Q&A - Skippered trips (without hostess)

Very easy! We will send you a provisioning list (or a link from a supermarket portal), select what you wish to have onboard and then we arrange all of your provisioning to be delivered onboard upon your arrival. (service free of charge). This way you will not have to wait in a Greek supermarket on a busy Saturday😊

We always suggest not to ‘over’-shop on day one. There are plenty of supermarkets in the islands – easily accessible, where you can shop additional provisioning. You should however consider a basic order on the first day. A suggestion with things to consider can be found here: https://yachtsailing.gr/blog/articles/basic-product-order/

Yes of course all the boats have refrigerators. As you can imagine the bigger the boat the bigger the refrigerator(s). Most of the bigger options and all of the catamarans have 2 refrigerators and small freezers. Please check in detail the yacht descriptions where you can check what equipment is available in each option

We encourage you to have 2 meals onboard (breakfast and lunch) along with snacks, drinks and anything else you may require throughout the day. For dinners, we highly recommend venturing onto the islands you are visiting. This way you can enjoy a meal with the locals, experiencing the different flavors, cuisine and culture in each location you visit. Of course, if you wish to overnight away from port your cook will also prepare a dinner onboard for you.

All of our boats are fully equipped and you do not need to bring anything. You will find onboard full sets of plates, cups, forks, knives, spoons and a long list of galley inventory that you can check here in detail

Regarding salt, pepper and basic condiments yes you would need to buy them as well from the supermarket as for hygiene reasons most of our guests request that we do not keep them onboard.

Yes. We do provide a starting pack that includes a toilet paper for each head and small samples of shampoo and body lotion, as well some trash bags to start with. In any case, your hostess will take care of everything since you will be onboard for a minimum of 1 week😊

Yes of course you can. Please either included in your supermarket order or you may ask one of our colleagues at the base to assist you with

Regarding your itinerary we offer a fully customizable sailing cruise. We plan a route according to our guests preferences (meaning how familiar they are with sailing, the type of vacation they seek, how many hours they would enjoy sailing per day, if they love sightseeing and many others) and according to the weather as well at the time of your arrival-we would never take our guests somewhere that would be unpleasant due to the weather conditions. In general we try to provide vacation that is pleasant, relaxing and an experience to remember. Therefore we encourage you to share with us some of your preferences and we would propose a tailor made trip based on our professional knowledge.

In terms of choices, If you would prefer to sail to the Cyclades, then you would have numerous selections by starting with KEA which is a sum of Cycladic hill villages, white houses all resulting to a relaxing atmosphere that will welcome you to the first stop in the Cyclades. Syros would be gorgeous combination where the Greek tradition blends with the western civilization while Paros is among the most popular Greek islands, famous for her white marbles and is a combination of a Cycladic architecture and golden sun beaches. Mykonos would be an option as well while in Kythnos you would have the chance to swim in Kolona bay one of the most interesting natural sea bay in Greece.

On the other hand, Saronic gulf, will give you a more relaxed sailing experience, meaning that you would need to travel shorter distances from one island to the other. In addition the possibilities are more likely to have less wind than the Cyclades. This would allow new sailors to be more familiar with sailing (if they are sailing for the first time) and surely to be introduced more calmly on a sailing trip. Regarding your route, you could visit very beautiful places, reserved stone houses, exquisite sites (Spetses Island), secluded beaches (Dhokos bay), turquoise water coves (Ermioni). Unique hiking trails (in Hydra island), booming cuisine (Poros has perfect fish), exclusive archaeological masterpieces (the ancient theater of Palaia Epidavros), as well as Aegina or Methana.

Both of the above suggestions are some of the options we could offer and propose and as I explained previously can be altered according to your preferences.

