European Pickup Benefits
WHY GO EURO?
Whether it’s the hundreds of thousands of dollars, you can save when buying directly from the factory in Europe, the confidence that’s gained with the commissioning process, the adventure of a lifetime or the security of knowing TMG Yachts and Lagoon delivers worldwide after-sales support… there are just so many reasons why TMG Yachts clients of all ages and stages of life are choosing to ‘Go Euro’.
John Cowpe discusses what kind of people are choosing a Euro handover, shares with us what happens and where to go after your European pickup and explains how TMG Yachts is there for their clients at every step of the Euro delivery process – and beyond.
NEW OR USED?
“Although there are some really nice pre-owned boats with a fair bit of gear on board, these boats have got a very high resale value, which makes the choice between going for a second-hand boat or taking the leap to buy a new boat an easier decision to make. This is one reason why we’re finding a lot of clients are choosing to go with a new boat in Europe.
Buying a new boat is also a nice thing to be able to do because you get to choose the layout that suits you and you really get to make it your boat. You’re naming the boat, sleeping on it for the first time and using the oven for the first time.
And as we always say at TMG Yachts, the most important time in any boat’s life is the commissioning process, when we’re putting it together and getting it right.
Our clients have very precious cargo on board: their families and their friends. So that confidence that’s gained from being involved in the process of picking up the boat from Europe is important for a lot of people.”
ALL AGES
“Families with young children, retired couples and working professionals … people of different ages and stages of their lives are all choosing to do this adventure.
At TMG Yachts we find we’re having young families who want to introduce their children to the different cultures around the world and have a very special adventure together as family.
We’ve also got people who’ve retired who choose to head off and sometimes spend years and years cruising around the world together.
The Lagoons are great for that.
The 42 with self-tacking headsail and the easily managed mainsail means that a couple can handle quite a large boat, like this 42, with ease, and so it’s a very popular thing to do.
We also have professionals who are still working, but don’t want to wait until they retire, so they get on board a Lagoon, take a Euro handover and head off down to the Mediterranean. They do stints on board the boat, winterising it over winter, coming back to Australia and having the boat set up as a mobile office.”
COST SAVING
“The number one reason our clients “Go Euro” is the adventure. Picking up your Lagoon in Europe really is the experience of a lifetime – the experiences owners are going to have, the places they will visit and the things they will see and do as a family, or as a couple, or as an individual with friends.
But there is also a financial side to it. There’s quite a substantial saving on a boat like our 42 here – you would be saving up to $200,000 picking it up at factory direct pricing through TMG Yachts (Formerly The Multihull Group) , as opposed to having the boat shipped to Australia with taxes paid, so that certainly is a big motivator for people to ‘Go Euro’.”
WORLDWIDE AFTER SALES
“Often clients will ask us, ‘What happens once you’ve handed the boat across to us? What then in terms of service and after sales support?’
At TMG Yachts (Formerly The Multihull Group) we’ve been doing this for a long time and we’ve got a really nice service team in place.
And what we’re very lucky about is that Lagoon have over 80 dealers around the world, so they’re quite unique in that respect.
It means really, you’ve got effectively over 80 service centres around the world to look after you, and you have us at TMG Yachts (Formerly The Multihull Group) to coordinate any work, sort out any warranty issues, or just to simply answer any questions that you’ve got along the way.”
ONCE IN A LIFETIME
I really believe in this adventure.
I’ve been lucky enough to be handing over boats to clients for the last 15 years.
I’ve seen children who were five years old when we launched the boat for their family and now they’re at university.
You see the change in these children, the education they’re getting, the wisdom that they get and how they grow when they’re travelling around the world, meeting new people and seeing different cultures.
It’s just priceless and it’s an amazing thing to be able to offer your family.”
THE RIGHT MODEL
“In terms of the boats that people are choosing to buy, I guess the sweet spot is around that 45 foot, or from 42 to 46 foot for a couple.
Of course, when you buy a boat, you get a lot of friends who want to come along so some people would choose to go for a larger boat, perhaps the new 50 or even towards the even bigger boats where sometimes the clients will take a skipper full time.
So you might go for a Lagoon 555 or the SIXTY 5 OR 7 and run it in a slightly different manner.”
THE JOURNEY
Everyone has different ideas as to the route they’ll take and there certainly are a lot of options.
France is really well located, so generally our clients will pick up the boat from us at the factory where we hand it across and then you could go north towards Northern Europe, but lot of people will turn left and head down the Bay of Biscay, round into the Mediterranean.
Often our clients will ask us to have a skipper on board for that initial first couple of legs, which really takes the pressure off. It allows them to just do that first bit of learning and sailing in a relaxed way with somebody else in charge. And it gets you round towards Gibraltar and into the Mediterranean.
A lot of clients will spend one, two, up to three seasons in the Mediterranean because there’s a lot of countries and cultures to see. It’s also protected, with generally nice sailing, so that’s a real drawcard.
From there, come September or October, you would tend to head across to the Caribbean and down towards the Canaries. Once in the Canaries a lot of our clients will then join the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, or the ARC, as it’s called, which is a great event.
All the yachts muster in the Canaries, and from there you can go either via Cape Verde and across to the Caribbean, or take the more direct route.
Regardless of which route you choose to take with the ARC, it provides you with great guidance and safety, because you’re cruising in company.
They’ve got lots of fun events around it, so it’s a great way to get to the Caribbean and then you’re in the Caribbean for Christmas.
Having explored the Caribbean, the normal route come April, would be to go through the Panama Canal and then into the Pacific. So you’re almost on home waters, with so much to see: the Galapagos, the Tuamotus, the Marquesas, down to Tahiti.
You’ve also got Bora Bora and from there you’re going to go perhaps down through to New Zealand or across to Noumea and then hop across to the Australian East coast.
It’s a well-worn path, and it’s an incredible adventure that Australians are really embracing and loving.”
MEDITERRANEAN
The Mediterranean has many countries and coastlines to explore with calm and pleasant sailing conditions.
NORTHERN EUROPE
Sailing Northern Europe means exploring dramatic fjords, protected from seaward by layers of skerries and picturesque islands.
THE CARIBBEAN
The Caribbean is scattered with quiet islands and sealife galore. The shallow turquoise waters are a catamarans natural habitat, it is time to take a dip.
THE PACIFIC
Riddled with many secluded islands that can be accessed by no other means. Exploring by boat gives you the opportunity to really immerse yourself in the culture of some of these untouched areas.
AUSTRALIA
We may be biased, but Australia truly is the most beautiful country in the world and with so many incredible cruising grounds on our doorstep travelling in a home on water is the best way to get around.
BOOK AHEAD
“Traditionally, we’ve handed the boats over from May, in the start of the European summer, all the way through to September.
Now, we’re finding a lot of clients are picking up boats in December and January – really any time throughout the year.
For those who want to launch during these quite popular times in the European summer, we’re finding that clients are now booking in for not next year, but the year after that. So they’re getting their slot and turning what were just dreams into plans, and they’ve got a date.
The popularity of Lagoon catamarans is such that although we’re ramping up our production, it’s hard to keep up. So the slots are limited and we’re finding our clients are really starting to book their slots in advance.”
TMG yachts ARE HERE TO HELP
“There’s a fair bit of planning that goes into all this and we enjoy that process with our clients, helping them choose the boat, the layout, going through the upholstery … all the different items, perhaps the offshore gear. We can advise you on how people tend to specify their vessels.
So if it’s something that you’re considering doing and you’d like to talk to us about it, we’re here to help.
We’d be very pleased to be in touch.”
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