BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide

Renting a Boat at Monte Argentario: Porto Santo Stefano, Porto Ercole and the Island of Giglio

Southern Tuscany's best-kept secret, long favoured by Italy's own jet set: where to rent a boat at Monte Argentario, how to reach Giglio and Giannutri, and what to check before booking.

Under two hours' drive from Rome, Monte Argentario stays surprisingly under the radar in French-language boat rental searches, even though Italians themselves have treated it as one of their favourite seaside addresses for decades. This rocky peninsula in southern Tuscany, linked to the mainland by three sandy causeways, opens straight onto the Tuscan Archipelago and the island of Giglio — a quieter alternative to Liguria or the Amalfi Coast, with sailing that is every bit as spectacular.

Porto Santo Stefano and Porto Ercole, two marinas on one promontory

Porto Santo Stefano, on the northern side of the peninsula, is where most of the action is: the main harbour, the departure point for ferries to Giglio and Giannutri, and the widest choice of rental boats. Porto Ercole, on the south-eastern side, plays a quieter, more intimate role, framed by two 16th-century Spanish fortresses and the memory of the painter Caravaggio, who died nearby in 1610. Both marinas work equally well for a day's rental of a RIB or motorboat; the choice mostly comes down to which way you want to head once you clear the harbour.

The Orbetello lagoon, between the tomboli

Between the two marinas lies the Orbetello lagoon, framed by two natural sand spits — the Tombolo della Giannella to the north and the Tombolo della Feniglia to the south, its pine forest protected as a nature reserve. Shallow throughout, the lagoon suits kitesurfing and birdwatching (it is a well-known WWF site) far better than boat rental: charters run from the two marinas that open onto the Tyrrhenian Sea, on either side of the peninsula.

Heading out to the island of Giglio

A little under an hour by sea from Porto Santo Stefano, the island of Giglio is worth the crossing: clear water around Giglio Porto and Giglio Campese, granite coves reachable only by boat, and a seabed that has fully regained its clarity since the wreck of the Costa Concordia was completely removed in 2014. Regular ferries (Toremar, Maregiglio) serve the island from Porto Santo Stefano, but renting your own boat lets you string together several anchorages instead of working around a timetable.

Giannutri, inside the Tuscan Archipelago National Park

Further south, Giannutri lies within the Tuscan Archipelago National Park, the largest marine protected area in the Mediterranean — like Elba, covered in our guide to Tuscany, Punta Ala and San Vincenzo. Anchoring is tightly regulated here, and mooring buoys are compulsory wherever they exist: a landmark study run in France's Port-Cros National Park measured that a single anchoring cycle (dropping and retrieving the anchor) destroys on average around thirty seagrass shoots, especially where the meadow is already sparse (Francour, Ganteaume & Poulain, Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 1999, see the study on Google Scholar) — a good reason why the Tuscan Archipelago's protected zones enforce such strict rules. Our guide to marine protected areas covers the reflexes that apply here just as everywhere else in the Mediterranean.

When to sail

The wind here follows the classic western Mediterranean pattern: calm mornings, an afternoon thermal breeze that typically builds between 2 and 3pm in summer, and the occasional libeccio (a south-westerly) outside peak season. As elsewhere on the Tyrrhenian coast, plan the crossing to Giglio or Giannutri early in the morning, while the sea is still flat.

A license-free threshold that differs from France

Unlike France's 6-horsepower license-free rule, Italy sets its own power threshold below which no license is required — and it does not match the French one. Before booking, check the conditions that apply to the specific boat directly with the owner rather than assuming your usual reference points; many license-free RIB fleets still offer a local skipper as an option, a practical way to explore the best anchorages without worrying about paperwork — see our guide to renting with or without a skipper.

Budget and comparison

Expect €200-600/day for a RIB, €300-700/day for a sailboat (€1,500-4,000/week), with rates climbing noticeably in July and August on this stretch of coast long favoured by Romans and Milanese on holiday. Boat-Comparator queries Boataround, SamBoat and Click&Boat in a single search for Porto Santo Stefano and Porto Ercole, making it easy to spot the right offer before setting off for the Tuscan Archipelago. Our boat rental in Italy page covers the other major coastal bases, from Liguria to Sicily.

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Also worth reading

• How much does it cost to rent a boat in 2026? Real prices
• License-Free Boat Rental in France: Rules, Prices & Where to Book
• Renting with or without a skipper: how to choose