Mediterranean Yacht Show Yacht Charter

Why Mediterranean Yacht Show belongs on the water

Mediterranean Yacht Show day-by-day

Indicative running order based on prior editions. Final times are released by the organisers closer to the date; your concierge will confirm the working schedule for your charter week.

1. Day –3 to –1

   Sat–Mon pre-week

   Yacht arrivals & broker-preview rig

   Greek-flagged charter fleet arrives Nafplion through the prior weekend from winter berths across the Saronic, the Cyclades and the Ionian. Visiting European-flagged yachts repositioning from Croatia, Italy and Turkey for the summer season arrive Sunday and Monday. The Old Port of Nafplion takes the headline display jetty; secondary anchorage in the bay accommodates the larger yachts.

2. Day 1 — Tue

   MEDYS opens, broker registrations

   Broker delegations from across the global charter brokerage industry register Tuesday morning at the Nafplion Land Tower. Walk-through schedule for the week issued; first afternoon walk-throughs begin. Tuesday-evening Welcome Reception hosted by the Greek Yachting Association in the Nafplion old town.

3. Day 2 — Wed

   First working walk-through day, themed dinner one

   Working broker walk-through schedule from 09:00 to 18:00 across the displayed fleet. Wednesday-evening: first themed dinner round — yachts host pre-allocated broker delegations to dinner aboard against a published regional menu (Greek night, Mediterranean night or similar). Brokers rotate yachts across the three or four dinner-night cycles of the week.

4. Day 3 — Thu

   Working day, themed dinner two

   Working walk-throughs through the day. Thursday-evening: second themed dinner round. Visiting principal walk-throughs (clients invited by their brokers to attend the show in person) typically concentrate Wednesday and Thursday.

5. Day 4 — Fri

   Working day, themed dinner three

   Final full working walk-through day. Friday-evening: third themed dinner round and the show's principal awards programme (best chef, best crew, best yacht across the displayed fleet).

6. Day 5 — Sat

   Closing & broker departures

   Final morning walk-throughs and broker-to-yacht debriefs. Show formally closes Saturday afternoon; broker delegations depart Saturday evening and Sunday morning for the summer charter season.

7. Day 6 — Sun

   Charter season opens

   Greek-flagged charter season formally opens. Yachts begin repositioning for first charters across the Saronic and the Cyclades. Clients with MEDYS-bridge charters typically board Sunday afternoon at Nafplion for an immediate departure into the Saronic Gulf.

Where the week actually happens

The berths, terraces, lounges, and tables that define Mediterranean Yacht Show. Access varies: some require a host on the inside, others can be arranged through our concierge.

• Berth
  Old Port of Nafplion

  The historic Venetian-era harbour of Nafplion, the show's central display jetty. Mediterranean-stern positions for yachts to 50m along the principal quay; bay anchorage for larger yachts with constant tender access.

• Anchorage
  Bourtzi Castle anchorage

  The small island fortress in the centre of the bay; the natural anchorage waypoint for the larger MEDYS-displayed yachts. Tender access to the Old Port quay continuously across the show.

• Venue
  Palamidi Fortress — Nafplion

  The Venetian hilltop fortress above Nafplion, the venue for the show's principal awards-night reception. Walking distance from the Old Port quay; the most-photographed venue of the show.

• Restaurant
  Aiolos Tavern — Nafplion old town

  The working dinner alternative on shore when the yacht-side themed dinner programme is not the broker's schedule. Traditional Greek kitchen in the Nafplion old town backstreets; useful working dinner for two to ten.

• Show operations
  Land Tower — Nafplion

  MEDYS broker-registration and operations base across the show week. The administrative heart of the show; the meeting point for the daily walk-through schedule revisions and the broker delegation orientation.

• Onward cruise
  Spetses — Saronic Gulf

  The chic island of the Saronic Gulf, 90 minutes' cruise east of Nafplion. The natural first stop for the MEDYS-bridge charter departure; harbour-side dinners at Orloff and Tarsanas.

• Onward cruise
  Hydra — Saronic Gulf

  The car-free harbourtown 90 minutes further east. The contested second stop for the MEDYS-bridge charter; Sunset cocktails at the harbour's Pirate Bar and dinner at Techne or Veranda are the working principal-table format.

