Dream Yacht Charter Reviews 

Our family recently booked a 47ft power catamaran in Trogir, Croatia, and we had an amazing experience thanks to Dream Yacht Charters! The boat was well maintained and performed well all week. Upon arrival, we encountered an issue caused by the booking agent. Fortunately, Tomi from Dream Yacht Charters in Trogir stepped in immediately and resolved everything with professionalism and efficiency. He handled the changes and logistics seamlessly and kept us informed every step of the way.

Tomi’s communication was excellent, and his dedication to making sure our vacation was a success truly stood out. Thanks to him, we had a stress-free and wonderful time sailing the beautiful Croatian coast. We will absolutely be booking future holidays charters with Dream Yacht Charters. Highly recommended!

Rented a sailboat for a week in Kotor, Montenegro in September 2022. When we had our checkout the base manager came straight on to the boat and went straight to the gearbox oil dipstick, before he looked at anything else, announced we had “milk in the gearbox” (water), that we must have run over a line or a plastic bag and that the diver would confirm. The boat had to be removed from the water and we had a huge insurance claim. I know full well we had not hit a line and had inspected the propeller many times snorkelling. Of course the diver found nothing and after an hour of arguing the base manager relented. It was a brand new boat that also had a broken bow thruster and broken Bimini. I have been very suspicious of this milk scam ever since and now check the gearbox first thing at check in any time I hire a boat. This summer we hired at another company in Split, Croatia. Got to know the base manager and told him the milk story. He said DYC is famous for not maintaining boats. He also checked the milk story with a friend who works and DYC Croatia who said that is a common scam. He would never check the gearbox oil unless the diver found something on the propeller shaft. I don’t usually write reviews but this confirms my suspicions about DYC. Advise you avoid them in the Adriatic or be aware of this scam. It’s similar to the scam the major care hire firms are using in Spain and Portugal to claim for old damage from previous hires…. Beware.

10 days on a Bali 4.6 out of Raiatea. Great trip. Loved it. Normally have gone with Moorings/Sunsail, but as of late their prices have gotten excessive so been trying out DYC. This was my second trip with them (first in La Paz) and already booked a trip for 2025 in Greece with DYC because of great experiences. I generally try and go on their Super Premier or Premier boats to reduce chance of age related issues.

Specific to Raiatea, French Polynesia - awesome charter. Want to go back!

Great folks.

Tahiti is incredible and seeing it by boat will leave you feeling bad for everyone stuck at a resort! This was our third charter with Dream Yacht and we enjoyed an excellent experience during booking, check-in and check-out. The base staff in Raiatea are welcoming, informative and genuinely hustle to get you off the dock. We can't wait to return and explore more of French Polynesia!

Had an excellent experience since the booking process until the end of the charter. Everything worked well with the boat and skipper.
The team was very professional and efficient. That was our first experience abroad and we intend to repeat.

We had a great family trip to Tahiti ( 6 adults 3 older children) , chartered a 6 cabin catamaran with Captain and Cook. Our Captain was amazing. She asked where we wanted to go, gave suggestions, and then we proceeded to have an amazing week. She took us to some amazing snorkeling spots (black tip sharks, sting rays, beautiful fish) , botanical garden, vanilla plantation, rum distillery and a pearl farm. She was always first and foremost concerned with our safety and comfort. Food was good and plentiful. Catamaran clean and comfortable. We have been on more elegant catamarans but all the above more than made up the difference. My only criticism for Dream Yacht Charter is that they post actual photos of their catamarans on their website. We would not hesitate to book with them in the future. BTW our Captain was Hemanu and Cook Daisy.

We chartered twice with DYC in Raiatea, French Polynesia. We had a great experience both times. We booked directly with DYC, and not through a third party. Both times they delivered. Also, their insurance policy is great. You can sail more or less wherever your want if you are competent. And they will encourage and help! Dream on in the US or EU! When I read all of the bitter posts, I roll my eyes and think that the usual CYA US attitude is going to destroy the whole industry and then nobody can sail in paradise. At least we still could.

