Skipper or Bareboat: 4 Charter Types Compared

Four Charter Types Explained

The four charter formats are bareboat, skippered, crewed, and flotilla. Your choice determines how much control you have, how much you pay, and how much sleep you'll get on the first night in an unfamiliar anchorage. Below, we break down each option with real costs and practical trade-offs so you can book with confidence.

Bareboat: Full Independence

A bareboat charter hands you an empty yacht: no captain, no crew, no set itinerary. You provision the boat yourself, plot your own course, and handle every line and anchor. For a 38 ft monohull in Croatia during July 2026, expect to pay roughly €3,200–4,500/week before extras. That price covers hull and sails only. You'll add fuel (around €150–200/week), marina fees, and provisioning on top. For a full breakdown, see our 2026 charter cost guide.

The upside is total freedom. You decide whether to stay in a quiet bay until noon or push 35 NM to the next island. The downside: you need a recognised sailing licence, and you carry full responsibility for navigation, weather calls, and mooring. Most charter companies require at least an ICC (International Certificate of Competence) or equivalent national licence, plus a sailing CV showing recent experience, typically 2–3 charters or 300 NM logged.

Bareboat works best for groups of 4–8 experienced sailors who already know their way around a winch. If half your crew are non-sailors and you're the only licence-holder, think carefully about whether you want to spend your week on watch while everyone else is on the swim platform.

Skippered: ★ Best for First-Timers

Add a professional skipper to any bareboat and you remove the licence requirement entirely. The skipper handles navigation, mooring, and weather decisions. In the Mediterranean, a skipper costs €150–200/day, so roughly €1,050–1,400 for a 7-day charter on top of the boat hire. The skipper typically sleeps in the smallest cabin (usually the forepeak), which means you lose one cabin from your available berths.

This is the option we recommend most often for first-time charterers. You get a local expert who knows which taverna serves the best grilled octopus, which anchorages are sheltered from the Meltemi (the strong northerly that hits the Aegean at Force 5–7 in July and August), and which marinas are a nightmare to enter stern-to. If you're planning a first trip in Greece or a first trip in Croatia, a skipper turns an intimidating prospect into a relaxed week.

The trade-off is privacy. Your skipper is a stranger living on your boat. Good communication solves most awkwardness, and we cover that in detail below. Some guests also hire a skipper for the first 2–3 days, then take over bareboat for the rest of the week. Not every charter company allows this mid-trip handover, so confirm at booking.

Crewed: Full Service Afloat

A crewed charter adds a hostess/cook alongside the skipper, and sometimes a full crew of 3–5 on larger yachts. You won't touch a halyard unless you ask to. Meals are prepared on board, cabins are turned down, and the cocktail hour starts when you say it does. Crewed charters typically start on catamarans of 45 ft or larger, or on motor-sailers, because the crew need dedicated quarters.

Costs jump significantly. A crewed week on a 50 ft catamaran in Greece runs €8,000–15,000 depending on season and yacht age, with food, fuel, and crew gratuities often covered by an APA (Advance Provisioning Allowance) of 25–35% on top of the base price. For a group of 6–8 splitting the bill, per-person costs land around €1,500–3,000 for the week, which remains competitive with a resort hotel once you factor in meals and transport. Compare the numbers in our yacht vs hotel cost analysis.

Crewed charters suit groups with mixed interests: some want to sail, others want to sunbathe and eat well. They also work for corporate events, milestone birthdays, or family trips with young children where an extra pair of hands makes a real difference.

Flotilla: Guided Group Sailing

A flotilla puts 5–12 yachts together under a lead crew, typically a lead skipper, an engineer, and a social host on a dedicated lead boat. Each yacht in the fleet is a bareboat and you sail it yourself, but the lead crew sets the daily route, recommends lunch stops, organises group dinners ashore, and stands by on VHF Channel 69 if you need help.

Flotillas run on fixed itineraries with fixed departure dates, usually Saturday to Saturday. In the Ionian (western Greece), a flotilla berth on a 36 ft monohull for 2 people costs roughly €1,200–1,800 per person for the week in peak season, including the boat, basic insurance, and flotilla fee. You still need a licence-holder on board, but the threshold is lower: many flotilla companies accept an RYA Day Skipper or ICC with limited experience, because help is never more than a radio call away.

The social element is a genuine perk. Flotillas attract couples and small families, and the group dinners create a holiday-camp atmosphere that some people love and others find tiresome. If you prefer solitude, this is not your format. The daily legs are typically 15–25 NM and the route is pre-set, so you can't decide to skip an island and head somewhere else.

Comparison Table

Factor	Bareboat	Skippered	Crewed	Flotilla
Licence required?	Yes (ICC/RYA Day Skipper+)	No	No	Yes (basic level accepted)
Typical cost (7 days, 40 ft mono, peak)	€3,200–4,500	€4,200–5,900	€8,000–15,000	€1,200–1,800/person
Route freedom	Total	Total (your call)	Total	Fixed itinerary
Privacy	High	Medium (skipper on board)	Low (2–5 crew on board)	High on your boat
Stress level	High (you're responsible)	Low	Very low	Low–medium
Best for first-timers?	No	★ Yes	Yes	Yes (if licensed)
Cabins available to guests	All (e.g. 3–4)	All minus 1 for skipper	All minus 1–2 for crew	All

How to Decide: A Textual Flowchart

Work through these questions in order. The first "yes" that triggers an answer is your recommended charter type.

