How Much Does a Gulet Charter Cost in Turkey? (2026 Pricing Guide)

If you have spent ten minutes searching, you have probably already noticed the problem: every operator advertises a "from €X" headline price that bears almost no relationship to what you will actually pay. The number on the marketing page is a low-season, fully-booked, smallest-cabin, lowest-season-week rate. The quote you receive will be different.

This guide gives you the real ranges. Numbers are 2026 Turkish market figures for the Bodrum–to–Antalya stretch, drawn from the 200+ vessels in the MaviSail directory and from confirmed bookings in 2024 and 2025. Where prices vary by season, we say so.

The short answer

A private weekly charter in Turkey costs roughly:

• 3–4 cabin gulet (couples, very small groups): €6,000–€12,000 per week
• 5–6 cabin gulet (typical family or friends group, 8–12 guests): €10,000–€22,000 per week
• 8-cabin gulet (corporate, large groups, 16 guests): €18,000–€35,000 per week
• Cruising catamaran (8–10 guests): €14,000–€28,000 per week
• Motor yacht (8–12 guests, modern fast cruiser): €15,000–€60,000+ per week
• Sailboat / monohull (4–8 guests): €6,000–€14,000 per week

If you are travelling solo or as a couple and willing to share the boat with strangers, cabin charter sells per-person from €700–€1,500 per person per week, all-inclusive of food and the standard route.

These are private-charter base rates — the boat, captain and crew. Food, fuel, port fees, and gratuity stack on top. We will get to those.

Price drivers — why two boats with the same cabin count are €10k apart

When you compare two gulets that look identical on paper, the price gap is usually one of five things:

Year built or refurbished. A gulet built in 2008 and never seriously refitted is a fundamentally different boat from a 2008 hull that was stripped to the wood and rebuilt in 2022. The 2022-refit boat costs €4,000–€8,000 more per week, and you can usually feel why within five minutes of stepping aboard: fresher mattresses, working AC, plumbing that does not smell.

Generator size. A gulet with a generator big enough to run the cabin AC overnight costs more than one that can only run AC during the day. In July and August this is the difference between sleeping and not sleeping. Always ask "can the AC run overnight at anchor?" and budget for "yes."

Crew quality. Turkish gulet crews are paid weekly; the better English speakers, the more experienced cooks, and the better-organised captains command a 20–40% premium. On a charter, you spend more time with these four people than with most of your guests; the premium is usually worth it.

Inclusions. Some charters quote "boat only" and bill food and drinks separately at €60–€90 per person per day. Others quote half-board (breakfast + lunch with soft drinks) at a higher base rate. Comparing "boat only" against "half-board" without normalising is the single biggest mistake first-time charterers make.

Home port. The same vessel based in Bodrum (the busiest port) will typically charter for slightly more than one based in Datça or Kaş. Counter-intuitively, Bodrum's deeper market and easier transfers carry a small premium.

What is included — and what is not

The Turkish industry standard for a private charter includes:

• The vessel
• Captain and 2–4 crew (cook, hostess, deckhand depending on size)
• Bed linen, towels, basic toiletries
• Fuel for the generator (separate from main-engine fuel)
• Snorkel gear, kayaks or paddleboards (vessel-dependent)
• Standard marina/anchorage fees on the quoted route

What you pay separately, on top of the headline price:

• Food and drink — either pre-arranged with the captain (€55–€95 per person per day for half-board, €75–€130 for full-board with wine) or off-the-boat at restaurants ashore.
• Engine fuel — €1,500–€3,000 for a normal week. More if you motor hard between distant anchorages; less if you sail or stay in one bay.
• Port fees in towns not on the quoted route — Datça, Kalkan, and Kaş town quays charge €100–€250 per night to moor; staying at anchor in the bay nearby is free.
• Greek crossing transit log — €250–€500 per crossing if your route dips into Greek waters (Symi, Kos, Rhodes).
• Tip / gratuity — 5–10% of the charter rate is standard. On a €15,000 charter that is €750–€1,500, split between four crew. Cash, end of trip.

A few less obvious costs that catch people out:

• Drinks at the bar — most boats sell beer, wine and spirits at near- supermarket prices, but the markup adds up. Bring your own duty-free alcohol if you can.
• Excursion fees — Olympos chimera, Pamukkale day trips, Lycian Way hiking guides. Optional, but if you plan them, budget €30–€80 per person.
• Late-season heating — boats in October may charge a small generator surcharge for evening cabin heating.

Cabin charter vs. private charter — which one fits

This is the cost decision most solo travellers and couples wrestle with. The maths:

A 6-cabin gulet at €15,000 for the week, fully booked at 12 guests, costs €1,250 per person for the boat — plus food (€60–€90 per person per day) = roughly €1,700–€1,900 per person per week, all-in.

The same boat run as a cabin charter typically prices at €900–€1,400 per person all-inclusive. The gap reflects food, fixed-route inflexibility, and the fact that cabin-charter vessels run at lower margins.

So:

• Travelling solo or as a couple: cabin charter is almost always cheaper unless you splurge on a 3-cabin "couples-only" private boat.
• Group of 8–12: private charter is cheaper per person and gives you full schedule control. No contest.
• Group of 4–6: the maths is closer. A 4-cabin private charter for 6 guests at €10,000/week works out to €1,400/person + food = comparable to cabin charter, with full privacy.

