Is this level of strictness normal on a private catamaran charter?

[Itsgettinghotinere]

We’re currently on a private catamaran charter in Croatia. For the most part, the week has been great, the Islands are beautiful and it’s been wonderful to see so many different places.

That said, I’m not sure if our experience of our skipper and hostess is usual or not…

We planned a sailing holiday as we wanted to do an activity holiday with our teens. I’ve sailed and grew up with small pleasure boats. We made this clear when we booked via the charter company and specifically listed it on our preference list. The preference list also stipulates that learning to sail is one of the possible options. We have not been allowed near the helm let alone sail! To be fair, the wind has been minimal so we’ve been under engine all week but yesterday would have been perfect but no, we are not allowed.

We are also not allowed to:

1. wear shoes on the boat. We know this however our hostess constantly shouts “shoes, shoes, shoes” at us as soon as we walk on to the sugar scoops! Every time. Without fail.
2. Sit on any outside seating while wet from swimming. When swimming we have to stay at the front of the cat until we dry off. I’m referring to the all weather outside seating. It’s making it very difficult as we’re not allowed to get any water while we swim as were might drip on the teak.
3. We are not allowed to drip anything anywhere: my husband was washing his hands in our cabin but the cabin door was open. While drying his hands some water dripped on the floor and our host saw and immediately came into our cabin and dried up the 3 spots.
4. We are told to eat over our plates. Our teens are 14 and 13 so it’s not as though food is dropping everywhere. My son was told to eat his watermelon over the plate as our host didn’t want to spend her time cleaning after him. We are not allowed to leave any crumbs on the table and look out if any accidentally end up on a cushion (out door cushion).
5. One evening my husband had a glass of red wine and it came with a warning not to spill any.
6. They have made restaurant bookings ahead for us which is fine for the most part but one was very expensive- (€650) and we only had two drinks each. The next evening was the same so we said we’d like to move our booking to a different restaurant and was told that it would make things awkward for them, they wouldn’t honour future bookings maybe and we ended up eating there.

There are other instances like this. The obsession with everything being clean all the time. We are very clean, tidy and respectful people. We just feel like we’re intruding on their boat.

While I’ve typed this I’ve been told we can only apply sunscreen off the boat, nowhere on the boat as apparently the front is full of sunscreen! I make us all stand on the front and apply sun cream. We don’t use sprays and I’m very careful about applying it. But it’s not enough and now we can’t use sunscreen unless we’re in the harbour or on land! In fact, our packing list said sun cream would be provided as they understandably want to use creams that won’t damage the boat. We arrived to find none so I suspect they prefer guests don’t use anything.

We’re walking on eggshells and just don’t feel welcome. Is this normal behaviour? I’d like to hear from those who had chartered before. Thank you

I would make the wording rather stronger, e.g. say your holiday has bern spoilt as you have not been made to feel at all welcome, in fact you feel unwelcome, and mention a few specific things as examples, e.g. the "shoes" shout every time even though you’ve never worn them on the boat, the scolding if you happen to drop crumbs while eating, the not being allowed to apply sunscreen, the pressure for you to go where they choose rather than try to respect your wishes. Tricky to complain about the sailing if there hasn’t been any actual sailing.

The shoes thing is spot on. The wet clothes maybe if there's cushions? But the teak should dry ? Everything else is not OK. I remember doing competent crew on a yacht in Mallorca and the skipper/teacher telling us to put sun cream on all day! You'll fry if you don't!!

Contact the charter company, this is an unacceptable level of batshittery.

As a yacht owner, I get why red wine makes them twitch (we don't have red wine onboard) but their demands are nuts.

That's horrendous. It's a holiday and probably an expensive one.
I'd complain and tell the teenagers to adhere to the no shoes rule & go and enjoy the swimming and sunbathing on the boat- as long as they use the outside seating! Just make sure you apply plenty of sunscreen. (Double check that your host isn't hiding the special supplies somewhere, and then apply yours in full view. You need it even in the shade, especially on water.)
Eat in the designated areas with a plate, but don't go crumb fishing, you paid for a luxury experience, surely you do not need to clean up after yourself.

Go out for dinner to a restaurant choosen by you... and remember, the atmosphere can't get any worse!

