Miami Yacht Rental Gratuity Guide: What's Expected & How to Pay

Pricing · By The VCYC Team · August 22, 2026 · 7 min read

Gratuity is never included in Vice City Yacht Club charter prices. Learn the real minimums (10–18%), when to pay, and how to tip the crew directly—no hidden charges.

What You Need to Know About Miami Yacht Rental Gratuity

Gratuity is not included in any Vice City Yacht Club charter price. The minimum crew gratuity is 10% of the charter price, rising to 18% on holiday charters, with 15–20% customary for excellent service. You pay the crew directly on charter day—it never appears on your invoice and is never auto-added to your booking total.

This direct-to-crew model keeps your invoice transparent and gives you complete control. When you book a 4-hour charter on Sebastian for $3,100, your invoice shows exactly $3,100 plus Florida sales tax. The gratuity calculation—$310 at 10%, $465 at 15%, or $620 at 20%—is entirely separate, paid at the dock when your captain greets you.

What Gratuity Is—and Isn't—Included in Your Miami Yacht Rental

Every Vice City Yacht Club charter includes a USCG-licensed captain, fuel for standard cruising, ice, coolers, Bluetooth sound system, and all required safety equipment. The charter price also covers $1M general liability and $10M hull coverage. What the price does not include: food, alcohol, and crew gratuity.

Gratuity is discretionary and paid separately. It never appears as a mandatory service charge on your booking confirmation, never gets auto-calculated at checkout, and never shows up as a surprise line item when you arrive. Vice City Yacht Club lists the charter price, tax, and deposit requirement upfront—gratuity remains a charter-day decision you make based on service quality.

This policy applies universally: whether you book a 3-hour sunset cruise on BALI for $500 or an 8-hour superyacht charter on CIAO 5 for $23,900, gratuity follows the same transparency rule. You see the real retail price, you pay the deposit (35% or $250 minimum), and you settle the balance and gratuity separately on charter day.

Vice City Yacht Club's Crew Gratuity Policy: The Real Numbers

The baseline crew gratuity is 10% of the charter price. For holiday charters—major holidays when crew availability is limited and demand peaks—the minimum rises to 18%. Industry-wide, 15–20% is customary for excellent service, and many guests tip at the higher end when captains customize routes or go beyond standard hospitality.

These percentages are guidelines, not automatic charges. If you book a 6-hour charter on Paragon for $5,450, the 10% minimum is $545, the 15% customary amount is $818, and a generous 20% tip reaches $1,090. You choose the figure based on your experience—the captain's professionalism, the route quality, how well the crew handled your group's requests.

Holiday charters follow a higher floor because captains work premium dates when most crew members would otherwise have time off. The 18% minimum on those dates reflects the opportunity cost and ensures fair compensation. Even on holidays, gratuity is never invoiced or pre-charged—you still hand it directly to the crew at the dock.

Vice City Yacht Club publishes these guidelines in the FAQ and booking confirmation emails. Guests who want clarity before booking can visit the marina to ask questions; the policy remains the same regardless of boat size or charter duration.