There’s so much to do when you visit Miami, Florida. From the clubs and nightlife to the natural beauty of the sandy beaches, your vacation is bound to be full of entertainment. Since Miami is right on the ocean, it’d be crazy not to enjoy the ocean to its fullest while you’re there. Why not rent a yacht and take your party out on the water?
Yacht rentals in Miami are common- many of Miami’s residents own boats or yachts and renting them out can be a good source of side income. Here are a few things to know about renting a yacht on your visit to Miami and how much you can expect to pay for the experience.
Miami Yacht Rentals vs. Charters: What’s the Difference?
You might have heard that you can either rent or charter a yacht. What’s the difference, and which one is best for you and your vacation needs?
The main difference between chartering a yacht and renting one is who drives the boat. Charters include a captain and often a first mate, both of whom take care of driving, anchoring, and other “boat tasks” while the guests on the charter are just along for the ride. Rentals, on the other hand, work much like renting a car: someone in your group must have a boating license, and then you can drive the yacht wherever (though some companies may have restrictions on where you can go).
Can I Rent a Yacht for Multiple Days?
Whereas yacht charters are usually booked by chunks of hours, yacht rentals work differently. Much like renting a car, you can rent a yacht for several days, even weeks, at a time.
Many yachts have sleeping areas below deck, along with small kitchens and bathrooms. These features make it easy to escape your hectic life on shore and spend some time out in the ocean surrounded by water, peace, and quiet.
Cost Comparison by Size
An important factor into the cost of yacht rental in Miami is the size of the boat you’re renting. Since costs can vary according to the size, it may be hard to determine an average cost for a yacht rental. Instead, let’s take a look at the cost of two yachts, one larger than the other, and compare them. These yachts are both being rented “bareboat,” or without a captain.
The first boat is 45 feet long and has two cabins (bedrooms) and two bathrooms, so you could comfortably accommodate 4-6 people for your getaway. The cost per day comes to $1,500, so to rent it for a week-long trip, your total would be $10,500.
The second boat is larger, sitting at 58 feet with two full cabins and a smaller room with two cots. It features two bathrooms and a luxurious living room, and can be rented for $3,500 per day. This brings the cost for one week to $24,500.
Other Factors Into the Price of Yacht Rental
Of course, the boat’s length is not the only thing that impacts the cost of renting it. Yacht rentals in Miami are often a luxury experience, full of add-ons and features that make the boat stand out. In our 58-foot example above, the leather couches in the living room and the relatively spacious kitchen are features that you don’t find on every boat. Yacht owners will often add features like Bluetooth speakers or water toys (inner tubes, etc.) that people are willing to pay more for.
Liability and Safety Costs
Fortunately, you don’t need insurance to rent a yacht in Miami, so that’s a cost you won’t need to worry about. The person or company who owns the boat is the one who needs to purchase insurance before they rent it out. The insurance needed for a private owner to rent out their boat is usually called a peer-to-peer boat rental policy and it covers a lot of the same things that car insurance does. Most policies cover damage to or loss of the boat itself, medical payments for injured boaters, and boating liability, with other costs like the cost of the boat trailer possibly covered as well depending on the policy.
What Size Yacht Should I Rent?
Deciding on your perfect Miami yacht rental can be difficult, especially when there are so many options. For one thing, what size is going to work best?
When you’re choosing a yacht, be sure to think first about how many people are going with you. You probably don’t want to end up sharing a one-cabin yacht with six guests. After capacity issues, you’ll need to consider what kind of water you’ll be in. A 16 foot boat is not going to fare quite as well in rough seas as a 45 foot yacht. If you have any doubts about a yacht’s ability to handle the seas where you’re going, contact the yacht owner. They should be able to give you some guidelines on the boat’s limits.
How Much Are Day Trips?
Day trips on a yacht are a common activity for visitors to Miami, including “party boat” trips (either during the day or in the evening). You can either choose to rent a yacht and have someone with a boat license drive, or you can charter a yacht. Charters come with a captain, so if no one in your family or friend group has a boat license, that’s likely the best way to go.
Daytime yacht rentals in Miami are usually rented out by a fraction of a day, with 4 hours being a half day, 6 hours being a ¾ day, and 8 hours considered a “full day.” A full-day yacht charter can cost anywhere from $300 to a few thousand dollars, but charters usually also include drinks, an experienced captain, and sometimes additional features like tubing or waterskiing.
Can I Rent a Yacht in Miami for a Week?
Can you take to the sea for a week or two at a time in a rented yacht? The short answer is, it depends on the yacht. Yachts rented out by private owners are subject to those owners’ rules and limits. Some people rent out their yachts for day use only, while others rent them out for days or weeks at a time. Be sure that when you’re browsing online, you filter by availability to rent for multiple nights if possible.
