Is a charter week actually more expensive than a high-end hotel vacation? We compare accommodation, rental cars, travel between locations, excursions, and catering with a private sailing week on MANAIA. The sample calculation transparently shows which travel styles and group sizes bring costs closer together – and which services are included in each.
A week on a sailing yacht often appears more expensive at first glance than a hotel vacation. However, the comparison falls short if only the charter price is contrasted with the price of a hotel room. A yacht combines accommodation, transportation, and a large part of the leisure program. In a hotel vacation, these services are usually added separately.
For a fair comparison, we therefore look at two travel styles in Dalmatia:
a one-week tour with four hotels in the upscale four- to five-star category
a private charter week on MANAIA for six guests
The calculation is a guide and not a binding offer. Hotel prices, mooring fees, fuel costs, catering, and excursion prices can vary depending on travel time, availability, and personal travel arrangements.
A hotel offers fixed accommodation in a specific location. Anyone wishing to explore several islands and coastal towns during a week needs additional means of transport, ferry connections, or organized excursions.
On a sailing charter, the accommodation is also the means of transport. Guests travel between islands, bays, and port towns without having to repack their suitcases at every change of location. The route is planned within the framework of weather conditions, nautical circumstances, and guest wishes.
This does not mean that one form of travel is fundamentally better. Both address different needs.
Aspect | Hotel Tour | Charter Week on MANAIA |
|---|---|---|
Accommodation | Hotel room in a fixed location | Cabin on the catamaran |
Change of location | Check-out, luggage transport, travel, and new check-in | The floating home travels with you |
Trip planning | Organize hotels, transfers, and excursions separately | Route is coordinated with the skipper |
Access to the sea | Dependent on location and beach access | Direct access from the ship |
Privacy | Room private, other areas mostly public | Private cabin with ensuite bathroom, common areas available to the charter group |
Catering | Breakfast or half-board depending on booking | Flexible self-catering on board and restaurant visits ashore |
Activities | Often to be booked separately | Two SUPs, a dinghy, and four snorkel sets are ready on board. More can be booked additionally. |
Predictability | Accommodation price usually clear, ancillary costs variable | Charter price clear, consumption and mooring costs variable |
Weather dependence | Change of location mostly independent of sea weather | Route and daily planning also depend on wind and weather |
Hotel stars and yacht equipment cannot be directly equated. A catamaran has no hotel classification. For this comparison, we therefore consider key comfort features that guests know from an upscale hotel vacation:
private double cabins
ensuite bathrooms for the guest cabins
generous lounge areas
high-quality bed linens and towels at a four-star plus to five-star level
air conditioning and technical equipment on board
personal support from a professional skipper
organized transfer between Split airport and the marina
prepared arrival and personal onboarding
The MANAIA has two spacious double cabins and two VIP cabins. For more than six guests, the owner's cabin is also available to guests. The crew accommodation is adjusted accordingly.
For the hotel tour, we use published average values from Booking.com for four- and five-star hotels in Split, Trogir, Hvar, and on Brač. The values were retrieved on September 3, 2026.
A tour with seven overnight stays serves as an example:
two nights in Trogir
two nights on Brač
two nights in Hvar
one night in Split
This means three hotel changes are required during one week.
The published average prices were researched/determined on various booking platforms and websites on the web.
Destination | Four-star hotel per room per night | Five-star hotel per room per night |
|---|---|---|
Trogir | around 223 Euro | around 384 Euro |
Brač | around 276 Euro | around 660 Euro |
Hvar | around 359 Euro | around 949 Euro |
Split | around 242 Euro | around 514 Euro |
For three double rooms and six travelers, this results in the following guide:
Hotel Category | Seven nights and three double rooms |
|---|---|
Four Star | around 5,880 Euro |
Five Star | around 13,500 Euro |
These are calculated average values, not a concrete offer for a specific travel date. Room category, catering, cancellation conditions, taxes, and included services may vary by hotel.
The room price only reflects part of the travel costs. Those wishing to individually combine Split, Trogir, and several islands must consider additional expenses.
Hertz currently quotes an average rental price of 41 Euro per day for Split airport. For six adults with luggage, two compact vehicles or a correspondingly large van would be required in many cases.
