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In a 50m yacht's APA reconciliation, the main-engine fuel line is the largest single cost and the most discussed. The tender and toy fuel line is the second-largest variable cost and the least discussed. A typical Med charter on a 50m yacht absorbs €2,000 to €5,000 in tender and toy fuel over a week, with the number depending more on family behaviour than on yacht configuration. A heavy tender-use family running multiple shore trips per day with the wakeboard tower in the afternoons can push the line above €8,000. A quiet anchored-out family can keep it under €1,000. The 2026 fuel price, around €2.00 to €2.40 per litre at Mediterranean marina pumps, means small variations in burn produce material variations in the bill.
We work through the tender categories on a modern charter yacht, the per-hour fuel burn at typical loads, the jet ski fuel curve, the APA reconciliation pattern, and the lines worth checking on the final invoice.
The fleet on a 50m yacht in 2026
A typical 50m motor yacht in 2026 carries:
- A primary guest tender (6m to 8m custom-built RIB or limousine tender, 200hp to 400hp outboard or 300hp inboard diesel)
- A secondary or chase tender (4m to 5m smaller RIB for crew runs, water-ski tow, or backup)
- 2 to 3 jet skis (Yamaha FX SVHO, Sea-Doo GTX, or similar)
- Sometimes a sailing tender or small inflatable
Above 60m the fleet expands. A 70m yacht often runs a 9m to 11m chase tender alongside the guest tender, with three jet skis and sometimes a wakeboard-tower tender. Above 80m there is often a 12m+ limousine tender for principal transport, the chase tender, the jet skis, and a small RIB stored in the crew area.
Every one of these burns fuel. The yacht does not run an internal fuel-supply manifold for jet skis (the machines run on premium unleaded, not marine diesel). The tender main engines often run on diesel; outboard jet skis and outboard tenders run on premium unleaded.
This produces two parallel fuel-supply lines on the yacht: a marine diesel line that bunkers the main yacht and the diesel tenders, and a petrol jerry-can supply for the jet skis and outboard tenders. The petrol line is the one most prone to reconciliation drift.
Tender fuel burn by class
Mediterranean marine fuel rates in 2026 sit at €2.00 to €2.40 per litre for diesel, €2.20 to €2.60 per litre for premium unleaded. We will use €2.20 average for the calculations below.
Small inflatable tender, 4m, 50hp to 100hp:
- Cruise burn: 8 to 15 litres per hour
- Hour cost: €18 to €33
- Use case: short shore runs, kid-friendly runs
Standard guest tender, 6m to 7m RIB with 200hp to 350hp outboard:
- Cruise burn: 25 to 45 litres per hour
- Hour cost: €55 to €100
- Use case: shore runs, lunch transfers, water-ski tow
Custom limousine tender, 8m to 10m with 600hp to 1,000hp diesel or inboard:
- Cruise burn: 60 to 120 litres per hour
- Hour cost: €130 to €265
- Use case: principal transport, longer transfers, sunset cruising
Chase tender, 9m to 11m with twin diesel outdrives or sterndrives:
- Cruise burn: 70 to 140 litres per hour
- Hour cost: €155 to €310
- Use case: water-sports support, long-range crew runs
The hourly burn at high throttle (push to 35+ knots, full-tow speed) is roughly 1.5x to 2x the cruise number.
Jet ski fuel burn
Modern supercharged jet skis (Yamaha FX SVHO, Sea-Doo RXP-X 325) at active recreational use burn 25 to 35 litres per hour. The non-supercharged machines (Yamaha VX, Sea-Doo GTI) burn 12 to 20 litres per hour.
A family running two supercharged machines for 4 hours per day burns roughly 220 to 280 litres per day, or €485 to €620 per day at €2.20 per litre.
A week of moderate jet ski use (two machines, 3 hours per day, 5 days of the week) lands at €2,500 to €3,500 in fuel. Heavy use (every day, longer sessions) lands at €4,500 to €6,000.
The wakeboard tower scenario
The wakeboard-tower tender runs at sustained throttle (25 to 30 knots) for the tow duration. Burn is closer to high-end cruise: 40 to 70 litres per hour on a 7m tender, 80 to 130 litres per hour on a 9m chase tender.
A family with an active wakeboarder running 90 minutes of tow per day for five days burns:
- 7m tender: roughly 450 to 525 litres for the week, €1,000 to €1,150 in fuel
- 9m chase tender: roughly 900 to 1,200 litres for the week, €1,980 to €2,640 in fuel
The chase-tender option is materially more expensive in fuel terms, with the trade-off being a smoother tow and ability to handle multiple skiers at speed.
The full APA fuel line for tenders and toys
Putting the categories together, a 7-day Med charter on a 50m yacht with a moderate-use family:
- Tender shore runs (3 to 5 per day, average 30 minutes round-trip): 4 to 7 hours per day, €220 to €700 per day in tender fuel. Weekly: €1,540 to €4,900
- Jet ski use (2 machines, moderate): €2,500 to €3,500 weekly
- Wakeboard towing (90 min per day, 5 days): €1,000 to €2,640 weekly
Total: €5,040 to €11,040 weekly in tender and toy fuel.
