Super Yacht of the Week: O’PTASIA

motor yacht, crewed motor yacht, superyacht, o'ptasia, luxury yacht optasia — The imposing O’PTASIA – Picture credit: Yachtfolio

O’PTASIA translates to ‘exhibiting one’s self to view’ which is an appropriate name for this luxurious yacht which is certainly worth showing off! This 85m new build has an unrivalled array of water toys and exhaustive entertainment facilities from the waterfall Jacuzzi pool to the beach club and helipad.

Starting from the exterior, her four decks provide ample space for relaxing, socialising or whatever suits you. The flybridge is the highest deck, a favourite spot for soaking up the Croatian sunshine on the numerous sunbeds available. One of her most sought after features is the generous sized waterfall pool, so you can cool off whilst floating past idyllic islands in the summer breeze. One deck down you will discover a large round table, with panoramic views of the stunning scenery, be it island hopping in Greece or exploring the Croatian coastline. Here, you can enjoy a sunset dinner created by your private and talented chef, and served by the attentive and friendly stewardesses.

O’PTASIA can cater for a variety of charter experiences. If you are looking to stay active she boasts a fully equipped gym on the bridge deck, and exhilarating water toys such as a Seabob or a Wakeboard. Alternatively, if you are looking to unwind and enjoy a tranquil trip, the wellness and spa centre, endless sea views and lavish lounging areas make the perfect spots for reading and relaxing.

yacht, motor yacht, superyacht — Picture credit: Yachtfolio

Moving inside, you will be equally in awe of the contemporary and captivating interior. The sophisticated design seeps throughout the yacht, with the cream and dark wood contrast creating a pattern of modernity. Being a new-build, each room is immaculate with state-of-the-art equipment throughout. The Saloon is a popular area to settle down into the stylish sofas for a cinematic screening, or enjoy a nightcap before retiring to the sumptuous cabins.

The crew of 26 are experienced, professional and eager to have guests on-board to explore the exotic surroundings and showcase this spectacular yacht. They will ensure your charter experience goes beyond expectations, with their can-do attitudes and yachting backgrounds. As O’PTASIA hosts up to 24 guests, you can either ‘live your best life’ and host a party or celebration, or keep it intimate and have this vast yacht for a close group.

As you can see, pictures speak louder than words and O’PTASIA is an overwhelmingly stylish yacht that is ready to explore desirable destinations. She is everything that a luxury yacht should be – entertaining, impressive and unique. So enquire now to find out more and be bowled over by her charm and grace.

O’PTASIA is available for charter out of Greece, Croatia and West Med from €800,000 per week plus expenses. Please contact Boatbookings for more information on superyacht charter.

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Ben Sutton

A Day in the Life of an Intern – Part XII

My day as a VIP began, along with some of the other Boatbookings team members, from the old Port of Cannes – a delightful port that welcomes prestigious yachts, and also small authentic fishing boats. A group of us were going through the motions of a typical French Riviera day charter, such that we could greater understand the day charters our clients enjoy.

At 10 o’clock we boarded the Prestige 500s, a sleek day charter yacht of 16 metres. Once settled, we started cruising across the bay of Cannes, and within 15 min we arrived at the Iles des Lérins, the two islands just off the coast of Cannes. Between the two islands, the captain dropped anchor such that we could have a swim!

boatbookings, boatbookings team, day charter, day on a yacht, iles des lerins

On one side we had the island of Saint-Honorat, an impressive backdrop with the imposing Cistercian monastery. On the other side, the island of Santa Margherita is covered by a forest of pines and eucalyptus whose perfumes reached us on the water. All around us, the sea was all sorts of shades of blue. Who would have thought that we were just a few minutes from the glamorous and chic Cannes? Here the atmosphere was of peace, beauty and unspoiled nature.

boatbookings, day charter, day on a yacht, french riviera, iles des lerins, prestige 500s cannes, lerins islands day charter, — The aquamarine waters of the Iles Des Lerins really are that colour!

Immersed in this breathtaking landscape, the crew offered us an exquisite breakfast, made of croissants, pain au chocolat, coffees and water. (They then offered us towels, other soft drinks and snacks for the rest of the day – we were spoilt.) When we finished breakfast, we went for a swim in the crystal-clear, turquoise waters. After an hour, we set off cruising East the coast towards Monaco. We passed right in front of the wonderful Gulf of Juan les Pins, the Cap D’Antibes and Nice. From the yacht we admired the beautiful villas surrounded by the Mediterranean nature, as well as the magnificent yachts that we met on our way.

