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Skippered Sailing Holidays & Yacht Charters

Skippered Sailing Holidays & Yacht Charters

Are you looking for a sailing holiday where you can sit back, relax and focus on nothing except for the sound of the tranquil waves? While bareboat and flotilla charters bring excitement and a challenge for budding sailors, hiring a skipper offers a more hands-off experience. 

Ready for a sailing holiday where relaxation is your only task? Skippered charters offer a carefree experience, letting you enjoy the journey without the responsibilities of a bareboat or flotilla charter.

Whether you are new to sailing holidays or are simply looking for a helping hand on board, we have made it easy for you to plan your perfect sailing holiday. Your fully-qualified professional skipper can partially or fully take over the sailing duties, so you can enjoy the sun, sea and gorgeous coastlines to the fullest.

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Our Skippered Sailing Destinations

Discover a variety of stunning destinations with Sunsail’s skippered charters, perfect for both relaxation and adventure:

Our Skippered Yachts

Sunsail offers a variety of yachts to choose from, ensuring you sail in comfort and style on your skippered charter:

View our full range of monohulls.

Browse our full range of catamarans.

Each destination and yacht is equipped with a professional skipper to guide you, making your sailing holiday stress-free and more enjoyable. Whether you’re a seasoned sailor or a first-timer, our skippers ensure you get the most out of your sailing adventure.

What is a skipper in sailing?

Hiring a skipper means having an expert navigate your yacht and enrich your journey with insider tips and must-visit spots, ensuring you experience the best of your destination.

The skipper will stay on board the yacht throughout the entire duration of your sailing holiday. The skipper provides added security and comfort for new sailors or beginners who aren’t quite ready to take a yacht out or don’t have the qualifications to do so. Experienced sailors may also hire a skipper to take advantage of the local knowledge or to allow them to relax knowing everything is taken care of.

Friendly and professional, they can be as discreet or interactive as you need them to be, and our guests often hire the same skipper when they return because they form such strong bonds with them!

How does a skippered charter work?

To hire a skipper for your skippered sailing holiday:

  1. Choose your preferred destination and start building a quote.
  2. Select your chosen your dates, charter type and yacht type, 
  3. You’ll then be asked to choose any charter extras. This is where you can add your skipper.

Start building your quote now and relax knowing your sailing holiday is in reliable hands.

Otherwise, you can opt to add a skipper to your bareboat yacht charter as a paid extra – with this option, you can have a skipper with you across any destination, and any yacht regardless of whether it’s a monohull or catamaran. 

You can hire a skipper for just a few days or your entire charter, it’s completely up to you! They will require their own cabin, as well as food and drink provisions, so make sure you account for this when building your quote.  

After this, you set the pace and itinerary of your yacht charter with the help of the skipper’s sailing expertise and knowledge of the cruising grounds. Get as involved as you would like with the sailing – if you would rather relax and take in the stunning surroundings, it’s completely up to you.

Skippered Yacht Charter FAQs

What are the skippers responsible for?

Skippers are responsible for: 

  • Navigation – Your skipper can take you almost anywhere within your cruising grounds, weather permitting. In addition to navigating the yacht, your skipper will handle all related duties, including charting your course, monitoring weather conditions, and ensuring the safety of all guests during the voyage.
  • Dinghy Transport – On occasions when your yacht’s dinghy is needed to travel ashore, your skipper can operate this small vessel to ensure a safe journey to land.
  • Safety and Maintenance – Skippers are responsible for always maintaining a safe and orderly deck – this means keeping the lines tidy and ensuring stowing gear that isn’t in use out of harm’s way. They provide a safety briefing, too, which covers the boat’s systems and the safety equipment on board (in addition to the health and safety videos that must be watched in advance of your charter).

Your skipper will also refill gas and water tanks, but guests are responsible for paying any fees required for these.
What is your skipper not responsible for?

Your skipper’s responsibilities do not include:

  • Organising land and water-based excursions including diving and taxis
  • Cooking for the charter group
  • Cleaning for the charter group (but skippers will, of course, tidy up after themselves if they have used the kitchen and will dispose of their litter)
  • Emptying bins
  • Childcare
How much does it cost to hire a skipper? 

Hiring a skipper for a week-long charter typically costs between £1,000-1,600, varying by destination, dates, and yacht type, ensuring professional guidance throughout your journey.

For a bareboat skippered charter, a gratuity of 15-20% of the skipper fee is appreciated for excellent service; however, some customers feel it is appropriate to tip at a percentage of the overall charter price for outstanding service. 

This is entirely at your discretion.
What if I only want a skipper for the day? 

Bareboat skippered charters are fully flexible and enable you to add a skipper for the duration of your choice, depending on your needs. You can hire them for the day or for the duration of your charter. Speak to your holiday planner to ensure you have the support you need. 

Please note: If you are booking the skippered charter package, the skipper will be with you for the whole of your charter. Hiring a skipper for a shorter duration may not be possible in all destinations; please confirm this with your holiday planner.

Want to learn how to skipper a yacht?

Are you determined to skipper the yacht yourself? Good news – at our sailing schools across Portsmouth, Agana and Lefkas we offer several courses to boost your expertise and get you ready to become a qualified skipper. For example, our RYA Day Skipper course is designed for just this. 

Read our blog on the sailing qualifications you need to charter a yacht, and explore our corresponding options.

SAILING SCHOOLS

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