Record boating education program
Highlighted by a record number of Festival registrations, our most comprehensive boating education program ever involved over 110 workshops covering everything from anchoring and onboard safety to systems maintenance and using all the technology that makes boating with Riviera today even easier.
The most popular workshops included a presentation from Adelaide-based Riviera owner Jason Squire titled Living the Riviera Dream, which shared photos and information on his inspiring diving cruise from the Gold Coast north to remote Osprey Reef – a submerged atoll in the Coral Sea with 2000m vertical walls, and then back to Sydney and home to Adelaide.
Offshore Seamanship, Tricks of the Trade, the behind-the-scenes Riviera Express factory tour, Galley-Wise provisioning, Understanding Electronic Navigation and the Australian Waters Qualification workshops were also extremely popular.
Thanks to all our Riviera family members for making 2016’s Festival such a special experience for all involved, and also thanks to our experienced and passionate workshop facilitators for helping develop the boating skills of our Riviera family.
Owner comments:
Stan Najar and Wendy Phillips – NSW
“The safety workshop was amazing – I’ve never used a flare or deployed a life raft … and then being able to drive the Riviera 6000 at the Ladies Skipper training was something truly amazing,” said Wendy.
Stan said the educational workshops and the quality of presenters were both ‘fantastic’.
“It doesn’t matter what you know about boating, there’s always some new development in areas like navigation and safety,” he said.
“It was great for Wendy, who is very hands-on on the boat and we will be cruising with even greater confidence now.”
Sergio and Leanne Cinerari – VIC
“I’ve owned a Riviera since 2008 and this was the first time I have been to the Festival,” said Sergio.
“We really felt that we could do everything – we undertook six training courses and spaced them out over the three days, relaxed in the Hub and also took a look around the Expo – it was a complete weekend … fantastic.”
Bob Heywood – New Zealand
“I’ve owned two Rivieras and I dare say I will own a third at some point – the educational workshops are first-class,” said Bob.
“Riviera has once again really excelled themselves.”
Laurie Erhart – QLD
Laurie said he really enjoyed the opportunity to drive his first pod-drive yacht and to learn more about the Glass Bridge and CZone digital switching systems that make boating with Riviera such a pleasure.
“It was a fantastic four days and we attended quite a few of the workshops,” he said.
“I enjoyed them all but the pod-drive experience and Safety Assist each brought a real smile to my face.”
Lance and Jacqueline Dummett – QLD
“The Volvo display was a great way to see the engines and the pod-drives out of our yacht and see how they work,” said Lance.
“And I loved the reserved seating in the restaurant and the new 5400 Sport Yacht – I really like the design.”
Phil and Colleen Kenny – New Zealand
“We didn’t know much about the Festival and we just turned up because we wanted to inspect the Riviera range,” said Colleen.
“We found spending time speaking with the people from Volvo and Garmin well worthwhile, and also Seakeeper – before taking the 52 Enclosed Flybridge for a sea trial on the Monday.
Drew and Genni Sellick – SA
“I couldn’t buy another brand of yacht,” said Drew, who purchased his 445 at the Festival two years ago.
“We really do feel so much a part of a very special family … and families always stick together.
“It was great to be able to speak with the suppliers like Seakeeper, Volvo and Garmin.”
Steve Thomas – WA
“I’ve been around boats since I very young and there’s always so much more to learn,” said Steve.
“I attended a number of Festival workshops including Know Your Generator, Towing Rafting & Anchoring, Know Your Power Systems, Weather Planning and Tricks of the Trade and while they were all very different, there was something new in every one of them.”
The Riviera Festival of Boating will in 2017 be held from 25-28 May. Please click here to register and receive the 2017 Festival program prior to its public release.