The Good Life

Smooth Sailing

With companies such as Navnit Marine and Ocean Blue bringing world-class yachts to the Indian coast, you wouldn’t want to holiday on land anymore

With her hot desert, cold desert, freezing mountains, pleasant plateaus, and pristine forests, India’s land offers a great variety of backgrounds for you to relax in or get clicked with. But, what about her vast waters?

With a 7,500 km long coastline, it is time to explore the Indian waters. You can retire on an Italian couch and sip red wine with your friends while cruising towards the sunset; discover pockets of untouched territories right in the middle of deep oceans; or take a dip in the sea on your all-girls trip with dolphins running alongside. All this, in style and luxury.

India-based Navnit Marine can help you purchase the right yacht to host business parties or for family vacations, at a sweet range of Rs.7.5 million to Rs.300 million.

If you wish to impress your clients during business meetings or organise casual parties and woo your friends, buying a Princess 40M would be the right call. Manufactured in UK, the yacht is a massive 131 feet in height and can go up to 23 knots (or 26 nautical miles/hour). The tri-deck yacht has a secluded sunbathing space, a spa bath and a 15-seater dining area.

Picture this: You are discussing your next ‘big’ business idea in your swimsuits and cans of beers in your hands, and your legs are dipped in the blue waters of the Indian Ocean. With an anchor that goes as deep as 30ft, Princess 40M’s lets you do just that. And while you can’t put a price to happiness, you can have all this for Rs.60 million, and a yearly service charge of Rs.300,000.

“Princess 40M and 42M are our most popular yachts. With comfortable interiors and a good seating capacity of 15 people, they are perfect for luxurious holidays or parties,” says Noorain Shaikh, business development manager of Navnit Marine.

But what if you feel like an action hero one day? You are on a road adventure and suddenly decide you’d like to ride the sea like Aamir Khan does on his BMW bike that turns into a jet ski in Dhoom 3. How clumsy would you look if you have to change your wheels in the middle of your adrenaline rush! Navnit Marine has the perfect chariot to turn that fictional scene into your reality with GIBBS Quadski XL. Yes, it drifts both on water and land.

At Rs.8 million, the two-seater quad bike can miraculously transition into a yacht with a simple push of a button and make you look like a hero out of a James Bond movie. All in five seconds! The monster is powered by a BMW Motorrad K1300 engine and is equipped with high-speed amphibian technology. It is capable of attaining a speed of 39 knots (or 45 nautical miles/hour) on water as well as on land — that’s a whopping 280.8 km/hour in land lingo. Because of its advanced suspension, lightweight composite hull and low centre of gravity, this propriety Gibbs jet drive provides better maneuverability on water than traditional marine industry water jets.

“Our customers mostly include businessmen who have bungalows near lakes or the sea. However, high-end resorts or hotels that provide cruising services also approach us for yachts,” says Shaikh.

Another company that offers luxury yachts in India is Ocean Blue. Its Finland-manufactured Nautor’s Swan 115 FD at a monumental Rs.1 billion is perfect for a day’s expedition with a beer and barbecue. Launched in 2015, Swan 115 FD has a powerful engine for that extra nitro boost to race and sail even at high downwind speed. It has been designed with a maximum waterline length (length of the boat or ship at the level where it sits in the water) hull of 107 feet and eight inches that steers steadily through water. The sailing yacht has a bimini-covered one-level centre cockpit, with seats arranged in C shape, for a good view, for 12 guests.

Next time you’re planning a holiday, instead of booking a flight to your dream destination, how about you buy a yacht and steer your way to it.