For your next sailing holiday, particularly in the eastern Mediterranean but in some other surprising places as well, consider a gulet charter. Medium to large sailing craft originally designed for use in Turkey’s fishing and sponge-gathering waters, gulets have been transformed with the coming of sailboat tourism. The gulet is now a modern charter boat built for a unique vacation experience to be enjoyed in complete passenger comfort with luxury living aboard.
The true gulets are for the most part built-in ports along the Turkish Mediterranean coast from Bodrum to Fethiye, and that’s where they are most commonly encountered out on the water. While still built of timber using a traditional plank-on-frame boat-building method, today’s charter gulets (pronounced goo-let) use modern technology in their construction and are fitted with all the latest amenities of a quality charter vessel.
Hull shapes have been modified to increase living space, and while gulets are very much motorsailers, modern rigs have improved sailing performance. Most gulets are two-masted, with some smaller single-mast examples also in the charter. As their potential as charter boats has been realized, they have increasingly become available elsewhere, in styles reflecting the local traditions of different Mediterranean cultures.
Sailing holiday gulets come in a wide range of sizes – from 16 meters to over 40 meters long. Cabins are double or twin, with accommodation ranging from 6 to 20 guests. In the modern charter gulet, accommodation can only be described as luxurious. Fine craftsmanship is evident in the timber finishes, while the large interior spaces are packed with all the modern conveniences expected on a charter boat today. Out on deck, gulets have impressive cockpit dining areas and massive foredeck relaxation spaces that are the envy of other passing charterers.
