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The beach club is now the most-watched single feature in the charter selection process. We rank 12 charter yachts on the open 2026 market with the best beach club layouts, defined as: an opening stern transom or fold-down side terraces creating a step-down water-level platform of at least 30 square metres, with adjacent toy stowage, indoor lounge, and direct water access. LOAs run 50m to 142m, weekly rates €245K to $2.0M plus APA at 28 to 35 percent. The beach club has overtaken the master cabin and the cinema as the dominant brochure feature on charter yachts above 60m, and the gap between the strongest and the weakest examples is wider than the brochure photography suggests.
Two cautions before the ranking. First, "beach club" on a charter brochure means at least three different things. The strongest definition is a stern beach club with a hydraulic opening transom and side terraces, often integrated with the master suite or a guest lounge. The middle definition is a stern lounge with a step-down swim platform and direct water access. The weakest definition is a slightly enlarged swim platform with no enclosed space at all. All three get marketed as beach club. Verify the configuration. Second, the beach club is only useful at anchor in protected water. In open swell, the opening transom is closed for safety and the beach club becomes an interior lounge. Plan the itinerary around protected anchorages if the beach club is a primary booking driver.
How we ranked
Five weights. First, configuration (stern with opening transom and side terraces > stern with opening transom only > side terraces only > swim platform with lounge). Second, total beach club square metres (combined deck area when fully opened). Third, integration with adjacent space (toy stowage, gym, spa, beach bar). Fourth, sea state envelope for opening (the rated sea state in which the transom can be opened safely). Fifth, charter-rate positioning versus the comparable pool. Editor's Pick, runners-up, and 9 alternates below. Then passed-on. Then budget. Then FAQ.
No. I — Editor's Pick: Solandge (Lürssen, 85.1m, 2013)
LOA 85.1m. Beam 14.2m. Draft 4.0m. GT [VERIFY: 2,989]. Built 2013. Builder Lürssen. Guests 12 in 8 cabins. Crew 29. Beach club: opening stern transom plus two folding side terraces, [VERIFY: 60+ sqm fully opened] with integrated beach bar, sauna, and hammam. Charter rate [VERIFY: €875K to €1.05M] peak weekly. APA 32 percent.
Solandge is the strongest single Editor's Pick in the beach club pool because the configuration is a textbook integrated beach club rather than a stern lounge with a swim platform attached. The opening stern plus the two folding side terraces create a continuous water-level platform of more than 60 square metres, and the adjacent beach bar, sauna, and hammam give the space a working day-spa programme. She has been the reference standard for the segment for a decade. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €690K to €870K] regular, [VERIFY: €870K to €1.05M] peak, plus APA at 32 percent.
Inquire via Burgess | Inquire via Y.CO
No. II — Runner-up: Quantum Blue (Lürssen, 104m, 2014)
LOA 104m. Beam 15m. Draft [VERIFY: 4.4m]. Built 2014. Builder Lürssen. Guests 26 in 12 cabins. Crew 29. Beach club: opening stern with side terraces, [VERIFY: 80+ sqm], integrated with spa and gym. Charter rate [VERIFY: €1.15M to €1.40M] peak. APA 32 percent.
Quantum Blue's beach club is one of the largest by square metre on the open charter market and the integration with the dedicated spa and gym is among the cleanest in the 100m+ segment. The 26-guest capacity makes the space useful for a multi-family or extended-family booking where the smaller-segment beach clubs feel cramped. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €890K to €1.15M] regular, [VERIFY: €1.15M to €1.40M] peak, plus APA at 32 percent.
Inquire via Burgess | Inquire via Y.CO
No. III — The Excellence pick: Excellence (Abeking & Rasmussen, 80m, 2019)
LOA 80m. Beam 14.5m. Draft 4.5m. Built 2019. Builder Abeking & Rasmussen. Guests 12 in 7 cabins. Crew 22. Beach club: stern with opening transom plus side platforms, [VERIFY: 50 to 60 sqm], integrated with full gym, spa, and hammam. Charter rate [VERIFY: €875K to €1.05M] peak. APA 30 percent.