I’ve sailed quite a bit, under fastidious captains including my grumpy father, and apart from shoes, those rules are not normal. And soft soled deck shoes should be absolutely fine. Sounds awful, I’m sorry OP

We’ve just chartered a boat in Croatia and our experience couldn’t be more different to yours. We had no rules or restrictions and our skipper and hostess were so accommodating. I’m sorry you are having this experience and would absolutely push back and say no to all these ridiculous requests. Plus call the charter company. You’ve spent a lot of money on this trip, it shouldn’t be like it is. Hope you get it sorted

I've never been on a boat holiday. Can you give a rough idea how much this is costing you?

This sounds awful, bluntly.

Have been on lots of boats and the shoe thing - together with requests for care around wood - is normal, but not in this frantic way of enforcing, particularly re wet swimwear. Shouting is also unacceptable!

650 euros for a meal with four drinks also sounds ridiculous, unless it was some incredible Michelin starred place?

Tell them, the charter company and TripAdvisor that being on their boat was like being in prison

I’ve chartered with skipper before and that’s not okay

The shoes thing is normal. I have chartered yachts before (twice in Greece and once in Croatia). Sailing in the Mediterranean in August is often awful because it is so busy. I suspect that the restaurant thing is because they have booked moorings which are owned by the restaurants so, if you go there, you have to eat at the restaurant.

Croatia was surprisingly expensive compared with Greece. At times, it made sense that it was part of a communist country.

Having said that, it sounds as though these are not particularly good hosts. That the boat is made of teak and they own it is a bit of a red flag.

It sounds like they want you off of the boat in the day, hence why are pushing for you to go to the water park or restaurants. The fact that you want to stay on the boat and enter the water and bring that detritus back into the boat is obviously causing the tension. They sound like two people who are not at all interested in being good hosts.

She’s going to get an awful shock in a Force 5 when waves are crashing over the boat and everything gets wet!
Have you tried questioning her?

They'd have had a heart attack watching below deck/real housewives of salt lake city, drinks being thrown, stilettos everywhere 😨

It just doesn't sound fun at all and it.definitely should be!!

Of course they're unreasonable . It sounds really uncomfortable for the OP . I'd complain massively and also refuse to spend that kind if money on a meal .

OP, it sounds like a deeply unpleasant experience and you definitely need to spell it out to the charter company.

I think it sounds like they are two grifters taking kick backs from restaurants, working to their own schedule and you and your family are a huge inconvenience to their schedule.

I would be adding all of this and I would be spelling it out in a review.

Oh and the finger wagging is extraordinarily rude and the water incident while your husband washed his hands is a violation of his privacy.

It sounds absolutely awful.

I don't have any experience of being on a chartered catamaran - but lots of experience of watching Below Deck! It sounds like they have zero hospitality or customer service skills, which clearly isn't acceptable for a luxury holiday. I am still recovering from the fact they booked you into a restaurant costing 650 euros for one meal without prior consent! Madness. They clearly see you as cash cows.

Sounds like a nautical Fawlty Towers, but without the laughs

You should watch some of the super yacht chef YouTube. I'm obsessed with them. The level of luxury and no expense spared is off the scale. The customer rules - superb hospitality.

I’m the same and I agree.

The one that really got me was the no suncream except on land. The sun’s rays are magnified at sea so it is really dangerous sailing without sun protection. Everyone I know with a yacht puts on suncream (outside) on their yacht. This is a health & safety matter - especially for children (i know OP’s arent very young - but their skin is still vulnerable) . OP, I’d raise this as an urgent issue before you and your family burn to a crisp!

I also really didnt like the restaurant and water-park coercions. The Adriatic seas are lovely - who wouldn’t rather snorkel?

The hosts need to remember they are running a business. If they dont want you on their yacht, then don’t charter. You sound an exceptionally considerate and orderly family - if they have an issue with you, I dread to think how they’ll deal with other families

It also seems insane to have a boat made of teak if water stains teak. What with boats going in the sea.

Shouting "shoes shoes shoes" every time sounds normal? To adults who you have already told this rule to and are adhering to it?

Doesn't to me, sounds OTT and bizarre

Ha, I did my competent crew on the Solant. No sun cream required 🤣

Apparently any sun cream will take months to get clean.

Oh and I’ve just been told off for leaving the fridge door open which I absolutely did not. We’re worried about doing the wrong thing now.

Agree with PP they definitely get an intro fee for the dinner, please take this up with the charter company and leave a review online.
For what you are paying you should be able to relax, speak to the company before you leave though.

I hope you are starting to bark back at them!!! What did you say re the fridge door?