Basics
Sailing her or shipping her: how the choice is made
When an owner needs to move a boat between two distant ports, the conversation usually starts with price when it should start with a different question: does this boat need to make these miles? Because there are two ways of moving her, and the difference is not only what it costs.
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Photo by Trip2zh · CC BY-SA 3.0
What actually changes
Sailing her means the boat makes the passage with a crew aboard. She burns fuel, adds miles and engine hours, and takes the normal wear of a passage: filters, impellers, belts, rigging, sails, antifouling. In exchange she depends on no one: the departure date is decided by the weather and the captain, and there is no need to fit her into a slot someone else leaves free.
Aboard a transport vessel she travels as cargo. No engines run, no miles accumulate and she is never exposed to a gale mid-passage. In exchange she stops owning her own calendar: there are specific routes, specific ports, specific loading dates and a space that may have been sold months in advance.
Put another way: sailing her buys flexibility and pays in wear; shipping her buys preservation and pays in a rigid calendar.
When sailing her makes sense
For most passages within the Mediterranean, between the Balearics and mainland Spain, or to and from the Canaries, sailing her is the sensible option. These are distances a well-prepared boat covers in days, with stops available if needed, and the cost of shipping does not justify itself.
It also makes sense when the boat needs running in. After a refit, an engine replacement or a long winter laid up, a passage with a professional crew aboard is the best stress test there is, and it is done under supervision, with spares aboard and ports of refuge identified.
And it makes sense when the date has margin. If the owner can wait a few days for a decent weather window, sailing her stops being a risk and becomes simple logistics.
When shipping her makes sense
Over very long distances — crossing an ocean, moving from the Mediterranean to the Indian or the Pacific — the arithmetic changes. Weeks of sailing mean weeks of crew, fuel, stops and wear, and past a certain point shipping is cheaper in money and far cheaper in risk.
It also makes sense with boats that were never built to make miles: fast motor yachts with limited range, planing hulls, nearly new boats whose owner does not want to put two hundred hours on the engine in one go, or very high-value units whose exposure to open water is not worth taking on.
And it makes sense when the date really is immovable: a committed handover, a boat show, a charter season that starts on a given day. A ship does not wait for good weather, but it does not need to either.
What almost nobody puts in the comparison
The delivery invoice is not the total cost, and this is where most of these decisions get made on the wrong information.
On the sailing side, add the real fuel bill rather than the theoretical one, the moorings and port fees at every stop, the crew’s travel to the departure port and home from the destination, the maintenance due after the passage and, above all, the engine hours. At resale, a high-hour engine comes off the price of the boat: that depreciation is a real cost even though it never appears on an invoice.
On the shipping side, add the loading and discharge operation, the cradle or supports if the boat needs them, dismantling and refitting whatever cannot travel in place, the stay in the loading port if the ship has to be waited for, and the specific cover for carriage as cargo, which is not the same as her navigation policy.
Only with both columns complete can the two be compared honestly.
The third option: by road
For small and mid-size boats, and especially between points on the same landmass, a truck is often the simplest and cheapest answer. Here the governing figure is the loading gauge: width, total height on the cradle, weight, and whether an abnormal-load permit is required.
A boat that travels without special permits goes quickly and cheaply. One that needs an escort, an authorised route and restricted hours can end up costing more than a sea freight. Length gives you an idea, but it is usually the beam that decides.
How we approach it
When a delivery enquiry reaches us we do not assume the method. We look at the boat — range, cruising speed, condition, value — the route, the time of year and the margin on the dates, and we say which option makes sense to start from.
If the answer is to sail her, we do it ourselves with a professional crew aboard. If the answer is to ship her, we say so even when that means the job is not ours: we would rather that than put a boat into a passage that never suited her.
Frequently asked questions
How many engine hours does a delivery add?
It depends on the boat and whether she is sail or power. A useful rule: divide the distance by her real cruising speed and add twenty per cent for stops, manoeuvring and motoring legs. On an average cruising yacht, a thousand-mile passage usually falls between a hundred and twenty and a hundred and eighty hours.
Does the boat’s insurance cover both options the same way?
No. Sailing her falls under the navigation policy, which normally limits areas, months of the year and a minimum number of crew. Travelling as cargo brings carriage cover into play, with its own conditions and responsibilities split between owner and carrier. In both cases it is confirmed in writing beforehand, never assumed.
Can I come along if the boat is sailed?
On some deliveries, yes, and some owners find it worth doing: it is the best way to get to know your own boat in real conditions and to learn from the crew. It is decided case by case, depending on the route, the boat and the berths available.
How long does it take to ship a boat?
The loading operation itself is a matter of hours, but the real timeline is set by the shipping line: routes are seasonal and space is booked ahead. Plan it in weeks or months of margin, not days.
