Can I Bring My Dog?

Most charter companies will not allow any pets whatsoever on board their boats, the main reason being that they need to keep all areas free of potential allergens. If you and your dog have your hearts set on a yacht charter vacation together though, don’t despair. Pet-friendly yacht charters do exist, it just takes a bit of research to find them. Most often, they are smaller companies, or even just a “one boat operation”. If you’re heading overseas, make sure to check well in advance what the requirements are to bring dogs into that specific country.

Charter A Luxury Yacht

Even if owning a luxury yacht is out of your budget, you can still enjoy the comforts of one for a week or two, and it can be surprisingly affordable. For around $4,000/week, you can charter a luxury sailing yacht (bareboat) in the Mediterranean, or a skippered one in South America. If you want a crew, it will cost a bit more, but you can still find deals around $5,000/week.

Skippered Or Not?

One of the decisions you have to make before chartering a yacht is which form of charter you want. Do you prefer bareboat, where you captain the boat and take responsibility for it and everything else, or is skippered more to your liking, where the charter company provide a skipper for you, but you and your guests are the crew? Or do you just want to kick back and relax while cruising the oceans and let an entire hired crew take care of everything while you enjoy your well-earned vacation? (I like the last option myself!)