How find a skipper works
If the boat is already sorted, Malaka helps you find a verified skipper who fits the sailing area, yacht and crew.
The journey
Six moments, in order. Nothing is charged until you choose an offer — and once you do, the whole trip moves into one place.
Sailing area, marinas, dates and a rough route. A skipper needs the shape of the week before they can say anything useful about it.
Step 1 of 6
Step 01
A skipper can only give you a meaningful offer once they know the water, the marinas and the week. Everything else follows from this.
Flexible dates are worth mentioning. A skipper who is booked for your exact week may be free the week before it.
Step 02
Yacht type and size matter because handling, docking and onboard systems can differ substantially. A skipper who is at home on a 46-foot monohull may not be the right one for a 50-foot catamaran.
Example selection — this page is an explanation, not the form.
Yacht details · example
The yacht can be chartered anywhere, or privately owned. Malaka does not need to be the one that booked it.
You can start the request with approximate yacht details and update the exact model later. Type, size and charter base are usually enough for a skipper to tell you whether they're available and interested.
Step 03
Before booking, a skipper needs the shape of the group — how many, how experienced, what language works on board. Nothing personal, nothing identifying.
Not collected before booking
Passport numbers, ID scans, emergency contacts, health information and any other sensitive document stay out of the request entirely.
Those belong later — after a booking exists, and only where they are actually required.
Step 04
Two crews with the same yacht and the same dates can want completely different weeks. The trip style is what tells a skipper whether they're the right person for yours.
Example chips — try them.
How fixed is the route?
You know the islands and the order. The skipper sails your plan.
A rough shape with room to move as the week develops.
You describe the week you want and let the skipper design the route.
Posting the request
Once you submit it, matching skippers in that area can review the trip and decide whether to make an offer. You don't chase anyone — the request does the work.
Split → Hvar → Vis → Split
Request visibility
A skipper needs to judge whether they can do the week well. That is all the request gives them.
Matching skippers may see
They do not see, before booking
Personal details are shared later, with the skipper you actually book — and only what the trip requires.
Step 05
An offer is a concrete proposal for your week: who the skipper is, what they'd charge, what's on top, and how they'd approach the trip. You can receive several and take your time.
Select one to see what accepting does — nothing is charged here.
Croatia · Central Dalmatia
4.9 · 128 reviews
Dates6–13 June
Skipper fee€1,450
Travel expenses€120 estimated
“I'm available for these dates and know this route well. I would keep Vis flexible depending on the forecast.”
Croatia · Split & Kornati
4.8 · 61 reviews
Dates6–13 June
Skipper fee€1,620
Travel expensesIncluded
“Happy to take a beginner crew — we'd do short hops the first two days and build up from there.”
Croatia · Dalmatia & Elafiti
4.7 · 44 reviews
Dates6–13 June
Skipper fee€1,390
Travel expenses€180 estimated
“Available, and I'd suggest swapping Vis for Šćedro if the maestral is strong that week.”
Transparency
Offers should clearly distinguish skipper compensation from trip operating costs. If something is unclear in an offer, ask before you accept.
What you pay the skipper for their professional service during the trip. It is stated in the offer as a single, clear figure.
Some of these are the skipper's, some are the trip's. Which apply depends on the offer, the yacht and the area.
Step 06
The cheapest offer and the right offer are often not the same one. Seven things are usually worth weighing before you decide.
Professional information reviewed by Malaka before the skipper can take bookings.
Local knowledge of the coast, the anchorages and the marinas you'll actually use.
Monohull, catamaran or motor — and comfort at your yacht's size.
Communication with the whole crew, not only with whoever books.
Feedback from crews who have already sailed with them.
Calm, active, instructional, social — the atmosphere they bring on board.
Fee and extras clearly separated, with terms you can actually read.
Once the rest matches, the numbers are easy to compare — because they're broken down the same way.
Skipper profile
Before you commit
You can message a skipper about their offer without accepting it. Most decisions get easier after two or three questions.
How flexible should the itinerary be with a beginner crew?
