Guide · Boat types

Capri boat tour: shared, small group or private?

Every Capri boat tour follows the same cliffs, caves and stacks. What changes is who shares the deck, how long you linger at each stop and how much you spend, and that is what this page sorts out.

Check availabilityfrom $461 · cancel at no cost

Editorial team, capriprivateboattour.comUpdated October 18, 2026Read time: 7 min8 sources

This guide's tour Capri: 3-Hour Private Boat Tour with Blue Grotto 4.8 (149 reviews) 3 hoursPrivate groupFrom Marina Grande, Capri from$461 Check availabilityCancel at no cost up to 24 hrs ahead

In a nutshell

01Shared trip: The big island trips take 1 to 2 hours and start from $29.
02Small group: Limited to 10 participants, 2 hours, from $58.
03Private boat: Your party alone for 3 hours from Marina Grande, from $461.
04Blue Grotto: Entry is by small boat only, and it depends on the tides and the weather.¹
05How to choose: Private for your own pace and stops, shared for the smallest bill, small group in between.

What every boat around the island has in common

Whichever boat you pick, the island does not change. The sea around Capri is full of caves and sea stacks, and the official tourism portal of Italy suggests a little boat tour of the island as the thing not to leave out.² ³ From the water the cliffs, arches and cave mouths come one after another, and you see the island from the angle its cliffs were made to be seen from.

A Capri boat tour usually sets out from Marina Grande, the harbor on the north side, and runs along the coast past the white and green caves, the lighthouse at Punta Carena, Marina Piccola and the Faraglioni. The stops vary by listing, but those names come up again and again in the itineraries, and the stacks are where cameras come out.

The real differences lie elsewhere. On a shared boat you sit with strangers and keep to a set loop. On a small-group boat the deck is less crowded. On a private boat the boat is yours, and the skipper shapes the day around what your party wants to see, how long you swim and whether you queue for the Blue Grotto at all.

The loop

Around the island from Marina Grande

Start

Marina Grande

Meet at the harbor; a cable car links the port with the Piazzetta.⁴
Heading west

Blue Grotto

An entrance partly under the sea, entered only in small boats.⁵ ¹
Southwest tip

Punta Carena

The lighthouse marks the turn onto the south coast.
South coast

Marina Piccola

A rocky beach on a turquoise sea, a favorite swim stop.⁶
Southeast

The Faraglioni

Stella, the Faraglione di Mezzo with its arch, the Faraglione di Fuori.⁷
East side

Arco Naturale and the white caves

Pale caves and the natural arch on the way back to the harbor.

The shared island trip: short and inexpensive

The shared trips are the cheapest way onto the water. One of them runs for 1 to 2 hours from Marina Grande past the Faraglioni, Marina Piccola, Casa Malaparte, the green grotto and the lighthouse, and it starts from $29. It is rated 4.32 from 5,658 reviews, and its value-for-money score is 4.1.

A shared boat tour on Capri suits a tight schedule. If you came over on a morning ferry and want to see the coast before lunch in the Piazzetta, a short loop fits neatly between the two. You will share the boat with other travelers, and the route and the stops are set before you board, so a stop you love lasts exactly as long as everyone else's.

Another shared option adds a stop at the Blue Grotto and lasts 1.5 hours, from $29. Like every boat, it cannot take you inside: you still change into a small rowing boat at the mouth, and the visit depends on the tides and the weather on the day.¹ Treat the grotto as a hope on any boat, not a promise.

Side by side

Shared, small group and private compared

Option	Duration	From	Rating	Group
Shared island trip	1 to 2 hrs	from $29	4.32	Shared
Shared, with grotto stop	1.5 hrs	from $29	4.10	Shared
Small-group grottoes	2 hrs	from $58	4.69	Max. 10
Private, 3 hours	3 hrs	from $461	4.81	Your party only
Private, sea caves	2 to 6 hrs	from $416	4.89	Your party only

From-prices and ratings as each GetYourGuide listing gives them; prices are starting prices, not exact.

Three ways onto the water

Shared, small group or private

Lowest price

Shared island trip

Marina Grande, Capri

Duration: 1 to 2 hrs
Reviews: 5,658
Price: from $29

See the boat

Capri: Small Group Boat Tour of the Grottoes with a Swim and Limoncello

Middle path

Small-group grottoes

Marina Grande, Capri

Duration: 2 hrs
Group: Max. 10
Price: from $58

See the boat

Capri: 3-Hour Private Boat Tour with Blue Grotto Visit

This site's pick

Private, 3 hours

Marina Grande, Capri

Duration: 3 hrs
Group: Your party only
Price: from $461

See the boat

Decision helper

Which boat fits your day on Capri?

Pick the line that sounds most like you

I have a few hours between ferries I want company but not a crowd I want to choose the stops I travel with young children I want time to swim

A shared trip

The shared island trip takes 1 to 2 hours from Marina Grande.

A small group

One listing caps each departure at 10 participants.

A private boat

Every stop on the private listing is marked optional, so you decide with the skipper.

A private boat

Your family sets the pace; the listing is not suitable for babies under 1 year.

