Curated yachts matched to your guest list
Twelve guests need a different yacht than four. We start there.
The most common mistake in Maltese chartering is booking the yacht that photographs best rather than the one that suits your party. This page matches guest numbers, ages and expectations to a specific yacht, with real capacities, cabin counts and day rates from €1,900 — and a written quote within four working hours.
Written quote in 4 working hours · No deposit to enquire
Choosing a charter yacht in Malta is mostly a question of guest numbers and shade. Two to six guests are best served by the 11.5m Axopar 37ST at €1,900 a day or the 13.9m Axopar 45 Cross Top at €2,500. Seven to eleven guests who want speed stay on the Axopar 45; groups of eight to twelve who want shade, air conditioning, cabins and a flybridge move to the 20.8m Sunseeker Manhattan 66 at €6,500 a day. Twelve guests on a celebration or corporate day suit the 26m Sunseeker 86 at €10,900 a day with a crew of four including a chef. Maltese commercial licences cap any single yacht at twelve guests by day, so larger parties charter two yachts in convoy on the same route.
Reviewed and updated by the Luxury Yacht Charter Malta charter office on .
At a glance
The questions guests ask before they enquire — price, inclusions, guest numbers, departure points and lead times.
| How do I choose a charter yacht in Malta? | Start with guest numbers, then shade, then whether you need cabins. Speed and styling come last — they change the day far less than shade does. |
|---|---|
| What is the maximum guest number? | Twelve guests plus crew on any single yacht by day, set by Maltese commercial licensing. Overnight capacity is limited by cabins. |
| Which yacht suits a family with children? | The Manhattan 66 for shade, air conditioning, a hydraulic bathing platform and a saloon to escape the afternoon heat; the Axopar 37ST for a short, calm half day. |
| Which yacht is best for speed? | The Axopar 45 Cross Top with three Mercury 300hp engines — the fastest, driest run to Comino at this size in Malta. |
| Which yacht for a celebration? | The Sunseeker 86: crew of four including a private chef, four en-suite cabins, a flybridge wet bar, a jet tender and a Seabob. |
| Can we charter more than one yacht? | Yes. Convoys of two to six yachts run the same route with matching menus and timings, on one invoice. |
| Are cabins needed for a day charter? | No — a day cabin is enough for changing and shade. Cabins matter for overnight and weekly charters, where the count sets your sleeping capacity. |
| Do all yachts reach Gozo and Comino? | Yes, in normal summer conditions. In a strong north-easterly the larger, heavier yachts hold their comfort far better across the channel. |
| What does it cost to charter a yacht in Malta? | From €1,430 half day and €1,900 full day, to €10,900 a day on the Sunseeker 86 and €14,500 a day for a 30m+ superyacht. |
| How quickly can you shortlist? | Within four working hours we send two or three yachts with live availability, photographs, capacities and all-in prices. |
Guest list first
Guest numbers dictate the shortlist far more than budget does. Find your group below, then read the yacht detail underneath.
Axopar 37ST · from €1,430 half day
A fast, quiet, genuinely luxurious day cruiser with a sun top over the cockpit, a broad forward sun pad and a deep bathing ladder. A half day is usually plenty, and a sunset run along the Valletta bastions is the best three hours in Malta at this price.
Manhattan 66 · from €6,500 a day
Shade in two places, air conditioning below, a hydraulic bathing platform that makes swimming with small children easy, and a saloon where a toddler can nap while everyone else stays on deck.
Axopar 45 Cross Top · from €2,500 a day
The opening cross-top roof, convertible cockpit sun beds and three 300hp engines make this the best value per head in Malta for an active day: Comino fast, a floating mat at anchor and a sound system that carries.
Sunseeker 86 · from €10,900 a day
Crew of four including a private chef and stewardess, four en-suite cabins, a Williams 445 jet tender, a Seabob and a flybridge wet bar. This is the yacht for a fortieth, an engagement or a client day that has to land.
Convoy · quoted per yacht
Two to six yachts on the same route with matching menus and synchronised timings, one point of contact, one VAT invoice, insurance certificates and risk documentation issued for your compliance team.
30m+ superyacht · from €98,000 a week
Five or six cabins, a crew of six to nine, full interior service, a tender garage and a water-toy locker — placed from our owner network and delivered to Malta for your dates.
