NaCzarter Team
How do you give a yacht trip in Masuria as a gift?
The easiest way is a NaCzarter gift card. You choose an amount from 100 to 10,000 PLN, pay online, and the code is emailed to the recipient (you get a copy). The card is valid for 24 months, works on any yacht listed on NaCzarter and can be used in several parts. The recipient chooses the dates and the boat.
Picture Christmas Eve. Under the tree there is an envelope with a card and a code inside. First disbelief, then the question: "but I can't sail". And in July the same person is standing on the jetty with the keys in hand, sending the family a photo from the cockpit. Below is what you need to know to make this gift work: how much to load on the card, what the card will not cover and what to do if the recipient has no sailing licence.
How does a charter gift card work?
You buy the card on the gift card page. The form is short:
- Amount. The preset options are 500, 1000, 2000 and 5000 PLN. You can also enter your own amount in whole zlotys, from 100 to 10,000 PLN.
- Details. The recipient's name and email, your name and email, plus an optional message (up to 500 characters).
- Payment. Through PayU. The card is activated once the payment is confirmed.
After payment, the code is emailed to the recipient's address. You receive a purchase confirmation with a copy of the code, so you can print it and hand it over in person. Want the surprise under the tree rather than in their inbox three weeks early? Enter your own address in the recipient field. The code will then go to you only.
The card is valid for 24 months from purchase. The recipient enters the code in the NaCzarter booking form and the card amount is deducted from the charter price. If the charter costs less than the balance, the rest stays on the card for another trip. If it costs more, the difference is paid as with a normal booking.
When the card covers the full charter price, the booking is confirmed without an online payment. And if a booking paid with the card is cancelled with a refund, that part goes back to the card balance. The expiry date does not change.
How much to load on the card? Three scenarios
Below are median daily rates from listings on NaCzarter for the 2026 season. For small sailing boats one owner lists most of the offers, so there we first took the median for each owner and then the median of those medians, so that one price list would not skew the result. Owners set their own prices for the 2027 season and they may differ, so treat these figures as a ballpark. A broader overview is in the Masuria yacht charter price list.
A weekend for two in May or June
A small sailing boat (up to 8 berths) costs around 330–400 PLN per day at that time. Two days come to around 700–800 PLN, so a 1000 PLN card leaves some headroom. A small houseboat (5–6 berths) is around 700–750 PLN per day, so around 1400–1500 PLN for a weekend. Here it is better to load 1500 or 2000 PLN.
A family on a houseboat, 3 days in September
A houseboat for 7–8 berths costs around 950–1000 PLN per day in mid September, so around 3000 PLN for three days. A smaller one, for 5–6 berths, is around 700 PLN per day, so around 2100 PLN.
A group for a week in June
A sailing boat with 9–10 berths is around 740–750 PLN per day in June, about 5200 PLN for a week. A houseboat for 7–8 berths costs around 1100 PLN per day, so around 7700 PLN for a week. In peak season charters usually run Saturday to Saturday, and July is noticeably more expensive: in mid July the same class of sailing boat is around 900 PLN and a houseboat around 1300 PLN per day.
| Scenario | Yacht | Days | Approximate charter cost (2026 medians) | Suggested card amount | What the recipient pays on site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekend for two, May/June | Sailing boat up to 8 berths | 2 | approx. 700–800 PLN | 1000 PLN | cleaning approx. 200 PLN, refundable deposit approx. 1500 PLN |
| Weekend for two, May/June | Houseboat 5–6 berths | 2 | approx. 1400–1500 PLN | 1500–2000 PLN | cleaning approx. 300 PLN, refundable deposit approx. 3000 PLN |
| Family, mid September | Houseboat 7–8 berths | 3 | approx. 3000 PLN | 3000 PLN | cleaning approx. 300 PLN, refundable deposit approx. 3000 PLN |
| Group, a week in June | Sailing boat 9–10 berths | 7 | approx. 5200 PLN | 5000 PLN + top-up or 5500 PLN | cleaning approx. 200 PLN, refundable deposit approx. 1500 PLN |
| Group, a week in June | Houseboat 7–8 berths | 7 | approx. 7700 PLN | 8000 PLN | cleaning approx. 300 PLN, refundable deposit approx. 3000 PLN |
Two remarks. First, these are medians, and a specific yacht may cost more or less. Second, a short charter can cost more per day than a week, and a peak-season weekend may not be available at all. The search will show the exact amount once you enter the dates. Round the card amount up, since any unused balance stays on the card for the next trip anyway.
