Charter Guide

Choosing a Yacht: Motor, Sail, Catamaran and Size

From the chart desk · SuperYacht International

Published 2018-03-14 · SuperYacht International editorial

The right yacht is the one that fits the way you like to spend time on the water, the grounds you mean to cover and the people travelling with you. Type and size decide most of that before a single detail of décor is considered.

Start with how you want to travel

Before comparing hulls, decide what the days should feel like. Some guests want to reach a distant anchorage before lunch, run the air-conditioning through a warm afternoon and expect a level deck whatever the sea is doing. Others want the engines off, the sails drawing and the particular silence of moving under wind. A third group wants space above all, room for children to move and a broad shaded cockpit for long lunches. Those three instincts point cleanly at the three principal types. Get the instinct right and the rest of the choice becomes narrowing rather than guessing.

The terms below are set out plainly in the glossary, and the wider charter overview explains how a yacht is chartered once chosen.

Motor yacht

A motor yacht is the default of modern chartering for good reason. It is quick, so a cruising ground opens up within reach of a single week. It is voluminous, with full-beam cabins, generous saloons and large sun and shade decks. It carries the systems that guests increasingly expect as standard: strong air-conditioning, stabilisers that hold the vessel steady at anchor and under way, ample fresh-water making and a deck-load of tenders and toys.

The trade-offs are cost and character. Fuel is the largest single variable in the running of a motor yacht, and the faster and larger she is, the more she drinks; this flows through the advance provisioning allowance rather than the base rate. And for all their comfort, motor yachts move by engine, which some guests find less romantic than sail. For families, entertainers, those short on time and anyone who prizes indoor comfort, a motor yacht is usually the sound choice.

Sailing yacht

A sailing yacht rewards those who came for the sailing. Under way with the engine off she is quiet in a way no motor yacht can match, she heels and moves with the sea rather than over it, and her running costs are markedly lower because wind does much of the work. A well-found sailing yacht also draws a certain kind of guest and crew, and the culture aboard often reflects that.

The costs are candour about space and pace. A monohull heels under sail, so surfaces are not always level and movement below can be lively in a seaway. Interior volume for a given length is less than a motor yacht of the same size, and passages take longer, which shapes how much ground a week can cover. For guests who value the act of sailing, quieter anchorages and a lighter running cost, none of that is a drawback; it is the point.

Choose the instinct first: to arrive quickly and level, to move under wind, or to have space above all. The hull follows from the answer.

Catamaran

A catamaran sits between the two and, for a growing number of guests, resolves the compromise. Two hulls give great beam, so deck and interior space rival a much larger monohull, and the cockpit and saloon flow together at one level. Because it does not heel, a catamaran stays flat under sail and steady at anchor, which suits those prone to seasickness and those travelling with children. Its shallow draught lets it tuck into coves and approach beaches that a deep-keeled yacht must admire from a distance.

In return, a catamaran offers a different motion in a short chop, a wider berth requirement that can complicate marina entry in busy ports, and, on a pure sailing yacht, less of the heeled, close-hauled feel that traditionalists seek. Sailing and power catamarans both exist; the sailing variety is the more common in charter and blends quiet passages with the flat, roomy comfort that defines the type.

Reading the size bands

Length is shorthand for a great deal: crew, space, systems, cost and which harbours will take you. The bands below are approximate and the boundaries soft, but they map the landscape.

Size band	Typical crew	Guests / cabins	Character
Under 24 m	2–3	6–8 / 3–4	Intimate, agile, keenest cost, easy berthing
24–34 m	4–6	8–10 / 4–5	The charter mainstream; balanced space and cost
34–45 m	6–9	10–12 / 5–6	Full service, larger toys, more formal aboard
Over 45 m	9+	Up to 12 / 6+	Superyacht scale, deep amenity, selective berths

Two thresholds matter in practice. The first is the twenty-four-metre load-line mark, above which stricter commercial standards and larger professional crews apply. The second is berth access: the largest yachts are limited in which harbours can take them alongside, which quietly shapes an itinerary and can mean more nights at anchor. Bigger is not inherently better; it is more space and amenity at higher cost and lower nimbleness.

Guests, cabins and crew ratio

Under charter regulation a yacht ordinarily carries up to twelve guests while cruising, whatever her size, so beyond a point extra length buys space and service rather than more berths. The binding number for most parties is cabin count: how many couples or individuals can sleep in comfort and privacy. Look at the cabin configuration as closely as the length, and note the mix of double, twin and convertible cabins, which decides how families and mixed groups fit.

Crew ratio is the quieter measure of how a charter will feel. A larger crew relative to guests means more attentive service, a galley that can cook to order and a deck team that can launch toys and run the tender without delay. A smaller crew on a compact yacht offers a more relaxed, less formal week, which many prefer. Neither is better in the abstract; they suit different tastes.

When a catamaran suits a family

For families with young children a catamaran often answers more needs than any other type. The flat deck reduces the risk and reassurance-cost of a heeling yacht, the wide, enclosed cockpit gives a safe area within sight of the saloon, and the shallow draught means the yacht can lie close to gentle, sandy coves for swimming and paddling. The generous beam gives children room to be children without living on top of the adults, and the steadier motion at anchor means calmer nights. If your party is a family first and sailors second, put a catamaran at the top of the list, then read our Balearics season guide for the calas that suit them best.

Matching the yacht to the grounds

The cruising ground should shape the choice as firmly as the party. Grounds with long hops between islands reward a faster motor yacht or a well-sailed catamaran that can make the passage in daylight; the Western Mediterranean guide sets out those distances. Grounds rich in shallow, sandy coves, such as much of the Balearics, favour a shallow draught and a flat deck for lying close to the beach. A ground where marina life and evenings ashore matter argues for a yacht that berths easily in busy ports. Where you mean to go and how you mean to spend the days should narrow the field before any single yacht is considered.

The role of the central agent

Every yacht offered for charter is represented by a central agent who knows her intimately: her crew, her true condition, her strengths in a seaway and her quirks at the dock. A good broker works with those central agents on your behalf, translating what you have described into a shortlist of yachts that genuinely fit rather than those that merely have the week free. The value is in the matching and in the candid detail that a listing cannot carry. Browse the fleet to see the range, then make an enquiry describing your party, dates and hopes, and we will propose the yachts that suit.

Common questions

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This guide is general information, not legal, tax or insurance advice. To plan a charter, make an enquiry or browse the yachts.

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