A Santorini yacht cruise private day lasts from 3 hours to 9 hours in the nine yacht listings read for this page. Eight of them hand the boat to your own party, and the 6-hour motor sailor is the one that does not.
Once you know a yacht day is the plan, the Greece Tours homepage shows what else each island sells.
Which yachts sail a Santorini yacht cruise private trip?
Nine listings sell a Santorini yacht cruise private trip. Seven name the boat: motor yacht, power catamaran, flybridge yacht, high-speed yacht, motor sailor or sailing boat. Two say only “private yacht”. Eight of the nine are sold as a private group.
Two listings put a Santorini yacht cruise private day on a motor yacht. One text calls the boat new. Wikipedia says two engines give a motor yacht more reliability and manoeuvrability than one engine does. Greek law calls a recreational ship that has an engine as its main drive a motor recreational ship.
One listing runs a Santorini yacht cruise private trip on a power catamaran. That text and the text of the new motor yacht both say you can create your own itinerary. Wikipedia says a powered cruising catamaran shares amenities with a sailing cruising catamaran. It adds that the two-hull layout minimises boat motion.
One listing names a flybridge yacht for a Santorini yacht cruise private booking. The high-speed yacht comes with a text that calls the boat a brand-new luxury speedboat. Wikipedia says a motorboat that cruises much faster than others is called a speedboat.
Two listings use sail. The motor sailor is the one listing not sold as a private group. The luxury sailing cruise is sold as a private group. Wikipedia says a motorsailer can run on sails or engine, each on its own, in moderate seas or winds.
Greek law calls a recreational ship with sails as its main drive a sailing ship. It lets that ship carry an engine as a helper. A Santorini yacht cruise private day on sail is covered on the Santorini sailing tours page.
The last two listings call the boat a private yacht and give no build notes. Hiring a whole boat for your own plan sits on the Santorini yacht charter page.
Five of the nine booking forms for a Santorini yacht cruise private day set a limit of 16 or fewer. The other four accept far larger numbers, up to 96 in one form and 999 in three. The five limits:
- 4 guests: one of the two plain private yachts
- 6 guests: the motor yacht without build notes
- 10 guests: the flybridge yacht
- 10 guests: the high-speed yacht
- 16 guests: the luxury sailing cruise
What is on deck during a Santorini yacht cruise private trip?
Two of the nine listings name a deck feature for a Santorini yacht cruise private trip. One names a flybridge, and one is marked wheelchair accessible. None of the nine names a toilet, a cabin, shade, a ladder, a sound system, a cooler or paddle boards.
The flybridge is the one deck a Santorini yacht cruise private listing names. Wikipedia describes a flying bridge as an open platform on top of the pilot house, open to the weather. It gives clear views ahead, astern and to both sides. Wikipedia adds that it serves as outdoor seating on certain modern pleasure craft.
Wikipedia says power yachts moved the steering position to a bridge in a forward cabin structure. That gave better forward and sideways visibility. The flying bridge, by comparison, is open to the weather. Wikipedia also calls it an operating station for the ship’s officers. Ask whether guests can sit up there.
A motor sailor for a Santorini yacht cruise private day is a different design from a flybridge yacht. Wikipedia says motorsailers normally have a sheltered steering station. It also says the type puts its emphasis on comfort at sea and the ability to cruise long distances.
The luxury sailing cruise is the one listing marked wheelchair accessible. The other eight carry no such mark. The mark is a listing label. Confirm the way to the deck with the operator before a Santorini yacht cruise private day.
Greek law ties the cabin to the class of the boat. A professional recreational ship must have adequate accommodation spaces just for its passengers. Its certificates state the number of available beds.
A full charter that has no overnight stay is different. The owner, the skipper or an authorised person files a declaration with the port authority. The match of beds to passengers then falls away.
The nine texts describe the route, the sea and the sunset rather than the deck. Ask about the missing items before a Santorini yacht cruise private day:
- Is there an enclosed toilet on board?