Specifications
Licensed capacities, cabins, crew and rates. These are the figures on the commercial licence, not the ones on a brochure.
| Yacht | Length | Guests (day / night) | Cabins | Crew | Full day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axopar 37ST Brabus Line | 11.5m | 10 / — | 1 day cabin | Skipper | €1,900 |
| Axopar 45 Cross Top | 13.9m | 11 / — | 2 | Crew of two | €2,500 |
| Sunseeker Manhattan 66 | 20.8m | 12 / 8 | 4 en-suite | Captain + deckhand | €6,500 |
| Sunseeker 86 Yacht | 26.3m | 12 / 8 | 4 en-suite | Crew of four incl. chef | €10,900 |
| 30m+ superyacht | 30m+ | 12 / 10–12 | 5–6 en-suite | Crew of six to nine | From €14,500 |
Selection criteria
Shade is first, and it is not close. A Maltese July afternoon at anchor without a sun top, a bimini or a flybridge overhang is genuinely unpleasant by two o'clock, and no amount of hull styling compensates. When guests tell us the charter was too hot, it is almost always a shade problem rather than a yacht problem.
Second is the bathing platform. How you get in and out of the water determines how much swimming actually happens. A hydraulic platform on the Manhattan 66 or the Sunseeker 86 turns the sea into an extension of the deck; a vertical ladder on a smaller boat is fine for adults and hard work for a seven-year-old or a grandparent.
Third is interior refuge. On a day charter you do not need cabins to sleep in, but you very often need somewhere cool, dark and quiet — for a nap, a feed, a phone call or a headache. Air conditioning running on the generator at anchor is the difference between a family lasting eight hours and asking to come home at five.
Fourth is speed, which matters less than people assume but is decisive on two routes: a half-day run to Comino, and any day where you want both Gozo's west coast and a Comino swim. The Axopar 45's three engines buy you an extra anchorage; on the larger yachts you trade that for shade and space.
Fifth is crew, and it is the quietest variable. A skipper who knows which bay is sheltered in a north-easterly, which pontoon jams with cruise traffic and how to talk to children will lift an ordinary yacht above a better one crewed indifferently. We choose the crew as deliberately as the hull.
Our process
Step 1
Numbers, ages, swimmers and non-swimmers, anyone with mobility needs, and whether the group wants an active day or a slow one.
Step 2
We rule out yachts whose shade and interior cannot carry your group through the hottest part of your specific date, not an average day.
Step 3
The shortlist is checked against the route you want and the forecast band for your date, so nothing is offered that cannot comfortably reach it.
Step 4
You receive a small shortlist with photographs, licensed capacities, crew, inclusions and all-in prices — never a catalogue of twenty yachts to sift through.
Step 5
We hold the strongest option free for forty-eight hours while you decide, so a shortlist does not evaporate while you are talking to your family.
Step 6
Once confirmed, the crew receive your guest profile and preference sheet before you land, so the yacht is set up for your party rather than a generic one.
Above twelve guests
Maltese commercial licences cap any single yacht at twelve guests by day, regardless of size. There is no way around it and any operator offering fourteen guests on one hull is either uninsured for the extra people or misrepresenting the licence. The legitimate answer for a larger party is a convoy.
A convoy is two to six yachts running the same route with synchronised timings. Everyone anchors in the same bay, lunch is served at the same hour from matching menus, and the tenders shuttle between yachts so guests can move around during the swim stops. It works notably better than people expect at weddings and corporate days, because it naturally creates smaller conversational groups.
Pricing is per yacht, on one invoice, and the smaller boats in a convoy usually do the heavy lifting — a fast Axopar acts as a shuttle for late arrivals, water toys and photographers while the larger yacht holds the anchorage. We assign a single concierge across the whole convoy, and the lead skipper coordinates on VHF.
Add-ons
€95 – €185 per guest
Worth it on any full day. Mezze platters, grilled fish, Maltese ftira or a plated three-course lunch, with dietary needs handled in advance. Eating properly at anchor is what separates a charter from a boat ride.
From €65 per guest
Champagne, Maltese and Sicilian wine, spirits and mixers, pre-chilled. Sensible for celebrations; on a family day the included water, soft drinks and your own bottle are usually enough.
€250 – €850 per day
A Seabob or towable ring transforms a teenage group's day. On a party of adults who mainly want to swim and eat, it is money spent on equipment nobody uses.
From €95 each way
Nearly always worth it. A Mercedes V-Class timed to have you at the pontoon fifteen minutes before departure removes the one thing that reliably delays a charter.
From €650
Two hours aboard plus a drone pass at the Blue Lagoon. Excellent for proposals, weddings and brand shoots; unnecessary on an ordinary family day.
From €350
Flowers, cake, personalised signage, a champagne toast and a crew briefed on exactly when to disappear. Small money for the moment it protects.
Choose a yacht, a length of charter and a route to see what it costs, what the fee already covers and whether the route stays inside the included fuel allowance. Figures are our current published rates in euro — your written quote confirms them for your exact date.
11.5m luxury day boat · skipper included
Maltese commercially licensed yachts carry a maximum of 12 guests under way.
About 24 nautical miles there and back.
Estimated charter fee
€1,900
Published full-day charter fee.
