{"id":1175,"date":"2017-02-01T20:44:18","date_gmt":"2017-02-01T13:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.absoluteresorts.com\/our-stories\/?p=1175"},"modified":"2017-02-01T20:44:18","modified_gmt":"2017-02-01T13:44:18","slug":"the-bay-regatta-2017-back-to-its-roots-for-the-20th-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.absoluteresorts.com\/our-stories\/the-bay-regatta-2017-back-to-its-roots-for-the-20th-anniversary\/","title":{"rendered":"The Bay Regatta 2017: Back to its roots for the 20th anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Combining travel with sport, The Bay Regatta<\/strong> is a four-day circumnavigation of Phang Nga Bay that takes in three of southern Thailand’s most scenic provinces \u2013 Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi \u2013 and where the emphasis is on fun.<\/p>\n

\"The-Bay-Regatta\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Attracting the serious, the not-so-serious and the not-at-all-serious \u201cracing\u201d sailors, the regatta appeals to an international mix who enjoy the stunning sailing grounds of the area and a different destination each evening.<\/p>\n

Starting from Phuket on 15th February, organisers Regattas Asia are expecting a large fleet to celebrate this milestone 20th Anniversary edition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe successful event format hasn’t changed much over the years, but the sailors, types of boats and demographics have. We are seeing more international sailors flying in and chartering boats to take part and we’re also seeing more people opting to stay ashore each evening, rather than on their boats,\u201d<\/em> said Ms. Kae Wattana<\/strong>, Managing Director of organisers Regattas Asia<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The Bay Regatta is an excellent example of how sports tourism works to the benefit of communities and local economies.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach evening we anchor at a different venue and the sailors go ashore. Those staying ashore \u2013 more than 60% of the fleet \u2013 book accommodation and either eat in the local restaurants or enjoy the official event functions which engage with the local community. Most of the expenditure of the regatta goes directly into the local economies of the areas we visit \u2013 this has been the case since the regatta was launched and it will remain so for the future,\u201d<\/em> commented Ms. Wattana.<\/p>\n

Held from 15th to 19th February, The Bay Regatta is a series of passage races \u2013 an event format that has caught the attention of sailors around the world with participants coming from as far afield as Australia, Russia, the UK and Canada to compete in six classes (Racing Class, Cruising A, Cruising B, Bareboat Charter, Racing Multihulls and Cruising Multihulls).<\/p>\n

The 2017 programme is as follows:<\/p>\n