Two part question

[DoubleEnder]

This is more focused on area than actually living aboard. Hope that's ok. I am thinking about acquiring a share in a sailing boat in Greece. This would be for comparatively short holidays in early and late season, not high summer. Several options are possible and I now have more time in which to make use of such a boat, being semi retired. I have my own boat in U.K. but some early and late sunny sailing would be nice. I won't get anything big, prob 32 feet +/-

Question 1. Is the Ionian the best area? Years since I've been. But seems like lots of good spots and comparatively benign weather. And also lots of boats potentially available. Or would you recommend some other area?

Question 2 I would be travelling from U.K. Who flies direct to Preveza? Is it only Monarch, EasyJet and Thomas Cook or is there anyone else? I know there are more flights to Athens, all year round, but was wondering if I was missing some information.

Thank you very much

Graham

 

[Tranona]

Yes, the Ionian is arguably the most popular area as it is easy to access and sufficient variety to keep you busy for holiday type periods. Light winds though so not for those who like vigorous sailing.

You are right about preveza having charter flights from May to October, but it is almost as convenient to take the overnight flight to Athens and then bus to Preveza or Levkas. This is cheap, convenient and gets you to Levkas in time for late lunch. You can do this year round.

Corfu has better access from April to November with Easyjet and Ryanair, but more limited places to keep a boat compared with Preveza - and more expensive in the marina.

Don't skimp on the size of boat. 32' is a minimum if you want space and comfort. If sharing make sure your partners have a similar approach to maintenance and usage or you could find a big bit of your hard earned holiday time spent on fixing rather than sailing!

 

[vyv_cox]

Popularity of the Ionian seems to increase year on year and it was busy when we last sailed there about seven years ago. Although August has the reputation of being the most crowded due to the huge influx of Italian boats, we always thought September was the most popular charter month, so almost as many boats around. I recall counting 70+ boats on the water viewed from Episkopi. But avoid the most popular ports and you will still find some peace and quiet, and there are many reasonably sheltered anchorages. (Tip: if Heikell says it is remote and peaceful it will be packed with anything up to 50 visitors)

Agree that 32 feet is somewhat on the small size, especially the ubiquitous Sadler 32s offered by many partnerships. We have seen several boats around 38 feet in 4 or 5 shares that might give you what you want in more comfort.

 

[DoubleEnder]

Would there be a longer viable season in places other than Ionian? We like the Saronic, and there are boats in Porto Heli and Athens area I guess? Drier in the early and late months maybe?
Regarding size of the boat it's likely only to be 2 people on board, maximum. And only for a couple of weeks at a time. I was thinking that as long as the cockpit is big enough and there are lots of hatches and ventilation then we'd probably be ok for that long. Budget is important and small boats, fewer and simpler systems, less to go wrong all helps ...
It will probably be as much about what's available as anything else. And I think we would join an existing syndicate, so it's also important that there is a match there in terms of ££, ambitions, availability, ability etc

Thank you again

 

[vyv_cox]

For two-week stints the Saronic is excellent. Plenty of variation, lots of nice places to visit both anchoring and in ports, with options only a little further east if given a bit more time. And a lot less crowded than the Ionian, with the bonus that the Italians you will meet there are usually excellent and experienced cruisers. In general the wind is lighter west of Sounion but mostly enough to sail.

Impossible these days to generalise about the weather. In 2016 in the northern and eastern Aegean we had no rain at all between April and October, whereas there were floods in the Ionian. In 2017 it might be the other way around!

 

[jacaldo]

10 years sharing in the Ionian, 3 years chartering Aegean, now 2nd year on a moving share boat currently Lavrion. If I was to start again I wouldn't change a thing, the Ionian offers all conditions with plenty of safe anchorages. It doesn't matter how busy it gets you can always find somewhere quiet. It also doesn't matter if you decide on the South or the North, on a 2 week holiday you can reach anywhere.
You'll be lucky to find an existing share that can guarantee you the weeks you want every year, most people like to avoid school holidays. I don't see why 32 foot is too small, your'e only on board for a couple of weeks at a time and most of that is spent "upstairs" also at that length you can get in nice and close even in busy anchorages.
Yacht fractions is a good place to look but all the classifieds have shares for sale, go for the upper limit of your budget, as already stated you don't want to spend the holiday fixing things.
Good luck

 

[Tony Cross]

I'd also go for the Ionian given your sailing plans. The great thing about the Ionian is that everything you need is available just about everywhere you go. Thus you never have to think about where you can get water, where you can get shorepower to properly recharge the batteries, where you can get fuel, where you can get provisions, etc. If you travel further afield or into some more remote areas you'll be spending a couple of days in your two weeks travelling to get water, electricity etc.

The Ionian is busy, though less so at the times you'll be sailing, but it's just perfectly setup for the short term sailor.

 

[houldsworth]

PM sent.