Roughly €238 per guest at 8 on board.
| Yacht | Guests | Half day | Full day | Week | Fuel |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axopar 37ST Brabus Line | 10 | €1,430 | €1,900 | On request | Fuel charged on consumption at the end of the day |
| Axopar 45 Cross Top | 11 | — | €2,500 | On request | Fuel charged on consumption at the end of the day |
| Sunseeker Manhattan 66 | 12 | — | €6,500 | €34,800 | First 30 nautical miles included, further miles charged on consumption |
| Sunseeker 86 JUPJU | 12 | — | €10,900 | €50,000 | First 30 nautical miles included, further miles charged on consumption |
| 30m+ superyacht | 12 | — | €14,500 | €98,000 | Fuel, dockage and provisioning billed through an advance provisioning allowance (APA) |
Rates are per yacht, not per guest, and include VAT unless the quote states otherwise. Superyacht charters are billed with an advance provisioning allowance for fuel, dockage and provisioning on top of the charter fee.
Charter in Malta is regulated. Every yacht we place guests on is commercially registered and licensed for charter under Malta's commercial yacht framework, administered by Transport Malta's Merchant Shipping Directorate. That distinction matters more than any marketing claim on this page, so here is how to check it and what it changes for you.
Ask any operator in Malta — including us — for the yacht's name and registration before you pay a deposit. It takes one question and settles the point.
Your confirmation names the marina, the pontoon and a boarding time, with the crew's number for the morning. Charter office hours are Mon–Sun 08:00–21:00 CET.
| Line | How we treat it | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Charter fee | Fixed per yacht for the agreed hours | Quoted in euro and confirmed in writing before any payment is taken. |
| VAT | Included in day and half-day charter fees | Weekly and superyacht charters are quoted plus VAT; your quote states which applies. |
| Fuel — day boats | Charged on consumption | Gauges are read before and after; you pay for what the day actually used. |
| Fuel — crewed motor yachts | First 30 nautical miles included | Longer routes such as Gozo and Comino combined go beyond this; the extra is itemised. |
| Superyacht running costs | Advance provisioning allowance (APA) | Fuel, dockage, provisioning and crew expenses drawn from a pre-funded balance, reconciled after the charter with receipts. |
| Marina fees at base | Included | No berthing surcharge at the departure marina. Overnight berths away from base are itemised. |
| Crew gratuity | Discretionary | Never added automatically to an invoice. |
Questions
Answered by the charter office that will handle your booking.
Start with guest numbers, then shade, then whether you need an air-conditioned interior. Two to six guests suit the Axopar 37ST from €1,900 a day; seven to eleven suit the Axopar 45 at €2,500; eight to twelve who want shade and cabins suit the Manhattan 66 at €6,500; twelve on a celebration suit the crewed Sunseeker 86 at €10,900.
Twelve guests plus crew on any single yacht for a day charter, set by Transport Malta commercial licensing. Overnight numbers are limited by cabin count, typically four to ten. Parties larger than twelve charter two or more yachts in convoy.
The Sunseeker Manhattan 66. It has shade in two places, air conditioning below, four en-suite cabins for naps and changing, and a hydraulic bathing platform that makes getting small children in and out of the water genuinely easy.
The Axopar 45 Cross Top, with three Mercury 300hp engines. It makes the Portomaso-to-Comino run fast and dry, which is what buys you an extra anchorage on a full day or makes Comino realistic on a half day.
No. A day cabin for changing and shade is enough. Cabins matter for overnight and weekly charters, where the cabin count determines how many guests can sleep aboard.
Yes. Convoys of two to six yachts run the same route with matching menus and synchronised timings, coordinated by a lead skipper on VHF and a single concierge, invoiced together with VAT.
No. Beyond about 20m the gains are shade, interior space, cabins and crew, not the quality of the day. A group of six on a well-crewed 13.9m day cruiser with a good route often has a better charter than the same group on a yacht twice the size.
From €1,430 for a half day and €1,900 for a full day on the Axopar 37ST, €2,500 a day on the Axopar 45, €6,500 on the Manhattan 66, €10,900 on the Sunseeker 86, and from €14,500 a day or €98,000 a week for a 30m+ superyacht.
Yes, on request — modern cruising yachts and multihulls between 12m and 20m, skippered, crewed or bareboat with a recognised licence. Catamarans are the most stable option for families and offer the most shade at anchor.
We hold the strongest option on your shortlist free of charge for forty-eight hours, so a decision within the family does not cost you the yacht.
For a ceremony with up to twelve guests, the Sunseeker 86 or a 30m+ superyacht. For a larger wedding party, a convoy led by the largest yacht with faster boats shuttling guests, photographers and flowers between anchorages.
Within four working hours: two or three yachts with live availability, photographs, licensed capacities, crew details, inclusions and all-in prices, plus a suggested route with timings.
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Enquire
Send your dates and guest numbers. A charter manager replies within four working hours with live availability, photographs, an all-in price and a suggested route.
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