What is APA on a yacht charter?
APA stands for Advance Provisioning Allowance. It is a float of 25% to 35% of the base charter fee, transferred before boarding, that the captain spends on your behalf on fuel, berths, food, drink and running costs — and accounts for with receipts.
APA exists because nobody can price a week at sea in advance. Fuel depends on how far you cruise, berths depend on where you sleep, and provisioning depends on what you eat and drink. Rather than guess, the captain holds your float, spends against it, shows you the running balance during the week, and returns whatever is left. If you cruise hard and eat well the captain will ask to top it up mid-week; that is normal, not a surprise charge.
Does a Malta day charter have APA?
No. Our day charters are quoted as a single all-in figure including 18% VAT, the licensed skipper and 30 nautical miles of fuel. There is nothing to settle at the pontoon.
This is a deliberate difference from much of the Malta market, where day-charter quotes are often fuel-excluded and reconciled at the end of the day on consumption. Additional nautical miles beyond the included allowance are charged on actual use, and the standard Comino and Gozo route sits inside the allowance.
What VAT applies to a yacht charter in Malta?
The standard Maltese VAT rate is 18%, and it is already included in every day-charter price we quote. On weekly and superyacht charters, the applicable VAT treatment depends on the charter contract and itinerary and is stated in writing before payment.
Yacht charter VAT in the EU is decided by where the charter starts and how the contract is structured, and Malta operates specific rules for short-term charters of pleasure craft. We do not give tax advice or quote a rate we have not confirmed: your contract will show the exact rate applied, and for a large charter the central agent's documentation sets it out in full. Treat any operator who is vague about VAT as a reason to ask for the contract early.
How much do you tip yacht crew in the Mediterranean?
5% to 10% of the base charter fee for good service, and 10% to 15% for exceptional service. It is discretionary, paid at the end, and given to the captain to distribute among the crew.
Cash in euros is still the most common, though a bank transfer to the captain is equally acceptable and increasingly normal for larger sums. Do not tip crew members individually — it cuts across the way a yacht's crew shares gratuity. On a skippered day charter there is no expectation at all; €50 to €150 is a generous gesture for a single skipper.
How much fuel does a charter yacht use?
Roughly 55 to 70 litres an hour on a fast outboard day cruiser, 200 to 260 on a 20m flybridge motor yacht, and 200 to 450 on a 34m to 40m superyacht at cruising speed, plus generator burn at anchor on the larger yachts.
Fuel is the largest single variable in APA, and it is governed by speed far more than by size. Dropping a 20-metre motor yacht from 24 knots to 10 knots can more than halve consumption. On a Malta week that matters: Malta to Sicily and back at speed is a genuinely expensive decision, while a week spent between Comino, Gozo and the south coast burns very little because passages are short and most hours are at anchor.
What should I budget beyond the charter fee?
Add roughly 45% to 55% to the base fee for a weekly crewed charter once APA, VAT and a customary gratuity are included. A Malta day charter needs nothing added beyond optional catering and extras.
Worked through: a €100,000 week with 30% APA, 18% VAT and a 10% gratuity lands near €158,000. Budget the full figure from the outset, because APA arrives as a separate transfer before boarding and catches first-time charterers out more often than any other cost. Whatever APA is not spent comes back to you.
What costs surprise first-time charterers?
APA transferred separately before boarding, marina berths on a busy week, delivery or repositioning fees when a yacht is not already in Malta, and fuel on long passages.
Delivery fees are the one to ask about first. A yacht based in Sicily or Sardinia chartering in Malta may carry a repositioning cost, which either sits in the base fee or arrives as a line item. We tell you which before you commit. Travel, insurance and anything you buy ashore are yours, and travel insurance covering charter cancellation is worth having on a week at this value.
Is a private charter better value than a shared trip?
Per head it is more expensive; per day it buys a different product. The honest comparison is a whole-yacht price divided by your group against a per-seat ticket on a boat with 80 other people and a fixed return time.
At €1,900 for eight guests, a full private day is about €240 each — several times a shared ticket. What you get is the route you want, the hours you want, swim stops where you choose and nobody else aboard. For two people, a shared trip is usually the sensible purchase. For a group of six or more, or anyone who wants the Blue Lagoon without the crowds, private is where the money starts to make sense.
