Of course, this dream has a price! There is the air ticket to get to the other side of the world, where the weather is good and hot all the year round, and then there is the charter of the longed-for boat. Not to mention the essential provisioning and fuel top-ups... Yet if you look closely, holidays on a boat may not be as expensive as all that... Here then, according to the budget you have available, are the different possibilities for chartering a multihull all over the world. And you will see that there is something for all tastes and all budgets!
As a couple, with friends or as a family, chartering a cat is always a guarantee of an exceptional holiday... (Photo Moorings)
Where to charter?
After an exhaustive comparative study, we can now tell you loud and clear: you can go cruising in a boat whatever budget you have available, and the most beautiful destinations – those which have you dreaming, with translucent waters and sumptuous marine life – are completely accessible. But you have to be a bit crafty, and play with the different boats and periods... Boat charter is actually particularly sensitive to the seasons. June in the West Indies or April in the Mediterranean offer deserted anchorages and good sailing conditions at bargain prices. Why not take advantage?
A new trend, chartering a motor catamaran allows you to free yourself from weather problems... (Photo MarineMax Vacations)
A boat to accommodate all your friends…
We are all in agreement... If you are going to charter a boat, it might as well be a multihull! There is no lack of arguments in favor of a multihull: greater deck and saloon area, better privacy, no heeling, a stable and less ‘rolly’ anchorage, a draft which allows access to all the anchorages... And above all, an unparalleled amount of accommodation. So, if you have lots of friends, you can charter a cat (or a trimaran) capable of accommodating 8, 10 or even 12 people, which divides the charter price by as many times! Most charter companies also offer a ‘premium’ fleet, with the most recent boats and the most equipment, as well as a ‘classic’ fleet, with boats over 5 years old which can be chartered much more cheaply, whilst being very acceptable. Why deprive yourself?
The principle for paying less
There is therefore no miracle solution: to find a cheaper charter, you must go away in the off-season, and aboard a boat which is less in demand – QED! The brand-new Saba 50 from Fountaine-Pajot will inevitably be in demand this winter, and therefore more expensive to charter than the Salina 48 it replaces in the builder’s range. The appeal of the new boat, as well as the lower availability explains this fact. ‘Private owner’ type boats are also harder to find on the charter market, and thus inevitably more expensive. If you are dreaming of leaving this winter in an Outremer 51 or a Privilège, it will be a bit more expensive than in a 50-foot production boat.
The volume offered by modern catamarans allows you to consider cruising with up to 10 people, with no problems. (Photo Nautitech)
The different charter areas
Caribbean
High season from December to April.
The Caribbean Sea offers a wonderful and diverse cruising area. The charter companies have understood this, and there are a lot of charter bases here. From the Virgin Islands to the Grenadines, the string of West Indian islands offers numerous destinations... The best period to enjoy them stretches from December to April... The weather here is drier, the trade winds are better established, and therefore the weather conditions are more stable. And as the icing on the cake, the nights here are (relatively) cool and thus pleasanter. The hurricane season stretches in theory from June to November, but it is above all during the months of September and October that there are most depressions.
Indian Ocean
High season from December to April.
The dry season stretches from April to October. This is in general the best period for sailing in the islands of the Indian Ocean. During this period, the easterly trade winds gradually become established and finally reach 15 to 20 knots. The temperatures are very pleasant: between 25 and 30°C.
The north-westerly monsoon (October to April) brings heavy, short-lived rain, especially in November and January. Ashore, the breezes cool the climate. The temperatures are stable and are generally around 29°C. Note that depending on the islands (Seychelles, Madagascar, Mauritius or Thailand), the conditions can be very different...
Mediterranean
High season from June to September
The summer months have the pleasantest weather conditions. But they are also the months with the most tourists... It is therefore hard (or even impossible) to find yourself alone in an anchorage! At the end of August there is a real risk of storms and gales. And beware; when the Mediterranean gets angry, it’s not pleasant to be out at sea! So use a little common sense, check the weather forecasts carefully, and don’t overestimate your strength or that of your crew. The Mistral, the Tramontane, the Meltemi, the Sirocco and the Libeccio are winds which can reach storm force and of which you must be wary.
Pacific
High season from July to October
From November to February, you are in the hurricane period, but they are very rare in this region. Outside this period, which is always critical for cruising, you can go to Polynesia whenever you want. The winds blow at between 15 and 25 knots from March to October, which makes this period the most pleasant for cruising. In any case, most charterers in Polynesia never leave the lagoons, and only rarely risk long passages. There is actually enough to see and do close to the charter areas, so you don’t need to go and face the swells of the Pacific...
Atlantic
High season from June to September
This cruising area is sumptuous, and although the summer months are the pleasantest in weather terms, the periods before and after the season offer some absolutely magic days’ sailing.
As in other areas, to avoid unpleasant surprises, it is advisable to check the weather forecasts carefully before setting off...and locate the rocks to be avoided on your charts... Then the exceptional discoveries, the deserted anchorages, the delightful gulfs, and the rivers to be explored are all yours.
Good sailing!
