Chartering a Luxury Yacht: The Cannes Film Festival 2013

The 2013 Cannes Film Festival may be next month, but there is already a great vibe around the whole of the French Riviera. This year will be no different and Cannes will welcome some of the world’s most successful actors and actresses. Stephen Spielberg is to chair the 2013 jury, and will be accompanied by Nicole Kidman, as well as Oscar director winner, Ang Lee and actor Christoph Waltz. Other names include French actor Auteuil, Japanese director Naomi Kawase and Romanian film maker Christian Mungiu.

Nicole Kidman returns this year after an unsuccessful 2012, where her film The Paperboy was poorly received by critics. This year, the main contenders for the much coveted main film category are Steven Soderbergh’s, Behind the Candelabra and Only God Forgives, starring Ryan Gosling. The quality of the panel reflects the talent on show this year, which will commence with the screening of Baz Luhrman’s adaptation of The Great Gatsby and a ceremony hosted by the famous French actress, Audrey Tatou.

The Cannes Film Festival and chartering a luxury yacht go hand in hand. Whether you need a yacht for corporate entertaining, accommodation or personal pleasure, we would be delighted to help you organise an unforgettable experience. A yacht provides much more flexibility than a hotel room, giving you much more space to entertain and host meetings in a lavish environment. Moreover, you will be in the heart of the action and avoid all the hustle and bustle of La Croisette. We have a special offer on MAYAMA, a superb Couach 3000 crewed motor yacht, accommodating up to 8 guests in 4 cabins. She comes with her own berth next to the festival hall, making her perfect for hosting meetings in a luxurious, quiet and more importantly private environment.

At www.boatbookings.com, we are here to help you plan your perfect luxury yachting holiday. We have a team of highly skilled professionals who are extremely knowledgeable in their destinations and will be able to help you bring together the yacht, the crew and all the other aspects that make your charter special.

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Posted on April 26, 2013 by admin — No Comments ↓

Andros Island; a Snorkeler’s Paradise and a Perfect Yacht Chartering Destination

Part 2 of the exhilarating, snorkeling hotspots blog brings us to the picturesque Andros Island in the exotic Bahamas. Charter a luxury yacht in the Bahamas and visit one of the best snorkeling destinations in the world. Andros Island is an archipelago within the Bahamas and has an area greater than all 700 Bahamian islands combined. The island boasts the greatest botanical and marine life diversity than any other island in the Bahamas and possesses the third largest barrier reef in the world.

The marine biosphere of Andros Island is truly astonishing, an abundance of mangrove swamps, ocean craters, shallow sands and tidal streams form a rich and prosperous marine life. The island’s sprawling coral reef is made up of oceanic craters and vertical caves creating a rich dark and light blue ocean. Dean’s Blue Hole on Long Island in the Bahamas is the deepest oceanic crater known to man.

Andros Island boasts the best snorkeling and deep sea diving in the whole of the Bahamas. Marvel at the majestic humpback whales following their yearly migration route or the pilot whales that frequently visit these warm and inviting shores. Stingrays frolic in the shallow waters, swarms of French grunts scurry across the ocean floor and Caribbean reef sharks lurk in the depths. Sea turtles, grouper, snapper and even bottlenose dolphins can be admired in the crystal blue water that engulfs Andros Island.

AT LAST is a luxurious motor yacht berthed in the Bahamas. She boasts 5 lavish and well-furnished cabins suitable for 10 guests. AT LAST has a well designed water-jet system and a very low draft (1.68 meters) which makes her ideally suited for chartering in the Bahamas. Spacious decking, en suite bathrooms, Jacuzzi and an incredible array of water toys make this a luxury charter to remember.

At Boatbookings,we organise luxury yacht charters all around the world with our highly qualified team. We leave no stone unturned in matching not just the yacht and the destination to your requirements but also the crew, itineraries and all other subtle aspects that comes together to create a charter of a life timekids inflatable obstacle course!

