As you know if you read our recent interview with broker Missy Johnston from the May charter yacht show in Greece, catamarans available for charter are a rare find in the Eastern Mediterranean. Yes, the stable, spacious boats are all the rage in the Bahamas and Virgin Islands, but over in Europe, they have yet to make a dent in the marketplace full of traditionally styled motor and sailing yachts.

Interestingly, one of the nicest crewed powercats I’ve ever seen (look at that bright, airy saloon in the photo above), the 86-foot Bel’Mare, happens to be cruising in Greece and Turkey right now–and she still has charter weeks available this August, according to management company 37 South.

It’s a rare opportunity to get onboard this particular yacht in this location, as the crew told me during my tour that they believed Bel’Mare would be returning to the owner’s home waters in New Zealand come 2009. It’s also a rare opportunity to enjoy cruising aboard a fast catamaran (25 knots!) in an area where the traditional charter yachts, such as Turkish gulets, typically move no faster than about 6 knots from port to port. You’ll be to the archaeological ruins and back to your yacht for a swim before the other charter yachts even arrive for the day.