Six Senses Phuket Raceweek is held under the auspices
of ACYC. Club member Roger Harris (2nd right) &
crew collecting a trophy in 2008.

Having secured a superb waterfront site a couple of miles further north in the bay, the club’s committee took the bull by the horns and appealed to Phuket’s boating community to come forward and help establish a yacht club the likes of which Phuket has not seen before.

Next, at a Special General Meeting, with the unanimous support of the membership, an Executive Management Group (EMG) of local business people was appointed to take the project forward.

At the time of going to print, architects were putting the finishing touches to the club plans, builders were about to be appointed and a tender document for catering contractors was being finalized. At the same time, a fund-raising programme using the enticement of Life Memberships and long term Corporate Memberships was underway, having already raised almost 1 million Baht towards a target of 3 million for the construction and fitting out.

The club’s objective is to raise both its profile and its standards to attract membership from a much broader range of Phuket’s newer boat-owning residents and regular visitors, while still maintaining its identity as somewhere for yachtsmen to talk boats and as a base for a regular racing programme.

The main bar & restaurant area will be light and airy – perfect for a waterfront yacht club.

ACYC has always welcomed non members and the new club will build on that concept – on the principal that today’s visitor may well be tomorrow’s boat owner and member.

With this in mind, the EMG plans to create a club restaurant and bar, together with ample parking, that can compete in terms of quality and price with other mid-market restaurants on the island and – a rarity on Phuket these days – offer international dining on the waterfront in a relaxed, informal atmosphere.

Ao Chalong Yacht Club New Development Provisional Plans

With a new, well managed yacht club offering top-notch service in an idyllic location, EMG expects to see the membership grow from around 90 members today to at least double that within the first year. It is expected that a number of these will be power boat owners, breaking with ACYC’s ‘tradition’ of appealing only to sailing yachts..

The new premises are projected to be up and running by early 2009. A range of memberships, including long-term corporate, long-term individual, family, annual and visiting are available.

Membership enquiries should, in the first instance,
be addressed to acyc-membership@phuketevents.com