Terms & conditions.

This page brings together two sets of terms: those for our voyages, and those for the club membership.

1. Voyages
2. The club: membership terms

Part 1Voyages

Our booking terms for voyages are being finalised. They will set out how to book, the payment schedule, cancellation, and what happens with bad weather or a breakdown.

Until then, the essentials are on the Before you board page — and the captain answers every question.

Part 2The club: membership terms

This part sets out the essential terms of membership of the SatoBoatProject club, common to all members whatever their country of residence.

Some arrangements nevertheless depend on the member's country of residence: right of withdrawal, data protection, governing law and competent courts. Only the contract for your country of residence is binding. It is sent to you after a first call with us (see “Your contract”, at the end of this page).

1. Who offers the membership

Company	Shinaka Ltd, an exempted company incorporated in the Cayman Islands
Registration	No. FL-427985
Registered office	2nd Floor, Governors Square, 23 Lime Tree Bay Avenue, PO Box 1163, Grand Cayman KY1-1102, Cayman Islands
Representative	Rémi Genon, Director
Contact	info (at) satoboat.io

2. What you are buying

The membership gives you a personal right to use the project's sailing ship on a timeshare basis, for a fixed term. This right is measured in usage credits: SBC (Sato Boat Credits).

The membership is not an investment:

• it does not make you an owner or co-owner of the ship;
• it gives you no shares or stake in Shinaka Ltd, no voting rights and no share of the profits;
• it promises no return, no capital gain and no gain on resale.

The price paid is solely the consideration for the use of the ship.

A strictly personal right. Once the project has launched, your SBC cannot be resold, transferred or assigned.

3. Price and payment

• Price: from €10,000, in steps of €5,000, with no upper limit.
• Single payment: no annual fee, no maintenance charges, no calls for funds.
• Payment in euros, by bank transfer.
• No payment before the end of the withdrawal period: no deposit, no guarantee and no acknowledgement of debt is requested or accepted during that period.
• Remaining at your expense: your travel costs to the ship, your personal expenses on board, and any VAT due on certain bookings (see section 6).

4. Usage credits (SBC)

4.1 Number of SBC allocated

The number of SBC allocated depends on the rate in force on the date of signature: currently €0.53 per SBC. SBC are allocated when the project actually launches.

Example: a €10,000 membership entitles you to 18,867 SBC.

This rate may become less favourable for members who join later, but it never changes the rate of members already committed.

4.2 Using SBC

Each stay uses a number of SBC calculated as follows:

SBC used = 1,000 × Days × f(mode) × f(long-term) × f(holidays) × f(bitcoin) × f(cabin)

In a reduced-rate area (private/club mode), only the cabin factor is added:

SBC used = 1,000 × Days × 0.25 × f(cabin)

Example: 7 days in an individual cabin, in a full-rate area, outside high season and with no Bitcoin event: 1,000 × 7 × 1.00 × 1.00 × 0.80 × 1.00 × 1.00 = 5,600 SBC.

A cost known in advance. The mode of each area and each period (commercial or private/club) is published with the annual calendar, before bookings open. You therefore know the SBC cost of a stay before you book it.

No increase after booking. The applicable mode is the one published on the date of your booking. No later decision can increase the number of SBC for a booking already made. A change in your favour remains yours.

4.3 Usage limits

In each calendar year, a member may not:

• use more than 50,000 SBC;
• book the ship for more than one consecutive month when booking two or more cabins.

Whichever limit is reached first ends bookings for the current year.

4.4 Unused SBC

At the end of the contract, unused SBC are lost, with no refund or compensation. You are told your balance 12 months before the end date so that you can use it.

4.5 Guests on board

You may book one cabin, several cabins or the whole ship, and invite whoever you wish. Your guests acquire no rights, have no SBC and cannot book. You remain responsible for their compliance with the safety and life-on-board rules.

5. Sailing areas

The ship follows a seasonal cycle: the Mediterranean in summer (roughly May to October), the Caribbean in winter (roughly December to April), with transatlantic crossings between the two seasons.

Full-rate areas (f(mode) = 1.00)

Reduced-rate areas (f(mode) = 0.25)

Cuba¹, Jamaica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela¹, ABC Islands.

¹ Provisional status, which may be clarified, with no effect on rights already acquired.

For a given period, the Company may also open a full-rate area at the reduced rate. This decision is always published before bookings open, never after.

Excluded areas

Local cabotage and passenger-transport rules do not allow use by members in the following areas: the United States (including Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands), Canada, Brazil, Mexico. Greece is also excluded.

A member may be on board in these areas only at the occasional invitation of the Company, or by taking part, at their own expense, in the “crew exchange”. They then exercise no right under their contract.

New areas

Adding an area not listed above requires an amendment, which the member is free to accept or refuse. A refusal changes nothing to the rights already acquired.

6. VAT

• On joining: the membership price is not subject to VAT.
• On booking: if you book a stay that embarks in a European Union country where Shinaka Ltd is registered for VAT, that country's VAT applies to the booking and is payable by you. It is calculated on the value of the SBC used, at the conversion rate set when your contract was signed.
• No EU VAT is due for an embarkation outside the European Union, or in an EU country where the Company is not registered for VAT.

The exact amount cannot be known in advance: it depends on the country of embarkation and the length of the stay.

7. Bookings

Order of priority

If several requests concern the same period:

1. the shareholders of Shinaka Ltd, indirect co-owners of the ship, have priority;
2. between members (or between shareholders), priority goes to the holder of the largest number of SBC;
3. in the event of a tie, the first booking prevails.

Commercial period

Three to four months a year, in high season, are reserved first for non-member charter guests. These periods are published before bookings open.

Calendar

• The cruise calendar is published at least 12 months in advance and updated every 6 months.
• Each time it is published, a one-month priority booking window opens for members.
• Bookings then remain open, subject to availability.

Capacity commitment

The Company undertakes not to sell more SBC than the ship's real availability. The total number of SBC available for sale is published before the commercial launch of the Club.

8. Term and pre-launch phase

• Term: 8 years from the successful end of the pre-launch phase. The contract ends automatically, with no tacit renewal. Any extension of the programme beyond that term would be the subject of a new contract.
• Pre-launch: current memberships are concluded during the project's pre-launch phase, which ends on 30 November 2026. This deadline may be extended if the launch is close.
• Full refund: if the project does not launch, all sums paid are refunded within 30 days, with no deduction or penalty. This is the only refund provided for.

9. Right of withdrawal

You have at least 14 days after signing to withdraw, without giving a reason and at no cost. No payment is requested during this period.

The start of the period, any extension and the form to use depend on your country of residence: see your contract.

10. Governing law and disputes

• The contracts are governed by English law. This choice never deprives you of the mandatory consumer protection of your country of residence.
• No arbitration is imposed on you.
• In the event of a dispute, the Company offers mediation. It is optional and does not prevent you from going to court.

The competent courts and the data protection authority depend on your country of residence: see your contract.

11. Your contract

The membership is currently offered only to residents of France, Belgium and Chile. For any other country, contact us: we will check whether membership is possible from your country.

The contracts are not published on this website. A call with the future member always comes before the contract is sent. You then receive the contract for your country of residence and, where your country requires it, the standard information form (FISI). Take the time to read them before signing.

The contract for your country is the only document that binds you; if it differs from this page, the contract prevails.

Membership terms — last updated: October 2026