Yacht Charter Greece

[KellysEye]

>Do you have evidence to back that accusation up? Suggest one of the reasons why it gets more complaints than others is that it runs more boats than any others. Boats are certainly NOT old although the average age is probably older than it was 10 years ago. That is true of most operators as the recession has slowed demand and replacement programmes.

Yes Jane and I started LateSail, the only Greek company to get a significant number of charterers complaining is Kiracoulis, the only fairly new boats they have are Cats. We used to work at the Boat Show and regularly had to field complaints about Kiracoulis and we warned charterers off, but some ignored it. Most got their money back.

 

[Tranona]

>Do you have evidence to back that accusation up? Suggest one of the reasons why it gets more complaints than others is that it runs more boats than any others. Boats are certainly NOT old although the average age is probably older than it was 10 years ago. That is true of most operators as the recession has slowed demand and replacement programmes.

Yes Jane and I started LateSail, the only Greek company to get a significant number of charterers complaining is Kiracoulis, the only fairly new boats they have are Cats. We used to work at the Boat Show and regularly had to field complaints about Kiracoulis and we warned charterers off, but some ignored it. Most got their money back.

How long ago was this?

 

[KellysEye]

>How long ago was this?

We started LateSail in 1999 and the complaints about Kiriacoulis started then when we hadn't realised how old the boats and thus were and in bad condition which is what the charterers told us. That's when we started to advise about not using them. It hadn't stopped by 2013 when we sold the last of our shares and stopped working at the Boat Show. But I doubt it's stopped, you could call them and ask them. To this day I am still surprised some of the charterers we met at the Show didn't take our advice, went for the cheapest Greek price on the site, rather than ''Name your price'', and then complained.

 

[cmedsailor]

Cannot comment on companies (I have never chartered a boat) but can comment on the "quiet" part. I have crossed the whole aegean twice and sailed a couple of times in the Saronic / Argolic as well as the easter Aegean. Avoid center aegean (Cyclades) as the Meltemi there sometimes gets really tough (with time constrains you don't want to stay in one place for some days). Avoid Karpathos areas by all means.
You can sail to the Saronic/Argolic area (Poros, Spetses, Naphlio, Monemvasia etc; Hydra I wouldn't advice) from Alimos marina or Lavrion. Another good choice is to sail the east Aegean (Kos up to Pythagorio in Samos and back depending on time) from Kos marina.

 

[Tranona]

>How long ago was this?

We started LateSail in 1999 and the complaints about Kiriacoulis started then when we hadn't realised how old the boats and thus were and in bad condition which is what the charterers told us. That's when we started to advise about not using them. It hadn't stopped by 2013 when we sold the last of our shares and stopped working at the Boat Show. But I doubt it's stopped, you could call them and ask them. To this day I am still surprised some of the charterers we met at the Show didn't take our advice, went for the cheapest Greek price on the site, rather than ''Name your price'', and then complained.

And the evidence for your clear statement that they have "old boats"?

 

[KellysEye]

>Cannot comment on companies (I have never chartered a boat) but can comment on the "quiet" part. I have crossed the whole aegean twice and sailed a couple of times in the Saronic / Argolic as well as the easter Aegean. Avoid center aegean (Cyclades) as the Meltemi there sometimes gets really tough (with time constrains you don't want to stay in one place for some days). Avoid Karpathos areas by all means. You can sail to the Saronic/Argolic area (Poros, Spetses, Naphlio, Monemvasia etc; Hydra I wouldn't advice) from Alimos marina or Lavrion. Another good choice is to sail the east Aegean (Kos up to Pythagorio in Samos and back depending on time) from Kos marina.

Agre. A good starter area is the Ionian, the wind tends to be lower than the Aegean, except on the west side, and there are lots of short hops between islands.

 

[Tony Cross]

Cannot comment on companies (I have never chartered a boat) but can comment on the "quiet" part. I have crossed the whole aegean twice and sailed a couple of times in the Saronic / Argolic as well as the easter Aegean. Avoid center aegean (Cyclades) as the Meltemi there sometimes gets really tough (with time constrains you don't want to stay in one place for some days). Avoid Karpathos areas by all means.
You can sail to the Saronic/Argolic area (Poros, Spetses, Naphlio, Monemvasia etc; Hydra I wouldn't advice) from Alimos marina or Lavrion. Another good choice is to sail the east Aegean (Kos up to Pythagorio in Samos and back depending on time) from Kos marina.

I understand the sentiment on the Karpathos Strait but what you really mean is you have to pick a decent weather window. Get it wrong and it will hurt. Almost everyone who has wintered here on Crete has come that way in one or other direction at sometime and most make it across without incident.

I would agree that charterers would do well to avoid coming down past Rhodes. We get the odd one or two who arrive on Crete every summer, they forget that the glorious downwind sail they've just had for a couple of days is going to be a four day very wet beat to windward to get back. Some never make it and have to leave the boat here. That must cost......