How much does yacht delivery cost? Real prices from real routes.

"How much will it cost to get my boat from A to B?" is the first question almost every owner asks before they post a delivery. The honest answer: it depends on six variables, but those variables are knowable, and once you know them you can ballpark within €1–2k for most jobs.

This guide gives you real-world ranges by route, the factors that move the price, and what a fair quote looks like. Numbers below are for the boat segment we see most: 30-to-50-foot cruising yachts, mono or cat, sail or power. Megayachts and racing boats are different worlds — speak to a broker if that's you.

The six variables that drive delivery cost

1. Distance in nautical miles — the single biggest driver 2. Vessel size and type — bigger boat, bigger crew, more fuel 3. Route difficulty — coastal hop vs. open-ocean passage vs. canal transit 4. Season — high-season captain rates are 20-30% above shoulder 5. Delivery window flexibility — narrow windows cost a premium 6. Captain experience required — Yachtmaster Offshore vs. Ocean

Below, every range is "all-in but exclusive of fuel and marina fees" — captain fee + crew fees + travel back home. Fuel, dockage, and provisions are usually on the owner.

Route 1: UK coastal hop — €1.5k to €4k

Examples from real posts: Weymouth → Plymouth · Brighton → Fleetwood · Dartmouth → Swansea · Hull → Torquay.

200-400 nautical miles, 2-4 days at sea, typically a solo skipper or skipper-plus-mate. Lower end is a small sailing yacht in good weather; higher end is a motor yacht in a tight window, or a 40+ foot vessel needing two crew.

What moves it up: bad weather window, owner wants delivery "this weekend," boat hasn't been used in months and needs commissioning before slipping lines.

Route 2: North Sea / Channel crossing — €2.5k to €6k

Examples: Weymouth → Le Havre · Rotterdam → Portugal · Nieuwpoort → Sete · Hamburg → Cannes.

300-1,200 NM. The Channel itself is cheap; it's the legs into Biscay or down to the Med that add the days. A 30ft monohull from London to northern Portugal is a different job than a 45ft cat from Hamburg to Cannes.

What moves it up: Biscay weather (book outside September if possible), inland-waterway transits (mast unstepping, canal fees), insurance restrictions on routes.

Route 3: Med inter-port — €2k to €5k

Examples: Barcelona → Sardinia · Civitavecchia → La Rapita · Alicante → Piraeus · La Rochelle → Gibraltar.

300-1,500 NM in mostly settled water. The cheapest delivery type per mile because conditions are predictable and crew rotates easily through major ports.

What moves it up: high-season (July/August captains are scarce), Greek islands hopping (slow but cheap), tight charter-handover windows.

Route 4: UK / Northern Europe → Mediterranean — €5k to €12k

Examples: Hamble → Gibraltar · Aberdovey → Palma · Ouddorpse → Gibraltar · North Shields → Scotland.

1,200-2,500 NM. The signature autumn delivery. Captain plus one or two crew, 10-18 days at sea depending on weather and route. Cheaper if you can be flexible about departure (a 5-day weather window beats a fixed date), more expensive if you need to be in Palma before charter season.

What moves it up: late October departure (Biscay starts to get nasty), winter routing (some insurance policies prohibit transits after a certain date), owner wants captain to also clean and provision in destination.

Route 5: Caribbean ↔ Europe — €10k to €25k

Examples: Las Palmas → Saint Lucia · Antigua → Lagos · Caribbean → Spain.

2,500-3,500 NM in open ocean. Captain plus 2-3 crew, 18-28 days at sea. This is the ARC-window job. Most captains book this work 6 months ahead.

What moves it up: needing a specific arrival port (instead of "wherever is most efficient"), monohulls with limited fuel range (more anxious provisioning), boats over 50ft.

Route 6: Long-distance / one-off — €15k to €60k

Examples from real posts: Maldives → Northern Cyprus · Stockholm → Piraeus · La Paz Mexico → Vigo · Florida → Spain · Istanbul → Barbados.

These are 4,000-8,000+ NM, often requiring multiple crew rotations, canal transits (Suez, Panama), or piracy-watch waters. Pricing is heavily route-dependent. Expect a captain who specialises in this work.

What a fair quote includes

A captain quote that's worth reading will spell out:

Captain day rate or per-mile rate (typical day rate €250-€450 for an experienced delivery captain)
Crew day rates (typical €150-€250 per crew, per day)
Travel back to home base — flights for captain and crew, included
Fuel budget estimate (or note that fuel is on you, on receipts)
Marina / dockage along route (usually on owner)
Provisioning allowance (usually on owner)
Cancellation / weather hold policy
Insurance verification before slipping lines

If a quote is just "€8,000 to deliver the boat," ask for the breakdown. Captains who refuse are a yellow flag.

What you, the owner, should always insist on

Written agreement before money changes hands
Photo + checklist handover of every system (engine, electronics, rigging, hull) at the start
Daily check-ins via satellite (Iridium, Starlink, PredictWind tracking)
Captain holds the licences your insurance specifies — verify before signing, not after

A good captain will offer all of this without you asking. If they don't, ask why.

The broker comparison

A yacht broker who introduces you to a captain typically charges 10-15% of the agreed delivery price. On an €8,000 UK-to-Gibraltar delivery, that's €800-€1,200 you pay for an introduction. On a €20,000 Atlantic crossing, that's €2,000-€3,000.

Boat Gigs is free for both sides — you and the captain agree your terms directly. The trade-off: you do the vetting yourself (we make that easy with public profiles and reviews) instead of relying on a broker's relationship.

Get a quote, no commitment

Post your route at /post — anonymously, in 90 seconds. You'll get quotes back from captains in your region, typically within hours. Compare them, message the ones you like, decide later. No commitment, no commission, your identity stays anonymous until you accept.