• Onward cruise
  Astir Beach — Vouliagmeni

  The Athens Riviera coastline 90 minutes further north. Useful waypoint for the MEDYS-bridge charter that disembarks guests through Athens International Airport; Matsuhisa Astir Beach is the working principal-table dinner.

• Restaurant
  Hera Restaurant — Nafplion

  Greek fine-dining in central Nafplion. Useful working broker-and-client dinner on the nights the themed dinner programme is light.

• Bar
  Wine bar 3SIXTY — Nafplion

  The late-evening segue venue in central Nafplion. Open across MEDYS week to capacity; the natural after-dinner extension when the themed dinner has finished.

What Mediterranean Yacht Show actually costs

Indicative all-in budgets for a seven-night charter timed to the event. Base rates are the yacht only; APA (advance provisioning, typically 30–35%), VAT where applicable, and event-week berth supplements sit on top.

A seven-day yacht itinerary around Mediterranean Yacht Show

1. Day 1 — Tue

   Athens arrival, Nafplion transfer

   Arrive Athens International, transfer by car or helicopter to Nafplion (2h drive or 30min helicopter). Board late afternoon in the Old Port. Walking orientation of the show footprint, light dinner at Hera or aboard.

2. Day 2 — Wed

   MEDYS walk-throughs day 1

   Working day at the show — broker-led walk-throughs of the principal's pre-selected 10-yacht shortlist across the day, each with the displayed yacht's captain and chief stewardess. Wednesday-evening themed dinner aboard a peer yacht in the principal's bracket.

3. Day 3 — Thu

   MEDYS walk-throughs day 2

   Second walk-through day. Working lunch on board. Thursday-evening: principal-table dinner at Aiolos Tavern in the Nafplion old town for a relaxed evening.

4. Day 4 — Fri

   Decision wrap & Palamidi reception

   Final shortlist walk-throughs Friday morning. Decision conversation Friday afternoon with the broker on the surviving two-yacht final shortlist. Friday-evening Palamidi Fortress awards reception followed by the contracted summer-charter signing dinner on board the chosen yacht.

5. Day 5 — Sat

   Show closes, Spetses departure

   Show formally closes morning. Saturday afternoon: slip lines from Nafplion for Spetses (90 minutes east), anchor in the harbour, harbour-side dinner at Orloff for the start of the MEDYS-bridge cruise.

6. Day 6 — Sun

   Hydra & Saronic

   Morning cruise to Hydra. Lunch at Techne, afternoon walk through the harbour town, Sunset cocktails at the Pirate Bar, dinner at Veranda or back aboard.

7. Day 7 — Mon

   Cyclades or Athens Riviera disembarkation

   Onward cruise either east into the Cyclades (Mykonos, Paros, Santorini for a longer continuation) or north to the Athens Riviera at Vouliagmeni for Athens International departure.

What life on board looks like

How Mediterranean Yacht Show actually gets booked

1. T–10 months
   Principal-attendance decision

   Decision to attend MEDYS in person should be taken by July of the prior year. Hotel inventory in Nafplion across MEDYS week is finite; the better hotels (Amphitryon, Nafplia Palace) take broker delegations early and close by autumn.

2. T–6 months
   Walk-through shortlist drafted

   Pre-MEDYS yacht shortlist drafted with the broker — typically 10 to 20 yachts identified from the projected displayed inventory for the principal's intended summer charter. Walk-through schedule requests submitted to GYA through October.

3. T–4 months
   Hotel & travel confirmation

   Principal travel and hotel confirmed; helicopter Athens-to-Nafplion shuttle coordinated for senior-principal arrivals.

4. T–2 months
   Walk-through schedule confirmed

   Final walk-through schedule confirmed with each displayed yacht; themed-dinner allocations confirmed for the principal table.

5. T–4 weeks
   Briefing & rehearsal

   Principal briefing with the broker on the displayed inventory; rehearsal of the working walk-through structure and the day-by-day schedule.

6. MEDYS week
   Broker on-the-ground

   Broker on-the-ground in Nafplion for the full show week; principal-and-broker working sessions across the walk-through days; post-MEDYS bridge charter handover for clients continuing into the Saronic and Cyclades.

