The 5th Mediterranean Yacht Show ended in Nafplion with a record-breaking number of entries

A record-breaking number of participants joined the 5th Mediterranean Yacht Show in the welcoming port of Nafplion again this year, which opened its doors on Saturday 28 April and came to a close on May 1st. The show, which is organised annually by the Greek Yachting Association, was attended by more than 400 yachting professionals from all corners of the globe, while the sight of the yachts lined up in the harbour also drew the attention of visitors to the city of Nafplion. This year saw 107 registered crewed yachts tak-ing part in the show, exceeding every past event.

The official opening ceremony took place on 28 April and was conducted by the President of the Greek Yachting Association, Mr Michael Skoulikidis, in the presence of the Minister for Maritime Af-fairs and Insular Policy, Mr Panagiotis Kouroumplis, Regional Governor of the Peloponnese, Mr Petros Tatoulis and the Mayor of Nafplion Mr Dimitris Kostouros.

As in every year, the Welcome Reception was held at the Palamidi Fortress, where guests spent the night enjoying music by the quartet ‘Fortissimo’. During his welcome speech, Mr Michael Skoulikidis referred to the competitive advantages that Greece has as a destination and noted the strength that the Greek professional yacht charter sector is acquiring as a whole. At the same time, he stressed once again the importance of Greek yachting tourism of the highest standards, which is the spearhead of Greek tourism itself.

· Registered Number of Yachts: 107
· Number of Trade Attendees: More than 400 visitors.
· Countries Represented: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Argentina, British Vir-gin Islands, France, Italy, Germany, Greece, Unites States of America, United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, Canada, Cyprus, Montenegro, Monaco, New Zealand, Anguilla, Poland, Russia, Croatia and Turkey.
· Number of Exhibitors: 24 stands offering services and products related to the show’s theme.

The favourite Chefs’ Competition took place with great success, as it does each year within the context of the show. The Judges included the 2 starred Michelin Chef Georgianna Hiliadaki, co-owner of the Funky Gourmet restaurant in Athens and the acclaimed 2 starred Michelin Chef Antonio Mellino, owner of Quattro Passi in Nerano. A series of entertaining happenings and parties could not fail to be part of the impressive Yacht Show, which ran through the course of the event and elevated the mood even higher.

The farewell reception took place on May Day in the unique atmosphere of the Fougaro Cultural Centre with live music by the group Passepartout, climaxing in the award ceremony for the Chefs’ Competition. The evening continued with parties for the yacht crews organised by HYCA with the support of the Greek Yachting Association.

Leading international companies were also present at the show, such as Camper & Nicholsons, Edmiston, Fraser, Yachting Partners International, Burgess, CharterWorld, CSO Yachts, IYC, Northrop & Johnson, Yachtzoo, Luxury Charter Group, West Nautical, etc., as well as representatives of MYBA, the Worldwide Yachting Association.

The Mediterranean Yacht Show is an initiative dedicated exclusively to the international promotion of Greek yachting tourism of the highest standards. The event is organised by the Greek Yachting Association under the auspices of the Hellenic Ministry of Tourism with the support of the Municipality of Nafplion and the Region of the Peloponnese.

Sponsors of this year’s show:

Gold Sponsors: ALBATROS YACHT CHANDLERS, ELINOIL, VOLVO
Silver Sponsors: INSB CLASS, AMC METROPOLITAN COLLEGE
Sponsors: CHAUFFEUR GREECE, ISM SECURITY, DOMAINE SKOURAS, 3SIXTY GRILL DINING - WINE BAR
Official Greek Magazine: Skipper ONDECK
Media Sponsors: Yachting USA Magazine, Yacht Way Magazine, SuperYacht Times