I have chartered sailboats at least 15 times. Hands down the worst experience ever, Thank goodness Montenegro was AWESOME. To begin our debacle, we chartered the Cat for 10 days. Had signed contract for months. They emailed later and said we couldn't have the boat for 10 days, but only 7. Tried to argue about signed contract, they basically said tough and too bad and if we continued, they would cancel charter entirely. Then we arrived already disappointed. There was literally NO chart briefing. First time ever on a charter. In fact we sent them an entire itinerary seeking their advice prior to arriving, they said that couldn't(wouldn't comment, seriously?
The list of issues;
1 They asked our shoe size for fins when we chartered. They had 3 sets of fins/mask/snorkels on boat, random sizes. That's it. Many had their own they could have brought. We had 10 people on charter :(
2 The Port side bathrooms had water on floor. They coolant care less. Later they explained to us that to drain water from floor, turn on faucet to start floor pumps.
Any easy fix that they didnt bother to tell us when we were concerned
3 The salon table was broken, we discovered this on our first day as we tried to convert it to a bed and it fell apart. This was the ONLY time they helped us. They actually sent someone to fix. Two bathroom door handles fell off every time u went to open door. They fixed one when they came out, not the other.
4 We rented internet(extra charge) We asked if it worked in sailing area, said they had no idea) we tried it for 35 Euro anyway. Worked for one day. When we pulled into a harbor and plugged into shore power after about 36 hours, it never worked the rest of trip and we had NO outlets for for days so couldn't use anyway. When asked how to fix the outlets, they hadn't a clue. When we returned to base, they found a fuse had "popped" A fuse box that was hidden and they never told us about during boat introduction. Seems to me someone from base should have been able to tell us about this issue and how to fix while we were on the move. We had to share a few USB ports to charges our phones so we could take photos. They refused to refund the 35 Euros for hotspot which we obviously couldn't use without outlets and it hadn't worked before that. :(
5 The stern of the boat floor was filthy!!!!
6 The dinghy gas can was a joke. It had NO air hole so trying to fill dinghy was quite difficult without spillage. Every other dinghy I'ver ever had was supplied with a 2.5 gallon gas tank so one could easily see when needed more. His motor had about a 2 quart gas(generous estimate) tank hidden under engine cover so had to check it every day and try to fill with a ridiculous gas can
7 We woke up one morning to 65 knot winds and pouring rain sideways and lightening. The base did not warn us of impending storm and heard nothing on the radio. We went to look for foul weather gear, Yup, U guessed it NONE. First boat EVER without two sets. During the storm, three moorings in the cove where we were staying in dragged boats 100 M. One boat decided to disconnect from the dragging mooring at our bough and as he cut across our bough, he clipped our boat. This cause the mooring line(from mooring) to snap. We spent the next 2-3 hours motoring into the wind until we could find another mooring to try. After storm passed, one of the taxis came out to us to see how we were. We reported what happened. A few hours later, the taxi was taking photos of our bow. We asked him why. He told us Dream yacht charters wanted photos. So they knew our plight and their only concern was the boat. The NEVER contacted us to warn us of storm OR to check on our safety after!!!!!!!! Even the captain of the boat that hit us returned to check on us after he left that bay!!!!
Luckily they concluded we had no fault as the mooring line(from mooring broke) and another boat hit us.
There was more, but I hope u get the point!
Date of experience: June 2024

I am writing to express my profound dissatisfaction with the recent sailing vacation booked through Boataround and Dream Yachts. The experience was severely below our expectations and has left us extremely disappointed.

Initially, Boataround appeared to be very responsive, but this changed dramatically as our sailing date approached. Despite our requests, we did not receive the skipper's information until the morning of our departure, and the skipper himself was notified only two days prior. This led to inadequate preparation, compromising our trip significantly. Additionally, we were not provided with the hostess/chef information until check-in, and Boataround failed to pass along our meal preferences to Dream Yachts. Consequently, the crew had to purchase food at the last minute, resulting in inadequate and insufficient meals. Midway through the trip, we had to pay out of pocket for additional food, despite that all meals were included in the initial cost. We even caught fish, which were used for our meals, yet we still faced a shortage and were overcharged.

