Thank you 2020!
Ahoy happy sailors!
2019 has been a whirlwind of a year, and I can’t believe it has breezed past us so quickly. I cannot be more thankful for all our clients, guests, partners, vendors, agents and friends (you guys know who you are!), for your generous support and love all these years.
Can you believe it’s been more than 5 years since we started? It’s incredible, because sometimes when I tell our new guests about this, I still receive a look of bewilderment & a “I didn’t even know this existed 5 years ago!” from them. Yes, there is still a large population (locals included) who are unaware that you can sail in Singapore, and this tells me we’re not doing enough; so it shall be our lifelong mission to spread the word and the joy of sailing, not just in our little country but also all over the world! And we thank all of you for your continuous help in spreading this word, we are still here after 5 years (and more) because you have referred your friends, colleagues, acquaintances to us.
As we reflect on this past year, I am beyond grateful for:
Being able to participate in the Singapore Yacht Show 2019 again, and having the opportunity to meet and connect with people who come from all over the world, thanks to ONE 15 Life for inviting us to represent their charter fleet.
Observing the growth of the many leisure charters we host on a daily basis, and being reminded of how our yachts are spaces which hold so many good memories for so many people, who have celebrated every milestone from birth to life to even, death - the countless birthdays, engagement proposals, bachelor’s/hen’s parties, solemnizations, wedding anniversaries, ash scattering & memorials, on board - these memories are so precious to us too.
Celebrating Ximula & Gracefully’s 6th birthday with an evening dockside party we’ve envisioned for the longest time but never had the time & manpower to put together until this year, thanks to the Ximula Sail team (especially Vanessa) for working tirelessly on this for months, our amazing partner vendors for their ‘of course we’ll sponsor!’ and generous portions of buffets, beers and cocktails, and all of you who graced the event and actively participated in our little activities, it means so much to us!
Embarking on new strategic partnerships, such as with Mount Alvernia Hospital (new mummies, do look out for a little gift from us in your baby welcome hamper!), MINDEF Singapore for an exclusive discount for all our nation builders), and Far East Hospitality on the launch of their 3 new stunning hotels in Sentosa - Village Hotel Sentosa, The Outpost Hotel, and The Barracks Hotel.
Adopting New Hope Community Services and being able to serve and generate awareness for overlooked communities in Singapore in small yet meaningful ways.
Leading more families and groups on sailing holidays to overseas destinations, such as Batam, Bintan and Anambas Islands in Indonesia, and Pulau Sibu & Pemanggil in Malaysia.
Last but not least, expanding and enhancing our team’s skill sets so that we can serve you better, create and deliver better experiences, connect with more communities, and offer a wider range of services (more to share below!).
Knowing that our yachts can be more than just a vehicle,
but also a space for creating memories, for building communities, for inspiring dreams, and for embarking on adventures,
is what keeps us pushing forward and further.
We’ve already set our sails for 2020 with the following winds:
1) Launch of Ximula Sail’s Yacht Care Services
Over the years, we’ve had guests come up to us to share about how they dream of owning a yacht but worry about the maintenance and upkeep - it’s no easy feat, we know first-hand ourselves; you either struggle with the costs of hiring a crew and managing them, or figuring out how to do it yourself and make time for doing so. But it shouldn’t be like this; we don’t want anyone to give up on a dream simply because of these, so we’ve started building and empowering a team ready to take over these yacht care duties for you, based on our years of tried-and-tested methods & understanding our boats. Feel free to get in touch with us to find out more about our service packages!
2) An open sailing holiday every month from April to September!
What would you say to sail with us to paradise next year? We’ve heard your feedback and reorganized our trip dates to coincide with public holidays / long weekends in 2020, so check them out & don’t forget to sign up:
If you’re not quite sure what to expect on a sailing holiday, you can check out this video done by our team member, Shawn:
3) Getting to know our amazing Friends of Ximula Sail
Over the years, we realized that we have many interesting personalities among our Friends of Ximula Sail! And how we wish more people know about and support these people who are fiercely pursuing their passions or making a difference in the community, just like how all of you supported our vision and work. So we’ll be doing more feature interviews of these lovely Friends here on our blog. You can subscribe, or follow us on our Facebook Page, or join our Facebook Group.
4) More exciting yacht experiences
Yes yes I know, some of you have done a leisure charter with us many times, and it’s time we introduce more creative yacht experiences. If you don’t already know, we’ve added some exciting add-on activities which you can book for your charters, like jetskis, banana boats, cute floats, etc., and even hiring a fishing guide so you can ‘catch and cook’ on board!
Together with our amazing partners, we’re also working on yacht experience packages, especially for our corporate clients who want more enriching charters. Other than our experiential sailing program, what do you think of wine tasting sessions, cocktails mixing classes, outdoor fitness bootcamps coupled with a yacht day out?
We are also working on a secret project to launch an enhanced version of our sunset cruise as part of our passion to inspire more happy sailors around the world - we can’t reveal the details yet, but please stay close!
I hope you’re as excited for the new year as we are!
There’s so much to do, only possible with all your help and support.
Thank you all for being a part of this Ximula Sail family, you mean a lot to us and we can’t wait to inspire more happy sailors in all of you!
Happy 2020, and may you continue to sail #ximufully ahead!
From the depths of our hearts,
Minqi W., founder of Ximula Sail
On behalf of the team: Darren, Victor, Vanessa, Shawn, Fauzi, Haiqal