Miami Boat Show Yacht Charter

Why Miami International Boat Show belongs on the water

Miami International Boat 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

   Sun–Tue pre-week

   Yacht arrivals & rig

   Charter yachts arrive Miami from the Bahamas, from Fort Lauderdale and from the Caribbean dock through the prior weekend. Island Gardens, Miami Beach Marina and Sunset Harbour berths take up Monday and Tuesday; the show's Marine Stadium and Pride Park footprints rig through Tuesday evening.

2. Day 1 — Wed

   Show opens, VIP preview evening

   Doors open 10:00 across Miami Marine Stadium Park, Pride Park and Superyacht Miami at Yacht Haven Grande. Wednesday-evening VIP preview programmes at the headline brokerage and shipyard displays; the opening dinner at Casa Tua, Carbone or the Setai anchors the principal-and-broker dining programme.

3. Day 2 — Thu

   First full working day

   Doors 10:00–20:00 across all three sites. Densest working day for buyer-side walk-throughs of the Superyacht Miami inventory at Yacht Haven Grande; brokerage second-round meetings begin in the late afternoon. Thursday-evening dinners at Komodo, Stubborn Seed, Le Jardinier, Cote and the principal-table programme across the South Beach and Design District restaurants.

4. Day 3 — Fri

   Latin American buyer day

   Peak attendance for the Latin American buyer community wintering in Miami. Family-office walk-throughs concentrate Friday morning; brokerage closing conversations dominate the afternoon. Friday-evening dinners are the contested night of the show calendar — restaurant reservations across the South Beach programme need to be in by late October.

5. Day 4 — Sat

   Public peak

   Public peak attendance Saturday across all three sites. Buyer-side calendar generally pauses; Saturday is the day for the Joe's Stone Crab lunch or the on-board principal-table foredeck lunch. Saturday-evening brokerage receptions on the headline yachts host the week's largest social moments.

6. Day 5 — Sun

   Final show day, Presidents' Day weekend wrap

   Final show day, doors 10:00–18:00. Light morning attendance for any remaining principal walk-throughs. Decision conversation Sunday afternoon between principal and lead brokerage on the surviving shortlist. Quiet closing dinner on board or at Cote Miami.

7. Day 6 — Mon

   Presidents' Day departure or Bahamas continuation

   Presidents' Day Monday — departure or continuation. Charter yachts disembark guests in the morning at the chartered marina for private-aviation departures, or — for clients who extend — slip lines for a 5–7 day Bahamas continuation (the Exumas, Eleuthera or the Abacos) for a post-show family decompression week.

Where the week actually happens

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

• Marina
  Island Gardens Deep Harbour Marina — Downtown Miami

  The premier Downtown Miami superyacht marina for the 50m-plus charter bracket across show week. Deep-water capacity for yachts to 100m+, twenty-minute drive to the Marine Stadium show entrance, fifteen-minute drive to the Design District. The default charter berth for the largest yachts across Miami show week.

• Marina
  Miami Beach Marina — South Beach

  Default charter berth for the 40-to-55m bracket. Walking distance to Joe's Stone Crab and the South of Fifth restaurant cluster; thirty-minute drive across the Rickenbacker Causeway to the Marine Stadium show entrance.

• Marina
  Sunset Harbour Marina — Miami Beach

  Quieter alternative to Miami Beach Marina; berths to 50m. The choice for charter clients preferring privacy over walking distance to the South of Fifth restaurant scene.

• Marina & show venue
  Yacht Haven Grande Miami — Watson Island

  Hosts the Superyacht Miami extension of the show; the dedicated 30-to-80-metre superyacht display venue across the working show days. Useful walking access between Superyacht Miami inventory and chartered hospitality berths in the same harbor.

• Restaurant
  Casa Tua — Miami Beach

  The contested Italian principal-table dinner reservation across show week. Garden room and indoor dining for tables of ten to sixteen. Book by November for the Wednesday and Friday dinner nights.

• Restaurant
  Carbone — South Beach

  Major Food Group's Miami flagship. The contested Thursday and Friday-night dinner reservation across show week; principal-table format works well for ten to fourteen.

• Restaurant
  Cote Miami — Design District

  Korean steakhouse, Michelin-starred. The contested principal-table dinner reservation in the Design District, useful when the South Beach programme is saturated and the principal table wants a different register.

• Restaurant
  Komodo — Brickell

  Groot Hospitality's Brickell anchor. Useful for the larger hosted-reception dinner of thirty plus, in the upper-floor dining rooms; the more social-energy alternative to Casa Tua.

• Restaurant
  Joe's Stone Crab — South Beach

  The Miami institution, open across the Presidents' Day weekend to capacity. The principal-and-broker working lunch venue across show week; Joe's Take-Away is the natural on-yacht lunch solution for Friday and Saturday.

• Hotel & dining
  The Setai Miami Beach

  The contested working principal-table French and Asian dinner alternative at the Setai's Jaya restaurant. The poolside bar and beachfront host a number of brokerage and luxury-house reception programmes across show week.

What Miami International Boat 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 Miami International Boat Show

1. Day 1 — Tue

   Miami board, soft evening

   Board mid-afternoon at Island Gardens or Miami Beach Marina. Orientation of the marina and the South Beach programme, early-evening Champagne service, quiet on-board dinner before the show opens Wednesday.

2. Day 2 — Wed

   Show opens, opening dinner

   Morning entry to Miami Marine Stadium and the Superyacht Miami display. Working lunch on board. Wednesday-evening VIP preview programme at the major brokerages; opening principal-table dinner at Casa Tua.

3. Day 3 — Thu

   First full working day, headline reception

   Working day at the show — five or six walk-throughs of the Superyacht Miami inventory. 18:30 — host headline yacht reception for fifty on the aft deck. 20:30 — principal-table dinner at Carbone or Le Jardinier.