Two vehicles at this benchmark value result in around 574 Euro for seven days. Not included are, among others:
fuel
parking fees
additional insurances
additional drivers
possible one-way fees
vehicle transport on car ferries
A rental car is not necessary for every hotel trip. Those staying in one place or using exclusively organized excursions can do without it. For an individual tour with several accommodations, however, it often facilitates travel and luggage transport.
For a tour via Brač and Hvar, ferry schedules must also be taken into account. Depending on the route, costs for people, vehicles, port transfers, or taxis arise.
Furthermore, changes of location take up part of the vacation days. Check-out, travel to the port, waiting times, crossing, onward travel, and renewed check-in can take several hours.
Many bays and smaller islands can only be reached from the hotel as part of an organized boat excursion.
A full-day excursion from Split to the Blue Cave, to Vis, to the Pakleni Islands, and to Hvar, for example, is offered for 120 Euro per person. In high season, according to the provider, there is an entrance fee of 24 Euro per adult for the Blue Cave.
For six adults, that corresponds to around 864 Euro for one excursion day.
Entrance fees or paid local excursions can also arise during a charter trip. A visit to the Blue Cave, for example, depends on weather and is carried out using the local visitor boats provided for this purpose. It is not automatically part of a charter week.
Whether breakfast, half-board, or full-board is included in the hotel price depends on the booked offer. During a tour, restaurant visits, drinks, snacks, and meals on the go are often added.
On MANAIA, the group can decide for themselves how they want to organize the week: breakfast on board, cooking together, a lunch in a konoba, or a dinner in a harbor restaurant can be combined.
For six adults, the internal guide value for groceries during a charter week is about 700 to 1,300 Euro. Wine, spirits, and restaurant visits are not included.
The example week from September 4 to 11, 2027, for six guests serves as a comparison.
Cost Item | Amount |
|---|---|
Private charter of MANAIA | 10,000 Euro |
Mandatory Skipper | 1,750 Euro |
Premium Package | 610 Euro |
Groceries for six adults | approx. 700 to 1,300 Euro |
Fuel | approx. 250 Euro |
Mixed week with anchorages and moorings | approx. 1,000 Euro |
Estimated total costs | approx. 14,310 to 14,910 Euro |
For six guests, that corresponds to roughly 2,385 to 2,485 Euro per person.
Actual costs depend particularly on the choice of route, the marinas used, fuel consumption, catering, and personal restaurant visits. Individual marinas can cost about 200 to 400 Euro per night depending on location and season.
Full and currently valid details can be found under Prices and Services.
For the hotel trip, we add room costs plus two rental cars and an exemplary full-day boat excursion. Fuel, parking fees, ferries, meals, and drinks remain unconsidered because these depend heavily on individual planning.
Example for six adults | Four-star hotel tour | Five-star hotel tour | MANAIA private charter |
|---|---|---|---|
Accommodation or charter | approx. 5,880 Euro | approx. 13,500 Euro | 10,000 Euro |
Skipper | N/A | N/A | 1,750 Euro |
Premium Package | N/A | N/A | 610 Euro |
Two rental cars | approx. 574 Euro | approx. 574 Euro | Not required |
One boat excursion | approx. 864 Euro | approx. 864 Euro | Many destinations are part of the trip |
Groceries on board | Not considered | Not considered | approx. 700 to 1,300 Euro |
Fuel and moorings | Hotel: not yet considered | Hotel: not yet considered | approx. 1,250 Euro |
Subtotal | approx. 7,318 Euro | approx. 14,938 Euro | approx. 14,310 to 14,910 Euro |
The four-star hotel tour is significantly cheaper in this example. However, its subtotal does not yet include meals, drinks, ferries, road fuel, parking costs, or further excursions.
The five-star hotel tour is already roughly at the level of the private charter week even before these additional expenses.
A charter week is therefore not fundamentally cheaper or more expensive. The result depends primarily on group size, the desired hotel standard, and the type of planned vacation.
The financial comparison only explains part of the difference. Crucial is also how the vacation week feels.
In the exemplary hotel tour, you check out three times, load the luggage, transport it to the next location, and unpack again. Added to this are fixed ferry times, possible waiting times, and the coordination of several bookings.
On MANAIA, the cabin remains your personal home during the entire week. In the morning, breakfast can take place in front of an island, in the afternoon the ship lies in a swimming bay, and in the evening near a historic old town.
Guests change location without changing accommodation.
A private charter creates a lot of time together. The cockpit, salon, swim platform, and deck are used by your own group. Daily routine, meals, and goals can be coordinated together.
