xotic itinerariesRemote Control
francesco galli zugaro
learned about the profound
eff ect that a protected, eco-
logically diverse destination
can have on people when
he spent six years running a
company called Ocean Adven-
tures in the Galapagos Islands.
The wildlife, the scenery, the
lack of development—all of it
made him want to see more of
the most untouched parts of
the world. ¶ About a decade
ago, he launched Aqua Expe-
ditions, a company dedicat-
ed to showing people those
kinds of destinations aboard
luxury riverboats. He began
with Aqua Amazon in South
America and then added Aqua
Mekong in China, creating a
following of by-the-state-
room customers, along with
by-the-boat clients, who had
a similar penchant for explor-
ing remote locales in comfort.
¶Now, Zugaro is adding a super-
yacht to his charter fl eet. In
fall 2018, he bought Aqua Blu,
a 198-foot Brooke Marinepreviously known in the
Mediterranean market as
Titan. She is fi nishing a refi t
and scheduled to reposition
around the time you read this,
so she can become the fi rst
Western-style superyacht to
base year-round for charter
in the remote parts of Indo-
nesia. ¶ “If I’m not working,
I’m scouting the world for new
destinations,” he says. “My
clients have done Galapagos.
They’ve done Antarctica. Theywant to go somewhere new.”
¶ His plan is to off er four
itineraries aboard Aqua
Blu, with about 12 weeks a
year kept open for full-yacht
bookings of all 15 staterooms
at once. Starting this October
and November, the yacht will
position for two months each
year in the Spice Islands. From
December through February,
she will charter in Raja Ampat
before moving to Bali and the
area of Komodo National Park
from April through Septem-
ber. After that, Aqua Blu will
start the route over again
in the Spice Islands—for as
many years, Zugaro says, as
clients want to visit. ¶ Itin-
eraries in those three desti-
nations will be seven nights
apiece, with a fourth, 12-night,
shoulder-season option that
includes highlights of each.
¶ The spot among them that
has most captured Zugaro’s
imagination is Ambon, an
island in the Spice Islands
archipelago that few, if any,cou
rtesy^aquaex
peditionsEarly this fall,
the 198-foot
Brooke Marine
Aqua Blu is sched-
uled to fi nish a
refi t and become the
fi rst Western-style
superyacht based
in remote parts
of Indonesia for
charter year-round.
MY CLIENTS
HAVE DONE
GALAPAGOS.
THEY’VE DONE
ANTARCTICA.
THEY WANT
TO GO SOME-
WHERE NEW.THE
CHARTER
FILEaqua bluyear launched: 1968, as a British navy vessel converted to a yacht: mid-2000s current
refit: expected to be done as you read this, with Dutch designer Cor D. Rover refurbishing the interior
number of guests: 30 number of crew: 25 owner and operator: Aqua Expeditions
charter destinations: Indonesia, including Bali, Komodo National Park, the Spice Islands
and Raja Ampat weekly base rate: $258,000, inclusive of fuel, scuba diving, meals, beer and wine56 YACHTINGSEPTEMBER2 019