May 05 2019

The 10 Most Popular Monohull Sailing Yachts of the Charter Season 2019

Which are the most popular sailboats of the charter season 2019? The survey was done by YachtSys using Big Data from 330 charter fleets with around 5,000 yachts in 600 international ports. Only operations on monohull sailboats made by charter agencies or by charter customers were used for the statistic. In this article we reveal the TOP 10 charter boats of the year 2019 and present their characteristics which are relevant for a yacht charter vacation.

The 2019 sailing season has already begun and around two-thirds of the weeks available in the charter market are already booked. This is the right time to take a look at which sailing yachts enjoy the greatest popularity among charter customers in the current 2019 season. The ranking does not include catamarans as they serve a different customer segment. We want to find out which are the most popular charter boats for yacht charter holidays in 2019. 

The relevant period is from October 2018 to May 2019. This period marks the beginning of the booking season until today. In YachtSys were tracked transactions of 330 international charter providers for around 5,000 yachts. About 95% of them are sailing boats. Monohull boats account for 75% of this total.

"The TOP 10 of the most popular cruising yachts out of 50,000 charter requests, representing around 5,000 yachts in 600 ports of 330 charter fleets."

Around fifty thousand "operations" were evaluated from the Big Data of YachtSys. An operation is a business transaction of the type offer, option or booking. Every operation indicates a clear customer interest for the related charter boat model. Only incoming operations from agencies or direct inquiries from charter customers were taken into account in order to determine the most faithful mapping of active demand behavior.

The yacht size, number of cabins or age was not a criterion in the ranking analysis. The goal was to determine the TOP 10 most popular sailing yacht models in the monohull segment for the 2019 season.
The following chart shows the number of registered operations per yacht model as a percentage. Among the ten most sought-after charter yachts are sailing yachts from the shipyards Bavaria Yachtbau, Jeanneau and Bénéteau.

The TOP 10 of the most popular charter boats of the 2019 season (Monohulls)

Most popular charter yachts of season 2019

It turns out that for the Oceanis 43, which lies on place 10, there were registered about half of the operations (49%) as for the first placed yacht Bavaria Cruiser 46 (100%).

"The most popular yacht model Bavaria Cruiser 46 could book approximately twice as many customer operations, as the Bénéteau Oceanis 43, situated on place 10."

Below, we present the TOP 10 of the most popular sailboat models of this charter season. We briefly explain some highlights of these yacht models. However, this is not intended to be a complete description of their sailing characteristics, workmanship or technique.

1. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 46

The most popular monohull sailing yacht of the 2019 charter season is the Bavaria Cruiser 46. This 14 meter long sailing boat with double wheel steering and foldable XXL-cockpit-table has been built by Bavaria Werft in Giebelstadt since autumn 2013. It represents the innovative replacement of its predecessor Bavaria Cruiser 45, which is only one foot shorter (5th place, see below). In November 2015, the shipyard gave the Cruiser 46 a facelift, which granted further optical innovations. In the same year the Bavaria Cruiser 46 was voted "European Yacht of the Year".

Bavaria Cruiser 46 - The most popular sailboat of season 2019

The highlight of the Bavaria Cruiser 46 is the relatively simple divisibility of the huge forward cabin. The 3-cabin owner version can be reconfigured to a 4-cabin charter version by inserting a portable partition wall. In charter operation, the Bavaria Cruiser 46 is usually offered as a 4 cabin version to meet the demand of larger crews. Characteristic for the new Cruiser line are the long salon windows. With a comfortable bathing platform and three heads, the Bavaria Cruiser 46 is the unbeaten top charter yacht of the 2019 season, probably also thanks to her excellent price-performance ratio.

In YachtSys 75 Bavaria Cruiser 46 yachts can be booked online. On a video in the Youtube channel of Bavaria Yachtbau, the Bavaria Cruiser 46 is presented in action with blister and tacking under full sails. Further descriptions of the Bavaria Cruiser 46 can be seen on the Bavaria Homepage.

Charter customers can book the Bavaria Cruiser 46 via YachtBooker in about 50 different European ports.

2. Place: Bavaria 46 Cruiser

On the second place of the most popular charter yachts of the current season 2019 follows the Bavaria 46 Cruiser. The yacht model was built until 2010. She could book about 80% of the inquiries in comparison to the first placed Cruiser model. In fact, there are still over a hundred, up to 14 year old units of this extremely successful charter boat in the international rental business.

Bavaria Cruiser 46 - 2nd most popular charterboat of season 2019

The Bavaria 46 Cruiser was one of the early serial yachts in its class, which already had a double-wheel steering and 4 relatively spacious cabins. This sailing yacht, nowadays already a classic in the charter market, attracts above all price-conscious charter customers who want to keep their holiday budget low. As our statistics show, well maintained Bavaria 46 Cruiser models still have many fans, probably also thanks to their "nautical ambience". However, the charter crew must be satisfied with only 2 heads - a circumstance the true sailor obviously still accepts. They still like to start their sailing holiday with this robust charter yacht - surely also because some people associate unforgettable sailing experiences with this yacht.

