Daily Archives: August 8, 2023

Sail away to paradise Dream Yachts charter vessels await in idyllic waters. Dream Charter Worldwide

Dreaming of the wind in your hair, the sun on your face, and pure sailing exhilaration in the environs of an exotic destination? Perhaps its an annual quest. Or a lifelong dream. But where to begin? Once youve identified the destination, finding a reputable charter company, well-maintained boats and staff with intimate, local knowledge can be a daunting task.

What if you love the water, have spent many hours on your favorite lake or river but are not comfortable heading out on the ocean with your family all by yourself? With a bareboat charter out of the question and luxury-sailing-yacht charter options often out of reach, for many, the dream of sailing the big blue has remained just thata dream.

But fear not, ye wistful ocean lover, whether you are a neophyte or an expert mariner, Dream Yacht Worldwide is uniquely positioned to facilitate those sailing dreams.

Founded in 2000 in the Seychelles, Dream Yacht was the vision of founder Loc Bonnet, who set out to revolutionize the charter industry by making sailing an accessible activity for sailors and nonsailors alike. What began with six sailing charter vessels cruising the idyllic waters of the Indian Ocean has expanded dramatically over the past two decades.

Today Dream Yacht offers nearly 1,000 sailing yachts from 34 feet to 58 feet and power and sailing catamarans in 50 of the worlds most exquisite cruising destinations. Whats even better? Dream Yacht is purposefully designed to provide sailors of any skill level the sailing experience of their dreams.

With Dream Yacht Worldwide, you can think beyond the BVI and Caribbean milk runs, although there are plenty of Dream Yacht charter vessels in these areas too. Dream Yacht Worldwide offers more choices of destinations around the world than any other yacht charter company. This gives exceptional peace of mind that lets you know that no matter what destination you choose next, the charter vessels will be well-maintained and offered at the same high standard of service youve come to expect of Dream Yacht based on the sailing grounds youve already come to know.

In fact Dream Yacht has so many destinations to choose from that if you decided to go sailing for a whole year, you could explore new cruising grounds every week without visiting the same islands twice, unless you wanted to. Imagine gunkholing in Thailands remote coves and anchorages, diving off the bow in Tahiti, or sailing under a fjords waterfall in Norway.

Picture yourself savoring the cuisine and soaking up the Mediterranean culture while meandering along the coastlines of Italy, France, Greece or Spain. Step back in time in Croatia or Turkey, or battle the elements in the rugged seas of the Atlantic off Brittany or La Rochelle. With many European countries not just sporting one, but three or four Dream Yacht bases you will get the opportunity to constantly sail where the wind and weather is best for sailing at that time of the year.

Perhaps you envision catching the elusive green flash from the aft cockpit in a beautiful Caribbean or Bahamian destination, watching the sunrise, with your morning coffee, along the US eastern seaboard, or charting a new course in the Sea of Cortez or the Whitsunday Islands. From St. Martin to Sweden, the destinations offered by Dream Yacht will inspire you to expand your sailing horizons.

Dream Yachts unique premise is simple. Once youve selected a destination, its time to identify your preferred vacation style. Dream Yacht offers sailing experiences to suit every cruising preference, from bareboat and skippered to by-the-cabin and fully crewed charters or long-term rentals.

When all you need is a reliable, well-maintained vessel that you can handle yourself, a Dream Yacht bareboat charter is for you. With a bareboat charter, you take care of your own provisioning, plan your own itinerary, and spend your days exploring at your own pace. The caveat? You must be experienced with the type of vessel you plan to charter and in some countries need official documentation regarding your skills. If you plan to explore the Mediterranean, for example, you will need your ICC certification.

Leave the anchoring and the chart plotting to the captain on this vacation with a Dream Yacht skippered charter. Perfect for those with little to no sailing experienceor for those who simply want to sit back and enjoy the world go bya skippered charter brings a professional and experienced captain on board to man your vessel. Dream Yachts captains all have professional sailing experience and vast local knowledge of their respective destinations.

For the complete all-the-frills experience, consider a fully crewed yacht charter. With this option, you and up to 11 guests can set sail on a large private monohull or catamaran yacht, and be catered to from the moment you step foot on board until your departure. Dream Yacht Worldwide hand-picks your professional crew to handle the itinerary, provisioning and daily cabin service, and you will enjoy water toys, a fully stocked bar, and scrumptious meals prepared to your culinary preferences by your own personal hostess.

Dream Yachts easy crewed product offers a bridge between a skippered and fully-crewed charters for groups of up to 10 family members or friends traveling together. You decide how little or how much service you need. Easy crewed charters are currently offered in select destinations in the Mediterranean, the Seychelles, Tahiti, the BVI, and Martinique.

If a whole boat is more than you need, you may be most comfortable with a cabin charter, which is a shared-vessel experience that gives you a single or double cabin with a private en suite in the company of other like-minded travelers. The cabin charterers share a full crew, a set itinerary, daily meals with drinks and snacks, and the option for additional onshore excursions.