Less active families absorb materially less. A family doing one shore run per day, light jet ski use, no wakeboarding: under €2,000.
More active families absorb materially more. A family with three active wakeboarders, daily jet ski sessions, and frequent shore runs to multiple destinations: above €10,000.
This is the variable line that almost every APA quote underestimates. The broker rule of thumb is €3,000 to €5,000 in tender and toy fuel for a "normal" charter week. The reality is wider on both ends.
The APA reconciliation pattern
A clean APA reconciliation shows each fuel-up as a separate line. A 100-litre jerry-can fill at a Capri marina pump should appear with:
- Date
- Location (Capri Marina Grande pump)
- Litres (100)
- Price per litre (€2.45)
- Total (€245)
- Currency
- Supplier or receipt reference
A reconciliation that lumps the entire week's tender and toy fuel into one €4,500 line item with no underlying breakdown is worth questioning. Captains can produce the underlying log on request. The cleanest yachts produce the log without being asked.
Two reconciliation patterns to watch.
The petrol-fuel drift. Jet ski fuel is bought at marina pumps in 50 to 200 litre fills, paid by the crew in cash or by yacht corporate card. The receipts are smaller, more numerous, and easier to lose. We have seen reconciliations where the jet ski fuel line is reported at €3,500 but the underlying receipts add to €2,400. The captain reports honestly when asked; the drift is not malicious, but it is the line where most discrepancies emerge.
The price-per-litre creep. Some fuel docks charge a marina-premium of 10% to 20% above the regional retail. A 100-litre fill at a Saint-Tropez marina pump might be €2.65 per litre against a €2.20 regional price. Charter clients are paying retail-plus-margin at marinas, which is the supplier reality, not a yacht margin. A reconciliation that shows €2.20 across all fuel-ups in the week is more suspicious than one showing varied prices by location.
What you can ask for pre-charter
The pre-charter brief is where you can shape the APA budget for tender and toy fuel.
Ask for a typical 7-day tender and toy fuel line on the yacht for the size of family you are bringing. Captains keep this data. Most will share it with the broker.
Ask whether the yacht's tender fleet is run on diesel or petrol. A diesel tender burns less per nautical mile than a petrol outboard. On charters that run a lot of shore transport, the diesel fleet is cheaper to operate.
Ask what the chief stew and chief mate consider "moderate" use against "heavy" use. The honest answer calibrates expectations.
Ask whether the yacht has an on-board petrol supply (some superyachts now carry small petrol bunkers for jet skis to reduce marina pump fuel-ups). This reduces marina-premium pricing but adds a small handling fee on the yacht side. Net usually favours the on-board supply.
The friction about the fuel line
We would push back on a broker quote that absorbs tender and toy fuel into the base rate. The line is variable, family-dependent, and obscured if pre-priced.
We would push back on a captain who does not run a day-zero fuel briefing. The brief should cover: tender fleet, jet ski availability, marina pump prices in the routing, expected weekly burn at the family's expected use level, and the APA budget allocation. A 10-minute conversation with the captain and the chief stew on day one prevents most APA surprise at week's end.
We would not select a 50m yacht with a single 6m tender for a family that wants heavy shore transport plus water sports. The tender bandwidth is insufficient and the yacht-side burn goes up because the tender is in constant use. Above 55m, the two-tender fleet is the right configuration.
We would not run a wakeboard program from a 9m chase tender if the family has only one active boarder. The fuel cost is high relative to use. The 7m tender does the job at half the burn.
The honest disclosure
Marine fuel prices change weekly. The numbers in this piece are as of May 2026 from confirmed marina pump quotes across Cannes, Antibes, Saint-Tropez, Porto Cervo, Capri, and Hvar, plus APA reconciliations on charters in 2025 and early 2026 we have data on. We will update each quarter. The companion pieces on water toys, helicopter use, yacht-fuel cost by size, and APA explained cover the surrounding cost lines. For the destination context, the /charter/ pages cover the routings where tender and toy use lands. For shore-side context around the marina pump destinations, villasforkings.com covers the villa option for pre-charter and post-charter stays.
FAQ
Is tender fuel included in the yacht charter rate? No. Tender fuel sits in APA alongside main yacht fuel, jet ski fuel, and other toy fuel.
How much should we budget for tender and toy fuel in a week? €2,000 to €5,000 for moderate use. €5,000 to €10,000+ for heavy water-sports use.
Why is petrol more expensive at marina pumps? Marinas charge a 10% to 20% premium over regional retail. Some yachts now carry on-board petrol to reduce the marina premium.
Can the captain show us the fuel receipts at week's end? Yes. Good captains produce the fuel log on request. Some produce it proactively in the APA pack.
Is jet ski fuel materially more expensive than tender fuel? Per hour, yes. Jet skis burn 25 to 35 litres per hour of premium unleaded against 25 to 45 litres per hour of diesel for a comparable tender. The per-litre price is also higher for premium unleaded.
What is the single biggest variable in the tender and toy fuel line? Family behaviour. The fleet on board is fixed. How much it runs is the variable.