The Indian Ocean charter season runs November to April. The Maldives is the headline act, a thousand-atoll archipelago so dispersed that a well-specified charter yacht can spend ten days at anchor and see perhaps two other yachts the entire time. The Seychelles , Mahé, Praslin and La Digue, is the more compact alternative, better for a one-week charter with a strong gastronomic overlay. Both regions reward yachts of at least forty metres with extended range; smaller boats find the crossings long. Child-safe yachts with certified kids' crew, cabin configurations for multi-generational groups, shallow-draft tenders, and itineraries timed around short attention spans. Matched to Indian Ocean, the fleet narrows to the yachts that actually deliver on the brief in practice, rather than on paper.