Yachts suited to Mediterranean Yacht Show

Examples from our current fleet. Final yacht and berth are matched to your group and event week at proposal stage.

Mediterranean Yacht Show charter — questions answered in depth

• What is MEDYS, and how is it different from Cannes Yachting Festival or Monaco Yacht Show?

  MEDYS is a closed industry working preview show for the international charter brokerage community, organised by the Greek Yachting Association. It is not a public boat show — there are no walk-up tickets, no consumer attendance, and no static brand activations. The displayed yachts are walked-through by brokers across the week; the brokers' work product is the intelligence-gathering that informs client recommendations for the summer Mediterranean charter season.

• Can I attend MEDYS as a principal?

  Yes — principals attend through their broker's invitation and broker-led walk-through programme. Principal attendance is by introduction only and is structurally limited; the show is designed around broker working operations rather than principal-attendee programmes. We bring a small number of serious clients each year for one or two working days.

• What does a MEDYS-bridge charter cost?

  A 42-metre Greek-flagged yacht for the seven-day MEDYS-bridge cruise (Saturday board Nafplion through Saturday disembark Athens Riviera) typically runs €165,000–€280,000 all-in. Base charter fee of €110,000–€195,000, APA of 25–30%, and concierge, restaurant, helicopter and on-shore coordination of €25,000–€55,000. The post-MEDYS week is structurally cheaper than the high-summer equivalent.

• How do I get to Nafplion?

  Athens International Airport is the primary gateway. From Athens, helicopter shuttle to Nafplion is 30 minutes; car transfer is 2 hours. Helicopter is standard for senior principal arrivals to MEDYS; we coordinate.

• Where do guests stay in Nafplion?

  The Amphitryon and the Nafplia Palace are the principal-attendee hotel choices for clients attending MEDYS in person; both take meaningful broker delegations across the week and need to be booked by autumn of the prior year. For shorter principal-attendee stays we typically arrange the principal aboard a chartered yacht in the harbour rather than ashore.

• What's the weather in late April?

  Reliably 18–23°C daytime, 12–15°C overnight, sea conditions calm, the Saronic and western Cyclades summer pattern fully established by the end of April.

• Can I host clients or a corporate group at MEDYS?

  Not in the show's primary format — the show is closed to the public and broker-allocated. Corporate group hosting around MEDYS is typically structured as a post-show bridge charter for a corporate principal and his guests, departing Nafplion Saturday for a Saronic-and-Cyclades week.

• What's the right yacht size for a MEDYS-bridge charter?

  For a principal-and-family week through the Saronic and western Cyclades: 33–42m Greek-flagged motor yacht is the natural choice. For a multi-generational family or larger guest list: 43–52m. For a host-led summer cruise: 53m+.

• Can I extend the bridge charter into the deeper Cyclades?

  Yes — the most popular continuation. Saronic week followed by Mykonos, Paros, Naxos, Ios and Santorini for the following ten days; or Saronic week followed by an Ionian continuation via Corinth Canal to Lefkada, Ithaca and Cephalonia.

• Can children come on the bridge charter?

  Yes — the late-April Saronic is one of the most family-friendly Greek cruising windows of the year. Calm seas, mild weather, light island traffic, and the bridge-charter format (short cruising legs between Nafplion, Spetses, Hydra, Poros and Vouliagmeni) is comfortable for younger children.

• Is the WiFi on board good enough for business use?

  Yes. Greek-flagged charter yachts at the relevant scale run Starlink with redundant cellular failover; bandwidth supports board calls and video conferencing. Greek cellular coverage across the Saronic and Cyclades is excellent.

• What's the cancellation policy on a bridge charter?

  Yacht charter cancellation follows the MYBA agreement signed at contract — typically 50% deposit non-refundable from signing, balance at six months, full balance non-refundable inside ninety days. Specialist charter cancellation insurance is recommended and we introduce a broker at contracting.

Plan a greece yacht charter during mediterranean yacht show from a private superyacht — front-quay berth, Michelin-level crew, helicopter and concierge handled end-to-end.