Boutique cruising company Burma Boating has added four new yachts to its fleet, including sailing yacht Clan VI, the company’s new flagship.
Starting in October, Clan VI will be cruising Myanmar’s Mergui Archipelago and explore one of Asia’s last untouched destinations. The 40-meter yacht will be the largest and most luxurious yacht offering scheduled cruises and private charters in the archipelago, which is slowly opening up to tourism.
Clan VI was built under the name “La Numero Uno” and was the first yacht to be constructed at the Italian high-class shipyard Perini Navi, which became world-famous for its élite superyachts such as “The Maltese Falcon”. After a complete refit in 2014, Clan VI has been restored to immaculate, stylish elegance. She can accommodate up to ten guests.
Between November and May, Clan VI will sail 7-night cruises from Kawthaung in Myanmar’s south to the historic port town of Myeik, crossing the entire Mergui Archipelago. The 800 mostly uninhabited islands remain one of the planet’s most unspoilt destinations with empty white beaches and thick jungle. The indigenous people of the Mergui Archipelago are the Moken, a hunter-gatherer society which traditionally lives off, and on, the sea. Sometimes referred to as “sea gypsies”, this ethnic minority group leads a semi-nomadic lifestyle, dominated by diving for sea cucumbers, fishing and bartering.
The area had been off-limits to foreigners since Myanmar’s independence and only recently started opening up. In one year, the islands see fewer than 3,500 tourists. Currently, there is no hotel operating in the area.
Burma Boating also has a new scheduled cruise from Thailand to India’s Andaman Islands, one of the most remote island groups in the world. The 12-night trip will operate between February and late April.