As pioneers in their industry Dream Yacht just started adding a selection of electric sailing catamarans to their charter fleet. Quietly and emission-free gliding through the waves, even when theres no wind to power you, is another sailing dream come true.

With 50 full-time and seasonal locations throughout the Caribbean, Bahamas, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Oceania, Asia, the Americas and Europe, Dream Yacht Worldwide has become a household name in sailing charter vacations. Loc Bonnets vision of offering more boats, more destinations and more choice than anyone else is now a reality, and with its high standard of service, local knowledge and suggested itineraries, Dream Yacht is both an avid sailors and a novices dream guide to discovering the worlds best destinations.

For more information and booking details, visitdreamyachtcharter.com.

Excerpt from:

Around the World in 50 Destinations - Cruising World

Iceland has used its lobbying power vis--vis the EU to shelter Alexander Moshensky, a Belarusian oligarch close to Alexander Lukashenko, from sanctions, with Hungary also using its veto in his favour, fresh analysis from a consortium of investigative websites has revealed.

Moshensky, a Belarusian businessman whose assets include the prominent food manufacturers Santa Bremor and Savushkin Produkt earning him the nickname of the fish king of Belarus has for two decades enjoyed diplomatic and business relations with Iceland.

Rejkyavik subsequently lobbied the EU to shield Moshensky from European sanctions, despite his having close ties to the regime of Belarusian premier Lukashenko, as now revealed in a journalistic investigation published on Friday (4 August).

While many other wealthy businessmen close to Lukashenko, like Aliaksandr ShakutsinorSiarhei Tsiatseryn are on the EU sanctions list, Moshensky has so far escaped them.

The fact that Mashenski did not appear to be a close associate of Lukashenko was believed to be the reason the sanctions bypassed him. But is it really so? the investigation asks.

The report by the Belarusian Investigative Centre (BIC) in collaboration with LRT (Lithuania) and Heimildin (Iceland) with the support of CyberPartisans and the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), illustrated the extent of Moshenskys relationship with Lukashenko.

In 2006, Moshensky became Icelands honorary consulin Belarus, and still keeps this position, according to the website of the Icelandic government.

According to the newspaper Heimildin, Icelandic Foreign Ministry representatives made over 30 calls to EU decision-makers to lobby on Moshenskys behalf to prevent EU sanctions from being applied to him.

The newspaper writes that Hungary came to the rescue of Moshensky after 10 EU countries requested he be included in the sanction list at a meeting at the beginning of May, which reportedly greatly angered the Poles and Lithuanians.

According to Heimildin, the Hungarian government, in addition to being particularly opposed to any EU coercive measures against Belarus, has its own representative in the offices of Moshenskys flagship company Santa Bremor.

The managing director of Santa Bremor, Sergey Nyadbaylau, whos is Hungarys honorary consul in Belarus. The fact that in Santa Bremor headquarters there are two consuls from foreign countries, one Hungarian and one Icelandic, has already attracted media attention.

Moshenskis connections with the Belarusian authorities have been well documented: he has accompanied Lukashenko in the governmental plane during trips abroad, supported him in electoral campaigns, and been the recipient of a medal.

On 20 June, Icelandic MP Thrhildur Sunna varsdttirfrom the Pirate Party voiced in the Council of Europe her deep regret that the government of her country refused to dismiss Moshensky as honorary consul of Iceland in Belarus.

I am ashamed that we still maintain these ties for business interests mostly. Im ashamed of reports that Iceland has used its diplomatic power within the European Union to keep him off sanctions lists. I hope that we will soon become a state that shows full solidarity with the people of Belarus, regardless of whether or not that in some way or other impacts our economic interests, varsdttir stated, according to a Council of Europe transcript.

BIC describes the financial montage of the main business of Moshensky via an octopus of offshore zones in Seychelles, the British island of Jersey and EU member Cyprus. This allows the Belarusian company to whitewash its origin and to use Klaipeda, a port in EU member Lithuania, to import raw fish from Norway, Iceland, South America and Asia, the investigation states.

As BIC describes it, Moshensky owns the fishing business in Belarus, partly directly, and partly through offshore companies. Norwegian and Icelandic fish enter Belarus through his company in Lithuania. Transactions between firms act like a credit carousel to evade tax.

Moshensky has already taken steps to protect his business should he find himself on the sanctions list, according to BIC. His Lithuanian company Santa Trade changed ownership a month and a half after the start of the war in Ukraine. Santa Trade is now owned not by Santa Bremor but by Newride Services Limited of Cyprus. According to OCCRP, this company is owned by the businessmans daughter, Yana Mashenskaya.

[Edited by Nathalie Weatherald]

Read the original:

Iceland, Hungary helped shelter Belarusian businessman from EU ... - EURACTIV