1. Does anyone in your group hold a sailing licence and have logged 300+ NM?
   No → Go to Question 4.
   Yes → Continue to Question 2.
2. Are you confident mooring stern-to in a crosswind and navigating in 25-knot gusts?
   No → Consider a skippered charter for your first trip, or a flotilla if you want a safety net plus social life.
   Yes → Continue to Question 3.
3. Do you want complete route freedom, no fixed schedule, no group dinners?
   Yes → Bareboat is your answer.
   No, I like structure and meeting people → Flotilla.
4. Nobody has a licence. Is your budget above €10,000 for the week (boat + crew)?
   Yes → Crewed charter with full-service catering.
   No → Skippered charter. At €150–200/day for a skipper, it's the most cost-effective way to sail without a licence.

Still unsure? Default to a skippered charter. You can always move to bareboat next year once you've seen how Mediterranean sailing actually works. If you catch the bug, read our guide on how to go from zero to skipper.

The Skipper Question

Hiring a skipper is straightforward. Living with one for a week requires a bit of thought.

Communication: Set Expectations Early

Before departure, discuss four things with your skipper: daily sailing hours (most guests prefer 3–5 hours under way), meal preferences (will the skipper eat with you or separately?), wake-up times, and noise tolerance after dark. Skippers are professionals who have seen every group dynamic from rowdy stag parties to quiet family trips, but they can't read minds. A 10-minute chat at the dock briefing saves a week of awkwardness.

The Cabin Situation

On a standard 3-cabin yacht, the skipper takes one cabin, leaving you two. On a 4-cabin cat, the skipper usually takes the port-aft hull cabin, which is typically the smallest. If cabin count is tight, ask the charter company about a "skipper cabin" configuration. Some 40–42 ft cats have a dedicated crew berth in the bow that doesn't count as a guest cabin.

Tipping Your Skipper

Tips aren't mandatory but they are expected. The industry standard in the Med is 10–15% of the skipper's fee. If you've paid €1,200 for the week, a tip of €120–180 is appropriate. Hand it directly to the skipper at the end of the charter, in cash (EUR). For crewed charters, the total crew tip runs 10–20% of the charter fee, split among the crew by the captain.

Can You Learn From Your Skipper?

Yes, and this is one of the strongest arguments for a skippered charter. Most professional skippers are happy to teach helming, sail trim, and navigation if you ask. Some charter companies offer a formal "tuition skipper" option where the captain actively teaches throughout the week, preparing you for bareboat the following season. Expect to pay an extra €50/day on top of the standard skipper rate. For licence pathways, compare the RYA vs IYT certification route.

Licences: What Counts Where

Bareboat and flotilla charters require at least one person on board to hold a recognised sailing certificate. Requirements vary by country. Here's a quick reference, and for the full breakdown, see our detailed licence comparison guide.

Country	Minimum Licence Accepted	VHF Radio Licence Required?
Greece	ICC, RYA Day Skipper, IYT Bareboat Skipper	Yes (SRC)
Croatia	ICC, national equivalent + boat/skipper registration	Yes (SRC)
Italy	ICC or national licence (boats >24 m or >40 HP engine)	Yes for offshore
Spain (Balearics)	ICC or Spanish PER licence	Yes (SRC)
Turkey	ICC, RYA Day Skipper, or national equivalent	Yes (SRC)
BVI / Caribbean	Sailing CV often sufficient; no formal licence enforced	Recommended

SRC stands for Short Range Certificate, the VHF radio operator licence. Charter companies in Greece and Croatia almost always check for both a sailing certificate and SRC at the dock. Arriving without your radio licence can delay or cancel your charter handover. Getting your SRC typically takes a 1-day course and costs €75–150.

Practical Tips for Booking

• Book early for skippered charters. Good skippers get reserved 3–6 months ahead in peak season (July–August). By May, your options narrow considerably.
• Check what's included. Some charter companies bundle skipper accommodation and meals into the price; others expect you to feed the skipper. Clarify before signing.
• Consider shoulder season. A skippered charter in late September costs 25–40% less than peak July, and the anchorages are emptier. For packing advice in variable autumn weather, see our complete packing list.
• Read skipper reviews. Most reputable charter companies let you request a specific skipper. Look for reviews that mention communication, local knowledge, and flexibility, not just sailing skill.
• Start with a skippered week, then upgrade. If your goal is independence, one skippered charter teaches you more about real-world Mediterranean sailing than a classroom course. Follow it with a formal certification programme and you'll be ready for bareboat within 12–18 months.

The right charter type isn't about prestige. It's about matching your skill level, budget, and group dynamics to the format that delivers the best week on the water. Get that match right and the sailing takes care of itself.

Also read: chartering with no experience.