Excellence delivers one of the most current beach club designs in the 80m bracket. The Winch Design exterior makes the beach club part of the visual signature of the yacht rather than an afterthought, and the integration with the gym and spa is one of the more thoughtful in the segment. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €690K to €875K] regular, [VERIFY: €875K to €1.05M] peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Burgess | Inquire via Edmiston
No. IV — The Madsummer pick: Madsummer (Lürssen, 95m, 2019)
LOA 95m. Beam 14.5m. Draft [VERIFY: 4.0m]. Built 2019. Builder Lürssen. Guests 12 in 9 cabins. Crew 33. Beach club: stern with opening transom plus side terraces, [VERIFY: 70+ sqm], integrated with spa, gym, and beach bar. Charter rate [VERIFY: €1.05M to €1.30M] peak. APA 32 percent.
Madsummer's beach club configuration is the most recent of the Lürssen 90m+ beach club programme and the integration with the spa wing is a working day-spa programme rather than a styling exercise. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €870K to €1.10M] regular, [VERIFY: €1.10M to €1.30M] peak, plus APA at 32 percent.
Inquire via Burgess | Inquire via Y.CO
No. V — The Sanlorenzo SX pick: [VERIFY: 70 to 90m Sanlorenzo SX-series with opening transom beach club, 2020 to 2024 build, 12 guests, weekly rate €380K to €620K peak]
The Sanlorenzo SX series specifies an opening stern beach club as part of the explorer-aesthetic crossover platform. The wide-beam SX hull form means the beach club square metres are unusually large for the LOA bracket. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €320K to €490K] regular, [VERIFY: €490K to €620K] peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Camper & Nicholsons | Inquire via Y.CO
No. VI — The Heesen 50 to 60m pick: [VERIFY: 50 to 60m Heesen with opening transom beach club, 2018 to 2024 build, 10 to 12 guests, weekly rate €245K to €380K peak]
Heesen's recent 50 to 60m hulls deliver a beach club configuration that is unusually well-integrated for the size bracket. The trade is square metres (the platform is smaller than the 80m+ pool) but the integration is clean and the booking economics are meaningfully better. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €195K to €310K] regular, [VERIFY: €310K to €380K] peak, plus APA at 28 percent.
Inquire via Edmiston | Inquire via Camper & Nicholsons
No. VII — The Benetti 60 to 80m pick: [VERIFY: 60 to 80m Benetti with full beach club layout, 2019 to 2024 build, 12 guests, weekly rate €350K to €640K peak]
Benetti's recent 60m+ hulls run an opening transom beach club with side terraces. The configuration is consistent across the recent fleet and the booking is the cleanest single sub-€700K beach club. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €290K to €490K] regular, [VERIFY: €490K to €640K] peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Camper & Nicholsons | Inquire via Burgess
No. VIII — The Feadship 80 to 100m pick: [VERIFY: 80 to 100m Feadship with full beach club layout, 2018 to 2024 build, 12 to 14 guests, weekly rate €700K to €1.2M peak]
Feadship's recent 80m+ hulls integrate the beach club into the master suite or a guest lounge in a way that delivers the strongest single private-beach-club booking. The configuration is conservative on square metres but generous on integration. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €560K to €900K] regular, [VERIFY: €900K to €1.2M] peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Edmiston | Inquire via Burgess
No. IX — The Amels 188 pick: [VERIFY: 57m Amels 188 series with stern beach club, 2017 to 2024 build, 12 guests, weekly rate €290K to €420K peak]
The Amels 188 series carries a stern beach club with a fold-down platform and adjacent gym. The semi-custom build standard means the beach club configuration is uniform across the fleet and the booking economics are predictable. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €240K to €340K] regular, [VERIFY: €340K to €420K] peak, plus APA at 28 percent.
Inquire via Camper & Nicholsons | Inquire via Burgess
No. X — The 80m+ Oceanco pick: [VERIFY: 80 to 110m Oceanco with full beach club layout, 2018 to 2024 build, 12 to 16 guests, weekly rate €700K to €1.4M peak]
Oceanco's recent 80m+ hulls run a beach club programme with opening transom and side terraces, often integrated with a beach bar and a sound-treated lounge. The 16-guest capacity on selected hulls suits multi-family bookings. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €600K to €900K] regular, [VERIFY: €900K to €1.4M] peak, plus APA at 32 percent.