Upon contacting Dream Yachts a few days before our trip to obtain the skipper and hostess information, we were redirected to Boataround, which was unhelpful and frustrating. This lack of coordination and communication severely impacted our overall experience.

Upon arrival, the condition of the yacht was appalling. The vessel was poorly maintained, with missing cushions, a dirty interior, and a damaged sliding door. On our first day, four of the rooms the beds would get wet despite all windows and hatches being sealed. The anchor was rusted and difficult to operate, the air conditioning was inadequate, and the skipper lacked essential knowledge about the yacht's systems. At one point, we ran out of fuel for the air conditioner, forcing us to overpay for gasoline, which lasted less than one night.

Our final night at the marina was unbearable. The air conditioning failed, and the skipper's attempt to fix it by switching to the generator was unsuccessful. The cabins reached temperatures over 90°F, forcing most of us to sleep outside and resulting in numerous mosquito bites.

Despite raising these issues with Dream Yachts during checkout, we were only reimbursed for the fuel and one day of the trip, we paid over $26,000 for the trip. We were not compensated for the additional food expenses .

This experience was in stark contrast to that of our friends who sailed with a different company at the same time and had an excellent trip. Based on our experience, I would rate our trip one star out of ten.

I strongly urge Boataround and Dream Yachts to address these issues to prevent future customers from enduring similar distress. I hope for a more satisfactory resolution, as the compensation provided thus far is wholly inadequate given the extent of the inconvenience and discomfort we suffered.


Great yacht charter company. Very well organised and well maintained yachts

Sailing in Palma Mallorca was an absolute delight! The base manager was top-notch, ensuring everything ran smoothly and efficiently. The dock manager's skill and diligence were evident, making the experience even more enjoyable. The location itself was picturesque and offered the perfect backdrop for a fantastic time on the water. I had an amazing experience overall and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a memorable sailing adventure.

The Dubrovnik base was a great location to start our sailing experience. The DYC team got us out on time as promised and the yacht was as expected. Nothing was missing and the vessel was in great shape! Croatia is the most beautiful place to experience and the many islands we stopped in were a lot of fun and the anchorage’s and moorings were amazing [Hvar, Mljet, Lostovo, and Pelisaic].

We will come back and spend more time.

Dan Long

Since there are so many negative reviews about DYC, and I believe that this largely depends on the destination, I must share our positive experience here.

We chartered a Dufour 460 at Marina Pomer in Croatia. A few days before our vacation started, I received a call informing us that our boat was out of commission, but we were offered an alternative without any additional charge. The options were a Dufour 520 or a Lagoon 40 catamaran. Since we had no experience with a catamaran, we chose the Dufour 520.

Although the contract stated that check-in wasn't until 5:00 PM, we were allowed to board the boat earlier. The check-in process was quite swift, yet very thorough, and everything was explained to us. Given the age of the ship, there were a few minor issues, but these were repaired directly at the marina by the charter company. We had a great week; the ship was good for sailing and steering, and the equipment was comprehensive.

The ropes, sails, and the Bimini top all appeared almost new. There were no issues during the return; checkout was again quite swift, minor defects and our comments were noted immediately and subsequently repaired.

Daria is always a bit rushed and in a hurry, which is understandable since all boats are inspected and reassigned on Saturdays, but he handles everything with a lot of humor.

After all the negative reviews, I felt quite uneasy before our vacation, but we had a wonderful week, were not disappointed, and I would definitely charter with DYC in Croatia again.

It was a wonderful cruise with a friendly and dynamic crew and testy cuisine. Hight quality excursions, beautiful sites.

