Easier Yacht Travel on the Horizon

A highly anticipated plan to make sailing between Hong Kong, Macao, and the cities of the Greater Bay Area easier could be finalised as early as this summer, local media report.

In a new draft proposal, the Guangdong provincial government has called for leisure yachting tours to be allowed in the waters around Zhuhai’s Wanshan islands to the southwest of Hong Kong, as well as smaller islands at bays such as Baicaowan, Nanwan, Luanshi Bay and Putouwan to the south of the city.

Under the proposed scheme, yachts with local licences can obtain a temporary mainland vessel nationality certificate to operate multiple times in designated areas for 180 days. Applications would be restricted to Hong Kong and Macau residents holding mainland travel permits in the initial stage, excluding foreigners holding home-return permits. Vessels entering mainland waters are only permitted to operate within specific locations within the Pearl River Delta and Shenzhen Bay.

According to the document, six ports will be opened as entry points in the initial roll-out: Zhongshan, the Nansha passenger port in Guangzhou, Shenzhen’s Shekou and airport ferry terminals, and Wanshan and Jiuzhou in Zhuhai. Eligible incoming vessels will be exempt from needing a guarantee and will be offered expedited border clearance to allow passengers to return directly to their yachts after inspection.

A decade in the making, the proposed changes offer a long-awaited of the regional yacht economy. While many restrictions will still apply in the plan’s initial stages, relevant authorities say they “retain the power to dynamically adjust these approved leisure zones.”