Can you charter older/cheaper boats in Europe?

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Spudgun

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Greeting from sunny Auckland!

My wife and I are almost 1 year into our 2 year plan of becoming vaguely competent enough to sail around Europe with our young family for 6 months.

My question:

Is it possible to charter older/cheaper boats or go directly to owners to get a better deal? We had planned to buy something in the UK and send it overland to southern France but then I wondered if it’s possible to rent something privately? Thinking 30 – 35 ft.

Cheers
James
 
Not sure about other countries but here in holland almost none of the insurers allow owners to rent out their boat.

I do hear stories about boats in the med being old and poorly maintained but that seems to do little with the price...
 
If you do go with your plan A I would strongly suggest taking the boat down the French canal system rather than just shipping it straight to the SoF. By all accounts it is a trip-of-a-lifetime and the size of boat you are looking at would fit without problems providing you don't end up with a deep keel boat. if you have 6 months then 5 weeks or so of tootling through France would be a great way to get the kids into boat life.

PM sent btw.
 
Spudgun said:
Greeting from sunny Auckland!

My wife and I are almost 1 year into our 2 year plan of becoming vaguely competent enough to sail around Europe with our young family for 6 months.

My question:

Is it possible to charter older/cheaper boats or go directly to owners to get a better deal? We had planned to buy something in the UK and send it overland to southern France but then I wondered if it’s possible to rent something privately? Thinking 30 – 35 ft.

Cheers
James
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The simple answer is no. In all countries (including the UK) chartering is regulated and boats have to be coded and licenced to operate commercially, even if they are privately owned.

The best way to get experience of sailing on a bigger boat is to do a flotilla charter in somewhere nice and warm like the Ionian or Turkey. The boat size you suggest is the minimum and you will find most charter boats are nearer 35ft. Suggest you look at Sailing Holidays or Nielsons for ideas.

You may also want to reconsider your 6 month plan. It is difficult to accomplish very much in that time period. Sailing is very seasonal even in the Med and most people plan up to 2 years to do anything worthwhile, particularly if they have a young family. The most common thing to do, as suggested is to go south through the canals (or round the outside if adventurous) in the first year, overwinter in the Western Med, go east in the second year and then return to UK in the third. Selling a boat out there is not easy so you need to have some sort of exit plan if you intend returning to home at the end of your adventure.

An alternative if you are just coming from NZ for this trip is to buy a boat probably in Greece where there is always a good choice of ready to go boats and sell it at the end. There are many brokers operating there , some of them English which will make communications easier. Have a look at www.pinnacleyachtsales.com for an idea of the sort of boats you can buy.

There is masses written on the subject in books magazine articles and personal blogs to help you get a feel for what is involved.
 
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nimbusgb said:
If you do go with your plan A I would strongly suggest taking the boat down the French canal system rather than just shipping it straight to the SoF. By all accounts it is a trip-of-a-lifetime and the size of boat you are looking at would fit without problems providing you don't end up with a deep keel boat. if you have 6 months then 5 weeks or so of tootling through France would be a great way to get the kids into boat life.

PM sent btw.
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+1, an excellent idea; the French Canals are a real treat, not to be missed.

It is indeed possible to charter privately owned boats, though their having to meet the same coded regulations as professional outfits means the savings may not be great.

It would be down to a personal owner - and their insurance - as to approval to enter the French Canals, and some minor qualifications on the part of the skipper are required, but it is a spectacularly lovely trip.

I agree get as much time available as you can, if doing the canals 6 weeks is regarded as fairly swift, to take it all in; there is a poster here ' Glashen ' who is an expert on the subject.
 
Actually yes you can, and some owners will rent out too. I met a couple of students here in Bristol who did just that in France. Just by asking locally in a French Marina got a great deal and enjoyed six weeks sailing under a french flag with no hassle at all for around £100 a week.
At home in Scotland a lot of owners charter their boats out, helps keep them in the Marina, I know of two in Inverness and they make a few quid fully booked each year.
All the above had insurances and licences for the waters they where/are in.
I think it will depend on you and what you are prepaired to ask and take, or book online, some private owners advertise online too aswell as companies.
You can buy direct in France, but what will you do to sell it after your short trip?, hire companies sell cheap boats well used.
 
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private charter

The answer is yes, but not officially.
In pricipel you become a part owner for a couple of months.
But if I read between the lines, you will base yourself in the UK and travel to the contenent from time to time.
From my experiece the UK has the best cruising grond in Europe if the weather is on your side. However Southern Europe has the weather to cruise fron May til October.
30 feet is too small for two adaults if you plan to sail for more than two weeks. In fact main line charter firms start at 35 feet.
I would recomend charter two or three weeks Uk, then two or three weeks Greece. then two or three weeks France.
 
