Day charter. A private yacht and her crew for the day, back in port in time for dinner.
You do not have to take a yacht for a week. A day charter gives you the same crewed yacht from mid morning until the early evening, and it is how most of our clients discover whether they want the week.
What it is
The whole yacht, for one day
A day charter is a private yacht with her captain and crew for a single day, taken from a marina and returned to it the same evening. Nobody sleeps on board, so the day is built around swimming, lunch, a beach club, a headland someone wants to see, and getting back in time to change for dinner.
It is the obvious answer for a summer stay on the Riviera or in the Balearics where the villa or the hotel is the base and the yacht is the day out. It is also how families, groups of friends and corporate hosts test the idea before committing to a full week, and what we suggest when dates are too short or too late for the yacht you really wanted.
The shape of the day
What is typical
- HoursRoughly 09:00 to 18:00Cannes day charters commonly run from nine in the morning until six in the evening. In Ibiza seven to eight hours is more usual, often starting late morning. Other times can be agreed.
- GuestsUp to 12Twelve is the maximum on a commercially registered charter yacht. A day boat that sleeps six may still carry twelve for the day, and we confirm exactly what each yacht can take.
- Half daysOften availableMorning or afternoon, outside the peak weeks of July and August. Less common on the larger yachts, which prefer a full day.
- Booked aheadWeeks, not days, in high seasonSaturdays in August and the days either side of the big events go first. Tell us your dates as soon as the party is fixed.
How the day runs
From the quay and back
- 01
The car and the quay
Your car drops you at the marina gate, because most pontoons are gated and cars do not go down them. The crew meet you at the gate and take the cool bags and the towels.
- 02
Out along the coast
The captain has a plan and a weather forecast, and will change both if you would rather go somewhere else. Most days involve an hour or less under way before the first swim.
- 03
Lunch
On board, cooked or catered depending on the yacht, or ashore at a beach club if you say so early enough. Beach club tables in August are reserved days in advance, not on the morning.
- 04
Back for the evening
Back alongside in time to shower and change. If you want the car waiting at the gate at a particular hour, tell us and it will be there.
Where they run from
The usual departure points
| From | A typical day | Nearest airport |
|---|---|---|
| Cannes and Golfe-Juan | The Îles de Lérins for a quiet anchorage and lunch, then along the Esterel coast, or east around Cap d'Antibes. | Nice, and Cannes Mandelieu for light aircraft |
| Antibes | Cap d'Antibes, Villefranche and the bay below Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, with Monaco within reach. | Nice |
| Monaco | West to Villefranche and Cap Ferrat, or east along the coast towards Menton and the Italian border. | Nice, or the Monaco heliport |
| Saint-Tropez | Pampelonne bay, Cap Camarat and the beach clubs on the sand, which is the whole point of the day. | Nice |
| Ibiza | South to Formentera, which lies only about three nautical miles off the Ibizan coast, and its beaches. | Ibiza |
| Mallorca | The south west coast out of Palma or Port Adriano, towards Illetas, the Malgrats islands and Sa Dragonera. | Palma |
| Porto Cervo | North into the La Maddalena archipelago, which is the best water in the Mediterranean on a calm day. | Olbia |
Journey planning at both ends is ours to handle. See Nice airport, Ibiza airport, Palma airport and the marina pages under yacht charter.
The detail
What is usually included, and what is not
- Included: the yacht, the captain and crew, insurance, towels, water and soft drinks, and the yacht's own water toys
- Usually extra: fuel for the day, which on a fast boat covering distance is the single biggest variable
- Usually extra: lunch, whether cooked on board or booked ashore, and any wine or champagne you would like
- Usually extra: a berth at the far end if you want to go alongside somewhere for lunch rather than anchor
- Not included: the cars, the flights and the beach club table, all of which we arrange with the yacht
- Posidonia seagrass is protected across the Balearics and there are enforced no anchoring zones. Your captain knows exactly where they are
The day around the day
The yacht is one part of the day. We look after the rest
A car from the villa to the marina gate, a car waiting when you step off, a table booked for the evening, and the flight home the next morning already tracked. One person arranges all of it, and the same person answers the phone if the wind gets up and the plan changes.
Request a proposal
Tell us the day
The date, how many of you, where you are staying and what sort of day you have in mind: a quiet anchorage, a beach club, or somewhere specific you want to reach. We come back with boats that fit and the full cost of each. Nothing is booked or charged online.
Prefer to talk? +44 2030 048300 or WhatsApp, at any hour.
Questions people ask
About day charters
How many can come?
Up to twelve guests on a commercially registered yacht. If there are more of you, we can put two boats together for the day, which works better than it sounds.
Can we have a day charter from a hotel rather than a marina?
You will still leave from a marina, but the tender can collect from some beaches and beach club pontoons where conditions and local rules allow. Ask us for the day you have in mind.
Is lunch on board or ashore?
Either. On board is easier and more private. Ashore needs a reservation made days in advance in high summer, and a berth or a tender run, both of which we organise.
How is a day charter priced?
Usually as one figure for the day, with fuel and any catering agreed separately or added in advance. It is simpler than a weekly charter, where the running costs go through an APA.
What happens if the weather is bad?
The captain decides on the morning. A day is normally moved rather than lost, and the terms are set out in the agreement before you pay anything.
Can we try a yacht we are thinking of chartering for a week?
Sometimes, if she is free and in the right place. It is a good use of a day, and we will tell you honestly whether it is possible.