Private yacht charter in St Barths
St Barths is a small island, around 25 square kilometres with its islets, and much of its life faces the water. Gustavia, the capital, sits around a U-shaped harbour on the west coast, and the yachts at its quay and at anchor outside are part of the town's view. A St Barths yacht charter places you at the centre of that scene in the evening and well away from it by day, in the bays of the marine reserve or across the water in St Martin and Anguilla.
The island is an overseas collectivity of France, and its season peaks over Christmas and New Year, when Gustavia fills with superyachts. Much of the coming and going is by tender, which suits a yacht: the harbour, the beaches and the reserve are all a short run apart.
St Barths from the water
Gustavia. The harbour is the centre of island life, with restaurants and shops along the quays and Shell Beach on the edge of town. Quay berths are few, so most visiting yachts lie at anchor off the harbour and come ashore by tender.
Anse de Colombier. Reached only by sea or by a cliff-top trail of around 25 minutes, Colombier has the island's best snorkelling. It lies within the marine reserve, where anchoring is prohibited and yachts use the mooring buoys provided.
The marine reserve and the islets. The reserve covers around 1,200 hectares of the island's waters in five zones, some open to snorkelling and boating, others closed to most activity. Offshore, Île Fourchue, one of the largest of the uninhabited islets, makes a quiet stop away from the harbour.
The beaches. Every beach on the island is public, including those in front of villas and hotels. Gouverneur and Saline are the best known, and St Jean has calm, shallow water inside its reef.
St Martin and Anguilla. St Martin lies around 30 kilometres to the north-west, shared between France and the Netherlands, with a nature reserve of its own around Tintamarre and Rocher Créole, where day moorings are free and an overnight stay needs prior authorisation. Anguilla lies just beyond it, and both make easy day passages from Gustavia.
When to go
The season runs from mid-December to mid-April. The trade winds blow from the east and the weather is dry, though the Christmas winds can bring a few days of 20 to 25 knots around the turn of the year. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June to November.
Two weeks define the calendar. From late December into early January, the harbour and the anchorage outside fill with superyachts; on 31 December the New Year's Eve Regatta sails around the island, and at midnight fireworks rise over Gustavia while the fleet answers with its horns. Yachts open to charter that week are committed many months ahead, often close to a year, at premium rates and with longer minimum stays. In March, the St Barths Bucket brings large sailing superyachts to race off the island, and the harbour fills again.
Marinas and arrival
Gustavia is the island's harbour for yachts, where they clear in and where port dues are charged according to their size.
Gustaf III Airport has a runway of only 646 metres, used by small aircraft whose pilots hold a special certification. Many guests connect through Princess Juliana International Airport in St Martin, then take a flight of around 15 minutes or a ferry of 45 minutes to an hour. There are also flights from San Juan, of around 40 minutes, and from Antigua. A yacht can equally collect guests in St Martin and make the crossing itself.
Yachts and what a week costs
In winter, Gustavia is one of the Caribbean's principal superyacht harbours, and the yachts that cruise here run from crewed catamarans to large motor and sailing yachts. With few quay berths, a good tender matters as much as the yacht: it is how guests reach the town, the beaches and the reserve.
The weekly rate covers the yacht and its crew; running costs come from an Advance Provisioning Allowance, typically 25 to 35 percent of the rate. Port dues are charged to the yacht, and the applicable charges are set out before anything is signed. The New Year week carries premium rates and longer minimum stays, and the crew gratuity, at the guests' discretion, is customarily 15 to 20 percent of the charter fee in the Caribbean. Our guide to what a charter costs and the charter toolkit on APA and gratuities give the detail, and the largest yachts are covered under superyacht charter.
How a St Barths charter is arranged
We shortlist the yachts that suit your group, check how each one works at anchor off Gustavia and with the reserve's moorings, and arrange the route and timing around the weeks that matter to you. St Barths combines naturally with Antigua to the south-east, and the Caribbean holds other winter routes.
Tell us your dates, the size of your group and what you have in mind, and we will come back with a shortlist. Start the conversation.
