The Costa del Sol charter market has exactly one active catamaran — a Lagoon 380 we run out of Marbella Marina. It turns away 15–25 enquiries a season it can't accept on date conflict, and the next-nearest charter cat is in Gibraltar. A second well-listed cat in Marbella would fill its calendar in Year 1. This page covers the economics and the practicalities of chartering out your catamaran through us — what makes the cat market different from monohull sail (covered on the sailboat page), and why undersupply is the dominant feature.
Why catamarans outperform monohulls on day charter
Three structural reasons:
- Deck area. A 42 ft catamaran has 60–80% more usable space than a 42 ft monohull. Trampolines forward, hard-top flybridge, beam saloon, two transom benches. Hosts 10–14 guests comfortably; a monohull of the same length tops out at 6–8.
- Stability at anchor. Cats don't roll. Lunch at anchor in 1.5 m swell is comfortable. On a monohull, half the guests are queasy by course two.
- Visual product. Photos of 12 people on the trampoline of a 45 ft cat sell. The same charter on a monohull looks crowded.
Day rates per LOA-foot run 1.5–2× monohull. Marbella 42 ft cat day rate: €1,200–€1,800. 42 ft monohull: €650–€950.
Day rates and season earnings
| Catamaran | Day rate (low / Aug) | Charter days/season | Gross revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lagoon 38, Bali 4.0 (sail) | €1,000–€1,500 | 22–32 | €26,000–€44,000 |
| Lagoon 42, Fountaine Pajot Astréa 42 (sail) | €1,200–€1,800 | 28–38 | €38,000–€68,000 |
| Lagoon 46, FP Saona 47 (sail) | €1,500–€2,200 | 28–38 | €48,000–€85,000 |
| Aquila 36, FP MY40 (power) | €1,400–€2,000 | 32–42 | €48,000–€80,000 |
| Sunreef 50, Lagoon Sixty 7 (luxury) | €3,200–€5,500 | 20–32 | €72,000–€165,000 |
Net to owner after commission, crew, insurance, marina, maintenance: 55–70% of gross.
The cat-specific costs to budget
- Berth fee +16–25%. Wider beam = wider slip = higher annual. Build into your day-rate pricing.
- Antifouling 2 hulls. Almost double a monohull. €1,800–€3,200/yr.
- Twin engines. Two service intervals, two impellers, two anodes. Roughly 1.6× monohull engine maintenance.
- Sail wear on a 14m sail cat is higher. Larger square meterage. Mainsail every 7–9 charter seasons (€5,500–€8,000), genoa every 5–7 (€3,500–€5,000).
- Insurance ~10–15% higher per €100k hull. See the insurance page.
Sailing cat vs power cat — for Marbella
Power cats edge ahead on Marbella day-charter economics. Reasons:
- No light-wind down days — the cat can still do the lunch-at-anchor cruise when there's 4 knots of breeze.
- Faster to anchor and back, so a 6-hour day fits comfortably (vs feeling rushed on a sail cat in a calm).
- Day rate runs slightly higher because the photos look like a 'yacht' rather than a 'sailing boat' — different renter pool.
Sailing cats win when the renter specifically asks for a sailing experience (about 22% of cat enquiries). Both markets exist; if you already own a sailing cat, list it. If you're buying, the power cat edges ahead for Marbella day-charter.
Marbella vs Palma — where to base
The standard catamaran ownership question. Two scenarios:
- Week-long bareboat dominant. Palma. 18–24 one-week charters at €6,500–€9,500 per week for a 45 ft cat. Higher absolute gross, but boat is gone 5 months and you're chasing it for personal use.
- Day charter + personal use. Marbella. Higher day rates than Palma (€1,500 vs €1,150), longer effective day-charter season (16 vs 14 weeks), boat available evenings and weekdays for owner use. Lower gross but higher net-of-personal-utility.
Our owner data: 45 ft sail cat in Marbella netted €36,500 in 2025 on 32 charter days, plus the owner used the boat 11 weeks personally. Same hull basing in Palma would have grossed ~€72,000 on 18 week-charters but with virtually zero owner use.
How to list your catamaran with us
- WhatsApp +358 400 406 194 with: make/model, year, hull length, beam, current sails/instruments inventory, lista status.
- Marina walkthrough — 45–60 minutes on a 38–45 ft cat. Drone footage included.
- Pricing meeting: review your rates if any, benchmark, set day rate + 4-hour sunset + multi-day tiers.
- Listing live in 5–10 days. Drone, sailing/cruising video, EN + ES copy.
Demand is the easy part — supply is the constraint. The first owner to list a 42–46 ft cat with us in 2026 will run at peak utilisation by mid-July.
Related: more for catamaran owners
Frequently asked questions
Is the Marbella catamaran market really that undersupplied?
Yes. We've been the only operator running a charter catamaran (Lagoon 380) on the Costa del Sol consistently since 2022. The yacht runs 28–34 charter days a season and turns away 15–25 enquiries it can't accommodate. A second well-listed 40–45 ft cat would fill its calendar in Year 1.
How much does a 40–45 ft catamaran earn in Marbella?
Day rates: €1,200–€1,800 low season, €1,500–€2,400 August. Realistic 28–38 charter days/season at the higher end of demand. Gross €38,000–€72,000. Net to owner after 15–20% commission, skipper days, insurance, marina, cleaning: €25,000–€48,000. A 50–55 ft cat clears closer to €60,000–€90,000 net.
Sailing cat or power cat — which earns more?
Power cats earn ~20% more on day charter (slightly higher day rate, no light-wind down days, faster to anchor and back). Sailing cats earn more on multi-day (clientele who specifically want a sailing experience). Marbella is 92% day charter, so power cat economics edge ahead. Both viable.
Why do cats earn more than monohulls of the same length?
Geometry. A 42 ft cat has 60–80% more usable deck area than a 42 ft monohull, hosts 10–14 guests comfortably vs 6–8 on a mono, and the trampolines + flybridge are core to the party-group product. Day rate scales with usable group space, not LOA. Same crew cost on a cat as a mono — better unit economics.
Berth fees?
Wider beam = wider berth = higher fee. A 42 ft / 24 ft beam cat needs a 50 ft commercial berth at most Marbella marinas, paying 16–25% above a 42 ft monohull. Annual commercial berth at Marbella Marina: €20,000–€28,000 for a 42 ft cat vs €16,000–€22,000 for the monohull. Puerto Banús: €24,000–€36,000. Build it into pricing.
Captain — same as a monohull?
Same licence requirements (PER up to 12 m / 30 NM; Patrón de Yate above). Cats handle differently — twin engines, no keel, lots of windage. Owners new to cats should run 2–3 supervised charter days with our captain before bareboat-skippering paid charters.
Insurance load — higher than a monohull?
Marginally — ~10–15% higher premium per €100k hull value because of wider beam, twin-engine maintenance, and replacement-cost dynamics in a Med fire/sinking scenario. Charter cover for a 42 ft cat with €450k hull: €3,200–€4,800/yr in 2026. See our [insurance page](/owners/boat-rental-insurance-spain/) for context.
Should I base the cat in Marbella or Palma?
If you want week-long bareboat charter income, Palma earns more — €6,500–€9,500/wk for a 45 ft cat, 18–24 week charters. If you want day-charter and own the boat for personal use too, Marbella day charter is competitive on net economics because day rates are higher, the season is longer (16 weeks meaningful vs Palma's 14), and Marbella berth costs less.