598 guides · page 4/29

Boat rental guides

Real prices, licenses, skippers, platforms, itineraries: concrete answers before you book.

• Renting a Boat Without a Car: Harbours You Can Reach by TrainNo car needed to head out to sea: the harbours Boat-Comparator tracks that you can reach directly by train, the ones worth double-checking, and why it's worth thinking about.
• Skopelos or Alonissos: Which Boat Trip from Skiathos?Mamma Mia's film set or a monk seal sanctuary: how to choose between Skopelos and Alonissos for a boat trip out of Skiathos, in Greece's Sporades islands.
• Where to Rent a Boat in Corsica? A Tour of the Island to Choose WellCap Corse, Balagne, Scandola, the Gulf of Ajaccio, the Bonifacio Strait, the east coast: a panorama of Corsica's boat rental bases, with the areas Boat-Comparator tracks and how to choose for your plans.
• License-free boating in France: the 6 hp engine limit, explainedWhere the 6 hp (4.5 kW) cap comes from, how it's measured, what it actually lets you do on the water, and what changes if you want more power.
• No Wind on a Rental Sailboat: What to Do in a Dead Calm?Sails flapping, glassy water, not a breath of air: a dead calm is part of chartering a sailboat. Why it happens, how to plan around it, and what to actually do once you're out on the water.
• Groix or Belle-Île: Which Island to Choose by Boat from Lorient or Quiberon?The crescent-shaped Grands Sables beach or the wild cliffs at the Aiguilles de Port-Coton: Groix and Belle-Île, Morbihan's two big islands, compared for a rental boat outing.
• Les Sables-d'Olonne, Home of the Vendée Globe: Boat Rental on the Côte de LumièreThe Sables-d'Olonne channel, start and finish line of the Vendée Globe, and the long Remblai beach: this Vendée town blends offshore-racing heritage with family-friendly boating. What to know before you rent.
• La Ciotat or Cassis: Which Base for a Boat Rental to the Calanques?Île Verte and the Figuerolles cove on one side, the heart of the Calanques national park on the other: La Ciotat and Cassis, two neighbouring bases for exploring the Calanques by rental boat.
• Hyères or Toulon: Which Base for a Boat Rental to the Golden Islands?A direct hop to Porquerolles or a large, sheltered roadstead: Hyères and Toulon both give access to the Golden Islands, but with very different distances and moods. How to choose your base.
• Calvi or Saint-Florent: Which Base for a Boat Rental in Upper Corsica?The Revellata bay against the wild Agriates desert: two Upper Corsica bases with opposite personalities for a rental boat. An iconic beach on one side, a nature reserve on the other.
• Propriano or Ajaccio: Which Base for a Boat Rental in Southern Corsica?The intimate Gulf of Valinco versus the wide Gulf of Ajaccio and the Sanguinaires islands: two neighbouring bases in southern Corsica, two different days on the water. What to know before you book.
• The "Ports Propres" (Clean Harbours) Label: What It Means for a Rental Boat StopoverWaste sorting, wastewater pump-out, controlled hull maintenance: the Ports Propres label certifies a marina's environmental practices. What it actually means for a stopover on a rented boat, and how it differs from Blue Flag.
• The Currents of the Gulf of Morbihan: the Real Danger for a Rental BoatNine knots at the Jument current, Europe's second-strongest tidal stream: in the Gulf of Morbihan, the real hazard for a rental boat isn't the wind but the tide. Understanding the phenomenon before you cast off.
• Are There Sharks in the Mediterranean? What Boat Renters Should Actually KnowBlue sharks and shortfin makos do live in the Mediterranean, but the real risk for a rental boat outing has little to do with the open-water imagination. A grounded, myth-busting look.
• Trip Cancellation Insurance for a Boat Rental: Is It Worth It?Illness, a last-minute setback, a genuine emergency: what trip cancellation insurance actually covers on a boat rental, how it differs from a platform's weather guarantee, and when your bank card already has you covered.
• Returning the Boat Late: What It Costs, and How to Avoid ItReturn time missed, contract penalties, the next renter waiting on the dock: late return is the most avoidable incident in boat rental. How to plan your way back — and what to do if it slips anyway.
• Electric Windlass: Anchoring and Weighing Anchor Properly on a Rental BoatLowering, laying out, recovering: the electric windlass does the work, provided you follow three rules — engine running, fingers away from the gypsy, and never pull the boat with the windlass. The rental how-to.
• Autopilot on a Rental Boat: Use It Well, but Never Hand It the WatchCompass heading, wind mode, GPS route: an autopilot equips most rental sailboats. How to use it, when to disengage it, and why keeping watch remains your job — not its.
• Saint-Tropez or Sainte-Maxime: Where to Rent a Boat in the Gulf?Same gulf, same waters, two moods and two budgets: should you rent your boat in Saint-Tropez or across the water in Sainte-Maxime? The comparison to choose your shore.
• Porto-Vecchio or Bonifacio: Where to Start for Corsica's Far South?Palombaggia and Santa Giulia on one side, the cliffs and the Lavezzi on the other: Porto-Vecchio and Bonifacio share southern Corsica. Waters, wind, distances: the comparison to choose your base.
• Paros or Naxos: Which Island for a Boat Rental in the Heart of the Cyclades?Separated by a channel of just a few miles, Paros and Naxos are the two central bases of the Cyclades. Waters, shelter, meltemi, license-free options: the comparison to choose your starting island.