Catamaran vs Gulet: Choosing the Right Charter Boat for Your Trip

Guests planning their first private charter often narrow their choice down to two very different boats: a modern catamaran or a traditional wooden gulet. Both can deliver a fantastic week on the water, and both suit a private group rather than sharing with strangers — but they are genuinely different experiences, not just different hull shapes. Here is an honest comparison.

Space and Layout

This is the biggest practical difference. A catamaran's twin hulls create a wide, stable platform with a large, open saloon and cockpit at deck level, plus cabins tucked into each hull below. For a similar overall length, a catamaran generally offers noticeably more usable living space and separation between cabins than a monohull gulet, which makes catamarans popular with multi-family groups who want privacy from each other as much as from the outside world.

A gulet's layout is more traditional: cabins below deck, a shaded aft deck for dining and lounging, and often a large sundeck up top with cushions and shade sails. The overall feel is cosier and more intimate than a catamaran's open-plan design, with a real sense of being aboard a proper sailing vessel rather than a floating apartment.

Stability and Motion

Catamarans are markedly more stable at anchor and underway, thanks to their twin-hull design — minimal rocking, which matters if anyone in your group is prone to seasickness or you are travelling with young children or older relatives. Gulets, being displacement monohulls, roll more noticeably, particularly at anchor in any swell, though a good captain will always seek out sheltered anchorages to minimise this.

Character and Atmosphere

This is where the comparison stops being purely practical. A gulet is a wooden boat built the traditional way, often decades old, with real craftsmanship in its joinery and a sense of history that a fibreglass catamaran, however well finished, simply cannot replicate. Guests chartering a gulet are often chartering that particular romantic idea of a Mediterranean sailing holiday as much as the boat itself.

A catamaran, by contrast, feels contemporary — clean lines, bright interiors, large glazed saloons — and appeals to guests who want the space and stability of a modern build over the character of a traditional one.

Sailing Performance

Most gulets today motor-sail rather than relying purely on wind, particularly on charter routes with a fixed schedule, though many do raise sail in good conditions. Catamarans built for charter are generally set up the same way — comfort-oriented rather than performance-oriented — so in practice, the difference in actual sailing experience between the two is smaller than sailing purists might expect. Both are primarily comfortable cruising platforms, not racing yachts.

Crew and Service

Gulet charters are almost always crewed, with a captain and cook as standard, sometimes more depending on group size — the traditional model this coast is built around. Catamarans can be chartered either crewed, for the same private-yacht, fully serviced experience, or bareboat/skippered for guests with the relevant qualifications who want to sail the boat themselves. This makes catamarans the more flexible option if your group includes an experienced sailor who wants some hands-on involvement.

Price Considerations

Pricing depends heavily on size, age, and whether the charter is crewed, but as a general pattern: a similarly sized crewed gulet and crewed catamaran often land in a comparable price range, with the catamaran sometimes commanding a premium for newer builds and additional cabin space. Bareboat or skippered catamaran charter tends to be the most budget-friendly route to a private multi-cabin boat, since it removes full crew costs.

Which Should You Choose

• Choose a gulet if: you want the traditional Mediterranean sailing experience, a fully crewed and serviced holiday, and don't mind a bit more motion at anchor.
• Choose a catamaran if: stability and space are priorities, especially with children, seasickness concerns, or multiple families wanting real privacy from each other.
• Either works well if: you simply want a private yacht for your group and a professional crew handling the sailing — at that point, the decision comes down to atmosphere as much as anything practical.

There is no objectively "better" boat here — only the better fit for your specific group, priorities and sense of what a Mediterranean charter should feel like.

A Quick Decision Checklist

If you are still undecided, three questions tend to settle it quickly. First, how does your group feel about motion on the water — if seasickness is a real concern, weight the decision toward a catamaran. Second, how many separate family units are travelling together — more than one family usually points toward a catamaran's separated hull layout. Third, and often the deciding factor in practice, ask yourselves honestly whether the romance of a traditional wooden sailing yacht matters to you as part of the holiday, or whether you would rather prioritise modern space and light — there is no wrong answer, only the one that is right for your group.