'30' is too small for 2 adults for more than 2 weeks ' ?!

What planet are you from then ?

I've happily sailed a 30' boat with 3 crew for 3 weeks, for that matter on courses I've sailed 33' boats with 5 crew and 42' boats with 6 on board.

I've cruised my 22' boat with 3 adults aboard for 3 weeks and we could happily have gone on indefinitely.

Some people obviously have a different idea as to what's acceptable but 30' for 2 people is ample.
 
tawhiri said:
30 feet is too small for two adaults if you plan to sail for more than two weeks.
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O Tempora! O Mores!

When I were a lad (1960s), a 30' boat would have been regarded as a large family boat, more than sufficient for round the world or any other long-distance cruising you care to mention. And it would have had a LOT less accommodation than a modern 30 footer. 27' was a usual size for the sort of family yacht you aimed at; there was nothing unusual about families going to sea in smaller yachts - plenty of 23 footers around.

30' is about perfect for two people in my view; I'd happily spend long periods on my 31 footer, which has ample space for two people. 4 might get a bit cosy after a few weeks!
 
AntarcticPilot said:
O Tempora! O Mores!

When I were a lad (1960s), a 30' boat would have been regarded as a large family boat, more than sufficient for round the world or any other long-distance cruising you care to mention. And it would have had a LOT less accommodation than a modern 30 footer. 27' was a usual size for the sort of family yacht you aimed at; there was nothing unusual about families going to sea in smaller yachts - plenty of 23 footers around.

30' is about perfect for two people in my view; I'd happily spend long periods on my 31 footer, which has ample space for two people. 4 might get a bit cosy after a few weeks!
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While it is possible to do all sorts of things in smaller boats the reality is that 6 months cruising around the Med with 2 small children would be a real challenge. There are sound reasons why mid 30 foot boats are so popular and obvious to those who have experience of doing what the OP plans to do.
 
Why buy the boat in UK?

If you want to sail in the Med better to buy a boat already in the Med as it will be appropriately equipped.

Loads of massively knocked down boats at the moment for sale in the Med. Mate of mine emigrated to Australia leaving behind his boat - his asking price has gone down from €62k to €25k in eight months!
 
Tranona said:
While it is possible to do all sorts of things in smaller boats the reality is that 6 months cruising around the Med with 2 small children would be a real challenge. There are sound reasons why mid 30 foot boats are so popular and obvious to those who have experience of doing what the OP plans to do.
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Yes, the reason boats are now stupidly large for novices is economy of scale; it costs little more to build a 37' than a 30', whether people want it - apart from pose at the bar factor - or not.

I've done plenty of cruising in boats from 20' to 30', and spent months living and working on a 38metre barge on the French Canals so feel able to have an input; draught may well become a snag on larger boats too unless a careful eye is kept.
 
Seajet said:
Yes, the reason boats are now stupidly large for novices is economy of scale; it costs little more to build a 37' than a 30', whether people want it - apart from pose at the bar factor - or not.

I've done plenty of cruising in boats from 20' to 30', and spent months living and working on a 38metre barge on the French Canals so feel able to have an input; draught may well become a snag on larger boats too unless a careful eye is kept.
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Once again you are talking a lot of nonsense. Why can you not accept that "your way" is not suitable for everybody?

When you have lived aboard a boat in the Med you will appreciate why people choose the sorts of boat that I and many others chose. It is absolutely nothing to do with pose (or not) but to do with choosing a boat that is appropriate for the job.

Of course people cruise for long periods in smaller boats, but would suggest few do it through choice, but because of lack of funds and accept the constraints that come with it. We have no idea what financial constraints the OP has, nor what level of comfort he expects, so one can only advise on how the majority go about it.

BTW not sure why you think sailing around the English Channel in small boats and working on a barge in the French canals bears much relationship to cruising around the Med for 6 months with small children - but hey, when has ignorance on the subject ever stopped you from having an opinion.
 
To my mind, the best way for the OP to achieve his objective of a few months Med cruising is to buy a boat in Greece and resell when finished. Whilst it may (of may not) be possible to charter a UK based boat privately and for not a lot of money, most of the 6 available months would be taken up making passage from UK to the Med and back again. Whilst fine in its way, it'd be a lot of hard work and expense. Better by far to buy something suitable in the Ionian or Saronic and bimble round Greece for 6 months before putting the boat back up for sale.
 
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