(CNN) — As yacht designers continue to push the boundaries of hype superyachts being snapped up by the super-rich, several ships in the Adriatic are taking a different tack by ramping up luxury offerings on older ships. at a lower price.
And these charters aren’t the only way to sail closer to the one percent lifestyle for less.
The Croatia-based superyacht Freedom began life as a cabin cruiser, sailing Croatia’s post islands with 18 cabins on board, accommodating up to 40 guests, which could be chartered individually for approximately $1,500 per person per week. . With single cabins for rent and meals often served on board, cabin cruisers have long operated in Croatian waters as a popular alternative to cruising.
But after undergoing a $1.6 million refit in early 2022 at the Croatian Radež shipyard, the 48-meter (158-foot) Freedom re-emerged in Split docks this summer as something much more akin to a “superyacht.” “modern with only 11 cabins. for a single group of up to 22 guests.
The space of the old cabins was converted into an onboard massage room, cinema and wellness area with sauna and steam room.
And the four-deck ship also has a gym, a terrace with a Jacuzzi, a small pool and a bar. A fleet of water toys were also brought on board for guests, including an inflatable slide, electric foil surfboard, inflatable kayaks, SUP, Seabob and a jet ski. And 11 crew members cater to guests.
The former Freedom cabin cruiser’s superyacht makeover includes a massage room.
Introductory charter rates for Freedom’s first superyacht season started at €80,000 (approximately $82,000) per week (excluding food and alcohol, which adds about 30% to the total price). Do the math and if you can get 21 of your closest friends together, you can get a taste of the island-hopping superyacht lifestyle for less than a week on some luxury cruise ships.
And Freedom isn’t the only Adriatic cabin cruiser getting a makeover.
Three more yachts offered by the same charter company are being completely refurbished for fully private charters for the 2023 season, says Mitja Mirtič, who heads the Slovenia-based charter agency Goolets, which books Freedom and other yachts in Croatia, Turkey and Greece, among others. locations.
Cruising the Adriatic coast is just one way to get a taste of the superyacht lifestyle without completely blowing your accumulated vacation budget. Yacht experts have offered CNN Travel other ideas for travelers looking for something flashy but not stratospheric in terms of price.
But first, Freedom’s latest adventure.
A gym, terrace with Jacuzzi and a variety of water toys are now available at Freedom.
Sailing has gone full speed during the pandemic
Yachting has been going full-throttle during the pandemic
Freedom’s switch from cabin cruiser to luxury charter took off immediately, says Mirtič, thanks in part to pandemic appetites. This may interest you : Reminders of Ambassador Degnan’s Independence Day.
While other travel businesses were grinding to a halt, the yacht business was still going at full speed in Croatia and elsewhere, says Mirtič. And owners of cabin cruise ships in Croatia turned to Goolets requesting to be booked with private groups to accommodate people looking to social distance and travel with others in their bubbles.
And while Mirtič says he thinks the trend for cabin cruisers to level up to bring a more luxurious experience to Croatian waters would have happened eventually, the pandemic helped speed things up.
The renovated ship went from 18 cabins available individually to 11 cabins available for a group of up to 22.
“Ship owners were making more money (with private charters during the pandemic) than with cruises, tips were higher from a customer who booked the entire ship, cruises were more luxurious,” says Mirtič. “It was more interesting for everyone.”
The price of Freedom charter flights will increase to 100,000 euros (about $102,000) and more for the 2023 season, which runs from the end of April to the end of September.
When it comes to what defines a superyacht, there is no rule that is universally accepted by everyone in the industry, says Oscar Siches, a marina consultant and former superyacht captain based in Mallorca, Spain.
But the International Council of Marine Industry Associations defines superyachts as those over 30 meters (about 98 feet) long, it says. Which means the Freedom qualifies by size, if not by other standards, according to Siches.
What are upgraded cabin cruisers and what are they not
What the refurbished cabin cruisers are — and what they’re not
Siches called the Freedom a “workhorse” designed to make money. To see also : Charter Schools join new organization to save sports championship.
And while there is a market for a boat like the Freedom, Siches says, it makes sense that the boat would not charge what a “modern 50-meter yacht” charges because it doesn’t meet the “high-quality design” that the hyper-rich are looking for in a super yacht charter.
“If you build a 50-meter superyacht, the price is around $50 million, so Freedom is not a superyacht like the one in the books,” Mirtič says of the ship, which cost just over $4 million to build. 2019.
Before the ship was refitted, the dining room was designed to easily serve more passengers, as seen here.
“But it has all the features of a superyacht, plus you can carry more people,” he says, referring to the amenities and space on board.
