KWS Adria - Yacht Charter Company | Fleet, Reviews & Booking

Warning!! Never again with KWS Adria! Between May 23 and June 6, 2026, we chartered a Bavaria 37 Cruiser sailboat from the charter company KWS Adria in Zadar, Croatia, through Marenauta. At first, everything seemed fine. For a 10-year-old boat, it was still in pretty good condition, and the staff at the base were friendly and helpful. We initially had some very nice days with light winds in the Kornati Nature Reserve. The boat’s main navigation instrument was a Garmin GPSMAP 923 chartplotter. This device was permanently mounted in a panel between the two steering wheels. It was noticeable that the device was installed slightly askew and that the paint had chipped off around the screws. It was certainly not in its original condition. One morning, the Garmin would no longer turn on. We notified the marina by phone and sailed back there. Two employees from KWS Adria removed the device and replaced it with another one. At the end of our trip, the boat was inspected upon return, and they initially confirmed that everything was in order. Then they suddenly said that our €1,500 security deposit would be withheld—that’s how much a new Garmin chartplotter would cost. Our objection—that we were not to blame for the device’s malfunction—was simply ignored. They also couldn’t say that we had done anything wrong. They would have only given us the old chartplotter if we had voluntarily waived our security deposit. We had to call the police, who at least took a statement of the facts. That was all they could do. We feel completely cheated by the people at KWS Adria. It seems as though KWS has new parts installed at the customers’ expense, through no fault of their own. Apparently, they’re confident that no one in Croatia wants to start legal proceedings. The company Marenauta wasn’t helpful either. It just passed our complaint and KWS’s evasive responses back and forth without mediating in the dispute. Never again KWS!

What can I tell? I did charter a Sailing boat here threee times and that was it. The boats are used but in shape, people at the base are friendly and it is not too expensive. But getting ripped off at the end of the charter makes me angry. Who ever has the same feeling, please contact me E-Mail: KWS_no_more@web.de