Koh Samui's Yachting Festival

Koh Samui's Yachting Festival
by Jules Kay

Koh Samui's five-day tropical regatta is already considered one of Asia’s most glamorous sailing events. The competition is now in its 9th year, but this time around is set to reach even greater heights, taking on more of a festival feel thanks to the introduction of some new and exciting auxiliary events, such as a golf tournament, a jazz concert and South East Asia’s largest Boot Camp.

The first ‘Sawadee.com Regatta Open Golf Tournament’ is also taking place alongside the Samui Regatta at the world class Santiburi Samui Country Club. The stunning, mountainside course has hosted major events on the Asian Tour, including the  Bangkok Airways Open, and each of its 18 holes offers a different character and challenge. Steep slopes, winding fairways that cut through coconut forest, cliffs and mountain creeks have earned this course plenty of respect, even among seasoned golf professionals. The tournament will therefore provide a serious off-water challenge to an already fiercely contested week of top-flight sailing.

More active souls visiting Samui during the regatta can also look forward to meeting some of Asia's leading fitness experts for an exciting new fitness event marketed as ‘Asia's Biggest Bootcamp’. The event will bring like-minded and motivated professionals from around the region together over 3 days to run a health programme that includes foam roller workshops, nutrition seminars and 3 fitness bootcamps.The  instruction will take place from the 28th-30th May and was specifically designed to help participants get into shape while appreciating the island's tropical environment.

Finally, for music lovers, the Samui Regatta has joined forces with Samui Jazz to offer a week long festival that will feature world class Jazz artists performing on different nights of the week at venues around the island. Some of today's finest Jazz musicians will be brought in to entertain competitors, tourists and locals, their smooth rhythms and gentle vibes providing the ideal way to relax after a hard day's sailing.

Spectators and crews from all over the globe will arrive at the end of May to enjoy the Samui Regatta Festival. This year, they will also have access to spectator boats on each day of racing to follow the action up close. This not only allows for great viewing, but also gives people the chance to spend some time out at sea with good company, good hospitality and to enjoy the very best that Koh Samui has to offer.

Source: http://www.dhevatara.com/news_184.html