New Zealand is delighted to announce an irresistible combination of events for superyacht owners and captains: a superyacht captains dedicated forum to coincide with the 2011 Rugby World Cup in September and the just-announced 2012 New Zealand Millennium Cup.

The NZ Marine Export Group is hosting the 2011 Superyacht Captains Forum on 15-16 September 2011 and the Millennium Cup on 23-25 February 2012 in Auckland the “City of Sails”.

Chairman of the Superyacht Captains Forum committee, Garry Hassall, says that superyacht captains will attend the forum to up-skill, learn from the experiences of other captains and have ‘time out’ to think about their business of running a superyacht rather than be inundated with the normal daily activity. “It will suit captains with a scheduled visit planned to New Zealand or those who may visit in the future,” he says. “In designing the forum’s program, we canvassed forty superyacht captains to identify their most important issues. The program will range from executive-level topics such as contract management, tax and legal matters, to navigating the South Pacific.

“While New Zealand is recognised as a South Pacific hub for superyacht cruising, refit, and maintenance, the forum will also represent other Pacific countries which support vessels transiting through the region,” Mr Hassall says. “The South Pacific is free of piracy but the captains rated the topic highly for inclusion on the agenda.”

New Zealand Millennium Cup

A highlight will be the much coveted fleet race between competing superyacht captains on the 11 identical 34ft MRX Farr-designed yachts at the conclusion of the superyacht captains forum on Friday afternoon.

Expected to attract 150 delegates, the Superyacht Captains Forum will be held in the new Viaduct Events Centre, at the same time as the Auckland International Boat Show.

Having attended the forum, superyacht captains will feel at home when they base their yachts in New Zealand over the summer and prepare, with the owners, to vie for honours in the 2012 NZ Millennium Cup on Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf. The Millennium Cup regatta for sailboats and motoryachts of 24m and above will take place between 23 and 25 February. Based on the number of superyachts visiting New Zealand every year, Auckland’s new superyacht berths and the popularity of previous NZ Millennium Cup events, organisers are advising superyachts to register early as entries are limited. The NZ Millennium Cup, held at the height of New Zealand’s summer, will lead into Auckland’s Volvo Ocean Race Stopover from 8 to 18 March 2012.

If you wish to book a luxury ycht charter at this time in New Zealand please contact us.