Seawind 1050 Resort Case Study At a Glance Company: Coral Adventure Tours Location: Coral Bay, Western Australia Opportunity: To grow and diversify the existing land tour business to include an onwater tour. Results with Seawind 1050 Resort + 4000 people a year on charters + 60 sunset tours per year alone + 18,000 NM covered in charter The Challenge Coral Adventure Tours is an established tour operator in the popular tourist destination of Coral Bay, located near the Nigaloo reef, famous for its amazing marine wildlife. Up until the Seawind 1050 Resort was introduced, the company operated quad bike tours in the local area with organized tours and backpackers, however with the small town of Coral Bay increasingly becoming a popular destination for tourists, Coral Bay Adventurers could see an opportunity for water based tours. The Solution After talking to the sales team at Seawind Catamarans, it was quickly apparent that the Seawind 1050 Resort would fit their needs perfectly. Due to the high passenger capacity (30 + 2), easy to clean gelcoat decks and ease of operation, it meant that the Seawind 1050 Resort would be inexpensive to operate, produce higher income and ultimately provide a better return due to the relatively inexpensive purchase price. So an order was placed and within a few months the boat was built to their requirements and shipped to Perth, before sailing some 600NM north to Coral Bay. The Results The company now offers three styles of charters including the Reef Explorer (4 hour – half day trip touring the Nigaloo reef including snorkeling & sausage sizzle), Snorkel Discover (6 hour - full day trip including snorkeling and full lunch), and the Sunset Cruise (2 hour local cruise with complementary anti-pasto platter). In the first year the boat saw 2,500 guests sail and 6 years on, that figure has grown to 4,000 guests per year as the boat continues to be an outstanding performer. Coral Adventure Tours owner and operator Kim Laye explains, “The Seawind 1050 impresses everyone that boards, particularly the girls who prefer the stability of a cat. The boom-net is also a big draw card and in peak season we will be at full capacity.” Due to the windy conditions in Coral Bay, Laye often operates the boat in heavy conditions, “It’s not uncommon to have 30 knots and the boats handles beautifully. One person can sail her and we just reef down to suit the conditions.” “She’s 6 years old now and everyone thinks it’s still new. It has been a great boat for us!” SEAWIND CATAMARANS PH: +61 (0)2 4285 9985 – Fax: +61 (0)2 4285 9984 Email: [email protected] Web: www.seawindcats.com