The Smarter Charter

The afternoon swimming in crystalline waters, sunset cocktails served on the deck. On to a gourmet dinner in a wood-paneled dining room, then into the hot tub for a relaxed debate about where to head next–Antibes? Monaco? Ibiza?

Unless you are hydrophobic or consider it too–ahem–splashy a show of wealth, few vacation options are more appealing than yacht charters. Though ownership of a super-luxurious vessel is out of reach for all but the extremely wealthy, private charters are an increasingly common way for the merely affluent to holiday on the seas.