The Bavaria 46 Cruiser is available for your charter holiday in eleven countries. Just book it online via YachtBooker.

3. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 51

With 25% distance to the most popular sailing yacht the Bavaria Cruiser 51 landed on the third place of our charter popularity ranking list. The Bavaria Cruiser 51 can be considered the "big sister" of the Cruiser 46. The 51er model was launched in 2014 as the last of the modernized Cruiser series. As a convertible 4 or 5 cabin version and a total length of almost 16 meters, it is the first choice for the crew who wants a generous amount of space. Inviting is the wide, flat cockpit, which can be easily accessed from the huge lowered bathing platform via two flat steps.

With a fast hull from Farr Yacht Design, the Bavaria Cruiser 51 shows itself to be very agile and is still well controllable even in strong wind (Yacht Test 2014).

The sailing yacht Bavaria Cruiser 51 has been in service in many European charter fleets for many years. In YachtSys.com more than 50 units of this popular charter yacht can be booked in a dozen ports of the Mediterranean Sea.

This video on YouTube makes you look forward to your charter holiday with the Bavaria Cruiser 51. More details about the yacht can be found on the product page of the shipyard .

You can comfortably compare suitable offers for the Bavaria Cruiser 51 for your next charter trip in the 14 meter class on YachtBooker.

4. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 41

The Bavaria Cruiser 41 model achieved fourth place in the popularity ranking with a 73% enquiry volume. The sailing yacht Bavaria Cruiser 41 is available since June 2013, where it replaced its predecessor, the Cruiser 40 (9th place, see below), with many innovative improvements. It is still in production today. In this respect, many relatively new yachts of this yacht model are available for charter holidays.

4th place of Top 10 most-sought after sailingyacht

Compared to its predecessor, the Cruiser 40, the deck has essentially been modernised and more space has been made available in the foredeck. Larger, but fewer windows, more comfort in the cockpit, a new smooth-running steering system and more light in the saloon are the highlights of this sailing boat of the 12 meter class. A video with a test of the Bavaria Cruiser 40 was published by Yacht.tv. On the YouTube channel of the Bavaria shipyard, the joy of a family sailing holiday on this yacht model is impressively captured in a video.

About 60 yachts of the Bavaria Cruiser 41 model are offered for charter in YachtSys. Usually charter boats of the Bavaria Cruiser 41 have three cabins and two bathrooms. Sailors can book the yachts of the model Bavaria Cruiser 41 from Croatian, Greek or Spanish charter fleets via YachtBooker.

5. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 45

The sailing yacht Bavaria Cruiser 45, which was delivered by Giebelstädter Werft between 2010 and 2013, occupies fifth place with around 70% of the maximum number of charter requests.

Bavaria Cruiser 45 - 5th Place of TOP 10

It fundamentally modernized its predecessor, the extremely popular Bavaria 46 Cruiser (2nd place, see above). This sailboat owes this to the hull of Farr Yacht Design and the deck design by BMW Group DesignworksUSA, which was able to implement dynamic shapes and, for the first time, 3 heads in the 14-metre class. The magazine boot24.ch evaluated the concept (translated from German): "A refreshingly modern styled ship, calm, clear lines, lots of space". The yacht praised in the test the good controllability in wind pressure, the simple and functional deck and the well thought-out and well-proportioned interior.

The Bavaria Cruiser 45 has been replaced in the production then from 2014 by the new Bavaria Cruiser 46, which, as can be read above, is currently the most sought-after charter boat. Only about 100 units of this popular charter yacht are still operating in the boat rental business.

6. Place: Bénéteau Oceanis 45

The sailing yacht model Oceanis 45 of the French shipyard Bénéteau is ranked sixth in our ranking of the most popular monohull charter boats. The Bénetéau model reached 64% of the highest request volume.

The model was once named Yacht of the Year 2012 in the class of cruising yachts. This product video of the Oceanis 45 impressively demonstrates the amenities associated with a trip on this boat.

The Oceanis 45, which was built until the year 2018, is available in 3 or 4 cabins. Both have 2 bathrooms. Noteworthy is the enormous width of 4.5 meters, which endures to the stern and the cockpit look huge compared to other yachts in this class.

In YachtSys, charter agencies can book online around 70 units of this popular cruising yacht in well-known charter ports such as Trogir, Pula, Athens, Corfu or Mallorca. Sailing vacationers can get quotations for the Oceanis 45 on YachtBooker or book directly on-line. The Oceanis 45 has a successor model since this spring, the Oceanis 46.1. Over a dozen units have already been delivered to yacht charter fleets.

7. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 37

It is quite remarkable that charter boats under 40 feet are already underrepresented in the general interest of charter customers. In fact, the Bavaria Cruiser 37 is only ranked seventh (62%) in our overall rating, although it is the most sought-after Kiel yacht in its class.

On YachtSys there are 50 yachts Bavaria Cruiser 37 with mostly 3 cabins listed. As usual for yachts in the 11 meter class, the charter crew has to share a single bathroom, but it offers a double-steering system.

The yacht wrote in its test report from 2013 (translated from German): "More light through larger windows, new optics, allegedly more space in the cockpit, double wheels and a freshly designed interior characterize the boat.”

