If you’d like, they can suggest unique stores, beaches, historical sites, restaurants, and bars that are usually known only to locals and frequent visitors.
Experienced Skippers
All of our trips include a friendly, experienced, English-speaking, Greek skipper who will navigate the boat, and more importantly serve as a knowledgeable guide to the ins-and-outs of each island.
Local Experts
Skilled Hostesses
If your trip includes a Hostess, they’ll handle all of the grocery shopping and prepare daily breakfast and lunch.
Trips with hostesses will be stocked with a variety of beverages (including water, wine and beer), fresh fruit, coffee, bread, and snacks when you arrive. We’ll work with you before your trip to discuss any specific food/drink preferences or allergies.
Captains & Hostesses
It is possible to add a hostess to any of our charters as long as there is an extra cabin available for the hostess to sleep in. Here are there details for each yacht:
Lagoon 380: 2 cabins for passengers, 2 cabins for crew. Max 4 passengers with hostess
Saona 47: 4 cabins for passengers, 2 cabins for crew. Max 8 passengers with hostess
Lagoon 450: 2 cabins for passengers, 2 cabins for crew. Max 6 passengers with hostess
Both the skipper and hostess will certainly speak English. They will be happy to answer all your questions in regards to Greek food, culture, history, etc. They will also assist your party in choosing restaurants and ordering local specialties if you would like them to accompany you to dinner in the evenings.
Your skilled hostess/chef will assist the captain with sailing and anchoring in port as well as prepare breakfast and lunches throughout your journey. As far as meals and provisions the following is included:
Daily breakfast and lunch: Breakfast will generally be an assortment of pastries, cereal, yogurt, fruit, cheese, bread, etc. The featured meal will be a delicious multi-course lunch consisting of authentic greek/ mediterranean dishes prepared with fresh ingredients from the islands.
An assortment of snacks and beverages: This includes water, fruit, coffee, and snacks as well as a selection of items tailored to your preference which may include juices, soda, house wine and beer.
**We’ll reach out to you prior to charter about any specific food/drink preferences or allergies. While on charter, if you have any specific food/drink requests just let the hostess know and as long as the item is available she will pick them up at the markets on the islands (there may be an extra cost for expensive items such as premium wines and hard liquor). Dinners are not included because we recommend dining out at one of the incredible local restaurants on the islands (the captain/hostess will be happy to recommend places).
Note: The hostess is not permitted to enter or clean guest cabins.
We’re confident you’ll see first-hand just how hard our crews work to make your trip unforgettable. Because of this, we highly recommend tipping at the end of the charter. This is a great way to show your appreciation for the crew, and it’s also an important part of the service culture of Greece, where tipping is seen as genuine feedback on an individual’s work.
While tipping can vary based on the size of your group, the guidelines below can help you understand an average tip when charter sailing in Greece.
- Charters with a captain and hostess: 15-20% of charter price (this total can be split between captain and hostess)
- Charters with a captain only: 10-15% of charter price
On captain-only charters without a hostess, it is also common to offer the captain snacks and/or lunch during the trip. While they may not accept, they are often sailing all day and rarely have time to prepare lunch on their own.
Tipping note: Cash is the best option when tipping, however if you don’t have enough cash at the end of the charter you can email us and we can collect the tip via Venmo/PayPal/Zelle.
The captain’s first priority is safety, so it’s important to understand that weather-based route decisions will follow this principle. Their second priority is to help you have the best possible vacation. We find that clients who interact with their skipper while on charters have the best overall experience. Don’t hesitate to ask questions if you would like to learn more about sailing, history, or activities on the islands you visit. If you’d like to get to know them a bit better, feel free to invite them to dinner on one of your first few evenings. They’ll likely know the best off the beaten path restaurants and local menu items on each island. That being said, the captain doesn’t expect this at all and understands that every client has their own unique preference and personality.
Generally the skipper will sleep in one of the available cabins. On smaller catamarans this would be one of the standard rooms, while some larger yachts have specific skipper cabins. If you have any questions about this, just let us know.
We only work with a small number of Greek skippers and hostesses who meet our strict standards on sailing ability, local knowledge and friendliness. We understand that having a fantastic skipper/hostess who know the islands, food and culture is a crucial part of your overall charter sailing experience.
We schedule the skipper/hostess a few months prior to your trip when we know the full booking slate for that week. If you have a preferred skipper/hostess we’ll do our best to accommodate your request but there are certain weeks they may be unavailable or pre-booked on another trip.
Meet Our Hostesses
Mary
Mary was born in Athens, studied English in London, and has been working with Greek Seas for over 10 years. Our guests rave about her amazing meals and drinks, as well has her cultural knowledge of the islands. She speaks English, Greek, Italian and German.
Anna
Meet Our Skippers
Kostas
Kostas began sailing at the young age of 14, but it was his dream since he was 9yrs old. At the age of 18 he attained his offshore sailing skippers license. A year later Kostas joined the Greek Merchant Navy Academy as a deck cadet, where he was trained in navigation, meteorology, safety issues and more.
Since 1999, Kostas has worked as a full time skipper, sailing thousands of miles a year in charter and deliveries in Greece, the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. When you sail with him you’ll notice that he seemingly knows tons of people on every island and is able to make all kinds of arrangements for activities, dinners, excursions, etc. He is known for his kind demeanor and his willingness to share with you the secrets and pleasure of yachting and the unmatched beauty of Greece. His favorite place to sail is Cyclades.
Kiriakos
Kiriakos was born in the island of Ikaria. Because the island of Ikaria is surrounded by rough and high seas, many citizens were raised to be sailors. His father was a captain on cargo ships who often took Kiriakos on big trips around the world when he was a child..
He took to sailing at a very young age, soon started to captain sailing boats in races and charter trips. He has owned a boat for many years which has been one of his prize possessions.
His favorite island is the island from which he was born, Ikaria, but he loves the entire the Aegean. When the season is over, if he is not sailing in international waters, you will probably find him racing his own boat in a local regatta.
Yiannis A.
Yiannis was born on the beautiful island of Paros in the Cyclades. He’s been sailing the Greek isles since he as far back as he can remember. His impressive sailing ability is complemented by a laid back demeanor and friendly face, making him a perfect captain for charters. He also prides himself on knowing the best restaurants, bars and beaches on many of the smaller Greek Islands.
Yiannis P.
Yiannis P. is half-Athenian & half-Cretan and, as everyone is in Greece, is very proud of where he’s from.
He’s been sailing since he completed his military service – first with friends, in sailing races, and transferring yachts around Greece, and then as a charter sailing captain. While most refer to passengers as ‘customers’, he likes to think of them as ‘co-sailors’.
When he’s not sailing he enjoys playing music – he says both help keep your spirit free.