, often in line with local regulations.

Edward King, 45, an executive at a streaming company based in San Francisco, is experienced in sailing the city’s waterways. But on vacation, he said he would prefer to let a captain and crew take the lead.

Mr. King said he appreciates a captain who is familiar with both the local waters — “they’ll know how to avoid sailing into a certain sandbar,” he said, — as well as the local attractions.

In contrast, Matt Blake, 38, a software engineer based in Oakland, Calif., was eager to grow his sailing experience during a recent trip to La Paz, Mexico, with his fiancée. He hired a captain but made clear that the captain was there to help and teach.

Where do you want to go?

“Do you want something that’s more culturally oriented? Nature oriented? An adventure trip?” asked Mary Curry, the voyage product director of Adventure Life , which offers small group tours and private trips on land and on water around the world.

That answer can determine your destination. Popular cruising grounds include the Caribbean, Croatia, Alaska and French Polynesia, but the sky — or the sea — is really the limit. For help narrowing your focus, travel advisers often have relationships with charter companies or outfits around the world, and sailing publications offer recommendations.

Kyla Malkani, who has had experience with charters working as a destination wedding planner, recommends consulting the concierge of waterfront hotels, particularly for short-term or day rentals.

“A lot of times they will have either their own fleet or they will have some sort of connection at a dock,” said Ms. Malkani, 37, who is based in Washington, D.C., and is currently working as a content creator and freelance event planner.

What kind of boat?

Where you want to travel and for how long will likely determine the kinds of boats that are available to you. Crucial at this point, too, is an understanding of the boat’s layout and amenities.

“You definitely want to choose the right kind of boat,” said Ms. Malkani. “If you want more adventure, a sailboat is nice. If you’re looking for a luxury party environment, a yacht is best. And if you’re looking for something smooth, for older people or with kids, a catamaran is great.”

David Barclay is a luxury travel adviser who has also chartered boats for his own vacations.

“You want to match what the travelers want to what the boat offers,” he said.

Perhaps a group of friends might not mind a catamaran with functional but not luxurious marine bathrooms, but a multigenerational group might prefer more high-touch amenities.

When should I book?

Often, charter trips are once-in-a-lifetime experiences that require a great deal of advanced planning.

“You may have a specific place you want to go, or a specific time of year you want to travel,” said Mr. Barclay. “And some places just aren’t good at certain times of year.”

Naturally, you don’t want to be at sea in the Caribbean during hurricane season, or in the Mediterranean during winter storms. But you also might want to avoid peak cruising seasons, too.

The first three weeks of August are quite popular, said Mr. Lockyer. “If you have some flexibility and can travel in early July, you’ll get the same sort of great weather, a greater selection of boats and the anchorages won’t be as crowded.”

How much does it cost?

Charter costs are incredibly variable, dependent on all of the factors coming into play: your boat type and size, your destination, your group size, the amount of crew you’d like and the amenities on board. That said, costs could range anywhere from $2,000 for a day on a sailboat to hundreds of thousands of dollars for a multiday mega-yacht charter. Have a budget in mind when beginning your research process.

What if I didn’t plan far in advance?

While advanced planning is encouraged, and often necessary for bigger boat trips, it’s possible to book a boat last-minute.

Boatsetter , an Airbnb-like platform for boats, is a good resource for last-minute bookings, especially for day trips, and even has an Instant Book option for down-to-the-wire bookings.

“If it’s for a special event, or around major holidays, you may want to book a month or two in advance. But for general bookings, you can find options within a week or two,” said Kim Koditek, Boatsetter’s head of brand strategy and communications, of the company’s overnight offerings, which appear on their platform under the luxury yacht charters category .

Ms. Malkani has used Boatsetter for some of her charters, most of which have been booked with a specific goal in mind.

“I’m a sunset chaser,” she said. “My husband and I just really love being on the water, and we always try to squeeze in some sort of boat day activity when we’re traveling.”

For more travel advice, visit our collection of Travel 101 tips and hacks.

Come Sail Away

Love them or hate them, cruises can provide a unique perspective on travel..

 Cruise Ship Surprises: Here are five unexpected features on ships , some of which you hopefully won’t discover on your own.

 Icon of the Seas: Our reporter joined thousands of passengers on the inaugural sailing of Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas . The most surprising thing she found? Some actual peace and quiet .

Th ree-Year Cruise, Unraveled:  The Life at Sea cruise was supposed to be the ultimate bucket-list experience : 382 port calls over 1,095 days. Here’s why  those who signed up are seeking fraud charges  instead.

TikTok’s Favorite New ‘Reality Show’:  People on social media have turned the unwitting passengers of a nine-month world cruise  into  “cast members”  overnight.

Dipping Their Toes: Younger generations of travelers are venturing onto ships for the first time . Many are saving money.

Cult Cruisers: These devoted cruise fanatics, most of them retirees, have one main goal: to almost never touch dry land .

Across river from lavish Indian wedding, frustration and flooded streets

The extravagant nuptials of Anant Ambani were a national Rorschach test: awe-inspiring showcase of Indian affluence or indictment of lopsided development?

Key takeaways

Summary is AI-generated, newsroom-reviewed.

• Ambani's extravagant wedding contrasts with Mumbai's infrastructure woes
• Residents frustrated by government's priorities, lack of basic services
• Event showcases India's wealth disparity, sparks national debate

MUMBAI — On two streets half a mile apart last week, life in this city was disrupted for two very different reasons.

On one side of the Mithi River, police fanned out to divert traffic and provide security for the wedding of Anant Ambani , the son of Asia’s richest man, and employees in the business district were asked to work from home. On the other side of a busy bridge, entire neighborhoods surrounding the thoroughfare known as LBS Road were submerged under monsoon rains — the perennial result, residents say, of an outdated drainage system and hapless city administrators.