Browse our cabin charter departures →

Build a private-charter quote in the planner →

When to book for the best price

Turkish charter pricing has clear bands:

• April + October (early/late shoulder) — cheapest, often 25–35% off peak. Water is cooler (18–22°C); a few captains haul out for refit. Some routes are weather-dependent.
• May + late September — the connoisseur months. Water 20–25°C, prices 10–20% off peak, bays empty. We push first-time charterers here whenever their dates allow.
• June + early September — high shoulder. Reliable weather, water warming, prices climbing. Book by April for best vessel choice.
• July + August — peak. 30–40°C daytime, water 25–27°C, all the meltemi wind sailing you could want, and prices accordingly. Book by February for any decent boat; the best are gone by November of the prior year.

If you are flexible on dates and willing to commit late, captains occasionally release "captain's discount" weeks — gaps in their calendar they would rather fill at 10–20% off than leave empty. Ask MaviSail about these in early March; we know which captains run them.

Sample budgets by group

These are real all-in numbers from 2024–2025 bookings. Each includes charter rate, half-board food, fuel, tip, and standard port fees.

Couple, 5 nights on a 3-cabin gulet, late May, Lycian coast: €6,000 charter + €900 food + €1,200 fuel + €450 tip + €200 port fees = roughly €8,750 total, or €4,375 per person.

Family of 4 (2 adults + 2 kids), 7 nights on a 4-cabin gulet, early July, Twelve Islands: €13,500 + €2,000 food + €2,500 fuel + €1,000 tip

• €300 port fees = roughly €19,300 total, or €4,825 per person.

Group of 10 friends, 7 nights on a 6-cabin gulet, second week of June, Datça peninsula: €17,000 + €4,200 food + €2,800 fuel + €1,200 tip

• €400 port fees = roughly €25,600 total, or €2,560 per person.

Corporate retreat of 16, 4 nights on an 8-cabin motor-sailer, early September, Bodrum loop: €22,000 + €5,400 food + €3,200 fuel

• €1,500 tip + €600 port fees + €1,200 AV/catering upgrades = roughly €33,900 total, or €2,120 per person for the boat portion.

You will notice the friends-group number is by far the best per-person deal. That is not a coincidence — Turkish gulet pricing is structurally generous to mid-size groups.

Browse mid-size gulets in Bodrum →

Browse vessels in Fethiye →

How to compare quotes properly

Get every quote on the same basis or you will not be comparing the same trip. The five questions to standardise on:

1. Is this rate "boat only" or does it include food? If included, at what level — half-board (breakfast + lunch + soft drinks) or full-board (all three meals + wine)?
2. What is the fuel allowance? Either a flat amount included, a per-mile rate, or a separate at-cost line. Ask the captain to estimate total fuel for the planned route.
3. Are port fees included for the whole route, or only the home port? Marina nights in Kalkan, Kaş, Datça, and Kos add up if not pre-included.
4. What is the cancellation policy and the deposit terms? Standard Turkish charter is 25% deposit, balance 30 days before departure; anything more aggressive deserves a second look.
5. Who is the licensed Turkish operator on the contract? Every legitimate charter goes through a TURSAB-licensed Turkish agency, even if you book through an international broker. Ask for the name and TURSAB number — it is on the contract anyway.

If a quote comes in 30% under the others, it is probably hiding food, fuel or port fees. If it comes in 30% over, it is probably a high-touch all-inclusive that may genuinely be worth the premium for a stress-free week. There is no free lunch in Turkish charter pricing, just a different mix of inclusions.

FAQ

Is the price negotiable? Mildly. Captains sometimes flex 5–10% in shoulder season; in peak season the answer is almost always no. The better lever is asking what is included — food, fuel, port nights — which is more elastic than the headline rate.

Why are gulets cheaper than catamarans of the same length? Gulets are built locally in Bodrum at lower cost, while catamarans are imported from France or South Africa. The catamaran also carries newer technology and tends to be 5–10 years younger on average.

Do prices include skipper-only or fully-crewed? Every Turkish gulet above 12 metres is fully-crewed by maritime regulation — no bareboat option. Smaller monohulls and catamarans can be chartered bareboat (with skipper licence) at meaningfully lower rates, typically €4,000– €8,000/week.

What about fuel — should I prepay? No. The standard practice is to pay actual fuel consumed at the end of the week, at receipt cost. Captains keep fuel-station receipts and present them on disembarkation.

Is Turkish charter cheaper than Croatian? Yes, meaningfully. For an equivalent vessel and week, Croatia runs 25–40% more expensive in 2026. Turkey's local boatbuilding tradition, lower labour costs, and lower marina fees compound to make the same week of sailing materially cheaper.

Who pays for the captain's food? Always included in the boat rate; you never pay for crew meals.

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Numbers in this article reflect Turkish charter market data through April 2026. MaviSail Ltd is a UK-registered concierge; bookings are contracted by TURSAB-licensed Turkish partner agencies. Real per-vessel prices come live from the MaviSail vessel directory.