Crew Wanted: Mediterranean this April

[PvilleBob]

I'm doing some travel which will end up in the Med for a couple of weeks this Spring. I'm having trouble finding sailing opportunities so I'm thinking of renting a boat and focusing on exploring the Greek Isles. I'd be happier if I had an extra body or two on board to help with the sailing, expenses, and company rather than single handing it.

If this sounds like something that appeals to you, and you're free from Apr 11-25 (flexibly), and can afford to contribute some money for the boat as well as fuel, food, etc... then let's talk. Most of the boats I'm looking at are going to cost about $100/day as a base so the more the merrier... up to 3 (plus me) for a total of 4 people on board.

[PaulUK]

Sailing the Greek islands this spring sound great.

Have you got an idea of where, when and the size of monohull?

Paul
(UK based / Yachtmaster / Experienced / Have been sailing around Greece for over 30 years)

[PvilleBob]

Paul, it will be my first time there so I'm flexible about the where. My 1st thought is the area within the triangle of Heraklion to Mykonos to Kos. I love to take pictures and think that area has a lot of possibilities.

I'm going to be in Morocco in early April so am thinking of doing this from the 11th to 25th. It seems most rentals begin on Saturday but I'm not stuck on that idea. I'm also open to finding small boat rental places rather than the web based one. If you'd like to help with that research, it would be welcome.

My thoughts on the size are also flexible. I'm fairly new to sailing. I just got my International License and this will be my first big trip so your experience will be very welcome. I was just looking at small boats under 35 feet both due to cost and my confidence level. If we ended up with 3 or 4 people wanting to do this, I'm certainly open to a larger boat. My sailing school was on a 45' Beneteau snd I enjoyed that. A big consideration for me is cost so I'm trying to keep this as close to $100/day as I can. More people makes that easier.

What are your thoughts? While I'm happy to organize, I'm also willing to bow to your expertise and take second chair.

[cooper1991]

Originally Posted by PvilleBob

I'm doing some travel which will end up in the Med for a couple of weeks this Spring. I'm having trouble finding sailing opportunities so I'm thinking of renting a boat and focusing on exploring the Greek Isles. I'd be happier if I had an extra body or two on board to help with the sailing, expenses, and company rather than single handing it.

If this sounds like something that appeals to you, and you're free from Apr 11-25 (flexibly), and can afford to contribute some money for the boat as well as fuel, food, etc... then let's talk. Most of the boats I'm looking at are going to cost about $100/day as a base so the more the merrier... up to 3 (plus me) for a total of 4 people on board.

I may be interested. I'm looking to buy a boat (next year) and want to get some experience at sea. I did a beginners 4 day course with a RYA qualified instructor. I'd be happy to contribute something towards the cost.

Do you have more information?

[PvilleBob]

From my research, I can find boats i Kos which is 172km to Santorini and would afford some great(?) sailing on the way. We could include Mikonos as a waypoint on either side of that creating a triangle that looks pretty interesting to me. Is that reasonable?

Since you've sailed there before, what additional expenses beyond the boat should we expect. I'm asking more about how much we should budget than what we should include. For two weeks, shall we budget 400 Euros for food? 300 for fuel? Docking fees? I'll want to go ashore a few times to take pictures but am happy to find an anchorage and take the dinghy to reduce docking expenses. Any ideas? Can we fish and use that to supplement? The base fees I'm finding on the web based rental agencies gets us something between 34-40 feet for about $1600 for the two weeks, not counting consumables, docking fees, and such. Can you find a better deal?

[BlueSlue]

Having done this a couple of times with a mix of people I knew well and people I hadn't met before getting on the boat, I'd like to offer some advice:

My suggestion for a 1st time bareboat charter would be to stick to the Ionian sea, unless you have someone on board who is more experienced. The sailing is easier there & locals are wonderful. The Imray pilot guide for the Ionian is great and worth the investment.

One of the reasons we chose the Ionian was that the sailing distances between islands was shorter. We were more interested in visiting various places than having long sails between destinations. Plus, we preferred mooring at the town quays than anchoring out, so we didn't want to arrive places later in the day when all the spots were filled. But that did mean that we motored more and sailed less. Typically, we headed out around 9/10 am, did an anchor/swim/lunch stop around noon and then on to the overnight destination where we had dinner in town.