Inquire via Imperial Yachts | Inquire via Y.CO
No. XI — The Mediterranean dedicated pick: [VERIFY: 50 to 70m motor yacht with strong beach club and Western Mediterranean charter base, 2018 to 2024 build, 10 to 12 guests, weekly rate €280K to €560K peak]
A 50 to 70m motor yacht with a strong beach club layout and a Western Mediterranean base (Saint Tropez, Cannes, Monaco) is the cleanest single Western Med booking for the beach club use case. The protected anchorages of the Côte d'Azur and the Cinque Terre suit the beach club operating envelope. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €230K to €440K] regular, [VERIFY: €440K to €560K] peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Burgess | Inquire via Camper & Nicholsons
No. XII — The Caribbean dedicated pick: [VERIFY: 50 to 70m motor yacht with strong beach club and Caribbean winter base, weekly rate €260K to €460K peak Caribbean]
The Caribbean charter calendar runs in protected anchorages most of the time (BVI, Grenadines, St Barths) which means the beach club is in operation a higher percentage of the charter than in a comparable Mediterranean week. Charter rate runs [VERIFY: €220K to €360K] regular Caribbean, [VERIFY: €360K to €460K] December 20 to January 4 holiday peak, plus APA at 30 percent.
Inquire via Northrop & Johnson | Inquire via Y.CO
What we passed on
Five charter yachts marketed with beach club layouts that we did not rank.
[VERIFY: 60m motor yacht marketed with "beach club" that is a 12 sqm swim platform with no enclosed space]. Marketing-only beach club. We would book her happily as a charter yacht and never under the beach club category.
[VERIFY: 80m motor yacht with opening transom hydraulics out of service following a 2024 fault]. A non-operational opening transom is a closed transom. The clean fix is to wait for the repair to complete.
[VERIFY: 70m motor yacht with beach club rated for opening only in flat sea state and a Sardinian August charter]. Sardinian August is rarely flat. A flat-water-only beach club is a brochure feature, not a working platform.
[VERIFY: 50m motor yacht with beach club used as primary toy stowage during charter, available as beach club only after toy unloading]. A beach club that is also the toy garage is a toy garage during the day. The clean fix is a yacht with separate toy stowage.
[VERIFY: 90m motor yacht with beach club opening hours restricted by the captain due to crew workload]. Captain discretion is part of the package, but a habitual restriction is a meaningful gap. The clean fix is to ask the broker about prior charter beach club operating hours.
How to think about budget for a beach club charter
The beach club configuration does not change the headline charter rate or the APA structure meaningfully. The opening transom hydraulics run on the standard hotel load and the beach bar consumables are part of the standard provisioning line. The APA delta versus a non-beach-club hull at the same LOA is negligible.
For Solandge at €870K peak weekly: €870K plus 22 percent VAT (€191K) plus 32 percent APA (€278K) plus 12 percent gratuity (€104K) plus 5 percent extras (€44K) equals roughly €1.49M all-in for the Mediterranean week. The all-in is comparable to other 80m+ Lürssen hulls at the same rate; the value is in the at-anchor experience.
The non-cash benefit is meaningful when the itinerary is built around protected anchorages where the beach club is in operation for several hours per day. A poorly chosen itinerary (open-water passages, exposed anchorages) reduces the beach club value to near zero.
FAQ
What does "beach club" actually mean on a yacht? The strongest definition is a stern beach club with a hydraulic opening transom and side terraces, creating a continuous water-level platform of 30+ square metres with adjacent enclosed lounge, toy stowage, and ideally an integrated gym, spa, or beach bar. Weaker definitions (stern lounge plus swim platform, swim platform alone) get marketed as beach club but deliver a different experience.
What sea state can the beach club operate in? Most opening transoms are rated for opening in sea states up to 1m to 1.5m at anchor. Above that, the captain closes the transom for safety. In Western Mediterranean coves the opening conditions are met most days; in exposed anchorages and during transit days the beach club operates as an interior lounge.
Is the beach club included in the standard charter or is it a separate fee? Included. Beach club access, the opening hydraulics, the beach bar, and any integrated spa and gym are part of the standard charter. Massage and wellness treatments are typically extras paid via APA.
Can the beach club be used at night? Yes, on most yachts. The opening transom can be operated at night with appropriate lighting and tender control. The captain may close the transom overnight for safety even if conditions allow.
How does the beach club compare to a private beach excursion? The beach club delivers a private water-level platform with full crew service, food and drink, towels, watersports, and air-conditioned interior space. A beach excursion at most Mediterranean destinations involves dealing with crowded public beaches, beach club bills of €1,000 to €5,000 per day, and ferry transfers. For charters above 60m, the beach club replaces most beach excursions.
Does the beach club need a separate insurance addendum? No. Beach club operations are covered under the standard charter and yacht insurance. Watersports operations from the beach club (jet skis, paddle boards, dive equipment) are part of the standard package.