You can see some sample itineraries under: http://yachtsailing.gr/destinations

It would be possible but this practically would mean that the boat would be there on Saturday evening (depending on the island) or maybe Sunday morning. In addition, there would be a one way cost to cover the crew, diesel and formalities fir the boat to get to the island you have requested

We would not recommend hiring a boat from the Cyclades. Simply due to the fact that the success of this type of vacation relies strongly on the weather present during your arrival. The Cyclades has a reputation for high winds which can translate to an unpleasant sailing experience. 

Athens on the other hand can give you the potential to plan according to the weather, meaning either head towards the Cyclades if the weather is nice or visit the hidden gems of the Saronic, which are equally beautiful when you are visiting with a boat.

In addition, please keep in mind that reaching the islands of the Cyclades with a ferry is not so easy in practice as it may be as an idea. Meaning that in order for someone to pick up a boat in Syros for example, he/she would need to arrive in Athens, take a taxi, head to the port to get into the ferry with all luggage and still reach Syros after may hours compared to his initial arrival in Athens airport.

So our suggestion would be to plan on the safe side and start your trip out of Athens. It may take you some more sailing time to visit the Cyclades, but you came here for sailing vacation, right😊? Or on the other hand you would be amazed with how much relaxing a trip in the Saronic may be and how many beautiful islands are hidden in this area

All our cruises begin from and return to Alimos Marina which is located just 30 minutes away from the Athens International Airport. We are also located in close proximity to the city center for anyone who wants to explore the town or see the many sights available in the area.

We have calculated the sailing times according to an average pace either using the sails or the engine. This practically means that if the wind is on our side you can perform a little faster while if the wind is not so strong (or there is no wind) you would eventually motor. Of course, there is the chance to do both simultaneously in case the wind is not so strong to speed up the yacht to pleasant performance. The times you see in our sample itineraries are realistic and cannot be altered to a great extend to our opinion.

Santorini is located 140 miles away from Athens and therefore is quite far to be reached within a week. The meaning of yachting vacation in the Greek islands is to be pleasant and relaxing as well. In order to reach Santorini you would end up sailing many hours per day and we do not consider such a trip as pleasant to be completed in one week. I understand that you want to visit (and you should) this beautiful island but again I would like to mention that this is an island to be visited with a ferry and not with a yacht. In practice, it would be quite hard to enter Santorini marina (that is in the southern part of the island and always so packed and you would need a 40 min drive with a taxi to reach the city). True magic of Santorini lies on the island to our opinion. When it comes to yachting vacation there are equally beautiful islands that someone can visit and experience the real off-the-beaten-track Greek culture and beauty.

I understand that many agents would present everything easy and beautiful but at the end of the day you would face a different plan from the one you are presented initially (in order for you to book with the one who says everything is nice and beautiful). This is not the way however we try to do business.

Our suggestion would be: once you have finished your sailing cruise you could consider visiting Santorini either with a plane (30 min flight, prices around 55-75 Euros/person if you book early) OR take the ferry (4-5 hours cruising prices 45-65 Euros/person). You can spend a couple of days in this wonderful island and this would be a way to see the most of true Greece within 9 days’ time.

There is no limitation in terms of distance when it comes to our sailing cruises. You can go as far as you wish. However, you need to keep in mind that it all comes down on how many hours you would like to sail per day. I understand that when you see the distance on a map this rather looks closer than the actual effort it takes to reach. For example, for Santorini that most of you are probably interested it takes 17 hours to reach and another 17 to return. This as you can imagine is a lot of distance to be covered in a week therefore we do not suggest it. For us a daily sailing time in order to be pleasant and according to the experience of the guests would be from 2.5 to 5-6 hours per day. Of course, this covers a general idea and it would depend on the weather conditions, passengers experience and mood etc. Our advice is to concentrate on the things that you see, the inspiration that you get from the place that you are and don’t focus on the photo you might have seen on the web.

