What a Yacht Charter Actually Costs in 2026

Charter pricing confuses people because the number in the listing is not the number you pay. It is the base rate — the cost of the boat and her crew for the week — and depending on the yacht it can end up being anywhere from 70% to 85% of the final invoice. The rest is predictable once you know what to look for. ## The base rate This covers the yacht, the crew's wages and insurance. Nothing else. It varies enormously by size and season: a crewed Lagoon 46 in the Caribbean starts around €14,500 a week, a 27-metre Sanlorenzo on the Riviera in August is closer to €78,000, and a 47-metre superyacht in Dubai will start near €195,000. High season roughly doubles the shoulder-season rate in the Mediterranean. If your dates are flexible, late September on the Riviera is the single best value in yachting: the water is warmer than June, the crowds have gone, and the rate has dropped. ## APA — the Advance Provisioning Allowance This is the part that surprises people. On a fully crewed yacht you pay an additional deposit, typically 30% of the base rate, into an account the captain manages on your behalf. It pays for fuel, food, drink, port fees, laundry and berthing. The captain keeps the receipts and gives you a running account. Whatever is left over is returned at the end of the charter; if you burn through it — long passages use a lot of fuel — you top it up. It is not a fee, it is your money being spent on your trip, but you need it available. APA on a smaller catamaran can be lower, sometimes 20%, because fuel consumption is a fraction of a planing motor yacht's. ## VAT In the European Union, VAT is charged on the base rate at the rate of the country where the charter begins. It is not optional and it is not small. Croatia is 13%, Italy 22%, France 20%, Spain 21%. Some jurisdictions offer a reduction if the itinerary spends time outside EU waters, which the broker will handle. Charters starting in the Caribbean, the UAE or the US Virgin Islands do not carry EU VAT, which is a meaningful part of why the Caribbean looks cheaper than the Med for a comparable boat. ## Delivery and redelivery fees If you want to start in one port and finish in another, the yacht has to get back. Expect a fee. It is usually modest for a short hop and material if you are asking a boat to reposition across a sea. Ask early — it is easier to adjust the itinerary than the invoice. ## Crew gratuity Customary, not compulsory. The general guidance is 5–15% of the base rate, paid at the end and split among the crew. On a well-run boat where the chef has cooked to your family's preferences all week and the deckhand has had the toys in the water every morning, the upper half of that range is normal. ## Putting it together For a €30,000 base-rate week in the Mediterranean, budget roughly: - Base rate: €30,000 - APA at 30%: €9,000 - VAT at 20%: €6,000 - Gratuity at 10%: €3,000 Total: about €48,000 — around 60% more than the headline figure. Once you have that in mind, comparing listings becomes straightforward, because every yacht is quoted the same way. The single largest lever is timing. Moving a Mediterranean week from mid-August to late September can save more than the entire APA.