We stopped in the bay of Villefranche-sur-mer. Here the sea was incredibly calm and flat. This is a very popular destination along the Riviera for yachts and sailing boats, and we often recommend our clients to drop anchor here. Along the coast, there was the delightful (village/small town) of Villefranche-sur-mer with its picturesque houses painted in bright colours.

We had a quick swim here and then headed off again towards our lunch destination. We passed Saint Jean Cap-Ferrat and arrived in the bay of Eze Sur Mer where our captain called the tender for our restaurant of choice, Anjuna bay. We landed on the beach like real VIPs or almost, and we sat down at our table that had an amazing view of the sea. The restaurant was decorated in a nautical, shabby style.

anjuna, anjuna beach, eze, eze sur mer — The eclectic decor at Anjuna Beach, Eze sur Mer.

We had a wonderful and relaxing lunch, chatting and laughing and soon realised that the time had come to embark our yacht once again, and head back to Cannes. At 5 o’clock we went back on board and started cruising towards Cannes with the sun slowly descending. We enjoyed the view of the French Riviera coast once again, impressive as it is, from the comfort of our private boat. Arriving in Cannes, we disembarked around 6pm from the Old Port of Cannes – all very excitable about the magnificent day we had just had!

Working at Boatbookings, you very quickly learn that you are in a collaborative, team-focused environment and this day was no exception. Spending a day out of the office with my colleagues was a fantastic way to get to know them a lot better, and also the business of yacht chartering! I very much look forward to joining the Boatbookings team full time in London, upon graduation.

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Ben Sutton

Become the Travel Editor at Boatbookings

Recent graduate or second jobber role to be our full time website, travel and luxury yacht content writer based in Victoria, London.

Do you read Conde Nast Traveller, Vogue and dream of writing about and picking photos of the most luxurious holiday destinations on a yacht: St Tropez, Capri, Miami, St Barths, Tahiti… we cover them all.

Combine this with motor yachts, sailing yachts, food and drink plus a bit of fashion, fast cars and timepieces too… you get the picture! Mix in some Google Analytics to stay focused on our goals and results.

If you are sincerely passionate about content and some analytics then contact our CEO directly [email protected] with:

1. Your CV
2. Examples of your writings, pictures and social media.
3. Your two favourite blogs, websites or social media and why!

Boatbookings is a fast-paced environment, has a team of young professionals, with a certain flair for fun (we are talking about clients’ holidays on a yacht, not selling insurance) that works 7×7, 24/7, 365 days of the year choosing yachts and destinations. Our website and our newsletters need TLC to generate enquiries and please our huge returning clients. We do believe Content is King or Queen or both!

From you, we are looking for: someone with a growth mindset, who will explore to write, re-write and edit engaging website and newsletter content as well as source interesting images, create and edit short videos.

Checking facts and ensuring accurate content is key. Initiative is a must – this specific roles requires a flow of ideas as well as consistent housekeeping of the content we already have. Creativity is as important as using the data available on Google Analytics to drive the content by achieving an increase in enquiries from specific campaigns.

A recent Graduate with at least a 2:2 (BA) Degree, with English as your Mother Tongue. Please don’t contact our CEO if English isn’t your first language. You must be able to provide a portfolio of recently written work and photography. You have great writing and grammatical skills with a very very sharp eye for detail.

We would also like to have a team player join us who has a natural affinity with social media, is driven to work hard and deliver your very best, extremely organised and commercially driven. Phew! That’s the list done. Now the good bit… Travel is involved as part of the role. Once the role is mastered then career progression is planned for you to become the Boatbookings Travel Editor and grow the team to hire additional travel content writers.

The interview process is led by our hands-on CEO who will review your email submission. After a phone interview you may then be invited to spend half a day with us to meet the team and see what it’s like to be part of Boatbookings. Salary is commensurate with experience and industry knowledge. If you got this far and are still interested, then email Capucine. Please, no agencies or non-English mother tongue applicants.

If you would like an insight into what it’s like to work at Boatbookings, have a read of our series ‘A Day in the Life at Boatbookings’ on our blog. And for more details, take a look at our testimonials page.

