Chartering a yacht offers the ultimate holiday experience including enhanced levels of privacy and exclusivity. With thousands of luxury yachts for charter to choose from, including elegant sailboats, motor yachts, and expedition vessels, no matter where you fancy cruising and no matter what type of getaway you seek, there is a vessel to suit your needs.
One of the key questions potential charter guests have is how much it costs and what is included in the yacht charter fee. Read on to learn more about yacht charter fees, including the Advanced Provisioning Allowance.
What is and what is not included when you charter a yacht?
Charter rates typically only cover the chartering of the vessel and its crew. The extra expenses such as fuel, food and beverages, port fees, communications, custom activities, and crew tips are covered by the Advance Provisioning Allowance, commonly called the APA. The delivery fees and VAT costs are also not included in the standard charter rate.
What is the Advanced Provisioning Allowance?
The Advanced Provisioning Allowance, or APA, is an estimation budget for the running expenses that will arise during your yacht charter. The budget is usually calculated as a percentage of the charter rate.
The APA acts as a bank account for all the extra expenses you may have during the charter. The amount of the APA will vary depending on your expectations of the charter trip.
What can impact the Advanced Provisioning Allowance?
A lot of factors can impact the final amount of the APA, including current fuel costs, transportation, specialty food and beverage requirements, as well as berthing fees. Here are some of the most important factors which can significantly impact the APA.
Fuel
The fuel costs are directly related to the size of the vessel, whether it is a slow cruising yacht or a high performance modern yacht. Sailing yachts will have significantly reduced fuel usage. If you require the vessel to be relocated for your embarkation or debarkation, there will also be additional fuel costs, called delivery costs.
Food and beverage
Another key expense on a yacht charter’s APA is food and beverage. Before your charter starts, your yacht broker will ask you to fill out a form documenting your food and drink choices: which is known as a Preference Sheet. Whether you’d like to enjoy the finest wines, or specialty foods which will need to be specially sourced, you can expect this to be reflected in the final cost of your APA.
Berthing fees
During your charter, you can choose to remain at sea by staying at anchor and using your boat’s tender to go ashore. Should you wish to enter into port, berthing fees in high-demand ports during peak season in the world’s most sought-after harbours can be costly, especially for larger-sized vessels. You will need to add berthing fees and utilities to your budget estimate and depending on the size of the vessel additional agent’s fees.
How is the APA managed?
The APA is managed by the captain and acts as a bank account while you are on your charter to cover any expenses. The captain is responsible for keeping a record of all expenses. This is available for you to check whenever you wish so you can have a clear understanding of the current status of your budget.
How can I estimate my Advanced Provisioning Allowance?
The current estimate is about 30-40% of the charter rate depending on the yacht chartered. These numbers are set by the industry from decades of experience.
Your charter broker is in the best position to assist you with estimating your expenses according to your charter requirements.
Joanna Lewis
Information sourced by the author for luxuryactivist.com. All content is copyrighted with no reproduction rights available. Images are for illustration purposes only.
