Private RIB Charters, Water Taxis & Heritage Boat Tours on the Solent
Your own boat, your own day on the Solent. Choose a half-day or full-day skippered charter and set your own itinerary, from a leisurely cruise to the Isle of Wight to a full day exploring the Solent's hidden coves. Every charter is run with a commercially endorsed skipper at the helm and fuel included clear, upfront pricing, no hidden extras.
Need to get somewhere on the water? Our water taxi service is on hand for shopping trips to Gunwharf Quays, Cowes or Yarmouth, transfers, or simply the fastest way across the Solent, booked around your schedule, not a timetable.
Where History Left Harbour. Our D-Day heritage tours take you back to 1944, retracing the same tides where the invasion fleet gathered, from the embarkation points of Southampton Water to the great anchorage at Spithead, with vivid storytelling that brings the Solent's most dramatic chapter to life.
And when the occasion calls for more, a wedding arrival by sea, our exclusive Appley Manor Escape to the Isle of Wight, or a bespoke charter for Cowes Week — we'll build the day entirely around you.
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Southampton Water D-Day Heritage Tour
Spithead & D-Day Anchorage Tour
In June 1944, Southampton Water was the beating heart of the greatest seaborne operation in history. Troops, tanks and landing craft streamed down this stretch of water towards Normandy — and today, you'll follow in their wake.
From the moment we cast off, your skipper brings the story alive: the embarkation hards, the assembly points, the docks that never slept. This is history told where it happened, at the pace it happened — aboard a fast, comfortable RIB with lifejackets, briefing and an expert skipper all included.
Up to two hours on the water, eighty years back in time. Seats are limited to ten, so every guest gets the full story.
Spithead has witnessed centuries of naval history, but nothing to match the spring of 1944 — when the greatest armada ever assembled gathered.
Riding at anchor between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, waiting for the order that would change the world. This tour takes you into the heart of that anchorage. Departing from the Isle of Wight, you'll cross the historic fleet assembly grounds with a skipper who knows every ship, every signal and every story — the Solent's most dramatic chapter, told on the water where it unfolded.
Fast, comfortable and fully skippered, with a maximum of ten guests aboard. Bring your camera; the Solent does the rest.
Private RIB Charter
Your Boat, Your Day
Take the whole boat, bring up to ten of your favourite people, and let your skipper do the rest. Every Anchor Charter is fully skippered by an RYA commercially endorsed skipper, with fuel, lifejackets and a full briefing included — the price you see is the price you pay.
Where you go is entirely up to you. A half day comfortably takes in two or three destinations — lunch at the Folly Inn, a swim in the shelter of Osborne Bay, an ice cream run to Cowes.
A full day opens up the whole Solent: Yarmouth to Portsmouth, Beaulieu River to Priory Bay, with a proper lunch stop wherever takes your fancy.
And for the days that don't fit a template — Cowes Week, festival drop-offs, proposals, milestone birthdays — our bespoke charters are built entirely around you. Just tell us the day you have in mind.
From £475 for a half day, £750 for a full day.
Water Taxi
Looking for a fast, safe water taxi across the Solent?
Anchor Charters offers private water taxi transfers between Hamble, Cowes, the Isle of Wight and the mainland.
Whether you're joining a yacht in Cowes, heading ashore for the day, or need a group transfer for up to ten people, our water taxi service can get you there in as little as 20 minutes.
Our fast, fully skippered RIB comfortably carries family groups, sailing crews and corporate parties alike, with pick-ups available from Hamble, Ocean Village and other locations across the Solent.
We run regular water taxi transfers to Gunwharf Quays, perfect for a day of shopping and dining on the Portsmouth waterfront, as well as popular routes to Cowes, Ocean Village and Yarmouth, home to some of the Solent's best eateries.
During major events such as Cowes Week and the Isle of Wight Festival, we can also arrange bespoke water taxi transfers to fit around your plans, simply get in touch to discuss your requirements.
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Half Day Charter — £475
From just £47.50 each · up to 10 people · fuel and skipper included.
