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Antigua at 50 to 60m is the eastern Caribbean's deep-water historic base and the bracket runs the island as both an embarkation port and the structural anchor for the southern half of the winter rotation. The 2026 weekly rate runs $265,000 to $395,000 for motor and $215,000 to $315,000 for sailing, plus APA at 25 to 30 percent, Antiguan cruising permits and port fees, and gratuity at 10 to 15 percent. The bracket carries 10 to 12 guests in 6 cabins (7 at the upper end), with 14 to 17 crew. Falmouth Harbour Marina and the Antigua Yacht Club Marina handle the bracket on stern-to dockage; English Harbour and Nelson's Dockyard work the bracket on anchor. The Antigua Charter Yacht Show in early December and the Royal Yacht Squadron's regatta calendar through April set the seasonal slot pattern for the bracket and the Antigua-based winter pool is among the strongest in the basin.
Why the bracket bases at Antigua specifically
Falmouth Harbour is the deepest natural harbour in the eastern Caribbean at the bracket and the Falmouth Harbour Marina and Antigua Yacht Club Marina between them carry the bracket on stern-to dockage with both fuel and shorepower. The Pillars of Hercules approach into English Harbour is the bracket's most photographed entry in the Caribbean and Nelson's Dockyard handles the bracket on anchor inside the inner harbour with a tender drop at the Dockyard quay. The deep-water draft profile at Falmouth and English handles the bracket without dredge-tide constraints; the bracket's upper end fits with no air-draft constraint.
The Antigua Charter Yacht Show in early December (the season's principal charter showcase, running the first week of December) repositions a heavy share of the eastern Caribbean and Mediterranean fleet to Falmouth at the bracket. The show is the slot-allocation event for the eastern-Caribbean winter and the post-show booking pattern feeds the December through April rotation. The Royal Yacht Squadron's regatta cycle through April adds slot competition through the spring shoulder.
The booking pattern at the bracket is the southern eastern-Caribbean weekly with Falmouth as the embarkation point and St Barths to the north or Guadeloupe and the Leewards to the south as the geography. Antigua works as either a single-base destination for charter clients who prioritise the historic harbour experience or as the structural anchor of a multi-island week.
Weekly rate map for 2026
High season (mid-December 2026 to mid-April 2027), before APA at 25 to 30 percent and gratuity at 10 to 15 percent. The rate references a full eastern-Caribbean charter week embarking Falmouth Harbour.
| LOA bracket | Motor yacht (low to high) | Sailing yacht and motor-sailor (low to high) |
|---|---|---|
| 50 to 53m | $265K to $305K per week | $215K to $260K per week |
| 53 to 57m | $300K to $355K per week | $250K to $290K per week |
| 57 to 60m | $340K to $395K per week | $280K to $315K per week |
Antigua at the bracket carries a 5 to 10 percent discount against St Barths on a like-for-like LOA and roughly parity with the BVI. Christmas and NYE run a 30 to 50 percent premium and pull the bracket north to the St Barths cluster. The Antigua Sailing Week in late April and the Classic Yacht Regatta in mid-April carry a 15 to 25 percent premium with the regatta-week booking pattern. For broader context see Caribbean charter weekly rates and the 40 to 50m Antigua bracket.
What the bracket buys you in this bracket
Cabins. 6 cabins standard, 7 at the upper end. The eastern Caribbean 50 to 60m pool is the Caribbean's deepest at the bracket because the December Charter Yacht Show is the repositioning event for the winter.
Crew. 14 to 17. The Antigua crew bench is the strongest in the southern eastern Caribbean for the bracket, with deep captain, engineering, and chef pools across the seasonal rotation. The English Harbour-based crew rotation has a strong sailing-yacht heritage that carries through to the motor fleet's racing-week tonnage.
Tenders. Primary 9 to 10m, secondary 7m. The Falmouth-to-English-Harbour run, Pigeon Beach, Carlisle Bay, and Green Island anchorages all run the dual-tender pattern hard; the secondary tender handles beach-club service while the primary handles guest transit.
At-anchor stabilizers. Required. The Atlantic-facing east coast at Green Island and Nonsuch Bay runs swell from the trades through January and February.
Helipad. Touch-and-go meaningful at the upper end. VC Bird International (ANU) is the primary embarkation airport and the helicopter shuttle pattern is materially less developed than St Martin's SXM hub; ground transfer to Falmouth from ANU runs 35 to 45 minutes.
Trip shapes that fit the bracket
The Antigua-based seven-night. Embark Falmouth, two nights English Harbour and Pigeon Beach, two nights Green Island and Nonsuch Bay, two nights Barbuda day-anchor and overnight, return Falmouth. Seven nights. The bracket fits the entire run and works as the southern eastern-Caribbean single-base week.
The Antigua to Guadeloupe and the Saints ten-night. Embark Falmouth, work Antigua for three nights, reposition south overnight to Guadeloupe, work Iles des Saintes for three nights, return Falmouth. Ten nights. The Saints leg adds the French Antilles food and beach geography below the Antigua anchor.
The Antigua plus St Barths multi-island ten-night. Embark Falmouth, reposition north overnight to St Barths and Anguilla, work the cluster for four nights, reposition south, work Antigua for three nights, return Falmouth. Ten nights. Heavier on overnight repositioning; rewards charter clients who want both Caribbean's principal anchorage clusters in one week. For destination context see Charter Antigua, Charter Guadeloupe, and Charter St Barths.
What the bracket does not do well at Antigua
NYE single-base. The NYE booking pull is structurally at St Barths, not Antigua. Antigua-based NYE weeks run available at the bracket but the headline rate and the social geography both sit at Gustavia. Antigua at NYE is a viable alternative for charter clients who want the historic harbour evening pattern over the Gustavia outer-mooring crowd, with the trade-off of materially less social density.
Day charter on the trade-wind east coast. Green Island and Nonsuch are anchorages at the bracket but the lee-side day-anchor density on the southern and western coasts (Pigeon, Carlisle, Five Islands, Hermitage Bay) is lighter at the bracket than the lee-side Anguilla and St Barths anchorages.
Inside-week reposition north to Anguilla and St Barths. The overnight reposition is 80 to 90 nautical miles. The bracket runs the passage at the pattern but charter clients running tight age-90-plus passenger demographics should plan two-night legs over compressed overnight runs.
The pick
For two couples, seven days in mid-February, Antigua single-base with Barbuda overnight: a 53m motor yacht with 6 cabins, at-anchor stabilizers, twin tenders. Budget $310K plus APA, all-in roughly $415K. Booking lead time: 6 to 9 months.
For a family of 10, ten days in early March, Antigua plus Guadeloupe Saints: a 56m motor yacht with 6 cabins. Budget $350K plus APA, all-in roughly $470K. Booking lead time: 8 to 11 months.
For a friend group of 12, ten days in mid-April for the Antigua Classic Regatta week: a 58m sailing yacht or motor yacht with 6 cabins. Budget $345K plus regatta premium plus APA, all-in roughly $510K. Booking lead time: 10 to 14 months.
Build, refit, what to ask
The Antigua-based 50 to 60m pool runs younger than the western Caribbean rotation and benefits from the December Charter Yacht Show's display-quality refit cycle. A 2022 or later refit with at-anchor stabilizers, twin tenders, and confirmed Falmouth-bench captain is the value zone. We would pass on tonnage running pre-2018 hull form through the Antigua trade-wind anchorages specifically; the at-anchor swell pattern at Green Island and Nonsuch rewards the more recent at-anchor stabilizer generations.