Chartering with International Yacht Collection

Vacationing aboard a luxury yacht is truly the finest of life’s journeys. The Italians call it "La Dolce Vita" and indeed, it is.

With thousands of amazing vessels tied to docks around the globe, the amenities on board today’s charter yachts are astounding. Besides having the proper number of crew to maintain safety requirements, some of the finest luxury yachts go well beyond the requisite.

There are five star chefs enticing guests with gourmet menus, wine sommeliers and massage therapists. Certified scuba instructors await underwater adventurers. Crisply uniformed, silver-service stewards serve deck loungers with signature cocktails, fresh towels and sunscreen in every SPF range. Sound cliché? It’s a reality, a reward for society’s most successful travelers.

It’s the job of our seasoned charter agents to know the intrinsic qualities of each yacht and be able to match up their clients’ interests with the optimum vessel. Obviously, the most popular destinations tend to have the largest selection of yachts to choose from: the Western Mediterranean and the Caribbean (the Virgin Islands and Leeward Islands) rule the roost when it comes to the biggest charter fleet

The Selection Process

Before hitting the print button on charter contracts, IYC agents employ a filtering process where they match the best yacht for each vacation.

• Business or Pleasure? If corporate entertaining is on your agenda, we’ll find a vessel with refined silver service and the necessary certification for large dockside parties. For family get-togethers, we may recommend a yacht with more casual décor.
• Taking the plunge? If active water sports are your fantasy, we know which yachts have a deckhand that can teach your kid to water-ski or scuba dive. If you need a bilingual stewardess who can accompany your family on shore excursions, we’ll check her credentials.
• Something more adventurous? We keep our ears tuned to the coconut telegraph. By constantly talking with captains and colleagues, IYC charter agents know when a yacht points her bow to distant ports, so that we can match intrepid charterers to new options in exotic locales. Many times, we’ve been on familiarization trips so we can give a first-hand account.

While our agents are on the phone with you, e-brochures can be transmitted for your first impressions. Full-color hard copy brochures are dropped in the afternoon FedEx for perusal with your morning coffee. Follow-up research will hone the choices to a short list and eventual selection of the one perfect yacht.

Booking Procedures

Booking a yacht is nothing like reserving a hotel room or cruise ship. These are special, exclusive opportunities that sometime require finesse to make everyone’s desires materialize. That is why our charter agents love what they do; it’s always a challenge!

Yachts are mobile. Itineraries are ever-changing. One client’s charter might end on Italy’s Amalfi Coast and the yacht may have to hustle back to Monaco to pick up the next group of guests - while the vessel’s owner rides along for the cruise. Imagine the logistics involved for the crew.

Once a yacht has been chosen, the captain is consulted for itinerary suggestions and the chef is often solicited for sample menus. When the owner (via their Charter Manager) has agreed to the calendar dates, the IYC charter agent will issue standard industry contracts that specify the details of the arrangement.

Typically a 50% deposit is collected and held in escrow. One month prior to boarding the balance of the charter fee is collected along with the anticipated expense estimate (averaging 25% of the charter fee).

Unless a yacht advertises their rate as "all inclusive," additional expenses paid by the charterer on top of the charter fee are fuel (burned by engines while travelling and generators when at anchor), dockage, food, beverages and any crew gratuities.

This is why we work so hard to tailor an itinerary in advance, so we can estimate the total charter package. There are no financial surprises when you are chartering with an IYC agent’s assistance because we ask a lot of questions and anticipate the cost of all the activities associated with your journey.

Post-Charter Feedback

Once you are back on dry land, IYC charter agents will be on pins and needles waiting to hear all about your trip. Hoping for rave reviews, agents ultimately want honest assessments about their clients’ voyages.

We’re not just being polite; feedback is an essential part of the process to ensure that everything hit the mark. Of course, we can’t control the weather, but all of the manageable aspects of the yachts’ amenities and crew performance are under constant scrutiny by our team. If the vessel is under IYC’s in-house charter management program any recommendations or adjustments can be addressed immediately.

Shop the Collection

Don’t imagine yourself on a yacht charter vacation - start the process!

Our search database is a great way to compare the level of yacht amenities and charter rates. How many people will be in your charter party? That’s probably the first number to decide.

What time of year are you hoping to travel? During the December/January holiday season, the yachts book well in advance, so a charter on the calendar during the peak seasons should be booked as early as possible to get the best selection.

Where do you want to go? Our destination descriptions may sway your attention. If chartering a yacht in the Caribbean during spring is your dream, we can make that happen easily, but if you want to go off the beaten chart, to the Galapagos or New Zealand, we’ll be doing much more research to make the trip successful.

Read our charter agent credentials or simply fill out the online charter inquiry form and we’ll select one of our agents to contact you and get the planning underway.

Our charter agent credentials are assured by our active memberships in all of the leading trade organizations.

American Yacht Charter Association (AYCA)	Florida Yacht Brokers Association (FYBA)	Mediterranean Yacht Brokers Association (MYBA)	Marine Industries Association (MIASF)