Greece has more than 2000 islands, as you can imagine it would be impossible to see everything in one week! Our friendly advice would be not to get into this rush of seeing the more possible. This will be made eventually, however our suggestion would be to concentrate on the beauty of the location where you are, live the moment (rather than thinking where to go next) and relax! We will help you, setup an itinerary where you will get the most out of your sailing cruise and enjoy the Greek islands. Of course, each one of u is unique and our preferences differ, this is why our sailing cruises are totally customizable so to fit to the pace each one of us prefers the most.

As you can imagine storage on a yacht is limited. It would be good to pack light and ideally to have a soft luggage that can be stored easier onboard.

However there is no limitation when it comes to your luggage. We can give you the option to unpack your things out of the suitcase and into the boat, while we will store your luggage in our warehouse. Upon arrival the following Friday evening we will bring you back your suitcases and you can pack again and you will be ready for disembarkation the following morning.

Every boat is fully equipped for charter. Apart from provisioning, you only need to bring your personal possessions/medications and some recommended items.

Yacht charter is generally an informal and relaxed kind of holiday and dressing in Greece is casual. For clothing bring bathing suits, cotton shorts, T-shirts, an extra sweater and long cotton pants for cool nights and a light full-weather gear for the occasional rainy days. Of course, you might also like to have the option for more formal attire for elegant dining and evening wear. Rubber-sole shoes for a firm grip on slippery decks, to prevent foot injury and to protect the boat's surface is always recommended. Soft luggage instead of bulky space-consuming suitcases is a must since on board storage may be limited. Do bring your own sun block, sunglasses with an anti-ultraviolet coating and a good sun hat.

We would suggest you to have a look to this link:

http://yachtsailing.gr/blog/articles/sailing-packing-checklist/

All of the boats are equipped with European outlets (220V). We can provide adapters for all kinds of devices. You do not have to bring your own. Guests arriving from the US should check if their device is compatible with this voltage (220V).

Very easy! Just let your captain know and he will advise on where to find the closest laundry in the next island along the way.

Yes of course. In most of the islands you will find an ATM and withdraw as much cash as you require. There is no limitation, you may withdraw exactly according to the limit you have with your bank.

You do not need to carry a big amount of cash with you, as in most places you may pay with credit/debit card. There are some places however that you would need cash so it would be good to have an amount that you can use. If you run out of cash you could always withdraw from one of the islands you have stopped at.

Yes of course. However please note that in some options you may use the hairdryer at all times (bigger mono-hulls and catamarans), while in smaller options you may use it when you are connected in shore power only

Yes of course. All types of cards are accepted. You pay directly to the fuel service of the marina.

Prices listed online refer to the whole boat and not per person!

Prices listed refer to the cost of the whole week and not per day:)

• Fuel: The fuel cost for the week will depend on the weather conditions and cruising distance. Expect to use between 300 and 700 liters, with a cost of approximately €350 to €1300 for the entire week. You’ll take the yacht with a full tank and refill it upon return.
• End Cleaning fee: €300, covering the preparation of the yacht, including cleaning, one set of bed linens, towels, tea towels, dinghy, outboard engine, and gas bottles.
• Port docking fees: Port fees are generally minimal, ranging from €20 to €50 per night depending on the marina.
• Daily provisioning for the crew: Around €25-€30 per person, per day, for the crew’s meals.
• Guest provisioning: You are free to decide what food and beverages you would like on board. Your hostess will handle the shopping according to your preferences, ensuring everything is ready for your arrival.

  Costs listed on the website are for the whole group (and not per person). Adding an additional passenger after your booking (providing the layout allows that) does not affect the weekly boat cost.

  Please feel free to check the Q&A section for more detailed answers on specific questions on costs

Very simple, just like a rental car. You get onboard and the fuel tank is full. Upon your arrival there is a diesel track from the marina that refills the boat and you pay them directly (payment is possible with credit card as well). So, you start with full tank and you refill upon arrival.

Please note that fuel consumption varies from one boat to the other, if there is one or two engines, if you have a generator onboard and you will be using air conditioning, the weather at the time of your arrival etc. You may ask more information regarding the estimate regarding the specific boat you are interested in

No, all of our offers include all taxes (unless otherwise stated in our specific offer)

Yes of course, all our yachts are insured.

