Frequently asked questions | Yacht charter

Once you are ready to proceed in the booking of your yacht charter, we will establish a contract in your name. You will be issued a MYBA (acronym for Mediterranean Yacht Brokers Association) charter agreement which binds a total of four parties: the charterer, the owner, the stakeholder and the broker. This charter contract is endorsed by a leading London maritime lawyer and recognised as the reliable industry standard.

All charter rates communicated to you are based on the MYBA terms, and imply that the vessel will be delivered to you with all necessary equipment, a crew at your service and properly insured for marine risks. Your broker will send you a proposal with a rate calculated for the duration of your charter inclusive of an appropriate crew, on-board facilities, water toys and equipment. You will not be responsible for the crew’s wages, food and clothes which remain at the owner’s expense. Kindly note that all charter fees communicated to you are common to all brokers and based on MYBA terms but that you are welcome to send in offers should some owner’s be open to negotiations.

All other operating costs that will incur throughout your charter are to be paid using the APA (acronym for Advance Provision Allowance). These costs include (and are not limited to) the following items: fuel expenses for the yacht, her tenders and any other motorized water toys; local taxes; port and harbour dues; custom clearance; water and electricity consumption; food and beverages provisions. The APA is usually 30% of the charter fee (sometimes 35% if the yacht has a higher fuel consumption or if you intend to do more than about 4 hours of cruising per day). Any APA not used will be returned to you at the end of the charter as you leave. On the other hand, if expenses exceed the APA (maybe excessive cruising so high fuel costs, requests of rare liquors, etc.) you will be expected to reimburse the difference prior to disembarking the yacht. This is rare but you need to be aware of this possible expense.

The Value Added Tax (VAT) applied to your charter fee will depend on your cruising area and itinerary. Your broker will be able to advise and assist you based on the country you wish to visit.

The payment terms will depend on the timespan between the date of signature of the contract and the date of your charter. You will be requested to pay a deposit between 30% and 50% upon signature of the contract and 100% of the funds inclusive of the APA and a security deposit if requested (in case of a quayside event, pet on-board or if imposed by the owner) will be required to be paid prior to embarkation.

The only cancellation possible is in case of Force Majeure (in the agreement ‘force majeure’ means any cause directly attributable to acts, events, on-happenings, omissions, accidents or Acts of God beyond the reasonable control of the owner, the crew, or the charterer – including, but not limited to, strikes, lock-outs or other labour disputes, civil commotion, riots, acts of terrorism, blockade, invasion, war, fire, explosion, sabotage, storm, collision, grounding, fog, governmental act or regulation, contaminated fuel, major mechanical or electrical breakdown beyond the crew’s control and not caused by lack of maintenance and/or owner’s or crew’s negligence. Crew changes and shipyard delays not attributable to the aforementioned causes, do not constitute force majeure.) Therefore, in the case of bad weather the charter will be presented the possibility to reschedule the charter or to choose another period based on the yacht’s availability.

When sending you a selection, your broker will priorities yachts based in the city in which you wish to embark and/or disembark. Should you wish to embark or disembark somewhere other than the yacht’s ‘home port’ some delivery and redelivery fees from the yacht’s home port will be applicable as an extra expense and communicated to you by your broker.

Is it customary in the yachting industry to leave a gratuity should you have been fully satisfied with your charter experience and the service brought to you by the crew. This however remains at your complete discretion. We usually recommend leaving between 5% and 10% of the initial charter fee.

Once you have chosen your yacht and been through all the administrative process of booking your charter, you are presented with a preference list to complete for your crew to fully understand your requirements, preferences and expectations. It is important that you pay close attention to this document as you will be required to inform us on all your charter party’s needs such as: dietary or medical requirement, allergies, preferences, habits or any special requests. This allows your broker and crew to be fully prepared and to organize the best possible experience for you.

This will depend on the yacht and the owner’s personal choice. In most cases pets are not permitted on-board but it is always worth asking as in some cases permission may be granted subject to a security deposit being paid.