Singapore marina tycoon wants Chinese travellers to set sail

SINGAPORE (Oct 12): The tycoon behind a Singapore berth for mega-yachts is hoping hot towels and rice porridge breakfasts can lure Chinese tourists to marinas and leisure boats in European destinations like Venice, Ibiza and Cinque Terre.

Arthur Tay, chief executive officer of SUTL Enterprise, plans to add some 20 marinas under its management in the next few years -- at the rate of four annually -- and entice some of the roughly 120 million Chinese that travel abroad every year. Tay, who owns 51% of the majority shareholder of SUTL Enterprise, wants to market the marinas as places where people can dine, shop or hold parties even if they don’t own luxury boats.

“You don’t have to own a yacht; it’s not expensive if you don’t want a super yacht or a big boat, it’s not expensive if you don’t take the boat out,” said Tay, adding that coastal tourism spots in Sri Lanka and Phuket were among locations he was also considering.

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