On April 14th, a yacht on display at the fourth China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) Boat Show (Photo: Chen Yuancai / Hainan Daily)

The Haikou International Boat Show, ongoing at this year’s CICPE (also known as the Hainan Expo), is one of the 2024 Expo’s major events. The selection of items on display at this year’s Boat Show are truly impressive. Not only are there 250 luxury yachts from the UK, Finland, Poland, France, and the United States, there are also RVs and camping equipment, luxury vehicles, NEVs, equipment for aquatic sports, and more. All in all, it’s more than enough to satisfy the requirements for a “yachting + outdoor life + travel” sales event and trade show. In fact, this is very likely to provide a needed boost to the development of Hainan’s yacht industry.

The undisputed highlight of this year’s Boat Show is the first ever showing in China of the British Superfly X80 Yacht. Other top sights include the Bali 4.2 catamaran from France, and the ChrisCraft Calypso 24 and Catalina 30 from the United States.

Compared with last year’s Boat Show, the single-day number of visitors has doubled on April 15th. We know it's one of the Expo’s major events, but why is this year's Boat Show so eye-catching?

At this year’s Boat Show the total number of yachts on display is up 14% to 250, and nearly half (120 ships) are from the 80 international brands participating in the show. Furthermore, many of the yachts at the show are making their debut at the Hainan Expo.

This is happening because of Hainan’s recently updated policy on yachts from overseas. Currently, the Hainan Free Trade Port’s implementation of policies such as the expansion of the “zero tariff” list for vehicles and yachts, provides more convenience for foreign yachts to enter Hainan.

Wang Min (Chairman of Haikou Tourism and Culture Group) said: “You also have to realize, this year’s Boat Show is not just about giving people the chance to experience the yachts, it also provides the opportunity for many companies to place an order.” According to him, it takes from two to three years to manufacture a yacht. Potential buyers don’t like it when they have to travel abroad to make such a purchase, so the ability to make an order on site is a huge bonus.

At the Hainan Expo Yacht Industry Development Seminar, experts and industry observers have indicated a general belief that China has huge potential for yacht sales.

This judgment is not without reason. Although yacht tourism is considered as a super high-end and fashionable product unachievable for ordinary people, there are all kinds of options ranging from deep sea fishing trips to yacht parties and wedding photography.

“Alongside the improvement of people’s living standards, the target market for yacht tourism is gradually expanding, the yacht tourism market is growing rapidly, and yacht tourism is becoming a new hot topic for consumers.” Taking Sanya as an example, Liao Minsheng (an expert on the marine economy and vice president of Hainan Tropical Ocean University) explained, as the market cap grows, Sanya’s yacht economy market structure has improved to the point that it now covers aspects including yacht design, manufacture, sales, leasing, and maintenance.

Looking at the whole of Hainan, the development of the yacht industry—due to its early start—has now achieved a certain industrial scale and a relatively complete industrial chain. Especially in recent years as Hainan has created and developed the "Five-Star Quality Yacht Tourism Enterprises" ranking and held events like the Hainan International Youth Yacht Safety and Tourism Service Skills Competition, a step forward has been taken in improving the level of talent training and professional abilities in the yacht market, and a solid foundation laid for technological innovation and development of the Hainan Free Trade Port’s yacht industry.

Alongside the diversification of market demands, Chinese yacht products are becoming increasingly diverse. Now there is everything from small sailboats and fishing boats to luxury superyachts to innovative products such as environmentally friendly electric yachts and smart unmanned boats. Liao suggested that the industry should "make high-end yachts even higher-end, make ordinary yachts even more affordable, and foster consumption habits.”

He also proposed that, at the same time as Hainan's yacht industry is making efforts on the consumer side, it shouldn’t neglect the design side of things as yacht design and production enterprises can take advantage of the Free Trade Port’s policy advantages to build a global yacht parts production and assembly base.