November December 2018 Marina World

GLOBAL INDUSTRY OVERVIEWS
YP Loke
The Suntex Marina Investors portfolio, a constantly expanding US-based marina chain,
purchased 600-slip Hurricane Marina in Silver Point, Tennessee earlier this year.
marina business itself did not suffer
as much and fell about 20% all over
the continent and islands (Azores and
Madeira).
During the last two years we
have seen incredible growth in the
market, along with a boom in the
country’s economy, mainly due to
high performance in tourism and the
property market.
Marina occupancy levels are back
to the record year of 2008 but this has
only been possible as most customers
come from outside Portugal. UK,
German and Dutch boaters are pushing
the Portuguese marinas back to high
occupancy.
All over the country there has been
a phenomenal growth in what is called
‘maritime-touristic activity’, which
is basically the charter business of
skippered daily trips. The beautiful
coastal areas, natural sanctuaries
and river estuaries are a must-see
for tourists. This new market is now
responsible for more than 10% of
occupancy at most marinas in the
country. At some locations it rises
to 15-20% and marinas are already
restricting the number of boats
authorised for day trip activity.
The outlook of the Portuguese
market is now very positive but needs
some ‘grow boating’ initiatives in order
to bring the Portuguese back onto the
ocean.
Martinho Fortunato CMM
SOUTH EAST ASIA
The boating scene in South East
Asia is relatively young. The first
walk-on walk-off pontoon style
marina, Raffles Marina in Singapore,
opened for business barely 25
years ago. Today, there is a network
of over 50 marinas strewn across
Southeast Asia. It has not all been
smooth sailing. The Asia Financial
Crisis (1997) and SARS epidemic
(2003), two catastrophic upheavals,
rocked the industry. The damage
from the Indian Ocean Tsunami
(2004), although costly in terms of
lives lost, was more muted where
infrastructure was concerned and
felt mainly in the islands of Langkawi
and Phuket.
In spite of these setbacks, marinas
and boating have flourished on the back
of relatively strong economic growth in
the region. But in common with most
developing markets, the growth of the
boating population has lagged behind
berth supply and consequently the
fortunes of marina developers have
been mixed. The bright spots have
always been Singapore and Phuket.
Singapore because of its concentration
of wealth, connectivity, infrastructure
and security, and Phuket because of its
cruising hinterland, laid back ambience
and renowned Thai hospitality. The Gulf
of Thailand on the eastern seaboard
is a rising star. Ocean Marina close to
Pattaya was the only marina for many
years, but now several planned marina
developments are in the offing.
But the biggest rising star – a
supernova in the making – is Indonesia.
This archipelagic nation of 17,000+
islands was difficult to access until a
policy change instituted by the Jokowi
Government that came into power
in 2014. The so-called tilt towards
a maritime axis focused national
development on the maritime sector,
of which recreational yachting is part.
Legislation has been passed easing
visa requirements and waiving the
requirement for sailing permits or
financial bonds. Boat taxation remains
high and few Indonesians own boats.
Whether yachting tourism alone
can sustain marina development
remains to be seen but several marina
developments have been announced,
mostly on the back of resorts and other
real estate development.
Although implementation of policy in
a vast country like Indonesia will take
time, it is a game changer not just for
Indonesia but the region. Its awakening
makes the region whole, and opens
up the possibility to market the region
as a single cruising destination (in the
same way that the Mediterranean and
Caribbean are single destinations).
Malaysia has come through a political
upheaval with Tun Mahathir upsetting
the status quo with a return to power.
Under his watch in the previous
premiership, many marinas were
developed (not all successful). Whether
nautical tourism will feature in the new
government’s economic agenda is left
to be seen. In recent years a number of
private marinas have been built close
to the Singapore border, catering to the
overspill from the city state.
The Philippines has not been on the
boating radar in spite of its appealing
archipelagic geography (it has 7,000+
islands). Boat taxation remains high. As
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www.marinaworld.com - November/December 2018