I truly recommend DYC as a great charter company with great offers and excellent fleet all around the world

We were aware that we were renting an older - 7 yr old boat that had been all over the place. In the Charter world the 3 year old boats are hard used. We did an older bareboat primarily for the lower price and knew there would be some issues but they usually don’t cause much trouble for a seasoned crew. The boat had a great refrigeration system, lots of cookware, good charts, nice windlass, and staff provided us with new cockpit chair cushioning and French press as we are Americans who like that sort of thing. It was a typical used boat with stuff that is used. Staff was very responsive to problems with mooring balls (not DYC’s fault) and difficulty with dinghy engine starts (we just had to acclimate to a coy Mercury). We like the people, and the boat was as is to be expected. We spent around 5 grand a week for a full 3 staterooms. We were happy. We enjoyed the captain’s meeting and received many good suggestions on where to go. Remember always swim your mooring ball - we were adrift and on the rocks due to a defective mooring ball. DYC is where you want to go if you are seasoned and want to spend most of your time in the water or at the beach.

An absolute nightmare! I regret to say that my experience with Dream Yacht Charters BVI was utterly disappointing, warranting a one-star rating. The boat we rented was in deplorable condition, plagued by a plethora of issues. From cockroaches scurrying about to incessant leakage, malfunctioning batteries, broken drawers and cabinets, and a malfunctioning anchor, it was a nightmare from the start. Moreover, the absence of electricity, because of a malfunctioning battery pack/alternater, resulted in no power for essential appliances like the fridge, navigation instruments, anchor and lights which only exacerbated the situation.

The poorly insulated engine turned the interior into an unbearable sauna, making our journey intolerable. Adding insult to injury, the caleche was leaking, further dampening our spirits. Despite these glaring problems, the office's response was appalling. They attempted to shift blame onto us and offered minimal assistance, if any.

The litany of issues disrupted our planned route, forcing frequent stops for shore power every 2-3 days, driving up expenses due to exorbitant harbor prices. Additionally, the malfunctioning anchor necessitated costly moorings, further inflating our financial burden. In summary, our experience with Dream Yacht Charters was marred by incompetence, neglect, and a complete lack of accountability.

If I can prevent just one more bad, unsafe DYC boat experience, maybe yours, then writing this review was worth it.

We have discovered Dream Yacht Charter has earned a highly questionable reputation for providing poorly maintained boats for charter and based on our recent experience it is well earned. See the fast-growing 2,400 Member Facebook page: groups/dreamyachtchartersuck and TripAdvisor.com's almost 50% 1-star DYC reviews. Most of those with posted DYC issues have received no recourse, may have faced serious safety situations due to poor boat maintenance and/or support, may have sued, but like us, are seeking to prevent others from experiencing DYC’s lack of concern for charterer safety, maintenance incompetence, and blatant contract breaches. Charter DYC at your own risk. If interested, here’s our DYC experience.

We chartered a boat for 8 days out of Nassau with indicators of issues to come on day 1 - the generator not working (yes, it worked at the dock and we did as thorough a boat check as allowed). The following 3 days turned into hell due to a dysfunctional boat promised in their contract to be in "good working order.” DYC breached our contract in 3 important ways.

By day 3, the boat’s batteries were completely depleted. We had lost 2 nights sleep due to alarms going off throughout the night and a generator out of oil as we hung on an anchor in 35 knot winds completely without power for engines, navigation systems, lighting, windlass, or icebox cooling, etc. The batteries were truly dead, and would not hold a charge for more than 1 hour. DYC later denied this important fact – they missed the source maintenance problem. In the end, we had to count on our own backup phone batteries to have any communication at all. By this time, we were labeled a “distressed vessel” by the National Park Ranger who checked on us repeatedly until DYC eventually showed up. This, a second contract breach when a support vessel was not sent out as promised within 4 hours, let alone the next several days.

Of note, 4 other DYC boats within a 5 mile radius also had crippling issues, including a broken halyard, a damaged transmission, broken generator, and disabled engine. After 3 days on anchor, DYC’s repair crew arrived and jerry-rigged the generator (their words), never fixing the batteries, and we were evacuated from the boat. A 3rd contract breach, no other boat or lost charter time reimbursement was then provided to us per our contract (and their own marketing materials and salespeople).

During one long night while waiting for assistance, we discovered that the chartplotter listed all the same engine and battery alarms we were experiencing during the charter before ours – evidence of questionable maintenance and safety. Despite the evidence, and after multiple requests, no refund or credit was offered, and only a denial of our experience was received by DYC.