On the Ionian side, we never had to pay for mooring to the town quay. It's assumed that you will be eating/shopping there. You are more likely to be charged for mooring on the Aegean side. But watch out for scam artists, locals who "help" you with lines and then charge you to moor there, more common on the Aegean side.

We spent 200 euros for fuel for the week and we had done a lot of motoring. I don't recall the food budget, but we mostly had only breakfast and lunch onboard and ate onshore every night except for one. We had a kitty for food, but we bought our own alcohol and coffee/tea, since some of us drank more than others. Dinner at local tavernas wasn't too expensive. We used the Cost Split app to track shared expenses. You might need to pay for water to fill your tanks. Most places we went did not have hook ups for water or power. Some of the tavernas had showers you could use for a few euros.

Make sure everyone on the trip has the same expectations regarding itinerary, shore dinners vs onboard, drinking and smoking, and cleaning up after themselves. These seemed to be areas where disagreements came up for us. The second time around, I made sure this was all discussed more clearly beforehand and things went a lot smoother.

Get the deposit insurance with your charter and collect damage deposits and your estimated costs for food and fuel upfront. It's better to refund people than to have to chase them down to collect if something gets damaged. I kept damage deposits in a separate pouch and handed it all back as soon as the boat was checked in at the end of the charter.

If you aren't familiar with Med mooring and using bow thrusters, practice before you go, ideally with the same person who would be at the bow controlling the anchor. This way you can work out hand signals and communication. It's not a bad idea to hire a local skipper for a 1/2 day to train you on the boat, if you've never Med moored before. Watching videos is helpful, too. One of the bigger mistakes I see is people not knowing their role - decide ahead of time who will handle dock lines, who is on the anchor, who is on the roving fender. Also, tell people that they need to put their phones/cameras away during docking maneuvers. You'd think that would be obvious, but somehow it's not. In exchange I told people I would circle around the harbor as many times as they wanted to get all their photos either before docking or on leaving the next day.

Don't expect to leave the marina the same day your charter starts. Leave the next morning and find a quiet cove to practice anchoring and getting the feel of the boat before you go into a more crowded harbor. And all charters do seem to start on Saturday for some reason. Spending the night at the marina also helps you identify any problems with the boat before you head out.

Try these guys to help find you a boat - www.goionian.com. It's a relatively new company, but the owners have been around the area for a long time and know the boats and the harbors. One of them was the boat manager for the boat we chartered and he worked very hard for us, exceeding my expectations. They also have experience in the Aegean, so I would talk to them even if you haven't decided where you will go yet because they can probably give you some good information. Using a brokerage like this gives you a local contact in case there is a problem with the boat (expect something will stop working like heads and bow thrusters) and can give you localized advice based on what you want to do.

Greece is awesome. You're going to have a good time.

[PvilleBob]

BlueSlue,
Thank you SO much for so much good food for thought. I originally looked at the Ionian sea but kept coming back to one consideration. If I only get to sail once in this area, what would I regret? Going from Kos to Mykonos or Paros would provide a number of places where stops and photography could happen with pretty friendly winds. Then going south to Santorini has a lot of great scenery, with an easy turn East and decent sailing back to the beginning. It looks like pretty low stress sailing. What am I missing regarding the sailing?

The Ionian doesn't seem to have nearly as much to visit and, if I'm honest, I'd rather sail from southern Italy and visit Malta, Sicily and maybe Tunis.

Thanks for referring the Imray guide. I'll definitely look into that. And getting someone to show us the tricks for local sailing sounds like a great idea. I've never used bow thrusters so getting a bit of practice seems prudent.

[Michael Cobbe]

The biggest discounted charter company in the world, that covers all charter areas inclding Greece is: iwww.latesail.com.

[PvilleBob]

www.latesail.com is on the pricey side of things. I've found several companies that have better offers for less. What's the advantage of them?

[PvilleBob]

Update: I've found a 33 foot sailboat for about $2000, not including fuel & food, for this trip. It's a 2002 major name with 3 cabins, 1 Head, Furling Main & Genoa, Autopilot, and more. I'm budgeting another $1000 for fuel, provisions, and the occasional docking fee. If I hear from someone who can commit to this in a real way, I'm ready to reserve this for April 11-25. Who's in?

[PvilleBob]

Now looking at 1 week vs 2 week trips among the Greek Isles. The time for early bird booking discounts is almost over so I'm hoping someone is willing to commit to either option. I have the time and will and most of the money but need a 2nd person to rent a boat in Greek waters (according to one rental agency).