What will the card not cover?
The card reduces the charter price paid online. Some trip costs are paid separately, though, and the card does not cover them:
- Mandatory fees paid on site, such as cleaning. In NaCzarter listings for the 2026 season, the median is 200 PLN on a sailing boat and 300 PLN on a houseboat.
- Security deposit. It is refundable and settled on site: you pay it when you pick up the yacht and get it back when you return it, as long as everything is in order. The median is around 1500 PLN on a sailing boat and 3000 PLN on a houseboat. We describe how this works in practice in our article on the yacht charter security deposit.
- Extra services, such as a skipper. They are not included in the charter price shown in the search and are settled separately. The median is around 400 PLN per day on a sailing boat and 500 PLN on a houseboat.
Tell the recipient straight away, when you hand over the gift. Nobody likes finding out on the jetty that they need a few thousand zlotys more on them for the deposit.
What if the recipient has no sailing licence?
The card works on any listed yacht, so having no licence does not rule it out. There are three options:
- A houseboat. Almost all houseboats listed on NaCzarter are marked as available without a licence. A houseboat has no sails and is easy going on the water, although its high sides catch a crosswind when manoeuvring in a harbour. More in our article on the houseboat without a licence.
- A small sailing boat. You can sail a yacht with a hull length of up to 7.5 m without a licence. There are few such boats among charter listings, so check the length in the description right away.
- A skipper for an extra fee. On a bigger boat the recipient can hire a skipper to handle the yacht while the crew learns along the way. This is an optional, paid service. More in the description of skippered trips.
The minimum age of the charterer is set by the owner. It is a condition of the specific offer, not a legal rule.
Who chooses the dates and the boat?
The recipient. The card is an amount, not a booking of a specific yacht for a specific week. And that is a good thing, because you do not know their holiday plans, and they do not know their summer schedule yet either.
24 months of validity means two seasons in practice. A card bought in December 2026 is valid until December 2028, so it covers summer 2027 and summer 2028. There is one catch: July and August get booked early, and peak-season charters run Saturday to Saturday. Anyone who wants to sail during the summer holidays should sit down with the search in winter or early spring. We cover this in more detail in our article on when to book a charter in Masuria. Outside the peak, in May, June and September, shorter charters and lower prices are easier to find.
You provide the idea, the recipient fits it into their calendar.
How to present a sailing trip nicely?
A code in an email looks a bit plain, so a few small touches make a difference:
- The printed code in an envelope, with a note on roughly how many days it will cover.
- A map of the waterway with Giżycko and Mikołajki marked.
- A cockpit mug, ideally one that does not tip over when the boat heels.
- Gloves for handling the ropes.
That is all you need. The rest will come by itself, in July, on the jetty.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a charter gift card valid? 24 months from purchase. A card bought before Christmas 2026 will cover two seasons: 2027 and 2028.
Can the card be used in part? Yes. If the charter costs less than the card balance, the rest stays on the card and can be used for another booking while the card is valid.
Does the card cover the deposit and on-site fees? No. The card only reduces the charter price. Mandatory fees, such as cleaning, and the refundable deposit are paid to the owner on site.
Which yacht can the card be used for? Any yacht listed on NaCzarter: a sailing yacht, a motor yacht or a houseboat. The code is entered in the booking form.
What if the recipient has no sailing licence? They can choose a houseboat, since almost all of them on NaCzarter are marked as available without a licence. Other options are a sailing boat with a hull of up to 7.5 m or a bigger yacht with a skipper for an extra fee.
Cover photo: NaCzarter.pl