We do not recommend a specific insurance provider. Each country has different benefits according to the country of the customer to be insured. We suggest for all of our guests to get a trip cancellation insurance. In an unfortunate event that you are not able to visit Greece, you will have the chance to get a refund by the insurance agency according to the selected insurance conditions. Trip cancellations are not insured by us and we cannot offer this insurance (since we are not insurance agency). We can provide however any documentation that may be required by your insurance agency for you to insure your sailing trip.

Any change in dates, destination or yacht type is a cancellation.
We recommend trip cancellation insurance.
Cancellations received up to 60 days before the trip are not refundable unless the yacht can rebooked and are subject to a fee. Cancellations inside of 60 days are non-refundable.

The refundable deposit is an amount that is blocked (and not charged) in a credit card of our guests for damages that may occur during the trip because of bad maneuvering or for mishandles of the captain. However since there is our professional skipper onboard we do not require any refundable deposit from our guests so it will be equal to zero(0). For small damages that may occur there is a damage waiver pack in each boat selection so this eliminates any responsibility of our guests

We offer only private sailing cruises (meaning we do not combine groups). What you could consider is selecting one of our smaller options in order for the cost to be affordable in case there will be just 2 guests onboard

Not really. We operate on a weekly basis starting on Saturday. Honestly, we feel that for the vacation experience to be pleasant you would require a minimum of 5 days thus we offer trips that are either weekly, 2 weeks, 3 weeks etc.

We operate on a Saturday to Saturday basis. We start on Saturdays in order to take advantage of our economies of scale and be able to offer a competitive options for our guests. Midweeks are not possible but please do send us your request and we can see if there is something available to fit your dates

We do our best for our yachts to be ready around 13.30-14.00 and you are more than welcome to visit us in our base at Alimos marina at that time. If you have ordered a provisioning list then all of your provisioning will have already been placed on the yacht. Once you are onboard your skipper will welcome you and familiarize you with the yacht and accommodation. The safety briefing to follow is very important and your skipper will give you safety instructions in order for your trip to be super safe. Afterwards you discuss with him all possible routes and planning regarding your trip, according to your preferences and the weather at the time of your arrival.

That’s it! You start sailing immediately and after some hours you will be swimming to the first bay according to your desired plan. 

All of our cruises return in the marina on the evening of the following Friday, our guests overnight onboard and disembarkation is set for 09.00 (in order for us to be able to prepare the yacht for our next guests according to our standards).

Yachting vacation is considered for us the best family vacation. Kids have the chance to experience sea, come closer to real nature and enjoy the summer like no other type of vacation can offer. It is crucial for the parents to be aware that as everywhere else you need to be responsible for children onboard meaning for example how far are they allowed to go with a water toy, how and if can they dive from the yacht into the sea, how good can they swim once the yacht is anchored etc. For us safety comes first so we always suggest to the parents to keep an extra eye on the children during their yachting vacation. For us the highest priority during your sailing cruise is your safety and this is the reason until today we only have successful cruises on this end.

Most of the times we arrange the skippers planning almost a month prior to embarkation. The reason is that many times there are repeated guests that ask for the same skipper with whom there is already a good bonding and we try to match their request (to the extend that this is possible).

In most of the cases this would be possible providing the skipper you request is available. However we would like to point out that not all skippers are a good match for all guests. On our end we try to match the profile of the skipper with the profile of our groups is order for the match to be smooth and very pleasant. All of our professional skippers are very flexible and easy going but many times we will adjust according to the preferences and characteristics of our group. Therefore we encourage you to share with us some expectations and preferences so we can match you with a corresponding skipper profile

Matching a great crew is the key for a fully crewed amazing experience. We select highly trained professionals with years of background that have been sailing with us for years by now, in order to offer our guests a top notch experience!

