Travelopia, was the business division of holiday giant Tui. Now that it has been sold to private equity firm KKR, it is about to float the boat a bit having made investment promises to its yacht charter fleets.
The company owns the boat rental companies: Le Boat, The Moorings, Sunsail and Footloose
Travelopia Yachts have announced that in 2020 it will invest US $130m in new craft for the 900 plus boat fleet that jointly sail under its boating brands.
Hurricane Irma
Hurricane Irma swept through the Caribbean in the autumn of 2017 piling bareboat yachts on top of each other as so called hurricane holes proved not worth their name.
The damage was disastrous, with many hulls smashed beyond repair.
Travelopia quickly re-established operations with new boats in the British Virgin Islands where The Moorings base opened again in December of 2017. Sint Maartin followed in February of 2018.
Now the company has said the investment will fund new fleet additions, describing it as “an unparalleled injection of quality and variety into these charter fleets at a time when the financial stability of some operators in the broader yacht charter market remains uncertain.”
The company said it is also investing in significant development in the infrastructure of its charter base network, including marina operations in the British Virgin Islands covering dock updates, on-site hotel accommodation, provisioning stores, check-in desks, and pool and restaurant areas, designed to significantly improve customer experience.
Several million dollars will be earmarked of technology infrastructure. Here the aim is to make each of the charter offerings easier to research, find, and book. The company believes the technology investment will be mutually beneficial changing the way it interacts with potential charter guests.
Boat building brands benefit
Boat building brands; Jenneau, Beneteau, Lagoon and Robertson & Caine are among the builders most likely to benefit from the fleet increases
The UK fleet sailing under the Sunsail brand will see 25 new Match First-40 mono hulls delivered over the next two years. New Lagoon Catamarans will join the Sunsail fleets in other destinations around the world.
Jeanneau and Beneteau will supply mono hull offerings to The Moorings fleet while the South African based builder Robertson & Caine, will supply new sailing and power catamarans such as the award-winning Moorings 5000.