April 16, 2010

The 2010 Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show has drawn increased international attention with buoyant exhibitor numbers and keen interest from delegations.

The leading Australian marine event is staged at Sanctuary Cove in Queensland from Thursday, May 20 to Sunday, May 23.

Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show general manager Barry Jenkins has just returned from attending the China International Boat Show in Shanghai. “I received the strongest level of inquiry in around a decade of marketing the Show in China,” said Mr. Jenkins who expects executives from Asia and Europe to attend. “We are very pleased how the Show is tracking. As of today, we have more than 390 exhibitors which surpasses our bookings at this corresponding time in 2009,” he said. “We expect to attract well over 400 exhibitors for the May event and we are anticipating more than 100 world and marine product launches.”

The 2010 Show has confirmed exhibitors from the US, Belgium, New Zealand, China, Taiwan, Jordan, Turkey, and Italy plus an array of Australian companies showcasing imported products. The Australian manufacturing sector is also well represented.

“Ticket sales have been strong for the Australian Marine Industry Breakfast facilitated by Gold Coast City Marina,” said Mr. Jenkins. This ticketed public event features Thom Dammrich from the US, president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) and president of the International Council for Marine Industries (ICOMIA) as guest speaker. The breakfast is held on Friday, May 21.

Power Boats

A range of luxury vessels are expected to turn heads at the Show with the Australian launch of the Fairline Targa 58 Sports Yacht, the Fairline Squadron 55 and Fairline Squadron 65 by exhibitor CRS Yachts. Sunseeker Australia is also releasing three vessels in an Australian launch at Sanctuary Cove with the 80 Yacht, 86 Yacht and 30 Metre Yacht from the UK.

Chinese manufacturer IAG Yachts is participating in an Australian boat show for the first time at Sanctuary Cove, while Turkish luxury motor yacht company Vicem Yachts will also have a presence at Sanctuary Cove in another Australian first.

Two Assegai Marine custom-built sport fishing boats will be at the Show in a rare treat for boat lovers. Only 11 of these boats have been built by the Brisbane manufacturer since 1992.

Australian manufacturers Riviera, Maritimo, Clipper Motor Yachts, LeisureCat Australia and Lizard Yachts are just some companies launching power boats on the world market at Sanctuary Cove.

Sail Boats

Within the sail sector, visitors can view some exciting new sailboats with the Bavaria Cruiser 32 and 45 models debuting in the Asia Pacific region; and the Asia Pacific launch of Fountaine Pajot’s Lipari 41 by Multihull Solutions.

Other boats on display include the Catalina 375, the Dragonfly 35 Swing Wing Trimaran, the Hanse 375, the Seawind 1250 and the updated version of the NorseBoat 17.5.

This year’s new component, the Prestige Brokerage and Charter exhibition on marina arm C, has drawn 11 confirmed bookings including vessels of more than 30m.

New Products

“There are dozens of new products unveiled this year including Torqeedo’s Travel 503 and 1003 electric outboards released in South East Asia at the Show plus the national release of the Paguro 5000 marine generator by Welling & Crossley,” said Mr. Jenkins.

Other new products include the first public showing of Mercury MerCruiser’s next generation big-block marine engine and Techno Fibre Australia’s launch of Michigan Wheel Europe’s outboard/sterndrive and inboard propellers throughout the Oceania region.

Marine products likely to interest boat owners include Applied SolarWind Solutions’ solar and wind products including the Flexcell Sunslick range of solar chargers. Fusion Electronics Pty Ltd releases the MS-RA 200 super-compact marine audio entertainment unit. Raymarine launches its E Series Widescreen with HybridTouch™, its new range of glass bridge systems and its HD Digital Radome.

More details on all new products can be found on the show website.

Show Prices, Parking etc…

Ticket sales for the Show are available online. Online tickets offer a small discount to gate ticket entry. One-day online general admission costs $A22 with concession online tickets at $A19. Children aged 14 years and under are free. For a full range of gate, two-day and four-day admission tickets, view the website on www.sanctuarycoveboatshow.com.au.

During the Show, there is no public parking on site however streamlined transport options include Park ‘n’ Ride, water taxi and ferry transfer, helicopter transfer and limousine and taxi drop off.