Posted on April 25, 2013 by admin — No Comments ↓

BVI Crewed Catamaran 7 Day Itinerary – Day 7 – Soggy Dollar Bar, White Bay, Jost Van Dyke to the Bight, Norman Island

Sadly, this is our final full day on Souls Calling. But in many ways, we’ve saved the best for last!

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke, and the Soggy Dollar Bar

We woke up to the quiet and beauty of White Bay, with only a few other boats there. The first activity was for the kids to snorkel the bay looking for “soggy dollars” – a lot of people lose dollar bills when swimming to and from their boats, and it’s fun to try to find them. We collected $7, and saw a beautiful stingray swimming along the bottom, as well as many other fish.

We then took a walk down the beach to the eastern end, which is pristine and much quieter – a perfect walk to reflect on the past week at the BVI.

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke – a view of the Eastern Beach

This beach is also home to “Ivans Stress Free Bar” – which has thousands of shells incorporated in its construction and is, well, stress free.

Ivan's Stress Free Bar, White Bay, Jost Van Dyke — Ivan’s Stress Free Bar, White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

Why Worry? A sign at Ivan's Stress Free Bar — Why Worry? A sign at Ivan’s Stress Free Bar

We continued our walk to the end of the beach and climbed the hill to get a good view of the magnificent White Bay panorama.

Back to the Boat, it was time to hit the Soggy Dollar Bar (and t-shirt shop). It was quiet in the early morning, which gave us the time to enjoy the hammocks and beautiful views of the boats.

Souls Calling, as seen from the Soggy Dollar Bar, Jost Van Dyke

We spent the entire day at the White Bay, including lunch and the requisite “painkiller” drink, which was created there, and watched the scene of dozens of boats arriving, partying, then leaving a few hours later.

The party scene at White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

It is clear why the Soggy Dollar Bar always makes the top 10 list of the world’s best beach bars.

Back to the Bight

In order to get to Road Town by noon tomorrow we wanted a short final sail, so we headed back to the Bight, Norman Island, in the late afternoon.

The route passes the West End of Tortola, with a nice view some of the villas and Soper’s Hole, then past St Johns to Norman Island.

We anchored in the Bight and Captain Alex saved his best surprise for last. He invented what he calls “Halyard Jumping”, where he attaches a water ski handle to the halyard, then another line to his dinghy. The jumper gets in the water next to the boat, grabs onto the water ski handle, and then Alex floors the dinghy away from the boat. Physics prevails, and you are vaulted out of the water approximately 50 feet in the air, for an exhilarating ride and view of all the boats in the Bight. You can choose to jump, or simply ease back into the water.

Alex keeps this for last, because it gets rid of the last day blues, and he knows that if he did it on the first day, that’s all the kids would want to do!

Halyard jumping was a fantastic treat for the last night, then a beautiful lasagne dinner prepared by Carla. The perfect final day in the BVI!

Tomorrow – the final sail back to Tortola, and reflections on an incredible week in the BVI.

Click here to see this BVI itinerary all in one page.

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Tom Virden — No Comments ↓

Experience The Glitz and Glamour of the Cannes Film Festival On Your Luxury Charter

Glitzy, glamorous and extravagant are three words that come to mind when describing the International Film Festival in Cannes. Chartering a luxury yacht during the festival period will be a very memorable experience. Mingle amongst film stars; entertain prospective clients or just soak up the vibrant atmosphere of Cannes at this glorious time of year.

The Cannes Film Festival was founded in 1946 and takes place at the ‘Palais des Festivals,’ a grand conference center situated in the heart of Cannes. This year’s festival will take place between the 15th and the 26th of May. It is a 12 day cinematic extravagance where 25,000 directors, producers, distributors, publicists and film stars come together to celebrate the most prestigious film festival in the world. The Jury and the President of the film industry will award the highly coveted Palme d’Or to the film that best ‘serves the evolution of cinematic art.’ This year the President of the Jury is the award-winning American director, Steven Spielberg.