While some of you may have had a more positive DYC experience, should you charter from DYC in the future you do so at your own risk and may also be left in a dangerous situation with wholly inadequate charter support and a company that does not appear to value customer safety, its own contracts, or satisfaction. Based on our research and the Facebook page, it appears DYC’s poor maintenance is experienced in nearly every charter location worldwide, and its corporate integrity a systemic safety issue. We encourage you to read the reviews before signing up, and taking them seriously - their contract is worthless to you. Bad charter boats do happen, but it appears DYC's are the worst, obfuscated by great marketing. We encourage you to stay safe and to look into other charter company alternatives.

Dear sailors and travelers,

I am writing to you with a heavy heart and the need to warn you about my disastrous experience with Dream Yacht Charter (DYC). Recently, I entrusted this company for a dream trip through the Caribbean, only to find myself plunged into a nautical nightmare that dashed our carefully planned vacation and endangered our lives.

From the outset, DYC's service left much to be desired. While the first few days of our journey went smoothly, everything unraveled when we experienced serious mechanical issues with the vessel. Two engines failed mysteriously, leaving us stranded in the middle of the ocean with no propulsion. Imagine the anguish and fear of being stuck at sea with families and children on board!

But the worst was not just the mechanical failure, but DYC's incompetence and lack of accountability in addressing the situation properly. They ignored our distress calls, left us adrift for hours, and only after the situation became critical did they decide to take action. And I can't even begin to describe the additional problems we faced when we were finally "rescued"!

DYC's response to this disaster? A refusal to acknowledge their responsibility and an offer of insultingly insignificant compensation. Not only did they refuse to reopen our claim, but they also attempted to discredit our version of events, implying that we were never offered the additional sailing days we claimed.

Dear sailors, if you value your safety and your vacation, I urge you to steer clear of DYC like the plague. This company not only lacks integrity and professionalism, but also jeopardizes the lives of its customers with its negligence and lack of care. Don't let your dream vacation turn into a nautical nightmare like ours!

I researched Dream Yacht Charters before chartering and I had reservations as a lot of the reviews were quite negative, I should have taken notice of those reservations. I chartered a Lagoon 45s catamaran out of Jolly Harbour Antigua, the boat was their "comfort" class so was a few years old. It was obvious the boat lacked proper maintenance from the start, the VHF didn't transmit, the water maker didn't show a proper water quality during the brief but the technician said it would clear when out of the marina as the water quality there was so poor - of course it didn't. The wind instruments didn't work, there were only four standard fenders which isn't enough for the size of boat, the anchor light didn't work, there was no hot water in the starboard cabins, no plugs in the sinks, all hatches leaked, a couple badly, no wine glasses, no large tumblers, the fridge burst open in any sea as the latch didn't work - I could go on. When we reported the lack of wind instrumentation we were asked to return to base, the technician looked at instruments, confirmed they weren't working then said it was a known problem and nothing could be done about it! Why couldn't we be told at the brief or when we reported it? Presumably because we would have refused the boat?
The water maker did not work at any point during the charter, we had two video calls with the technical department and we proved that the control panel solenoid was at fault. No spares were available!
We had a visit from two technicians at English Harbour to try and fix the problems but all they succeeded in doing was to put a bolt on the faulty fridge door. Whilst arranging this visit the base manager Virginie offered to let us stay out the last night rather than return to base, this was accepted (I knew the boat wasn't going to be chartered until the next weekend so this wasn't going to cause them a problem or cost them anything) but when the technician was leaving (in fact he had cast off) he gave me a form to sign accepting the boat for the extra night.
BE AWARE I didn't read it properly the last line of the form stated that by accepting this it released DYC from any further claims.
So although I have complained and asked DYC to compensate me for a spoiled charter and refund me the cost of water we had to fill up with (as per the booking contract), they say I have been compensated enough and have waived my right to further claims.
All in all a shabby way to operate, the boat was poorly maintained and on reflection in a dangerous condition and I will never charter with them again.
Be warned, if you have doubts, don't touch them.