THAILAND VOTED FAVOURITE SAILING VENUE IN ASIA
Phuket King’s Cup Regatta remains the most popular and is voted the best regatta in Asia
Phuket – Thailand was voted the favourite sailing venue in Asia and the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta best regatta in Asia, according to a recent survey. The survey found also that the Regatta generated approximately 40 million baht for the Island’s economy during the 2009 event.
The Sailing survey was conducted by the Top of The Gulf Regatta (www.topofthegulfregatta.com) in co-operation with the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta (www.kingscup.com), with the aim to find out sailing trends and provide useful information in helping to attract more sailors to Thailand.
Phuket King’s Cup this year attracted 111 boats, approximately 1,000 registered sailors of 33 different nationalities from all corners of the globe. The survey found that over 30% of the sailors who participated in the 23rd Phuket King’s Cup Regatta have been sailing in Thailand for more than 10 years, while 20% are new – sailing in Thailand for 1-3 years.
The survey found that Thailand is a popular sailing destination with international sailors, with many returning numerous times to enjoy the cruising grounds and sailing events Thailand has to offer. 56% said that the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta is their favourite regatta in Asia while 71% said that Thailand, with the main sailing areas being Phuket, Pattaya and Samui, is the best sailing venue in Asia due to an ideal geography, good weather conditions and beautiful scenery.
31% of the surveys were sailors who have been sailing in Asia for more than 10 years, with 27% newcomers (having sailed in Asia for only 1-3 years) and 15% having sailed in Asia for 4-6 years.
Asia has long been a popular sailing region with residents and expatriates. This was reinforced recently with the confirmation of an Asian series of the popular European Extreme 40 Sailing Series. More recently, there has been confirmation of Hong Kong being part of the Louis Vuitton Series in 2010. Such events bring the world’s attention on Asia as a leading sailing destination.
When asked how they found out about regatta’s/sailing events in Asia, 50% said ‘Friend/ Sailing community’, followed by 38% who said “specific event website.”
One of the aims of the survey was to find out what kind of people, and from where, attend the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta, and approximately how much money does the event generate for the Island economy. It was found that participants in the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta are truly international with 35% from Australia and New Zealand, 30% from Europe, 27% from Asia with strong participation from USA, Canada and Russia, amongst others.