- Is there shade over the seats, or only open deck?
- Is there a ladder or a swim platform for climbing back aboard?
- Is there a sound system, and is there a cooler for your own drinks?
- Are paddle boards on board?
Who crews a Santorini yacht cruise private trip, and what does Greek law ask of the skipper?
Only one of the nine listing texts names a crew role: the captain. None names a host or a deckhand. Greek law asks the skipper of a Santorini yacht cruise private trip to hold qualifications set by ministerial decision.
One listing text names a captain, who can take you to the swim and snorkel spots. The web address of another listing names a skipper. Two more listings call the day a guided tour. Five of the nine listings offer English and Greek, and four offer English only.
Greek law on tourist ships says who steers the yacht on a Santorini yacht cruise private trip. The skipper is the person who steers and holds the qualifications the law requires for a professional recreational ship. A decision of the Minister of Merchant Shipping sets them. The skipper has all the powers and duties the law gives the master.
A recreational ship up to 24 metres long can be chartered without a master or crew. Then the charterer hires the skipper, or a passenger who holds the qualifications steers. Such a ship can sign on a crew, and the crew must be insured with the seamen’s pension fund. The ship does not have to keep any set crew composition.
The same law sets the passenger limit. A recreational ship counts as professional when it carries up to 49 passengers under a full charter contract. After an inspection, the passenger number goes into the General Inspection Protocol or the Safety Certificate. The law forbids going above it.
The law counts a passenger as anyone aboard except the master, the skipper, the crew and children under one year. A booking form that accepts 96 guests does not set the boat’s limit. The certificate does.
Greek law has one more class for boats that sell a one-day sea trip, the professional tourist day-boat. Such a boat goes into a register kept by the shipping ministry. The owner also files a declaration with the port authority of the starting point. It lists the ports, coves and coasts of call.
The port authority is part of the Hellenic Coast Guard. Ask the operator which class the yacht of your Santorini yacht cruise private day belongs to. Ask which passenger number its certificate shows.
How do the hours of a Santorini yacht cruise private trip run?
The nine yacht listings give a Santorini yacht cruise private day four lengths. They run three to five hours, five hours, six hours and nine hours. Seven of the nine finish within five hours. One runs nine hours, the only full day in the set.
Three Santorini yacht cruise private listings run three to five hours, and four run exactly five hours. One listing, a motor sailor, runs six hours. The nine-hour listing is a motor yacht day with a barbecue and drinks. No other listing in the set runs past six hours.
Four of the nine summaries name a time of day. All four include an evening or sunset option. One sailing cruise runs in the morning with lunch or in the evening with dinner. A second listing offers a day cruise or a sunset cruise. Two more are sunset sails, one with dinner and one with a yoga session.
All nine listings share one time rule: the booking must be made at least 10 hours before the start. No summary gives a clock time for the start itself. Wind and sea on the day are covered on the Santorini weather page.
The summaries name the stops of a Santorini yacht cruise private day only in part. Three name a swim or a snorkel stop. Five name a meal on board. One promises to discover the volcano. None gives the minutes at each stop.
The three-to-five-hour listings hold the highest review counts in the set. They carry 57, 50 and 34 reviews, with scores of 4.7, 4.9 and 4.9. The five-hour listings with reviews carry 5, 1 and 6, with scores of 3.2, 5 and 5.
The six-hour listing has 5 reviews. The nine-hour listing and the yoga listing carry a new activity label and no review yet. Across the Santorini yacht cruise private set, the private group label sits on eight of the nine listings. The six-hour motor sailor listing is the one without it.
Wikipedia says dozens of tourist boats visit Nea Kameni daily throughout the summer. It also calls the island a protected scientific site. It gives the area of Nea Kameni as 3.4 square kilometres.