A private boat

Marina Piccola, a rocky beach on a turquoise sea, is among its listed stops.⁶

One thing left to do, have a little boat tour of the island: the Grotta Azzurra, blue cave is a truly stunning shade of blue with an awe inspiring view of the sea stacks.

Italia.it (ENIT, Ministry of Tourism)Source 3

A small-group boat: the middle path

A small-group boat tour on Capri caps the numbers and keeps the price within reach. One listing limits each departure to 10 participants, runs for 2 hours past the red and white grottoes, the Arco Naturale and the Faraglioni, and starts from $58. It is rated 4.69 from 602 reviews, with 4.8 for the guide.

Fewer people on deck changes more than the photos. Everyone gets a place in the shade or at the rail, the skipper can answer questions, and a swim stop does not turn into a queue for the ladder. Another 2-hour small-group trip with a limoncello stop is rated 4.73 from 143 reviews and starts from $58.

What you give up is control. The route, the timing and the length of each stop are the operator's, and they are the same for everyone aboard. If the group decides to wait for the Blue Grotto, you wait too; if the sea is calm and you would like another half hour at a swim spot, the clock still says when the boat heads back to the harbor.

Checklist

Before you pick a boat

Check in the listing

Shared, small group or private group
Length of the trip and the start time
Whether the grotto ticket is included
The free cancellation window

Bring along

Sunglasses and a sun hat
Beachwear for the swim stops
Money for the grotto ticket, paid on the spot

Cost calculator

What a shared or small-group boat costs your group

Choose a shared or small-group trip and set how many of you go.

Shared island trip1 to 2 hoursfrom $29 Small-group grottoes2 hoursfrom $58 Caves, swim and snack2 hoursfrom $75 Small groups, limoncello2 hoursfrom $58

People 2

Total from$58

per person from $29

Check availabilityfree cancellation

A total here is the listing's lowest GetYourGuide price times your headcount, turned into your currency at the ECB rate of the day; what you actually pay appears when you book.

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A private boat: your pace, your stops

On a private boat only your party is on board. The tour this site books is a private group of 3 hours from Marina Grande, with a live guide in English and Italian, and it starts from $461. Its 149 reviews average 4.81; the guide scores 4.9 and value for money 4.7.

Its listed stops are the Blue Grotto, Marina Piccola for a swim, the Arco Naturale, the Grotta Bianca, the Faraglioni and a break at Matermania, and every one of them is marked optional. That word is the point of a private boat: you decide with the skipper which stops matter to you and which you skip. The skipper, fuel, landing fees, soft drinks and towels are included.

The listing does not say whether its from-price covers the whole boat or each guest, so set your group size on the booking page and read the total before you pay. The Blue Grotto entry ticket is not included and is paid on the spot. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours ahead, and you can reserve now and pay later.

A boat tour around Capri, Italy, minute by minute

The boats on this page start at Marina Grande. If you are coming from the mainland, give yourself a margin between the ferry and the boat: the harbor is busy in summer, and finding the right dock and the right person takes a few minutes. The private listing asks you to meet at Dock 23 and to ask for Pasquale.

A full boat tour around Capri, Italy, takes the boat along the whole coast. Heading west, the boat passes the Blue Grotto, whose entrance is partly submerged by the sea.⁵ The southwest tip brings the lighthouse at Punta Carena, then the south coast opens up with Marina Piccola, a rocky beach on a turquoise sea.⁶

The Faraglioni come next: Stella, still joined to the coast, the Faraglione di Mezzo with its natural arch, and the Faraglione di Fuori.⁷ Around the east side the white caves and the Arco Naturale close the loop before the harbor. On a short shared trip you see this at a steady pace; on a private one you stop wherever the water looks inviting.

Which boat suits whom

A private boat suits couples on a special trip and families with children, as the day bends to them. A child who wants another swim gets another swim, and nobody waits for strangers. The private listing is not suitable for babies under 1 year, and baby strollers are not allowed on board, which matters for families with very small children.

Travelers on a budget or a short visit do well with the shared trips. They show the coast for a fraction of the cost, and they leave time for the Piazzetta, the Gardens of Augustus or the chairlift up Monte Solaro, which climbs to 589 m.⁸ Book the boat before the rest of the day, and fit the island around it.

The small-group boats suit everyone in between: solo travelers who want company without a crowd, and friends who want a swim stop without paying for a whole boat. Whichever you choose, read the listing's own terms before you book. Cancellation windows, pickup and what is included differ from one listing to the next, and the listing always has the last word.

Reading a boat listing before you book

Whichever type you choose, the listing tells you what you need to know, if you read it closely. Start with the duration and the starting point; then the guide's languages; then what is included and what is not. On the private boat this site books, the skipper, fuel, landing fees, soft drinks and towels are included, and the Blue Grotto ticket is not.

Look at the rating breakdown as well as the overall score. Our private boat, for example, scores 4.9 for its guide and 4.7 for value for money, a sign of where its strengths lie. Read a few recent reviews for the details that matter to you: how long the swim stops were, whether the grotto was open, how the skipper handled the sea.

Finally, check the cancellation terms and the meeting point. All the boats on this page can be cancelled for free until 24 hours out, so a rough sea need not ruin your plans. The meeting time on your confirmation is when to be at the dock, which can be earlier than the moment the boat leaves.

Your own boat