Houseboats for sale – Emerald Star Ownership Programme

• Castelnaudary Open House, Canal du Midi, France – April 18 2026
• St-Jean-De-Losne Boat Show, Burgundy, France – 24-26 April 2026

Our Ownership Programme was created for boating lovers who want to cruise more. Not only it will allow you to enjoy several weeks of holiday every year (for 8 years) but it is also a much better value than frequent chartering.

If you want to, but most people choose to spread the cost with financing via a third-party finance provider. We usually find that a minimum of 20% of the purchase price is required as financial contribution.

You will technically own a specific houseboat, in a specific cruising ground. You can choose the boat you want to buy in our list depending on availabilities and you may choose to cruise on your boat at any time throughout the season (subject to availability). However, by joining our program, you benefit from access to other boats in our fleet, across all of our destinations.  So you can visit a different Emerald Star region every time you cruise.

For no extra cost, you can choose a boat that is the same or a similar boat model as your own, so long as it is within the same or a lower price range. If you wish to upgrade, you simply pay the difference between the charter price of your own boat and the upgraded model you wish to use.

Usage is determined through a points-based system. To ensure you get fair and generous access to your boat, or other boats in our fleet, you will be allocated 42 points each year. Everytime you book a vacation, via our dedicated owner reservations team, we will deduct points from your allocation. The amount varies depending on the time of year. For example, a boat in mid-season for a week is about 14 points. Peak season bookings use up more points, low season less. On top of this, we allocate an additional 42 points which you can redeem against last-minute bookings.

Please note: Boats in Canada require more points than other destinations. Owners can also access to our franchise base in Italy by paying a 25% contribution rate (of the charter price of the cruise). Current owners typically take an average of 8 weeks holiday on board every year, however up to 12 weeks are possible.

The programme lasts for 8 years (always finishing in October), and once the term has finished you have the choice : 

• Keep the boat
• Sell it back to us for a guaranteed, pre-determined price of 50% or 60% of the original purchase price, depending on the boat you choose.
• Sell your boat, with the help of our brokerage service
• Extend your ownership contract 

Yes – you will get a monthly income of 8% p.a of the purchasing price of the boat whatever happens. This is contracted and guaranteed regardless of the charter activity. So you’ll be sure to have it every month even if the houseboat is not rented… and throughout the winter too.