Bareboat vs Skippered Charter: Which Should You Choose?
Bareboat means you're the captain, cheaper, but you need the papers and the skills. Skippered adds ~€1,200-1,500/week but removes every barrier. Here's how to decide.
Walk into any charter broker and the first question you'll get is: "Bareboat or skippered?" The answer shapes your week more than the boat choice does, different budget, different skills required, different type of holiday.
Here's the plain version.
The two-line summary
Bareboat: you rent the yacht, you are the captain. Cheapest option, but you need a valid sailing licence and real experience.
Skippered: you rent the yacht plus a professional captain. Pay €180-250/day extra. No licence needed, no experience required. The skipper handles navigation, docking, weather decisions; you handle where to go today.
Everything else, crewed (with cook + hostess), cabin charter (sharing a boat with strangers), flotilla, are variations on these two.
What you need for bareboat
In Croatia, Italy, Greece, Turkey, France, and most of Europe, to charter bareboat you need both of:
- A recognised sailing licence, the International Certificate of Competence (ICC) is the standard. RYA Day Skipper, ASA 104, Croatian class B/C boating licence, German SBF See / SKS are all accepted equivalents.
- A VHF radio operator's certificate (SRC or equivalent).
For catamarans and larger monohulls (>45 ft), operators sometimes require additional endorsement (multihull, tidal, etc.).
Practical catch: an inland motorboat licence from the US or Canada doesn't qualify. Neither does "I've sailed with friends for years." Croatian police do random spot checks; getting caught sailing bareboat without proper papers ends in fines and the charter contract being voided on the spot (no refund).
What you need for skippered
Nothing. No licence, no experience. Kids welcome.
The real cost difference
A skipper in Croatia runs €180-220/day. For a 7-day charter:
- Skipper base fee: ~€1,260-1,540
- Skipper's food (you provision him): ~€80-120 for the week
- Skipper's cabin: he'll want a double or a single, if the boat has spare cabin space, no cost; if he takes a guest cabin, you lose that berth
Total skipper uplift: €1,400-1,700 per week.
On top of the boat. So a €3,000 bareboat becomes a €4,500 skippered charter.
When bareboat makes sense
Check all four boxes:
- You have a valid ICC or equivalent
- You've skippered a similar-sized boat in similar waters at least 3-4 times
- Your crew includes 1-2 competent hands (someone who can tie a cleat hitch and reef a main)
- You're happy to carry full responsibility for safety decisions, navigation, and any damage
If any box is missing, don't bareboat.
When skippered makes sense
- You have the licence but it's been 5+ years since you last skippered
- You want a holiday, not a responsibility
- Your crew is all beginners (kids, non-sailor partner)
- The waters are unfamiliar, Turkish Aegean gulets for first-timers, for example, are best done with a local skipper who knows the islands
The "I've sailed all my life" trap
We see this often: someone grew up racing dinghies, then crewed offshore ten years ago, and assumes they can charter a 45 ft cruiser. Coastal cruising in an unfamiliar area with a crew of non-sailors is a different skill:
- Mediterranean-moor docking is not trivial (stern-to, anchor out, finger pontoons, very different from UK fingers)
- Weather windows in the Adriatic can shift fast; Bura gusts from glassy calm to 35 kn in 30 minutes
- Reading Croatian VHF charts and dealing with harbour masters in-situ adds friction
If you're rusty, do one skippered charter first. The €1,500 upgrade is the best sailing education money you'll ever spend.
What a skipper actually does
Misconception: "the skipper drives the boat; I'm a passenger."
Reality: the skipper does weather briefings, picks the day's route, handles marina radio calls and docking, and trains you if you want. A good skipper teaches you so that next year you can bareboat.
On our platform, about 675+ Croatian charter sailing yachts offer a skipper option, most boats do. Just ask.
Middle ground: assisted bareboat
Some operators (Sunsail, Navigare, Dream Yacht Charter) offer "assisted" or "briefed" bareboat where:
- You pay bareboat rate
- A local skipper joins for the first morning to walk you through the boat and the first leg
- Then you're on your own
Costs €100-150 extra. Sensible if you're licence-qualified but new to the area.
Flotilla: another option worth knowing
If you're licence-qualified but nervous, a flotilla (6-10 boats sailing together with a lead boat and support yacht) is a great on-ramp. You sail your own boat with your own crew, but the lead skipper helps with day plans, marina bookings, and emergencies. Slightly more expensive than bareboat; cheaper than skippered; sociable.
Our recommendation
First charter, no sailing experience: skippered. Learn, enjoy, then do one more skippered before thinking bareboat.
Licence-qualified, experienced, familiar area: bareboat. Nothing beats the freedom.
Licence-qualified but unfamiliar area or rusty: assisted bareboat or flotilla.
No licence, good charter budget, want to learn: skippered with explicit "teach me" brief.
FAQ
Q: Can I add the skipper mid-charter if I get overwhelmed? Sometimes, but you're at the mercy of local availability. Way easier to book skippered from the start or do assisted bareboat.
Q: Does the skipper count as a crew member for the cabin count? In Croatia, yes, if you have a 4-cabin boat, the skipper takes one cabin (or sleeps in the saloon convertible). Factor this into your crew planning.
Q: What's the licence cost if I want to become bareboat-qualified? ICC in the UK via RYA is ~£400-600 plus course fees, 5-7 days of training total. Croatian licence can be obtained in-country in about a week for €300-400. ASA in the US runs $1,500-2,500 for a multi-course track.
Q: Can I bareboat in Croatia with a U.S. USCG licence? Yes, the USCG 6-pack / 100 GRT / OUPV licences are accepted as equivalent to ICC in Croatia. Bring the original plus a VHF GMDSS ticket.
