At OceanScape Yachts, we don’t maintain an expensive fleet, charge exorbitant brokerage fees, or cater only to those who want to “try before they buy.”
Instead, we bring yacht owners and sophisticated travellers together to create a marketplace that puts otherwise idle yachts out on the water. Think of it as the “sharing economy” of luxury sea travel.
You and your loved ones get to enjoy an unforgettable vacation while the vessel's owner collects a fee to help pay for her upkeep. It’s win-win for everyone.
When you book with us, we want you to know how much we appreciate it. And as such, we think you should be rewarded every time you book a yacht vacation! This new simplified membership comes with a one-time payment of $3000 for the year (monthly payment options available). No initiation fees and no long complicated contracts! Most importantly, we give you 5% cashback off EACH vacation booked with us! So that means, you’ll usually earn back your membership fees and then some after your first trip!
The 5% cashback only applies to charters of 5 days or more and is taken off the base rate of the yacht. It can be contributed toward your food and provisioning allowance, or handed back in cash! For plenty more information or to sign up now, head over here on our website.
How does the friends and family benefit work?
We allow you to “gift” your membership perks to friends and family if they’d like to try it out too!
Certainly! Tell us what you like and we’ll tailor an experience just for you. For example, we often recommend the Bahamas and Exumas; Caribbean Islands such St Barth’s; the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean; the Italian coast including Sicily and Sardinia or the Adriatic; the French Riviera; or the Greek Islands. Or why not really go on an adventure through the thousands of islands in Indonesia or head down-under to Sydney and the Great Barrier Reef?
There is a world of choice!
The yachts are all designed to compare with 5-star accommodations. They are spacious with staterooms and VIP guest rooms with either queen, double or twin beds. Every bedroom has luxury en suite facilities and in-room entertainment. There are also generous living areas and indoor and alfresco dining facilities.
We focus on the 25 to 40-meter (80 - 130 foot) class of yachts because they tend to be relatively more affordable for parties of 6 to 8 guests. However, yacht charters can take up to 12 guests under international maritime regulations.
Every yacht is attended by highly trained accommodation crew. Most have a choice of water toys if you wish to enjoy those, all expertly supervised by the Captain and crew. The crew to guest ratio is mostly 1:2 with a minimum of 3 crew on yachts with a capacity of 6 and 4 with a capacity of 8, going up from there.
You might be surprised at just how affordable a yacht charter can be.
As a rule of thumb, these luxury yacht vacations cost about $1,000 per person per day when fully occupied. That is your all-in budget, which is comparable with top-end luxury cruises and resorts once you include all their add-on costs.
Every yacht is advertised with a base charter cost, which covers the yacht and crew. We continuously analyze the market and can check whether the advertised base charter rate represents a good value.
In addition to the base charter costs, you will have to allow for approximately 50-55% uplift for the provisioning allowance, which covers marina/anchor fees, fuel (which is the largest part of this cost), food and beverage provisions and crew tips at the end of your vacation. You will have reasonable control over the fuel costs when you agree with the Captain your itinerary (the more you wish to sail, the higher the costs) and the food and beverage costs are a result of your exact requirements.
Once we have found your ideal yacht in your chosen destination we must secure it with the deposit equal to 30% of the overall estimated costs. This will all be detailed in the contract we provide you with before you must take this step. We will set up a client account for you at OceanScape Yachts to take care of all of this on your behalf.
Thirty days before your departure date, the full amount less the deposit must be paid into the client account. We will ensure that the full base charter rate is paid to the owner or his agent and the provisioning allowance is transferred to the yacht’s account which is managed by the Captain. The allowance of the crew tip is included in this but if you wish to deal with this personally then please let us know. (We do advise however not to travel with large amounts of cash and if you wish to handle this with a personal touch then we recommend having the minimum of the tip transferred in the provisioning allowance, which you can top up at the end of the trip with some extra cash if you wish.)
We always love to answer this question as we are passionate about the hospitality offered with these luxury vacations. You decide when and what you want to eat. One member of the crew will be your dedicated personal chef and they are greatly skilled in what they create in the galley.
When you book with us, we go into minute detail learning likes, dislikes diet, and allergies. It is our objective to make this as much of a bespoke experience as possible for every individual guest. Right down to matching your brand preferences on beverages and drinks whenever possible (this is subject to the port of provisioning as some of them might not always be available there. If that is the case then we will find alternatives to match them as close as possible.)
Not to mention that you can catch your own fish and ask the chef to clean and prepare it to your taste! You can dine in the dining room, al fresco on the deck, a picnic on a secluded beach or a BBQ ashore. This is the antidote of cruise ships where you must wait in line at times dictated and must eat what is on offer.
This is pure luxury!
Freedom is the word that comes to mind. You are completely in charge of your own itinerary which you will make in consultation with the Captain. We will make some suggestions but a few weeks prior to your departure we will arrange for a call between you and the Captain to discuss this is some more detail. He/she is the expert as they know the local waters and those little gems you don’t want to miss--secluded anchor locations, for example. It will be so flexible that when you wake up each day, you can change your mind over breakfast. The Captain and crew are there to accommodate your wishes at every turn, provided they can keep you and the yacht safe. Check out some vacation inspiration here!
We will provide you with a packing list which will detail our recommendations - we also have a great article here that lists out some of those ideas. It is very much your personal clothing, footwear and swimwear and you decide with your guests how you want to dress during the day or evening.
We will let you know which airport you need to choose for your arrival. When you are there, we will ensure that there is someone there to welcome you and your party and make transfer arrangements to the marina and the yacht. This of course goes for the return to land as well when your trip is complete.
If you want to see any attractions on land during your charter, your crew will be happy to make arrangements.
Sure. We are very happy to make those travel arrangements for you. There will be a small charge for that.
This depends on the yacht. The standard is 7 days but some can be available from 4 days when the lead time is short and the owner would rather take four days than none at all. We also have a number of yachts available to charter for as little as one day, a weekend or even an afternoon! There is no maximum.
We recommend that you take out travel insurance that has cancellation provisions. If you need any advice on this, we can recommend the appropriate insurance broker for you, who can run you through the options available.
*During COVID-19 many yachts are having risk-free bookings. Please inquire with us for further details.
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