4. Day 4 — Fri

   Latin American buyer day

   Family-office and senior buyer concentration. Working lunch at Joe's Stone Crab for the principal-and-broker table. Friday-evening principal-table dinner at Cote Miami or on board.

5. Day 5 — Sat

   Lunch escape & closing reception

   Saturday lunch on the foredeck or at a private Star Island table. Saturday-evening closing reception aboard a peer brokerage yacht; quiet dinner on board to follow.

6. Day 6 — Sun

   Decision day, show closes

   Final show day. Decision conversation with the lead brokerage on the two-yacht surviving shortlist. Quiet closing dinner on board.

7. Day 7 — Mon

   Departure or Bahamas continuation

   Presidents' Day Monday — disembark for private-aviation departures, or slip lines for an overnight passage to Bimini and a 5–7 day Bahamas continuation through the Exumas or Eleuthera.

What life on board looks like

How Miami International Boat Show actually gets booked

1. T–10 to T–12 months
   Yacht longlist & berth strategy

   Charter enquiries for the following February show open in April or May of the prior year. Island Gardens, Miami Beach Marina and Sunset Harbour allocations firm up through autumn; the better positions are taken by October.

2. T–6 months
   Yacht contracted

   Yacht contracted with 50% deposit by August for a February show. Berth contract confirmed in parallel.

3. T–4 months
   Show & broker programme

   Bilateral walk-through schedule with major US and Latin American selling brokers across the show inventory. Restaurant reservations confirmed across Casa Tua, Carbone, Cote, Komodo, Le Jardinier, Stubborn Seed and Joe's Stone Crab take-away for the working dinner programme.

4. T–2 months
   Guest list & dietary lock

   Final guest list, arrival flights, dietary requirements, stateroom assignments to chief stewardess. Private-aviation slots at Opa-Locka or Miami Executive coordinated for principal and guests.

5. T–4 weeks
   Rehearsal & supplier confirmation

   Captain, chief stewardess and chef walk through the daily flow with the broker. Suppliers confirmed; branded provisioning ordered if relevant.

6. Show week
   Live concierge

   On-site concierge from Tuesday through Sunday morning at Island Gardens or Miami Beach Marina, holding the master schedule in real time.

Yachts suited to Miami International Boat Show

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

Miami International Boat Show charter — questions answered in depth

• What does a Miami Boat Show yacht charter cost, all-in?

  A 42-metre yacht for the show week (six nights, Tuesday arrival through Sunday close) typically runs $225,000–$410,000 all-in. That comprises a base charter fee of $145,000–$260,000, APA of 30%, the marina berth supplement of $14,000–$30,000, and concierge, restaurant, private-aviation and on-shore coordination of $45,000–$95,000. A 52-metre yacht moves the all-in to $460,000–$880,000; 65m+ moves beyond $1.5m.

• How is the Miami show different from Fort Lauderdale?

  Miami is roughly half FLIBS's footprint and skews more to the sub-50-metre US-flagged inventory; the buyer profile leans heavily to the Latin American and Northeast US wealth wintering in Miami; the surrounding social-and-dining calendar is denser (South Beach, Design District, Brickell) but the show floor itself is less commercially intense than FLIBS.

• Can I get an Island Gardens or Miami Beach Marina berth?

  Yes — engagement by summer of the prior year is recommended for the better positions. Both marinas offer transient charter berths across show week; allocation is broker-coordinated and the better positions are taken through autumn.

• What's the right yacht size for the show?

  For a principal-and-advisor buyer charter: 35–46m. For a brokerage or Latin American principal-anchor charter with meaningful hosted receptions: 47–58m. For a shipyard headline activation: 59m+. The 45–55m bracket is the sweet spot.

• Can I host brokerage and dealer meetings on board?

  Yes — this is the most common single use-case. The sky lounge or formal indoor dining is the venue for working meetings; the aft deck or beach club hosts lighter post-walk debriefs.

• Can I extend the charter into the Bahamas?

  Yes — the most popular continuation. Slip lines Sunday or Monday from Miami, overnight passage to Bimini, then onward to the Exumas (Highbourne Cay, Norman's Cay, Staniel Cay), Eleuthera (Harbour Island) or the Abacos. February is one of the calmest Bahamas weather windows of the year.

• How does the show coordinate with Superyacht Miami at Yacht Haven Grande?

  Superyacht Miami runs concurrently with the main show as the dedicated 30-to-80-metre display extension at Yacht Haven Grande on Watson Island. Working buyer schedules typically split between Marine Stadium for the sub-30-metre inventory and Yacht Haven Grande for the superyacht bracket; the chartered yacht acts as the calm working base between the two sites.

• What's the weather in mid-February?

  Reliably 22–25°C daytime, 16–19°C overnight, humidity moderate, rain rare. The one operational risk is a cold front from the north; we monitor through the week. Aft-deck reception evenings are weather-friendly with high confidence.

• How do guests get to Miami?

  MIA (Miami International) is the primary commercial gateway — 15 minutes from Downtown, 25 minutes from Miami Beach. Opa-Locka and Miami Executive (KTMB) are the private-aviation primary fields. FLL is a useful alternative 40 minutes north.

• Can children come?

  Yes — Presidents' Day weekend is a natural family-charter window and we run multi-generational families around the show successfully. The parallel programme run by the chief stewardess (Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, the Frost Museum, Key Biscayne beach mornings, paddle-boarding) sits comfortably alongside the adult show calendar.

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

  Yes. US east-coast charter yachts run Starlink with redundant cellular failover; bandwidth supports board calls, video conferencing and a connected hospitality programme. Miami cellular coverage is excellent across both marina sides.

• What's the cancellation policy?

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

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