The Greek Ministry of Health runs a National Water Safety Program. It tells swimmers to avoid the midday sun, between 11am and 3pm. It also says never to swim alone. Keep those hours in mind when you choose a morning or an evening Santorini yacht cruise private listing.
Which add-ons come with a Santorini yacht cruise private trip?
Eight of the nine Santorini yacht cruise private listings carry a pickup label. One adds a private yoga session, and two name snorkelling. None of the nine summaries names towels, music, a photographer or paddle boards.
Pickup is the one add-on that eight Santorini yacht cruise private listings share. It sits on all three of the three-to-five-hour listings and on three of the four five-hour listings. It also sits on the six-hour listing and the nine-hour listing. The yoga listing is the only one without the label.
One listing adds a private yoga session at sunset. It is a five-hour yacht cruise, and its summary promises panoramic views of the caldera and the Aegean Sea. It runs in English and Greek. It carries a new activity label and no review yet. No other summary names a session of any kind.
Two listings name snorkelling. One is a power catamaran listing that adds a swim and a snorkel stop. The other is a flybridge yacht listing with snorkelling in clear waters. Neither summary says whether the mask, tube and fins come on board.
Wikipedia describes snorkelling as swimming face-down while breathing air through a shaped tube. It lists three items of gear: a mask, a snorkel and swimfins. It says snorkelers normally wear the same kind of mask as scuba divers. Ask the operator which of the three a Santorini yacht cruise private listing supplies.
None of the nine summaries names towels, music, a photographer or paddle boards. Treat each one as a question for the operator before the day. The same goes for any transfer beyond the pickup label.
Food and drink count as one add-on here. Four listings name drinks, wine or an open bar, and one calls itself all-inclusive. The Greek Ministry of Health says not to swim if you have drunk alcohol. That rule matters on any Santorini yacht cruise private listing with drinks.
The same programme names two items for the water: a personal flotation device and sunscreen. Neither appears in the nine summaries. The page on safety tips for Santorini tours covers boats and swimming in more detail.
What do travellers ask about a Santorini yacht cruise private trip?
Travellers ask seven things about a Santorini yacht cruise private trip. They cover the minimum party, crew languages, cancellation, the boat type, meals, Nea Kameni and wheelchair access. The answers come from the nine listings and from Wikipedia.
Is there a minimum party for a Santorini yacht cruise private trip?
All nine listings set a minimum of one traveller, so one person can book the whole yacht day. The upper limit differs from listing to listing. Four listings state an upper limit of four, six, 10 and 10 travellers.
Which languages does the crew speak on a Santorini yacht cruise private day?
Five listings state English and Greek. They are the motor sailor, the nine-hour motor yacht, the speedboat, the yoga yacht and the private yacht. Four state English only. None of the nine names a third language.
Does a Santorini yacht cruise private listing offer free cancellation?
Yes. All nine listings carry the free cancellation label. None names a separate weather rule. The label appears on every length, from the three-to-five-hour yachts to the nine-hour motor yacht.
Which boat type does a Santorini yacht cruise private listing name?
Two name a motor yacht. One each names a power catamaran, a speedboat, a flybridge yacht, a motor sailor and a sailing cruise. Two say only private yacht. The flybridge yacht summary calls its trip a guided tour in the caldera.
Does a Santorini yacht cruise private trip name Nea Kameni?
None of the nine summaries names Nea Kameni. Wikipedia places it within the flooded Santorini caldera, beside Palea Kameni. It calls the island small and uninhabited, with a diameter of about 2 km.
Does a Santorini yacht cruise private listing name a meal?
Five of the nine listings name a meal. One lists an onboard meal with local wine, one a barbecue option, one a homemade Greek dinner and one lunch or dinner. The fifth carries a barbecue in its title.
Is a Santorini yacht cruise private trip wheelchair accessible?
One listing, the five-hour sailing cruise, carries the wheelchair accessible label. The other eight listings carry no such label. That listing runs in English and sits in the five-hour band. Ask the operator about boarding before the day.