How much does chartering a luxury yacht really cost? — featuring Yachts For Sale

0:02 Yachts for sale blog opening a window into the world of yacht brokerage. And if you've ever looked at the charter rates on any of the yachts for charter channel, you've probably seen a number that looks surprisingly straightforward. A weekly charter rate. But in reality, that base price is just the starting

0:23 point and a luxury yacht charter is rarely an all-inclusive experience. The advertised price covers the yacht itself and the crew, but it doesn't cover the lifestyle that comes with it. You choose the yacht first and then the final price depends on how you use it, where you cruise, what you eat and

0:44 drink, and what experiences you want on board. So, let's take a look at a real-world example. You may remember we filmed the 77-m Golden Yachts Malia not too long ago. And we had some very special guests on board to experience what life is really like on a yacht that charters from

1:08 750,000 euro a week. Now, those guests obviously experienced it at no cost, but if they wanted to charter the yacht privately, these are the kinds of costs that they'd be looking at. So, first you have the base charter fee, which in this case is from 750,000 euro per week for the yacht

1:30 and for the dedicated crew. But then, you have an advanced provisioning allowance or an APA. This is one of the biggest additional costs and it essentially covers the running expenses of the yacht during your charter. Think of it like a prepaid onboard account that the captain manages

1:51 throughout the trip. Now, most brokers recommend setting aside about 30 to 40% of the base charter fee for the APA. On the yacht like Malia, for example, that would be roughly 225,000 euro to 300,000 euro. But it can be more. Now, next there could be VAT, which depends entirely on

2:16 where you're chartering. Different countries apply different rates and the rules can get quite complicated. So, that's probably a topic for another video. But to keep things simple here, let's assume around 20%, which would add another 150,000 euro. And finally, there's the crew gratuity. Now, tipping

2:36 is standard practice in the charter industry and typically it ranges from 10 to 20% of the base charter fee, depending on the level of service, of course. If we assume the higher end, so 20%, that's another 150,000 euro. Although, I should add that this can be taken from the advanced provisioning

2:56 allowance or if there's nothing left from that, it can be topped up. So, once you add all of that together, your 750,000 base rate quickly becomes somewhere around 1.2 million euro for the week. And that's before you've even flown out to meet the yacht by private jet or factored in any onshore experiences.

3:17 With all that said, it's worth remembering that the cost of a yacht charter can vary dramatically depending on where you go, when you go, and how you use the yacht. A charter on the Côte d'Azur during peak season in August, docking in expensive marinas like Saint-Tropez, will cost significantly

3:37 more than a quieter late season itinerary around the Greek Islands. Even if the yacht itself and the crew is exactly the same. Let's talk a little more though about the advanced provisioning allowance because it's one of the most important and often misunderstood aspects of yacht

4:00 charter pricing. This APA covers most of the operational costs during your trip, including fuel for the yacht, food and beverages, marina and docking fees, port charges and cruising permits, fuel for tenders and water toys, shore services and provisioning, operational expenses, and any special requests like, for

4:26 example, a birthday celebration on board. You may want to have a live band playing like we did on Malia. Food and beverages is one that sometimes surprises people, but the reality is that whether it's something simple like an orange juice at breakfast or a multi-course tasting menu prepared by

4:45 the chef, it all comes out of that APA budget. So, before the charter begins, guests fill out a preference sheet, which allows the crew to provision or stock the yacht exactly to the tastes of their guests. The captain keeps detailed accounts of every expense throughout the charter. And then at the end of the

5:07 trip, you, the charterer, receive a full breakdown. If there's money left over, it's refunded. Or as I mentioned earlier, it can be put towards the tip. And if the expenses exceed the APA, the charterer simply tops it up. It has to be said that fuel is one of the biggest variables. Cruising long

5:31 distances across the Mediterranean will burn significantly more fuel than spending most of the week anchored in a few bays. Fuel expenses come out of the APA. For minimal cruising, you might spend tens of thousands of euros, whilst longer distances or faster cruising could push that number significantly

5:52 higher. And remember, even when the yacht is at anchor, generators are still running to power air conditioning, lighting, stabilizers, and all the rest of the onboard systems. We probably will do a separate video going deeper into the VAT and the crew gratuities because both of those topics

6:12 deserve a bit more explanation. But hopefully this does give you a clearer idea of how charter pricing actually works. Interestingly, when Katia sent me this vlog to read through, I was on the phone to Sasha Williams, who is director of charter marketing at Northrop & Johnson, definitely one of the most

6:32 important and successful players on the charter scene worldwide. And actually, she was lamenting the lack of transparency in charter prices. So, Sash, I really hope that we've gone some way to lift the lid off the world of charter pricing. And if you think I've missed anything, just let me know and

6:50 I'll add it in a future video. Essentially though, chartering a yacht isn't like booking a hotel or renting a villa. It's a fully bespoke travel experience staffed by a professional crew at a high level and tailored entirely to the guests on board. The base charter rate gets you the yacht. Everything else, the

7:15 cruising, the dining, the destinations and the experiences, is what ultimately determines the final cost. And that's exactly why no two yacht charters ever cost the same. Well, next Saturday we'll be publishing a walk-through video of a very special yacht. It's a 50-m Tankoa yacht called

7:35 Kinder. And I have to say that I've been looking forward to it very [music] much because not only is it one of the larger yachts that we've filmed recently, [music] but it's also absolutely gorgeous. So, make sure you don't miss out on that. Also, I should tell you that at the end

7:50 of every month, I send out a newsletter called Inside Info, in which I update you on what we're doing as a team, what's coming up, and a little more details that I don't always go into publicly on this YouTube channel. A link to sign up for that newsletter is in the description below.

8:07 And to make sure you don't miss the Kinder video next Saturday, do make sure that you subscribe to this channel.