This proximity is often an important part of the experience for families and groups of friends. At the same time, it requires that travelers enjoy spending time together and are considerate of one another.
A hotel usually offers more physical separation. Those wishing to withdraw can leave their own room and still use restaurants, pool areas, or other facilities independently of the group.
A sailing trip allows for flexible daily decisions but not for any arbitrary route. Wind, waves, local weather development, available moorings, and safety issues determine what is nautically sensible.
The final decision on route, anchorage, and daily leg lies with the skipper. This can mean that a planned location is replaced by a more sheltered alternative.
In a hotel trip, location changes are less dependent on sea weather. On the other hand, hotel reservations and organized excursions often remain tied to fixed times and cancellation policies.
On MANAIA, two stand-up paddleboards, a dinghy, and four snorkel sets are part of the available equipment. In a suitable bay, the group can therefore enter the water directly from the ship.
In a hotel, access to such activities depends on the location and the offer on site. If the hotel and beach are far apart, transfers or rental costs for equipment are added.
Additional water sports equipment can be supplemented for a fee during a private charter, subject to availability.
For a private charter on MANAIA, a professional skipper is mandatory. He bears the nautical responsibility, plans safe daily legs, and takes weather, crew, route, and suitable moorings into account.
Guests therefore do not need a sailing license. Those interested in sailing can actively help by arrangement. Likewise, it is possible to enjoy the trip in a relaxed manner.
In a hotel tour, the organization lies more with the travelers: rental cars, ferry connections, travel times, parking spaces, check-ins, and excursions must be planned by themselves or booked through various providers.
a fixed vacation location is preferred
a large selection of restaurants, spa, or hotel service is important
maximum physical privacy is desired
only a few changes of location are planned
the trip should take place largely unchanged even in changeable weather
several islands and coastal towns should be part of the same trip
the group enjoys traveling together
direct access to the sea is important
swimming, snorkeling, and stand-up paddling should be part of the daily routine
the travel plan may remain flexible within nautical possibilities
being on the way is itself part of the vacation
Those traveling with family or friends and wishing to use the ship exclusively will find further information on private charter on MANAIA.
For couples or solo travelers, cabin charter can be an alternative. In this case, a cabin is booked instead of the entire catamaran. The skipper is included in cabin charter. A hostess cannot be booked for this type of charter.
A four-star hotel trip can be cheaper than a private charter week, especially if guests stay in one place and book only a few additional activities.
On the other hand, those wishing to visit several islands, choose high-quality hotels, use rental cars, and undertake boat excursions should include all travel components. In the five-star segment, a hotel tour for six people can be in a similar price range as a private charter week or even exceed it.
The crucial difference remains the travel style: in a hotel, you travel from a fixed location. On a sailing yacht, the accommodation travels with you. The days do not only consist of stays in different places – the path between them also becomes part of the vacation experience.
Those wishing to find out which charter style fits their own group and available travel budget can make an individual inquiry via the SAILING MANAIA contact form.
No. Whether a charter week is more expensive depends on the group size, the desired hotel standard, and the additional planned activities. A four-star hotel trip in a fixed vacation location is often cheaper than a private charter. However, for a tour with several five-star hotels, rental cars, transfers, and boat excursions, the total costs can approach or exceed the price of a charter week.
In addition to the charter price, a private charter on MANAIA involves the mandatory skipper and the premium package. There are also variable expenses for groceries, fuel, as well as buoys and moorings. Restaurant visits, alcoholic beverages, and optional water sports equipment are also billed separately. The actual total costs depend on the route and the personal wishes of the guests. The Prices and Services page offers an overview.
No. On MANAIA, there is always a professional skipper on board who bears the nautical responsibility. Guests therefore do not need a sailing license. Those interested in sailing can actively help by arrangement. It is also possible to enjoy the trip without taking on tasks in ship management.
Yes. Couples and solo travelers do not have to book the entire catamaran. In a cabin charter, a single double cabin is booked and the ship is shared with other guests. The skipper is already included in this travel style. A hostess cannot be booked for cabin charter.
No. Daily planning is coordinated together with the skipper. Depending on weather, route, and guest wishes, a day can consist of a longer sailing leg, a short trip to the next bay, or a full day in port. Safety and nautical conditions take precedence in all decisions. A specific route or a specific daily destination can therefore not be guaranteed.