This article is a little behind in the calender. We went to Phuket in July 2024, before our latest Croatia trip to see No Shoes in September. The trip was to be a quick family get together, with our very own, personal videographer @harrygruttner getting his first gig at maritime action.
Turns out he isn’t too bad at this. He even went on to capture the DYC owners meeting in Palma shortly after. Here is a recap of our Thailand trip.
The boat in question: 'Meleth', a 2020 Bali 4.1...
It is no secret that these Balis aren’t my favorite boat from a sailing point of view, but if there’s no wind, they are a great platform for a holiday on the water.
This is of course my very personal opinion and I am still waiting for an invite by a qualified Bali owner or a company representative to teach me differently…
Focusing on ‘Meleth’, all I can say is, what a perfectly maintained vessel. Let me make a point, and a compliment the manager, John-Grant Jacobs. There was NOTHING wrong or broken on ‘Meleth’. Everything worked. That was a first on any of my charters.
The DYC base at Yacht Haven Marina on Phuket’s northeastern tip certainly has been given a push in the right direction with this change in management.
One thing that has always disappointed me a little when visiting a new (or old) DYC base was that no-one knew how you are. Being a member of the the DYC owners group, I thought we were part of the DYC family. After all, these are our boats that keep part of the business going. So just a little acknowledgment – no special treatment – would go a long way.
I understand that there are owners get-togethers and on these annual events the team spirit certainly shows, but those are separate vacations not every one of us can attend. Being me, I passed on my thought to the bosses…
So you can imagine my surprise when we boarded the boat and found a little note: ‘Welcome to our owners and thank you for your support’. DYC Phuket, you made my day. Great example of effective listening and taking customer feedback serious. What a start to the trip.
Back to the Phuket base specifically, the level of professionalism, staff friendliness, maintenance, assistance, briefings… it all was outstanding. Well-done and credit where credit is due – to the entire team. Thank you.
The local climate is a tough one to keep boats in shape, the humidity can ruin everything if maintenance and attention to detail isn’t a priority, yet ‘Meleth’ was spotless inside and out.
I have linked the review page with photos of ‘Meleth’ here if you like to see more details.
Our 4th visit to Phuket's waters ...
It seems that we always end up in Thailand in the off season, probably because of the last minute booking factor. It certainly has its benefits, limited number of tourists competing for the same anchorages being the main one. Less stressed out locals being the other.
We tend to end up going back to some previously visited areas but this time, we managed to find new grounds, namely Koh Racha Noi. This little island / bay proved to be the highlight of our trip for snorkeling and is definitely worth a visit if the winds are from the NW or SW. The water was crystal clear.
The hongs (caves) of ‘Koh Yao Noi’ in the north, our always favorite ‘Phi Phi Island’ in the southeast , the ‘Racha Group’ further west and ‘Chalong Bay’ as well as ‘Koh Naka Yai’ on the way home make a perfect, no stress, one week, clockwise circle – wind or no wind – at that time of the year. Check out the tides regarding timing of your departure, they can be significant and effect transit times substantially.
Be sure to make DYC Thailand part of your future sailing charter experience and take a minute to say hi to John and his team.
Really love to do trip south to Langkawi again, with more time. One day…
