From 1 October 2026, you can no longer hire a boat without a qualification. Here's what has changed and how you can still get out on the water this weekend.
Until 30 September 2026, you could hire motorboats up to 5 metres and 15 hp without any qualification. From 1 October 2026, that exemption no longer applies to hire: Royal Decree 1188/2025 (published in the BOE, Spain's Official State Gazette, on 30 December 2025) amended Article 10 of Royal Decree 875/2014 so that, when a boat is hired, whoever is at the helm must always hold a qualification.
The exemption still applies if you take your own small boat out for private use. What disappears is licence-free hire. The reason given in the regulation is safety: the number of incidents involving hire boats handled by people with no training.
One day, no exam, €120. 2 hours of classroom theory and 4 of practical training at Marina del Este. By the afternoon you can already hire the Nireus 620.
See the courseAny of our motorboats with a professional skipper, no licence and no deposit needed. From €260 for two hours.
Skippered boats1 or 2-hour boat trips, sunset trips, or the all-inclusive Azimut 46.
See boat tripsFrom 1 October 2026. Royal Decree 1188/2025, published in the BOE on 30 December 2025, amended Article 10 of Royal Decree 875/2014.
The Spanish Navigation Licence (Licencia de Navegación), formerly known as the 'titulín'. You can get it in one day, with no exam, after 2 hours of theory and 4 hours of practical training.
The exemption for boats up to 5 metres and 15 hp still applies to private use of your own boat. What changes is hire.
You can hire any of our motorboats with a skipper, book the all-inclusive Azimut 46 or go on a boat trip. You don't need any qualification.
Yes, if it's equivalent for the boat's length and engine power. Bring it on the day and we'll check it.