The Cruiser 37 was delivered from 2013 and is still part of the Bavaria model series. A nice slideshow with views of the Bavaria Cruiser 37 has been compiled by Topspeed. Even more impressively presents Bavaria the Cruiser 37 on a sailing trip in the Mediterranean Sea. On the product website of the shipyard, there is more information about the ship and even interactive 360° views.

You can easily book your sailing holiday on this most popular charter boat of the 11 m-Class online on YachtBooker.

"It is remarkable that charter boats less than 40 feet in length are already underrepresented in the general interest of charter customers."

8. Place: Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 36i

Here is another sailing yacht in the class below 40 feet, which has made it into the TOP 10 (57%) of the most popular charter boats. The Sun Odyssey 36i, built by the French shipyard Jeanneau, was launched between 2007 and 2012. In charter fleets it is usually represented with 3 cabins, less often also as 2 cabin version. Its popularity in the charter market is very probably also due to the competitive selling price, which undercut many series yachts of the same class. Currently more than 40 units of this popular charter cruiser can be booked in YachtSys.

The Swiss website boat24.ch stated in September 2008 about the 36-foot sailboat (translated from German): "The sailing characteristics are one of the great assets of the Sun Odyssey 36i. Designer Marc Lombard has succeeded in drawing an agile, faster than average yacht." The German testers from the “Yacht” magazine also drew a positive conclusion "... the new Jeanneau offers an overall harmonious package that is convincing under sail, looks as powerful as it is contemporary and has a modern design. "

Although the model Sun Odyssey 36i is getting on in years, the elegant sailboat can still be rented by charter agencies via YachtSys in almost all European charter areas such as Croatia, Italy, Turkey, Mallorca and Sun Odyssey 36i on YachtBooker for 25 departure ports.

9. Place: Bavaria Cruiser 40

The Bavaria Cruiser 40 occupies the nineth place. She replaced the almost identical named Bavaria 40 Cruiser from 2010 on. The Cruiser 40 was the first three-cabin yacht to feature 2 bathrooms and an extremely attractive bathing platform for charter guests, which can be folded out manually.

The Bavaria Cruiser 40 was only built until 2013. From 2014 onwards the Bavaria designers immediately added the Cruiser 41 (4th place, see above) with various innovations. For this reason there are only a few dozen ships of the Bavaria Cruiser 40 in international charter fleets.

The German magazine “Segeln” tested the 12 meter class cruiser and cheered: "... the special feature of the Bavaria Cruiser 40 is its incredible ability to reach a height of up to 30 degrees at the wind. ... She will inspire therefore above all owners interested in sporty sailing ... "

BoatShow.tv has released a detailed test video about the Bavaria Cruiser 40.

Charter agencies can book the Bavaria Cruiser 40 directly via YachtSys in the Baltic Sea, the IJsselmeer, Greece, Turkey, Majorca, Sicily and Dalmatia. Charter crews can compare on YachtBooker the best deals for the Bavaria Cruiser 40.

10. Place: Bénéteau Oceanis 43

The sailing yacht Oceanis 43 is the third yacht model of the French Beneteau Group, which has made it into the TOP 10 of the most sought-after charter boats. At 49%, the Oceanis 43 represents about half of the customer interest compared to the top-ranked yacht model. The 13 metre yacht was delivered by Bénéteau to charter fleets between 2007 and 2011 and can still be booked today in all important sailing areas.Oceanis 43 is characterised by the Berret-Racoupeau-Design, a long aft body with wide coils. The Oceanis has a pleasing cockpit with a folding table that also holds the chart plotter. The yacht has been given a bathing platform, albeit small but easily accessible. Teak handles on the saloon deck and a wooden foot rail complete the elegant appearance of the sailboat.

In contrast to the Cyclades line at that time, the Oceanis was actually designed more for the owner, but was also widely used in the charter market as a 3 and 4 cabin version. In YouTube there is still the original product video of the Oceanis 43.

On YachtSys, 36 Oceanis 43 units can be booked from around two dozen ports. Charter customers can get information about the Oceanis 43 on YachtBooker.

Which segment of charter sailboats have the highest demand?

Our statistics evaluated from Big Data of the Yacht Charter Market show that the focus of customer interest in the 2019 season is clearly on the 4-cabin segment in the 13 to 14 metre class. Only two sailing yachts under 40 feet made it into TOP 10 ranking of the most popular charter boats. The German shipyard Bavaria Yachtbau is represented in the TOP 10 with seven models. Its Cruiser models, even provides the complete TOP 5 of the most demanded charter yachts. The French Groupe Beneteau, placed three yachts of its brands Beneteau Oceanis and Jeanneau Sun Odyssey, in the ranking of the most popular charter boats.

"..the focus of customer interest is clearly on the 4-cabin segment..."

It should be noted that a good third of charter weeks have not yet been booked (as of the end of May 2019). However, it is not very likely that there will be fundamental shifts in the TOP 10 ranking. It may also be interesting to note that in a joint survey on monohull and multi-hull sailing yachts, three catamarans would be listed in the Top 10.

Felix Wolf