More yacht charters in Croatia becoming sustainability-conscious

Šćedro bay Hvar

by Sasha King
High Point Yachting

As we have paused over the past year, we have had more time to reflect on our lives and how we live them. We have thought about travel and its importance. In particular, we have reflected on the importance of protecting our inheritance in this world. Our lives are intrinsically linked with the beautiful world around us. Preserving it all is in our hands and is essential.

So, as we emerge from the pandemic and get back to normal, or something approximating to it, we are eager, more than ever, to champion sustainability, and safer, more responsible travel. As the popularity of travel increases, it is ever more important that travellers make their travel of lasting benefit to the destinations they visit.  

We have been organising yacht charters worldwide for just over 20 years, mainly on crewed yachts. It has been heart-warming to see the enthusiasm for sustainability in the world of yachting grow, particularly in the last few years. More and more yachts are working hard to support the cause and make sustainability part of their every day lives. And we are committed to supporting yachts that make a conscious effort to charter sustainably.

Of course there is a lot going on at a high level. There are many organised studies and projects underway. Sites like, Sustainable Travel International offers great ideas and tips across the board for sustainable travel. And with the popularity of social media, awareness is only getting stronger. 

However, with all that in place, it doesn’t mean that we can not contribute to it individually and in our own ways—and significantly!

For instance, I was one of the judges for the Designer Water Competition during the last super yacht show in Antigua and it was a real eye-opener for me, to see how imaginative those crews were in creating delicious and refreshing drinking water from the yachts’ water-maker, using only local herbs and ingredients.

Design Water with water-maker

The destination with which we’ve been working longest is the Croatian Adriatic. It has been a favourite with the sailing community for many years and the country is very conscientious about taking care of its maritime environment. 

I have been working with a great number of yachts in Croatia, which are continuously promoting sustainable charters and are eager to expand their commitment to a sustainable travel industry. Those crews are sustainability-conscious and have already put a lot in place to protect the environment they work and live in. Here are some examples:

We are a charter manager for a wonderful sailing yacht SAN LIMI. Its Captain, Ivo, came back with a long list of initiatives that are already in place on SAN LIMI including:

• having two water-makers on board, making SAN LIMI completely independent of taking up resources on land and buying water from shops
• Reducing the number of plastic bottles/packaging dramatically and working on reducing it further
• Serving water in glass jugs, with each guest having their own complimentary SAN LIMI glass water bottle
• SAN LIMI sails beautifully and we are keen to use wind energy for producing electricity
• Using eco cleaning materials and eco-toiletries for guests 
• Sourcing food from environmental friendly sources as much as possible
• Using paper straws 

Sailing Yacht San Limi – High Point Yachting36 (Photo credit: Ivan Ivanisevic)

Another example is Catamaran MALA – we call this crew the creative Eco-Warriors. Zoki and Sanja have done a fantastic job on sustainability so far, including:

• Putting Solar panels on board
• Having MALA-branded glass bottles on board (reducing the usage of plastic bottles by at least 200 per season!)
• Recycling everything that is recyclable, be it food, plastic, paper or glass
• Using MALA cotton bags for our shopping
• Using paper straws on board
• Ensuring all cleaning material on board is made of eco materials
• Providing natural cosmetics (toiletries) for our guests.
• Organising regular ‘clean the beach’ actions 
• Having a water-maker on board (including for drinking water)

Catamaran MALA

Family run gulets ANGELICA and CARPE DIEM 7 have crews that are keen sailors and true nature lovers. Both have pointed out that their clients so enjoy sailing and that they are keenly promoting it as a wonderful way of reducing petrol usage. 

They all use cotton table napkins, trying to save on paper. They buy fresh food whenever possible, always trying to avoid packaged food. Water is served in glass jugs and branded glass bottles for clients. And there is more! And it will get bigger and better … 

I am a part of a fantastic yachting industry network of like-minded professionals and crews. My aim is to use my connectivity as a broker to share best practice and innovative ideas about sustainability with crews and yacht owners across the industry.