 

[KellysEye]

The attraction of the Ionian is there are relatively short hops between islands unlike other areas. Like all areas it can have Katabatic winds off the mountains plus if there is dew on the deck in the morning there will be strong winds starting at noon.

 

[nickf]

Q.1 I would go Ionian
Q2 Thomson also fly to Preveza. Sky Express fly from Corfu to Preveza for aprox 60 euros which sometimes opens up other options. Aegean Airlines fly from Athens to Preveza from end May.

 

[cmedsailor]

I think you should choose more based on the location you can fly most easily. You said early or late season therefore fewer chances to be kept in one place due to the Meltemi blowing (but don’t take my word...). In any case don’t choose somewhere in the central Aegean (I doubt it’s easy to fly directly there anyway) or Crete which is rather remote. So, what is left is the Ionian with all the advantages already mentioned Athens and the Attiki area where sailing in the Saronicos / Argolicos etc is usually nice and not so much affected by the summer Meltemi or nasty whether in the winter or even East Aegean islands such as Kos or Leros (Rhodes is again a bit remote). There are many islands around the East Aegean you can visit in 1-2 weeks.

 

[DoubleEnder]

Thank you everyone, very helpful

 

[KingTubby]

As someone who has just dipped his toe into the water of shared ownership I thought I would belatedly throw in my tuppence worth.

I bought a share in 2001 Bavaria 42 earlier this year, this gave me a quarter ownership and at least 6 weeks a year sailing. The cost was reasonable and comparable to a decent second hand car so when looking at it this way the 'investment' seems reasonably frugal!! Or so I tell the wife.

So far so good, all the co owners seem a good bunch and committed to working together to maintain and get the maximum enjoyment out of our boat. There is a reasonable amount of emails and telephone calls that go hand in hand with shared ownership but I find this enhances the sense of ownership and is a good thing.

I didn't see the boat before I bought via Yachtfractions so was a little nervous as to what I would find when I flew out a few weeks back. Or even if I would find a boat at all!!

Needless to say my fears were ungrounded, the boat existed and she was much better than I had expected.

Back to your questions. Re length - it get very hot in the Ionian, obvious statement I know, but I think that you would cope better with the heat at night in a bigger, airier yacht. It's true that most of your time will be up top but don't underestimate the impact of a hot cabin on your sleep.

I fly to Preveza from Gatwick or Birmingham and I believe that most flights tend to be on a Sunday or Wednesday. Which is something to bear in mind when planning your holiday. Planning and early booking will save you money. I then get a cab from the airport to Nidri where we tend to handover the boat. Fifty euros each way seems to cover this cost.

Re the Ionian as a sailing base - yes, it does get busy and yes do have to dodge the charge of the flotillas if you want to get alongside in the more popular ports. But everywhere is a short hop away and there are always anchorages within a tenders drive away if you can't get alongside. I envisage that I will spend the next few trips out there visiting the obvious ports and places (Kioni, Frikes, Fiskardo etc) and then start to explore and anchor a little more off the beaten track.

I'm really pleased with my decision to buy a yacht share in the Ionian so far. Its a relatively cheap way of getting some sailing done in a beautiful setting and gives you something to dream about during those long, tedious conference calls and meetings in grey ol Blighty! For that reason alone I think its money well spent.

 

[KingTubby]

And yes, Monarch and Easy Jet seem the main culprits re airlines. I use skyscanner to find the best prices.....

 

[sailaboutvic]

We have a Dufour 385 , year 2009 which we have for sale , well looked after boat which we had new , I keep on thinking about selling share in her but I not sure how big the marker is or if people only buy share in cheap boats , do people paid over 10k a share , off course the really problem is what happen if you only manage to sell one or two share , you end up listing contro of the boat and still having two boats to deal with .
Any throughts ?

 

[Tranona]

We have a Dufour 385 , year 2009 which we have for sale , well looked after boat which we had new , I keep on thinking about selling share in her but I not sure how big the marker is or if people only buy share in cheap boats , do people paid over 10k a share , off course the really problem is what happen if you only manage to sell one or two share , you end up listing contro of the boat and still having two boats to deal with .
Any throughts ?

Just selling a share is a big gamble. Syndicates are the way to go as described by KingTubby. Effectively you need to establish the equivalent of a charter company, but for one boat. Members expect to arrive and find everything working and ready to go. Somebody has to organise this to maintain the standard acceptable to the 6 members. There are various ways of doing this from one of the members taking on this role to paying a local management company to do it.

Shares in such syndicates, which are often formed to buy a new boat are much easier to sell, perhaps using Yacht Fractions as KT did. Chris Hawes who runs Yacht Fractions has been doing it for over 20 years and is very good at setting them up. I bought my first Bavaria through him.

Sharing a boat with a friend can also work - as well as be the end of a life long friendship! Boats are very personal things and owners are wary of selling a share for the reasons you state, and for the same reasons buyers are wary of such arrangements.

If you are not planning to use the boat yourself, the sensible thing to do is to sell it. No point in owning a depreciating asset that somebody else is getting the pleasure from.