Morning 09:30–13:00 ·
Afternoon 13:00–16:30
Three and a half hours, the whole boat, and the Solent at your feet — for less than £50 a head when you fill your ten seats.
Choose the morning run and be sipping coffee in Cowes while the water's still glassy, or take the afternoon slot and finish your day golden-hour cruising home.
Either way, your commercially endorsed skipper takes care of everything; you simply choose the adventure — Osborne Bay for a swim, the Folly Inn for lunch, or flat-out across the Solent just because you can.
The price is the price: £475 includes your skipper, fuel, lifejackets and full briefing, with no hidden extras.
It's the perfect length for a birthday on the water, a family occasion, or simply the fastest afternoon your crew will have all summer. Pick your slot, gather your people, and we'll handle the rest.
Full Day Charter — £750
From just £75 each · up to 10 people · fuel and skipper included.
09:30–16:30 Seven hours, the whole Solent, and nowhere you have to be.
This is the charter for crews who want it all — a morning blast to Yarmouth while the water's still quiet, a swim in the shelter of Priory Bay, a proper long lunch at a waterside pub, then home the scenic way past Osborne House with the sun behind you.
Your commercially endorsed skipper knows every harbour, anchorage and lunch table worth knowing; tell us the day you're imagining and we'll chart it.
At £750 all-in — skipper, fuel, lifejackets and full briefing, no hidden extras — the full day works out at little more than £100 an hour for the entire boat, and just £75 a head with ten aboard.
For a milestone birthday, a family gathering or the best day out your friends will talk about all year, nothing on the Solent comes close.
One date, one boat, one unforgettable day.
Tailored Events & Bespoke Solent Charters
Some days don't fit a template. Cowes Week from the best seat on the water. A festival arrival that beats every queue. A proposal timed to the sunset, a corporate day your team actually talks about afterwards, or a milestone marked somewhere unforgettable.
Our bespoke charters are built entirely around your day your route, your timings, your ideas with an RYA commercially endorsed skipper who knows exactly how to make them happen.
We can dress the occasion from start to finish: drinks and nibbles on departure, a table booked at the right waterside spot, champagne on the way home.
Every quote is all-inclusive, skipper, fuel and planning, and priced fairly to what your day involves, so there are no surprises after the event.
Secure your date with a 20% deposit, with the balance not due until three weeks before. Call us to talk through your ideas, or send an enquiry and we'll come back within one working day with a plan and a price.
Arrive by Sea — Exclusively with Appley Manor Hotel
Arrive by sea. Stay the night. Come home restored.
Cross the Solent the memorable way. Your escape begins with a RIB passage from the mainland — sea air, spray and the island growing on the horizon — before you step ashore in the picture-postcard village of Seaview.
Wander its sailing-village lanes or call in at the yacht club, before we whisk you along the coast to Appley Manor Hotel. The evening is yours: dinner at the Manor, a comfortable night's stay, and no ferry to catch.
Then, after a leisurely island morning, your skipper collects you for the crossing home — the Solent sparkling, the weekend feeling lasting well beyond the pontoon.
One price, everything included: both crossings, dinner and your night at Appley Manor. Exclusively from Anchor Charters and Appley Manor Hotel — no one else can offer it.
The Appley Manor Escape — £375 per person
Skippered, Coded, and Serious About Safety
RYA commercially endorsed skippers
Coded and insured vessel
Lifejackets and full safety briefing included
Every voyage is in expert hands. Your skipper is RYA-qualified and commercially endorsed, with the kind of local knowledge of the Solent that only comes from years at the helm — every sandbank, every tide gate, every story.
Coded, insured, and ready for anything. Our RIB is fully coded for commercial operation, independently inspected and certified to carry passengers at sea, comprehensively insured, and equipped: lifejackets for every guest, VHF radio contact with the coastguard, first aid kit and full safety equipment aboard on every departure.
You're looked after from the moment you step aboard. Every guest is fitted with a lifejacket, properly, by your skipper, not handed one from a pile — and every departure begins with a full safety briefing that's short, clear and worth your attention. And because no two days on the Solent are the same, your skipper plans each itinerary around the day's wind, tide and sea state: same great trip, always the right route.