As Indians consumed the wall-to-wall media coverage this past week of the most expensive wedding in history, the Ambani family affair has become a national Rorschach test. Some saw an awe-inspiring showcase for India’s growing affluence and its rising clout. Others called it an indictment of its lopsided development; the cost of the wedding, which was widely reported to exceed $500 million, would eclipse the yearly education budget of several small Indian states.

Here on the far side of the river, in the low-lying alleys and honking boulevards of working-class Mumbai, the most common reaction to the extravaganza was not resentment toward Ambani but frustration — about a system that catered to the whims of the exalted few yet rarely delivered for the many.

Naushad Ahmed, a burly, middle-class mechanic who owns an auto repair shop on a flood-prone stretch of LBS Road, wondered how the city could deploy resources for the Ambani wedding but fail to tackle basic infrastructure. He wanted potholes to be filled. He begged for a solution to the knee-deep floodwater that ruined businesses during every monsoon and turned alleys into canals of floating trash.

“Look, Ambani earned his money, and it’s his right to spend it on his own children,” Ahmed said, echoing a commonly heard refrain. Mumbai, after all, was a city that understood hard work and celebrated success. “But it’s no surprise that the government makes everything easy for him,” Ahmed continued. “If the government did as much for us as they did for him, then things could really be great.”

The four-month nuptials, which ended Monday, kick-started in March with a pre-wedding ceremony attended by Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Rihanna. Then came a Mediterranean yacht trip for 800 guests in May. The festivities culminated with the blowout bash at the Jio World Convention Center in Mumbai, a gleaming 18½-acre project developed by Anant Ambani’s father Mukesh, who took partial control of his father Dhirubhai’s business, Reliance Industries, in 1981 and turned it into an empire worth $250 billion today.

On Saturday night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stopped by to offer his blessings. Former British prime minister Boris Johnson was seen shuffling to bhangra music. Anant Ambani’s groomsmen, including the Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, took pictures with the $200,000 Audemars Piguet watches that they had received as gifts from the host. And a viral video captured a scantily clad Kim Kardashian milling near Mamata Banerjee, the matronly doyenne of West Bengal politics.

The influx of guests has been so great that during the pre-wedding in March, the Indian air force ordered around-the-clock operations and built new roads, taxiways and immigration counters at a dual-use airfield. This past weekend, Mumbai police closed roads near the wedding venue, and travelers complained on social media that flights out of Mumbai International Airport were delayed by a flurry of private jet traffic.

In a nod to public service, the Ambanis in recent months have thrown large feasts for 51,000 ordinary residents in Gujarat. In a Mumbai suburb, they arranged a mass wedding for 50 poor couples, who received gold jewelry. Reliance, the family conglomerate that has holdings spanning oil, telecommunications, media and retail, has framed the sprawling affair as a celebration of India’s success. “The presence of esteemed individuals highlights India’s economic, political, intellectual, and scientific prowess,” the company said in a statement to Reuters.

But to many in Mumbai and beyond, the contrasting images — of international VIPs paying respects to Ambani and of straining public infrastructure — pointed to a deeper truth about India today. It wasn’t just LBS Road in Mumbai that was flooded in recent weeks. Monsoon rains have paralyzed New Delhi, snapped 12 bridges in Bihar state and even ruptured the roof of an airport terminal in the nation’s capital , sparking angry commentary on debate shows and op-ed pages.

Jayati Ghosh, an economist at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, said the meteoric rise of Ambani and the rest of India’s 200 billionaires, who collectively hold nearly $1 trillion, according to Forbes , could unbalance India’s development at a time when other economic metrics are lagging.

Until recently, China invested nearly a quarter of its gross domestic product on infrastructure at its peak, but India has hovered around 2 percent, Ghosh said. Meanwhile, Brazil and South Africa, two other developing countries with extreme wealth disparities, invest 17 and 15 percent of their GDP, respectively, on social services compared with India’s 9 percent, according to the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

While Modi has been widely praised for emphasizing infrastructure and social spending compared to previous administrations, he will have to make up for years of underinvestment.

The bigger issue here, Ghosh argued, was the misplaced priorities of India’s ruling class.

“The fact that you can hire Rihanna or Justin Bieber is supposed to be a sign of India’s strength, but it’s not,” she said. “Why worry about waterlogged roads when you can fly in a helicopter?”

But near the wedding venue, many residents didn’t begrudge the clan often called India’s “first family.” Sweaty welders said they sold contractors 50 tons of steel just to build the event’s awnings and made good money in the process. Outside the gleaming Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Center at Dhirubhai Ambani Square, streets smelled like citrus blossoms. A group of young students huddled under a tree, reveling in the celebrities they saw and the $38 they made working as caterers the night before.

Dev Kanojiya, a stylish 20-year-old college student, said he passed an interview to get the job after proving he was over 5-foot-4, could speak with poise and possessed a basic knowledge of Western liquor. He caught a glimpse of the Kardashian sisters and the professional wrestler John Cena, but he was delighted above all, he said, to see the cavernous event hall decorated in the theme of Varanasi, his hometown, and for the foreign guests to be exposed to classical Hindustani music and traditional Hindu marriage rituals.

Ambani “was not just doing all this spending for his son. He was presenting India in a different way to the world, showcasing India’s culture,” Kanojiya said excitedly. “We grew up hearing India is a very poor country and we can’t afford these things. But today, you see how this is done and who will come.”

Back across the river, Ahmed the mechanic and his neighbor Shareef Khan, a locksmith, stood surveying a stretch of LBS Road where shallow pools were forming again as rain began to fall. At that moment, a bus hit a pothole with such force that every head on the street corner swiveled, thinking there was an accident.

“I know why the roads here are bad,” Khan said. “Politics.”