Cannes’ great blood sport is celebrity spotting. Marvel at the famous film stars and producers making their way up the red carpet at the entrance to the Palais des Festivals. It is known for crowds to build up soon after lunchtime, so stake out a place early! The Palais des Festivals is directly adjacent to the Old Port and provides the perfect opportunity to charter a luxury yacht of your choice. Chartering a yacht so close to the Palais provides on site accommodation, a chance to entertain clients and promote your brand or the possibility for a relaxing cruise along the gorgeous French Riviera.

ALIBI is a magnificent and luxurious super yacht berthed on the French Riviera. She boasts 6 beautifully designed cabins that can accommodate up to 12 guests. ALIBI is extremely spacious and is perfect for corporate events and entertaining prospective clients. Furthermore, there is an on board gymnasium, Jacuzzi and grand sun deck.

Posted on April 24, 2013 by admin — No Comments ↓

BVI Crewed Catamaran 7 Day Itinerary – Day 6 – Little Jost Van Dyke to Sandy Spit and White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

Today we start with a dinghy ride to the pier at Foxy’s Taboo in order to hike to the “Bubbling Pools” – an inlet continually refilled by the crashing waves, then snorkeling at our favorite deserted island – Sandy Spit, and onward to White Bay, Jost Van Dyke, home to the Soggy Dollar bar and one of the most beautiful beaches anywhere.

The Bubbling Pools

After breakfast, we took a 5 minute dinghy ride to the pier at Foxy’s Taboo at Diamond Cay at the far eastern end of Jost Van Dyke. Foxy’s Taboo is not the famous Foxy’s – it is a bar/restaurant that was started much more recently by the same owner. We will pass by Foxy’s later on today!

Screen-Shot-2013-04-24-at-10.24.24 — Inside Foxy’s Taboo, Jost Van Dyke

Walking along the beach, there is a sandy path that takes you through some mangroves, by a lake and over the rocks (where you can usually see wild goats) and you’ll soon reach the Bubbling Pools. This is a great place to swim in the gurgling waters, climb on the rocks and enjoy the rhythm of the waves. Kids also love it because of the water crashing regularly into the pools makes for great sport.

A mangrove tree, in the way to the Bubbly Pools, Jost Van Dyke

Enjoying the Bubbling Pools, Jost Van Dyke

After perhaps an hour at the Bubbling Pools, we made our way back to Foxy’s Taboo, and then dinghy-ed back to our boat, for the short sail to Sandy Spit.

Sandy Spit

Sandy Spit is one of the most delightful attractions in the BVI. It’s simply a deserted island with a few trees and bushes surrounded by beautiful beaches and some very healthy coral reefs. Perfect for swimming, snorkeling, beach games, and dreaming what it would be like to be shipwrecked on an island. Anchor on the leeward side, jump in with your snorkeling gear and swim ashore to enjoy its simple pleasures.

We stayed at Sandy Spit for most of the afternoon, then headed to White Bay, which offers two amazingly beautiful beaches: one serene, one host to the daily Jost Van Dyke party scene (more on that tomorrow).

White Bay, Jost Van Dyke

We decided not to spend a night in Great Harbor, where most of the boats moor on Jost Van Dyke because of the lure of Foxy’s (the most famous bar and dancing spot in the BVI). It can get quite crowded and noisy there. Instead, we opted for more tranquility and anchored in White Bay and took a dinghy over to Great Harbor for dinner and dancing. It’s so much nicer to wake up in beautiful White Bay, which is quiet and peaceful until afternoon.

Local Wisdom at Corsairs in Great Harbor, Jost Van Dyke

Corsairs is known as one of the best restaurants in the BVI (local fish, meats, pizza, pasta etc.), which was packed because of its excellent value. And of course, we couldn’t avoid spending a couple of hours dancing at Foxy’s and meeting the locals.

Foxy's Bar, Jost Van Dyke — Foxy’s Bar, Jost Van Dyke

Tomorrow – Soggy Dollar Bar, a sail back to Norman Island, and Halyard Jumping in the Bight

Click here to see this BVI itinerary all in one page.

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Tom Virden