Group size decides this, not the photographs
Choose the gulet at €750 if your party is large — it is the only boat here listed for up to around 50 guests, and above about twenty-five people it is the only one that can take you at all. Choose the Kumköy private yacht from €490 if there are a handful of you and you want the hotel transfer and lunch already inside the fare. The decision is almost never about which boat looks best in photographs; it is about how many of you there are and what you would otherwise have to pay for separately.
One thing to understand before you compare anything: these are day charters from the Side coast, roughly six to seven hours on the water. They are not the week-long Blue Cruise charters that dominate search results for Turkish yacht hire — you sleep in your hotel, not on board.
The five charters
- Private yacht from Kumköy — from €490, about 7 hours, up to 12 guests. The only one with round-trip hotel transfer from the Kumköy and Side area already in the price, alongside lunch on deck, snorkelling gear, harbour fees and insurance. The captain anchors wherever the swimming is best.
- Private VIP yacht or wooden boat from Side — from €545, about 6 hours, up to 12 guests. You pick a wooden boat or a yacht; both share the same starting rate. Fuel for the standard Manavgat River and Side peninsula route, crew, sunbeds and a freshly cooked lunch of fish, chicken or meatballs with mezes are included. Hotel transfer is optional and charged separately, as are route extensions beyond the standard itinerary.
- Private yacht from Alanya — from €580, about 6 hours, up to 12 guests. Transfer from central Alanya districts, snorkelling masks and a freshwater shower on board, and a route past Pirate Cave, Lovers' Cave and the Phosphorus Cave with the castle and Red Tower seen from the sea. Note carefully: food and drink are not included unless arranged in advance.
- Luxury motor yacht, full day — from €640, about 6 hours. Fuel and port fees, lunch or dinner on board with the menu agreed beforehand, captain, crew and insurance. It is the one that can shift to the evening for a sunset return. Its own description puts capacity at around 25 guests.
- Private gulet charter — from €750, about 7 hours, up to around 50 guests. A traditional wooden gulet with private crew, a lunch menu built for your group, a music system for your own playlist and travel insurance. Route decided by you, typically Manavgat River, a delta swim, then along the peninsula past the Temple of Apollo.
These are starting fares. The final figure depends on the boat category and the size of your group, and is confirmed when you enquire.
Decide on group size first
Three of the five cap at twelve guests. If you are a couple, a family or two families, all five are open to you and the sensible move is to compare what is in the fare. If you are a birthday party, a wedding group or an extended family of twenty-plus, the choice collapses immediately: the gulet and the motor yacht are the only two listed above twelve guests, and past about twenty-five the gulet is the only one left.
The motor yacht sits in the middle. It is the right answer for a group too big for a twelve-seater but well short of fifty, particularly if you want the polish of a modern yacht rather than a wooden deck.
Then check what you still have to pay for
This is where the ranking changes. Two of the five include hotel transfer as standard: the Kumköy yacht, from the Kumköy and Side area, and the Alanya yacht, from the central Alanya districts. On the Side VIP charter and the gulet, transfer is arranged on request for an extra charge. On the Alanya yacht, transfer is included but catering is not.
Drinks are excluded on all five. The gulet and the motor yacht record a bar on board; on the other three, ask what is stocked before you plan a long hot day around it. On the gulet and the motor yacht you may bring one bottle of spirits of your own, which is worth knowing if there is a particular drink your group cares about.
So the honest ranking by all-in cost for a small group is: Kumköy first, because the fare already contains the two things you would otherwise buy; then the Side VIP charter; then Alanya, where you must budget for food on top.
Wooden gulet or modern yacht?
Gulets are wide and slow, with a lot of deck to spread out on, and they suit a day built around lounging, long lunches and swimming. Motor yachts are faster and more enclosed, which suits a group that wants to cover more coast and cares about the finish of the boat. Neither is better. The Side VIP charter deliberately offers both at the same starting rate, which is the cleanest way to decide — ask to see the two options for your date and pick by eye.
Who should not charter a boat at all
- Two people on a normal holiday budget. At €490 upwards, a private charter costs several times a seat on a scheduled full-day boat trip from Side. Charter because you want the boat to yourselves, not because you want a better boat trip.
- Wheelchair users considering the motor yacht. Boarding is by steps and the yacht is explicitly not suitable. Ask before booking any of these boats if mobility is a concern.
- Anyone wanting an all-inclusive drinks day. Every boat here sells drinks separately.
- Anyone who needs certainty in poor weather. On the motor yacht the captain can postpone or cancel free of charge if conditions are unsafe — the right call at sea, but it means a charter is a poor choice for the one fixed date you cannot move.
Booking a celebration
Birthdays, anniversaries and proposals are the most common reason people charter here. Deck decoration is arranged in advance rather than on the day — the gulet record simply says in advance, so say the word when you enquire — and menus are agreed beforehand on the gulet and the motor yacht. Say what the day is for when you enquire, not when you board.
All five boats sit on our private boat charters page. For the numbers in detail, read what private boat hire costs in Side; for families, chartering with children; and if you are still weighing a charter against a scheduled trip, which Side boat trip to choose covers the alternatives.