Sailing From Phuket to Langkawi - the Rally

1:30 AM Sat 22 Nov 2008 GMT

'The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally' Maggie Joyce - Mariner Boating Holidays &copy

Experiencing the cuisine, culture and friendly people is as important as ever in these rallies. Snorkelling in warm clear water, swimming ashore to white, sandy beaches, pulling a meal for ten out of the water, grabbing a lift with a local to the market or shopping for a bargain in the tiny stalls in Phi Phi, these things are all equally important.

Tiny white sand beach - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

The rally began as the weather changed from wet to dry season and as a result we experienced cooler nights, uncrowded venues and very welcoming locals eager for the start of the annual influx.

We left the base in Boat Lagoon after a very comfortable night in the Boat Lagoon Resort to recover from our flight and prepare ourselves for our holiday afloat. The base has a life of it's own but most of the crews also took a side trip into Patong for an evening of 'entertainment'. Enough said!

Getting out of the base is a tidal affair so the pressure was on to get all the yachts out before low tide. This accomplished we enjoyed a 'shake down' cruise to familiarise ourselves with the yachts followed by our first group dinner ashore in one of the many small venues we had chosen to enjoy the hospitality and cuisine on the local Thais.

Warm water allowed plenty of opportunity for swimming - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

Suffice to say the crews all left their holiday replete and some probably with a few kilos to shed on their return. This could have also been from the beer consumed - rumour has it that one catamaran loaded 14 slabs! But it is only a rumour.

Flat seas and gentle breezes - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

Our route then took us with races and lay day transits on a 140 mile journey with a mix of National Parks and popular 'must do' places. The program allows for free choices along the way and also ensures that the participants are supported by a technician and escorts. The knowledge of Ollie (our local expert and technician) was invaluable. It allowed changes to the program - which is designed to be flexible for optimum use of holiday time and weather conditions.

Catamarans are definitely preferred for living space - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

The wind conditions favoured the catamarans and they were also more spacious for life aboard. Unlike the Med going ashore is a dinghy operation in Thailand and the davits on the cats for the dinghy is a much easier alternative for sailing and for launching.

One of the hi-lites for our crew was the landing of a 6 kilo Spanish mackerel which was cut into steaks and barbequed on the back of the cat. Not only dinner for ten but lunch next day for six. The tuna caught on the previous day was thrown back to grow a bit bigger for next year.

We swam into Hongs, climbed waterfalls, snorkelled and swam as we made our way south.

Melbourne Cup Day - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

We rafted up in a beautiful bay for the Melbourne Cup celebration and sweep. All made an effort to spruce up and hats were mandatory of course! The race was relayed over VHF and although it was only 11.00am in Thailand the time difference did not dampen the fun.

The winners of the sweep - The Phuket to Langkawi Yacht Rally - Maggie Joyce - MarinerBoating Holidays &copy

At the Langkawi end of our rally we included a wonderful dinner at the Anderman where flickering lights welcomed us ashore, fresh towels to dry off after washing our salty feet, followed by cocktails and the most sumptuous meal served by professional friendly staff - a wonderful experience.

Next morning a group of us went ashore again to join a naturalist who took us on a walk to see the flora and fauna of the million year old growth forest which surrounds the hotel. This area missed out on the last ice age and is unique. It features enormous ironwood trees, nesting sea eagles, monkeys, and a variety of medicinal plants.

Andrew was a passionate professional who certainly new his subject and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

The next day we managed to complete race five in the best breezes we had experienced in the 140 mile rally, before our final night event which was also a very slap up affair at the Sheraton where we spent our last night.

Some of our party remained in Langkawi for extra days and others used it as a stepping off place to Borneo. Mariner Boating Holidays made all the arrangements and intend to repeat the rally in January 2010.

Enquiries about this and other rallies to info@marinerboating.com.au