Classic Yachting – Ultimate Winter Escape

IMAGINE – When one boards even returning from the beach, there are two stewards waiting with a tall cool glass of fresh fruit drink of the day and cool scented cloths on a tray.  

On waking in the morning, the stewards are waiting in the salon for your coffee or tea order. There are always trays of homemade croissants and muffins, homemade jams, and fresh fruit waiting.  Then breakfast is ordered a la carte for whatever is desired.  Lunch and dinners are preset sit down, with three courses, delicious food, and a marvelous wine selection. 

The yacht is Silolona, a 164’ Indonesian Phinisi that charters in Indonesia, Myanmar and the Andaman Islands.  The yacht itself is a large wooden ship, built new to look classic.  There are red tan bark sails and it takes a lot of wind for the sails to really move the yacht, so usually it moves under power, but it is something to see when the sails do go up and the crew scampers up the rigging.

The interior is extremely comfortable with 5 star luxury in the staterooms and bath.  There are 17 beautifully trained crew who are outstanding.  All Indonesian, not all speak English, but all provide the best cabin service on board.


Each charter, the crew prepares at least one beach barbecue where they go ashore and place flickering candles all over the rocks and in sand pits and then they cook on an open fire, and they also will play and sing if desired.  They light paper wishing balloons, and one of the crew is a fire dancer.  It is really magical. Fire dancers, how many dazzling fire dancers have have you encountered recently!?

They usually do a village buffet as well on board, where all of the crew dresses in their village sarongs, and when they set sail, they blow a conch shell horn on departure. Romantic and fun adventure for kids and adults or families of ten.


On board diving is available with courses for beginners.  There are two large tenders, plus a crew tender, so if one group wants to go diving or fishing another group can be taken to the beach, where the crew go ahead and set up a picnic area with umbrellas, back rests, and your snorkel gear waiting in your bag with your name on it.  Whenever a fish a caught, sashimi shows up on deck.  Be sent to the beach with a spa exfoliation cabana, with coconut, green tea powder, almond paste etc. in various coconut shells, to mix and massage then slip into the sea to cleanse followed by hot green tea waiting for you.

Myanmar (ex Burma) is a lovely unique location, just emerging and Silolona is one of the few yachts with a permit to charter there.  The diving is world class.  And this is the location of the Mokee Sea Gypsies that move from island to island in makeshift boat villages to forage.  Indonesia is outstanding, beautiful water, villages to visit, smoking volcanoes, great diving and snorkeling, beaches full of shells.

Take an on deck-cooking lesson for the sambals, learn how to make the palm frond weavings of birds and things that are everywhere.  Visit the local villages, where the crew has the children gather around and sing.  It is one of the best experiences overall. Visit in September to see the Ikat Textile weaving villages, volcano alley, and the whaling village where they go whaling in dugout canoes with palm frond sails, along with everything else.  And there is coral everywhere and lots of tropical fish and manta rays etc.

Sleeps 10- For Indonesia the flights are in and out of Bali with great hotels at the beginning and end, and for Myanmar, in and out of Phuket, again with great hotels close by. Two itineraries – available one in the Mergui Archipelago, which is Myanmar, and the other of Komodo and the Savu Sea is of Indonesia,

Tradition and culture abound- love the crew and the locations and the on board experiences. This yacht has many repeat guests, reserve early.

TIMING: Classic December, January and February are Myanmar, and the rest is Indonesia.