Because Freedom was originally built as a cabin cruiser and not a superyacht and offers charters only in Croatian waters, the ship does not have to comply with the 12-passenger/six-cabin restrictions for superyachts that are the norm in the big industry. .
Now, Mirtič says, Goolets responds weekly to queries from captains who want to “copy and paste” what has been done with Freedom (all 15 yachts in the Goolets portfolio are privately owned and operated).
“We had this situation where owners were saying that €50,000 a week for a private charter of their boat seemed too high, while we were getting calls from Monaco about clients who wanted to book a boat like this but were afraid the price would be too low. ,” he says. “It was really funny.”
Now the dining room is a more intimate affair.
The market for these yachts will never be hyper-rich, says Mirtič.
“These are business people and new money people who have a lot of money but don’t want to spend $500,000 a week on a charter just to show off,” he says.
Goolets will also offer the 49-meter (160-foot) Ohana and Cristal and the 48-meter (157-foot) Bella in 2023. They won’t have all the amenities aboard Freedom’s superyachts, but weekly charter rates for 2023 season starts from 55,000 euros (about $56,000) per week for Cristal, with space for up to 38 guests in 19 cabins.
A charter in a niche of its own
Jared Watney of Ocean Air Media has been in the superyacht industry for 13 years and says Goolets has carved out a niche of its own with Freedom. On the same subject : GU to open the First Store in the United States.
“When you rent a yacht around 100,000 euros a week, you’re going to get an older boat that can be about 30 or 40 meters long, but nowhere near Freedom’s 48 meters,” he said. “And on a smaller ship, there’s a good chance it will only seat up to 10 guests.”
A smaller ship in that price range is unlikely to have a cinema, a massage room and all the water toys superyacht charter guests want, he says.
Who wouldn’t want to try this lifestyle?
“(Liberty) is a high capacity for people, a low price per person rate and a high volume to accommodate onboard facilities,” says Watney, and can offer more than customers might expect to find on chartered vessels. the same price elsewhere at this time.
Which brings us to other ways travelers can find value for money in a getaway designed to be exclusive.
Saving money on superyacht charters is one thing
Saving money on superyacht charters is a thing
If you’re looking for other ways to save money on a superyacht charter, there are options, Siches says.
For starters, the farther you charter from the South of France, where the starting price of a superyacht charter for the week is around $250,000 per week before food and alcohol, the less expensive yacht charters tend to be. Says Shiches.
“Turkey is much less expensive. It doesn’t have as many berths for superyachts, but it has much cleaner water than the south of France,” he says. “The Emerald Coast is a fantastic place to sail.”
The further south you go in Italy, the cheaper it also tends to be to charter a superyacht, says Siches, pointing to Sicily and southern Sardinia.
Heather Hatcher of International Yacht Company, a yacht brokerage firm with one of the world’s largest fleets, says guests who book during the intervening months of May and June, as well as September and October in the Mediterranean, can expect a 10% savings. off high season weekly rental base rates.
“Homeowners are also more willing to negotiate those times of year because it’s traditionally a slower time,” she says.
Greece and Croatia also have much lower VAT (value added tax) on yacht charters compared to France, Italy and Spain, he says.
Turkey is a great place to sail that is cheaper than the more internationally known South of France.
More savings strategies
And there are other “tricks” to consider, too, says Hatcher.
“If you start a charter in Turkey and leave and enter Greece on a foreign ship that is not a Turkish yacht and without a Turkish flag, you can leave a country and touch a foreign port and avoid VAT,” he says.
Similarly, Hatcher said chartering a yacht in Albania to sail around Greece’s Ionian Islands and back to Albania is a way to avoid paying Greece’s additional VAT cost, as Albania is not in the European Union.
“Also, if you start a charter in Greece and leave Greek waters to say Albania or Turkey, all Greek VAT is exonerated,” he says.
Outside of Europe, Hatcher points to charter flights in New England as another way to pinch pennies on an undoubtedly expensive hobby. But pay attention to your port of departure.
“Only charter flights out of Rhode Island and Maine have zero taxes,” she says. “If you start in New York or Massachusetts, you must pay state sales tax on the charter rate.”
You can charter in Newport to cruise places like Nantucket, Block Island, Bar Harbor, and Acadia National Park.
And if you’re wondering if there really are people looking to charter a superyacht who care about saving money at the same time, Mirtič says he’s confident.
“There is a large segment of people who have money and want to be part of the sailing, but want to be smart about it,” he said.
“Not everyone wants to spend $500,000 a week on vacation.”
Top Image: The Croatian ship Freedom (Goolets)