Check out our team bios on our website.

Posted on September 7, 2018 by Ben Sutton

A Day in the Life of an Intern – Part XI

June 14^th was a special day during my internship at Boatbookings. After spending a couple of hours in our office in Cannes, I headed to Antibes to meet Broker Ben, who had spent the morning meeting some of his clients for their embarkation. We headed to Port Vauban for a brokers’ day out on REHAB – one of our all-time favourite day charter yachts along the French Riviera. Broker days are organised by the owners of the yachts such that the Brokers can get to know the boat and its crew better.

We were greeted on board REHAB by the fantastic crew made up of Captain Chris and Stewardess Justine. Once the other brokers arrived and had settled in, we headed west, past the stunning Cap D’Antibes, towards Cannes and the beautiful Iles de Lérins. The islands are an incredibly popular destination thanks to the crystal-clear water, making them the perfect place to drop anchor, relax and swim. As it was still early in the season, we were able to experience the beauty of the islands without many other people there.

Once we had found the perfect spot to anchor, our lovely hosts had prepared a quiz for us. As brokers are of the competitive kind, it’s not like us to ever back down from a challenge, so we quickly got into our teams, boys vs. girls of course, and the game of 20 questions commenced. After a mix of technical questions about REHAB and other yachts, as well as general knowledge questions about the industry, the girls came out on top!

In the afternoon, everyone enjoyed relaxing on board this stunning Sunseeker yacht, whilst indulging in French crudité platters overflowing with local cheeses, baguettes and olives beautifully prepared by Justine. It was incredibly interesting meeting other people from the Industry and getting to know the faces behind the names. As the day came to an end, we cruised back towards Port Vauban past the stunning villas on the Cap d’Antibes.

This day was a fantastic way to get a taste of what Boatbookings’ clients experience, whilst also getting to know REHAB and it’s lovely crew as well as the other Brokers. I will be forever grateful for the opportunity to talk to so many fascinating people – is there a better place to mingle than aboard a beautiful yacht?

Posted on August 28, 2018 by Ben Sutton

A Day in the Life of an Intern – Part X

Half the team reviewing Sailing Yacht DARK SHADOW

On a beautiful sunny day in April, the Boatbookings team took the morning train from our Cannes office to the Port of Nice for the ECPY Yacht Show, which featured a myriad of charter boats, including huge luxury motor yachts and crewed sailing yachts.

Upon arrival, we were given our official Brokers badges and split up into two teams for yacht viewings. It was a fantastic opportunity to see the very best of what was on offer and discuss within the team what we loved about the boats and which we would most likely recommend to clients.

Some of the Boatbookings Team networking with other young professionals in the Industry

Stepping on board the yachts, it became clear that chartering is unlike any holiday experience you could imagine! The interiors of some of the Motor Yachts were truly stunning, each with their own unique style and characteristics; from green marble floors to disco-like karaoke rooms and winding metallic staircases, each yacht had its own surprise that made it as memorable as the last.

One of the most spectacular yachts we had visited had to be KIJO – with Southern Pacific inspired decor of light bamboo and neutral browns, it was confident in its style and was something I had never seen before! The crew on board were outstanding, with the chief stewardess being passionate about the boat and making it clear that she went above and beyond to make guests have the best time on board. The chef had laid out an amazing selection of nibbles and the boat was in immaculate condition!

Broker Anna and I enjoying a glass of champagne on board Motor Yacht QUASAR after the show

After a day of viewings, the team finally came together once again to discuss the highlights of the show; it was amazing to hear how the Brokers really dug into the details of every aspect of the yacht to know it inside and out, in order to be able to make the best recommendations to clients. After 6 pm, the official show wound down and the yachts went into aperitif mode! We were invited onto the yachts for a glass of champagne and to relax and enjoy the evening, as if in our client’s shoes. The service was impeccable and it was a great opportunity to network and speak to others from within the industry – with music flowing from the aft deck, cocktails being served and canapés appearing from the galley, it was truly an evening of luxury in the most stunning setting!

Being able to meet other young professionals in the industry, as well as yacht crews, and central agents gave us all a real insight into the inner workings of the industry, and it was a wonderful experience touring the yachts with the senior brokers! Boatbookings gives interns a hands-on experience of the industry, offering responsibility that few other internships can beat.

Posted on August 22, 2018 by Ben Sutton