Date posted: February 2009

Ed Hamilton, Ed Hamilton & Co.
In a regular economy, we generally encourage people to put a deposit on the crewed boat they want as early as they can, particularly in high season. There is a reason the popular boats get booked way ahead, and if you are looking at busy dates, you don't want to be limited to what's left. There have always been a few boats that sell any remaining weeks at a last-minute discount, and for people who are flexible about which boat they get, there are some savings.
     We do find that a client booking at the very last minute often doesn’t get the best selection of boats or the best service possible. A crewed charter can and should be a totally personalized vacation, where the broker establishes a rapport with a client by discussing expectations and interests. If you book early, the broker can present a much wider range of boats and crews, and both the broker and the crew have plenty of lead time to talk about food preferences and interests with you, to ensure everything is to your liking. Such things as menus tend to be much more standardized in a last-minute charter.
     Having said that, the rules are very different right now due to the economy. For the rest of this winter and probably early summer, there are some excellent boats with availability, offering lower prices. This is very different from a “last-minute deal” in which boats require you to book just before your charter. By booking a month or two ahead and taking advantage of the current deals, we still have time to provide the kind of service that you should expect.
     Most of the popular boats expect things to improve by next year, so are not offering big discounts for next season. Unless the economy remains as distressed as it is today, there's no great advantage in waiting to book next year’s charters, and you might as well get the boat you want at this year’s price by booking in advance.

Gertrud Annevelink, Charter Experience
There are always two sides to a story.
     My advice is to avoid any late booking if you can. Be ahead of the game and get the yacht you really want, at the right time, in the right place. Book well in advance. Late bookings will leave you with a limited choice of yachts, locations, and dates. Your charter might not be what you had expected.
     Having said that, if you by chance have an opportunity to fit a last-minute charter in your travel plans, it is well worth your time to call me and see if there are any charter cancellations pending at that time. You can than take over a charter that has fallen through for someone else, but only if the yacht, place, and date suit you. This is a rare situation, but it's worthwhile to check.
     In either event, with the current economic climate and the offers going on at the moment, I would work with a reputable broker who knows what’s happening in the market, to make sure you do get the best yacht at the best price.

Heather Krebs, Abiego Yachts
I love helping clients with last-minute charters. In the big-boat market, meaning charter yachts at least 100 feet long, there are a lot of advantages to booking at the last minute. If I can find a boat that fits with the client’s needs, and it’s a good match for the boat’s needs, and the boat is sitting idle without a charter, then the owner may be willing to negotiate the charter rate. That’s very good for the client.
    Also, when you book at the last minute, you can be assured that you will get the crew who are onboard at the time that you book. If you book months in advance, the captain or chef could change before your charter actually takes place. Booking at the last minute also makes it pretty unlikely that the boat will sell to another owner before your charter, which can happen when you book several months or a year in advance. At the last minute, you also can be pretty certain that the boat isn’t having any mechanical problems. When you book months in advance, you never know what will be happening in the engineroom at the time of your actual charter. The same goes for the weather. If you book at the last minute, sometimes you can actually see the forecast instead of having to hope that the sun will be shining a few months later. And the economy, too. Who knows what will happen with your business six months from now? If you’re financially comfortable going now, then you should book right now.
    What’s hard for the client is that when you book at the last minute, you aren’t usually going to have a lot of options. That’s especially true of prime charter weeks, when you really do need to book in advance. If you’re particular about the yacht—if you want a contemporary interior, or a specific number of Wave Runners, or a crew of a certain nationality—you might not get what you want at the last minute, even if you get a good rate. But if you are willing to be flexible about your demands, including your destination, and it’s not Christmas week or the Monaco Grand Prix, then there can be a lot of great last-minute charter opportunities.