Split–Hvar–Vis is comfortable in a week. I'd keep the last two days open — if the maestral picks up we shelter behind Šćedro instead and it's a better day for everyone.
And the €120 travel — is that fixed?
It's an estimate for the bus from Zadar. I'll confirm the exact amount before you accept.
Step 07
Accepting an offer is the moment the process turns into a booking. Everything before it is free and reversible.
Accepting an offer
Receiving an offer does not charge you.
Payment begins only after you choose an offer and confirm it. Until then you can keep comparing, keep asking questions, or let the request expire.
Payment
Five points in the journey. The first two are free — and the exact schedule for the last two belongs to the offer you accept.
No payment.
No payment.
The skipper booking is created.
Paid according to the agreed schedule.
Paid before the trip.
Deposit amounts and payment dates are set in the offer and the booking — not by a fixed platform percentage. Read them before you accept.
Step 08
The marketplace helps you find the skipper. Trip Workspace helps you run the actual trip — one place for the route, the crew, the documents, the payments and the conversation.
6–13 June · Bavaria Cruiser 46 · 8 guests · Skipper Marko
Countdown
Departurein 34 days
Check-inSat 6 June, 17:00
Crew
Joined6 of 8
Documents
Skipper licenceVerified
Crew list2 missing
Payments
DepositPaid
BalanceDue 23 May
Agreed terms
Skipper fee€1,450
Travel expenses€120
Languages
On boardEnglish
Also speaksCroatian · Italian
Yacht
ModelBavaria Cruiser 46
Cabins4 + skipper
Charter
BaseSplit (ACI Marina)
BookedExternally
Check-in
Saturday17:00
Check-outSaturday 09:00
Notes
Deposit held byCharter company
Skipper cabinForepeak
7 nights · roughly 120 nm · route confirmed with the skipper
Days 1–3
Split → Milna → HvarShort hops
Days 4–5
Hvar → Vis → BiševoWeather-dependent
Days 6–7
Vis → Šolta → SplitReturn leg
Flexibility
AgreedSkipper may adjust
Invited
Sent8
Joined
Accounts created6
Complete
All details in5
Missing
Still needed3
Each crew member fills in their own details. The group leader sees status only — not the contents.
Skipper
Sailing licenceVerified
VHF / SRCVerified
Trip
Crew listMissing 2
Charter contractUploaded
Documents stay attached to the booking and the trip, with a clear status on each one.
Deposit
Paid 12 April€450
Balance
Due 23 May€1,000
Expenses
Skipper travel€120
Terms
CancellationAs per offer
With the skipper
Last messageYesterday
TopicMarina arrival
With the crew
Announcements3
Unread1
One conversation per trip, so nothing important ends up in a private chat nobody else can see.
Sat 6 June
Marina check-in17:00
Fri 12 June
Return to SplitEvening
Sat 13 June
Check-out09:00
Reminders
Balance due23 May
Where
ACI Marina SplitPier C
When
Saturday17:00
Who to look for
Skipper Marko+ contact in app
Getting there
From SPU airport~35 min
Key difference
The yacht does not need to be booked through Malaka. Once the skipper booking is confirmed, the trip can still be organized inside the platform — route, crew, documents, payments and messages, all in one place.
Malaka supports trip organization for
Availability of specific trip types varies by sailing area and season.
After booking
Once the booking exists, each crew member completes their own information. The group leader sees whether it's done — not what it says.
Each crew member completes
The group leader sees status only
Invited
Links sent8
Joined
Accepted6
Complete
All done5
Missing
Outstanding3
Documents
Skipper and trip documents stay connected to the booking, so nobody has to ask whether something was sent. Nothing is uploaded on this page.
After confirmation, logistics, marina details, arrival times, route updates, documents, crew changes and announcements all live in the same thread — attached to the trip, not scattered across private inboxes.
On the water
A good week is rarely the one written down in April. Expect the plan to move a little — that flexibility is usually what makes the sailing better, not worse.
Agreeing up front how flexible the route is — fixed, tentative, or the skipper's call — avoids the only conversation nobody wants to have on day four.
