With yacht owners and charter guests wanting to cruise farther afield, Indonesia is attracting their attention. After all, it has the world’s largest archipelago, with more than 17,500 islands. Thankfully, the local governments in regions like Raja Ampat are warming up to yachting tourism and making it easier to visit and stay. This, therefore, is among the reasons why the yacht agency Asia Pacific Superyachts (APS) opened an office in Raja Ampat several months ago. Now, the office head is a local resident, too.
The Raja Ampat office officially opened in late December. However, APS’ Bali office, its Indonesian headquarters, handled inquiries. That ensured captains and owners benefitted from homegrown knowledge, so now you benefit from even more of that. “Given the vast distances in Indonesia, our aim is to provide our standard high-level services by a locally based team that has intimate local knowledge of authorities and challenges required by our superyacht clients arriving directly to Indonesia’s Papua Province and Raja Ampat,” explains Capt. Jimmy Blee, director and co-founder of APS Indonesia.
Fitri Sukma Dewi (pictured) is running APS’ Raja Ampat office. Born and raised in Sorong, in West Papua, she’s worked in the superyacht-services sector for five years. In addition, she has already met a few of the captains who tap APS Indonesia’s expertise. Since the Raja Ampat office opened, superyacht visitors have ranged from a 246-footer (75-meter) to a 394-footer (120-meter). “There is no one in this part of the world Fitri does not know, and in particular the various harbor and government officials required to clear boats into this region,” Blee asserts.
Dewi and two permanent staff working with her are “excited” by Raja Ampat’s potential. “Raja Ampat is one of the best cruising destinations in Asia,” she says. In fact, it’s a popular diving destination. “It is important to us that we provide on-the-spot, permanent local support for our existing and new clients.”
That support ranges from obtaining cruising permits and immigration paperwork to assisting with provisions. The team can also help with fueling and securing spare parts. Furthermore, they will provide local guides, to learn more about the flora and fauna of Indonesia. If you want security onboard or in a shadow boat, Asia Pacific Superyachts can arrange that as well. Finally, shoreside excursions like golfing, helicopter charters, and more can be arranged, too.
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