Main criteria are:

• Years of background
• Credentials
• Performance records
• Guests comments

Depending on the boat you select and the number of guests the skipper may use either the skipper cabin or one of the main cabins of the boat. To our opinion if you have the possibility to allow your skipper to use one of the cabins of the interior this would be preferable as he would be able to rest better. Of course if you prefer your privacy you can always ask from your skipper to use the skipper cabin. Out of the number of cabins you see in the characteristics of the boat in our boats page you would need to check the boat layout so you have an understanding of where he sleeps

Our captains are very easy going so it will not be an issue. You can either invite him for dinner or if you prefer your privacy you may calculate an amount of around 25 - 30  Euros for his daily food.

Tipping it is something that indeed may vary from one guest to the other and by no means it is considered obligatory.

If you feel that your captain has put together a puzzle of a great vacation experience then a tip is common among our guests.

They work very hard in order for the trip to be successful and surely it would be appreciated. The amount of a tip represents a percentage of the boat value and varies among 5-15%

This is a suggestion for skippered trips (and not obligatory)

As you can imagine the skipper is mentally working 24/7 when you are at sea. However he needs to rest as well in order for him to be able to have energy for the days to follow. Although you will never hear our captains complain for being tired normally we calculate an 7 hour basis for him to sail / day. This when we are at sea cannot be so fixed and accurate. For example this does not mean that if you are close to reaching an island he will stop navigating the boat and go to sleep because his 7 hour shift has ended:) His first priority is your safety and the boat safety to follow. He will be available for everyone at all times and make sure you will have a safe and pleasant journey.

There is no better vacation for children than the vacation onboard a sailing monohull or a catamaran! There is no doubt that they will get to know/feel nature at the 100%, get to know information in practice regarding the weather, the sea and all of the surrounding elements of such vacation. Depending on their age children needs a lot of attention at all times when you are on a boat at sea. As explained thouroughly in a different chapter, this is not dangerous at all however parents needs to keep an eye on their children either when sailing under sails or motor but also when on anchor and they may use some of the toys such as SUP or a Kayak. The captain will do his best to keep an eye on everyone but as you can imagine it is impossible for one person to supervise everyone. Children are our best guests, they have the best time but we invite all parents to keep a good eye on them:)

Yes of course! All of our boats are equipped with USB sockets in order for everyone to be able to charge their phones and connect any other usb device. The sockets are located in all cabins and saloon

Shampoo and soap are available in all supermarkets. You may order it along with your provisioning.

Yes we do have plug converters for hair dryers and straighteners. Just make sure that your devices are compatible with European voltage (220V). Please note that depending on the yacht selection some boats have the possibility to use these devices everywhere (in all catamarans and bigger monohulls this is the case) and some others (smaller options) only when connected to shore power.

You may charge your phones either by using the usb sockets you have onboard or by using the electrical plugs (220V). Your captain will be happy to familiarize you with these little details.

Yes of course. There are flippers and masks already included onboard. We do our best to ensure good quality equipment. Just make sure you have the correct sizes when you are at our base so you are ready for exploring the underwater areas during your sailing vacation

Yes of course these are included. We do provide 1 set (shower and face)/person/week. Same for bed linen 1 set / week.

All of our bed lined and towels are carefully selected and are constantly updated/upgraded in order to have the best linen possible according to our standards

Yes of course all of our boats have a dinghy and outboard included in the price.

Yachting vacation is considered adventurous vacation. The reason as you can imagine is that you are at sea (and not on land). This does not mean that it is dangerous, however our honest advice is that we have to respect the sea and the weather (I would say we have to respect nature to be more precise). The safety briefing you will have by your skipper is very important and our suggestion would be to pay a lot of attention since yachting vacation should comply with some basic rules of safety while cruising.

You may smoke without any problem in all exterior areas of the boat (not in the boat's interior). We do have ashtrays that we can provide, so please just remind us upon arrival so we can provide some for your trip.