Trust
Before a skipper can take bookings on Malaka, their professional information is reviewed. What gets checked can vary by country and by the kind of trip.
That the person on the profile is the person who will be on board.
A valid professional or skipper licence appropriate to the area.
Radio certification, where it applies to the trip and the area.
Additional qualifications where the trip type calls for them.
Experience, sailing areas and yacht types, checked for plausibility.
Licence numbers and personal documents are not shown on profiles or in offers.
Before posting
You don't need all of them — but the more you have, the more precise the offers come back. Tick what you already know.
Cost
Rough orientation only, so you know what range to expect before the first offer arrives.
€1,300–€2,000 / week
A standard seven-night charter week with a professional skipper on board.
€250–€400 / day
Day sailing, weekends, deliveries and shorter engagements.
Pricing varies by destination, yacht, season, duration and trip complexity. These are illustrative ranges, not platform pricing — the actual figure is the one in the offer.
Timing
There's no deadline. But good skippers in busy areas fill up, and a few patterns are worth knowing.
For July and August, earlier is better — the best-matched skippers in popular areas commit first.
Unusual models and larger boats have a smaller pool of skippers who know them well.
Catamaran-experienced skippers are fewer in most areas, so allow more time.
A day or two of movement on your dates noticeably widens who can say yes.
Worked example
The same trip you've seen through the page, from first request to an organized week.
Questions
Yes. That's exactly what this journey is for. You bring the yacht — chartered anywhere or privately owned — and Malaka helps you find a verified skipper for your dates, area and crew.
No. The yacht can come from a charter company, a broker, another platform, or your own berth. Once the skipper booking is confirmed, the trip can still be organized inside Trip Workspace.
Sailing area, dates, yacht type and size, guest count, crew experience, language preference and a rough idea of the route or trip style. The checklist above covers the full list — you don't need every item to start.
Yes. Start with approximate details — type, size and charter base — and update the exact model once it's booked. Skippers understand that the boat is often the last piece.
Matching skippers for that area and those dates. They see the trip: location, dates, yacht, crew size, experience, language, route and any non-sensitive notes. They do not see identity documents, private addresses, passport or payment details.
Yes, and that's the point of posting rather than searching one by one. Receiving several offers lets you compare fee structure, experience and approach side by side before deciding.
You can browse skipper profiles and invite one you like to your request. They can then respond with an offer the same way any other matching skipper would.
Yes. Messaging an offer costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Most people ask about route flexibility, the yacht model, and what's included in the expenses before they choose.
Who the skipper is and their verification, availability for your dates, the scope of the service, the skipper fee, any additional expenses, cancellation terms, a message about the trip, and where applicable how long the offer stands.
Nothing is charged for posting a request or receiving offers. Payment begins only after you accept an offer and the booking is created — a deposit on the agreed schedule, then the remaining balance before the trip. The exact amounts and dates come from the offer.
It depends on the offer. Some skippers include travel in the fee; others state it separately as an estimate. The same applies to food on board, a cabin or berth, and accommodation before or after the trip. If it isn't clear, ask before accepting.
The selection process closes, the skipper booking is created on the terms in the offer, the payment flow opens, and the trip moves into Trip Workspace — where the route, crew, documents, payments and messages live from then on.
Yes. Before booking you only give a guest count and an experience level. After confirmation you invite the crew, and each person completes their own details — you see whether they're done, not what they contain.
It varies by country, charter company and trip type — a crew list is common, and the charter contract is often useful to have attached. Each document keeps a visible status, from required through uploaded and under review to verified. Nothing is uploaded on this page.
The skipper adjusts it. Wind, sea state, marina availability, safety and what the crew can comfortably handle all feed into the daily decision. Agreeing in advance how fixed the route is makes those calls easy for everyone.
Explore complete sailing holidays where route, departure, yacht and skipper are already organized.
Ready when you are
Add your dates, yacht and crew details, then start comparing verified skippers.
About your request · Croatia, 6–13 June
Messaging a skipper about their offer is free and commits you to nothing. This is a preview — no message is sent.