FEBRUARY 2018Anil Thadani
Yacht: Latitude
Length: 147ft
Year: 2009
Location: Phuket, ThailandReinout Oerlemans
Yacht: Good Times
Length: 102ft
Year: 2004
Location: Valencia
How was your cruise in the South Pacific? I had mixed reactions.
The islands in Vanuatu and the Solomons are beautiful, but none of
them really blew me away. The volcanoes are interesting but we did
not see any in action, just some smoking from the tops. The scuba
diving, though, was the big disappointment! It wasn’t great in terms
of sightings of large creatures. Plenty of nice reefs and reef fish but
no mantas, sharks, large tuna, etc. The wreck diving, on the other
hand, is spectacular, with lots of warships and planes to dive on
Did you go ashore much? Yes. We loved hiking and meeting some
of the islands’ inhabitants. One evening they put on a hell of a show
for us – tribal dances and music followed by a session of drinking
kava, which I found numbs your senses and makes you want to lie in
a fetal position! In one village I agreed to sit in on a betel nut chewing
session with the village headman – we totally bonded and he spent
the next hour or so walking around with his arm on my shoulder
Did the drones get much use? Drones are a real game-changer
and, I think, a must for every yacht. We have several on board and
I’ve become a reasonably accomplished pilot, although during onenight flight I did lodge a Mavic Pro in the branches of a tree. My crew
got it down, but it landed in the water and had to be retrieved with
a night dive. The drone was gone, but the most important part, the
pictures and videos on the card, were all retrieved safely
What was your favorite spot? It’s hard to pick one spot over the
others. I would say the Solomons is a bit wilder than Vanuatu. Our
dive guide took us to an island that he owns near Gizo and that was
pretty nice. Then, on the way back to Honiara, we made a stop at an
island called Doki Doki, where I took some spectacular drone shots
How are the modifications to the boat working out? I’ve put in a
state-of-the-art dive room, the likes of which I have not seen on any
other yacht – dual pro compressors with Nitrox capability. We also
did a full new paint job, had the engines and stabilizers overhauled,
put in two new Kohler generators, and reconfigured the sundeck.
I am very happy with the way the boat is looking and running
Where to next? Latitude is now in Phuket. The plan is to stay in Asia
for a year or more. We will cruise Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the
Maldives and Sri Lanka. We have ambitious plans for after that...How was your 2017 season?
Fantastic. We spent five weeks sailing
around Greece. We live in Los Angeles,
and try to spend around six weeks every
summer in the Med. In the last few
seasons we’ve done the Balearics, the
South of France, Corsica, Sardinia and
the whole Italian coast from Portofino
down to the Amalfi Coast. We always sail
with our four kids, who see the boat as
a home away from home. There is no
better way of really connecting with the
children and be grounded with life itself
than being on Good Times
How’s the boat running? Perfectly.
There is not a vessel on the planet with
the versatility of our yacht. The volume
is unparalleled for a ship of this size and
she sails majestically
What’s your onboard routine? My wife
Danielle was a professional cyclist and
every morning after breakfast we head
off on our bikes, leaving the kids on
board. I squeeze into my biking gear,
which makes me look like a big sausage
on wheels but my wife looks amazing –
like a real athlete. We always go biking,
whether it’s 43 degrees or freezing cold.
We discuss with our captain a vague
meeting point about 30 miles down the
coast and off we go. We take coastal
roads as well as unmapped routes
through rough terrain. Sometimes if
we’re high up in a mountain and looking
down at the sea, we see a little shape in
the distance – which is Good Times,
steaming or sailing along the coast with
our four children on board. That
moment, when we’re sweaty and thirsty
and my wife and I look down and see
that proud, fat lady plugging through
the waves, is one of pure happiness