Big Joy is a Aquila 42 Yacht, registered as a 8-berth power catamaran in our European charter fleet since 2024. Length overall is 12.64 m (41.5 ft), with the home base at Cannigione. That places her in the size class most operators rate as the practical maximum a small crew can run without skipper support — enough volume on deck and in the saloon for the full guest list, with handling that stays predictable in the Italian coast's typical summer winds.
The interior is laid out across 4 cabins and 3 heads with shower, certified for up to people. Linens, towels and a start-pack of galley essentials come bundled in the charter rate — the operator also handles the inventory check on hand-over so you can move provisioning to the top of your first morning rather than your departure afternoon.
Most guests booking Big Joy sail around Sicily and the Aeolian arc, the Sardinian east shore, or the Tuscan archipelago. Europe Yachts looks after the booking end-to-end — from first inquiry through check-out — with a 72-hour free-cancellation window standard on every reservation. We stay reachable in your language and timezone, whether you're booking solo or coordinating logistics for a larger group.
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You can get in touch with the skipper as soon as you've completed your booking.
Our skippers are highly qualified and knowledgeable about their locality. They all speak English. For a bareboat charter, the skipper is paid in the marina at check-in (on a crewed charter the crew is already included in the price).
The honest answer: tell us the headcount, the cruising ground and how active the group wants to be, and we will narrow the list down for you in one phone call. Across the six countries we work in, the bookings fall into five buckets:
Three questions we always come back to before the shortlist gets sent:
Sailing yacht if at least one person on board wants the feel of sailing — the heel, the trim, the small daily decisions a monohull asks of the skipper. Catamaran if comfort is the priority — flat deck even under sail, two saloons of usable living space, a galley that works at anchor and underway, and a draft shallow enough to anchor closer to shore than a monohull ever could. Most catamarans run two engines and rarely heel beyond about five degrees, which is why families with first-time guests and groups with mixed sailing confidence book them by default. For the same weekly budget you tend to get one boat-length less on a cat than on a monohull, so the trade is space against price.
Three ways, all of which land in the same broker desk in Split:
Once you choose a yacht we place a 24- to 72-hour hold while you confirm flights, crew list and any skipper paperwork. The boat is locked the moment the first instalment lands — 30%, 40% or 50% of the total depending on the partner's terms, or the full amount if the charter starts inside 60 days. Bank transfer and Visa/Mastercard/Amex both work; every payment is covered by Wiener Insurance Group at no extra cost.
Inside the first 72 hours after booking, you can still cancel free of charge — full refund, no questions asked.
Tell us your dates and group — a broker replies with a costed offer, charter agreement and the next available week, usually within the same business day.
