Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha
\n \tWhen the 77m Damen explorer yacht La Datcha was delivered in September this year, the industry marvelled at news of her radical charter itinerary. Pushing the boundaries of explorer yachting to unprecedented heights, guests onboard La Datcha will be coral reef diving in the Seychelles one month and heliskiing in South Kamchatka the next. We spoke with Dasha Tinkova, Marketing Director of the Tinkoff Collection and daughter of La Datcha’s new Owner Oleg Tinkov, to gain exclusive insight into what guests can expect from a stay onboard this 77m luxury explorer yacht.
\n \u2018The Tinkoff Collection started about six years ago,\u2019 Dasha tells us. The venture, which initially began with the family building a ski chalet in Val Thorens, has grown with the addition of a bespoke luxury rental in each of the family\u2019s favourite destinations – including a Mexican villa in Cabo San Lucas and a Tuscan palazzo in Forte dei Marmi.
\n\u2018As a family we\u2019re very active, we love to do extreme sports. We found that often when we went on holiday somewhere remote, with extreme sports and activities on offer, the accommodation was a little bit lacking. The perfect example is the place in Astrakhan in Russia.\u2019
\nEach of the Tinkoff Collection homes sleeps between 12 to 16 people comfortably, complete with spa, pool and gym facilities. The idea, Dasha explains, is for holiday goers to enjoy the very best in comfort and privacy afforded by renting a home instead of a hotel. Now with the addition of the luxury explorer boat, this philosophy has been given new life.\u00a0
\n\u2018Normally when you go to places like Kamchatka, where it\u2019s not catered for any kind of luxury, you stay in a tiny cabin in the middle of the woods with no WiFi or anything. So having the boat and being able to go out, have a crazy day of heliskiing then come back and stay in the height of luxury, that\u2019s a really great thing.\u2019\u00a0
\nLa Datcha is currently completing her safety video in Turkey, Dasha tells us, but the Tinkov family will be the first to stay onboard overnight in an upcoming trip to the Seychelles.\u00a0
\nWe asked Dasha how La Datcha compares to previous luxury explorer yachting experiences she and her family have enjoyed. \u2018Last winter we went to Greenland on an explorer, which was amazing,\u2019 Dasha says. \u2018However, the viewing platform on that boat was outside, so if we wanted to go out and see the polar bears it was absolutely freezing. We wanted to make sure ours on La Datcha was inside, with comfortable seating and all the rest.\u2019
\n\u2018I would also say the standard on La Datcha is the best of the best. Every room has a TV, sometimes even two and a third in the bathroom. Her entertainment systems are Bang & Olufsen, her furnishings are all Baxter and Promemoria which is the world\u2019s most expensive furniture.\u2019
\nWith such a high cost venture of course comes a great emotional investment. Oleg Tinkov was \u2018very hands on\u2019 even down to the most intricate detail on La Datcha, Dasha explains. \u2018My dad was very particular even down to the duvet covers. We treat our properties the same; they\u2019re very personal projects and we spend a lot of time in them, so we want to make sure it\u2019s everything we love to the highest standards.\u2019\u00a0
\nAnd the great care paid to the project has certainly paid off. La Datcha has already generated a huge amount of charter interest, particularly to the island of Madagascar where very few boats can access and luxury accommodation is virtually nonexistent.\u00a0
\n\u2018Because it takes so long to get there, very few yachts will go for a week\u2019s charter,\u2019 Dasha goes on, pointing to the benefits of La Datcha\u2019s unique business model. \u2018But with La Datcha, you book the week you want based on the destination, so you have to adapt to the itinerary of the boat.\u2019\u00a0\u00a0
\nThere is much room for flexibility within those destinations though. With two helicopters, a submarine, a large rescue boat and four jet skis, guests onboard La Datcha will never be wanting for toys on which to explore the local area.\u00a0
\nWe were interested to know whether La Datcha\u2019s 25 crew members had been specially trained to prepare them for her wild itinerary. Dasha relayed a message sent to the family from the boat\u2019s captain: \u2018The crew onboard La Datcha have been handpicked from a number of specialist programs\u2026 We are all trained professionals who have dedicated our careers to this industry however in addition to what would be seen on a normal white yacht, the deck officers are polar code trained and certified to navigate in both the South and North Pole region, with particular reference to ice navigation.\u2019
\nLa Datcha will also be staffed by two diving instructors trained to operate \u2018The Triton\u2019 (a three-man submarine), a paramedic and a nurse, as well as coming equipped with its own ICD Compressing Chamber in case of any diving emergencies.\u00a0
\n\u2018If you are in somewhere like Kamchatka or Madagascar, getting to the closest hospital might sometimes take hours, so it was very important to have all the necessities onboard.\u2019
\nThe crew experience plays an extremely large role, even on a charter as unique as La Datcha\u2019s. \u2018We generally stay onboard to eat. There are so many zones to eat, and the crew will lay each table differently every evening, so it feels like you\u2019re going to a new restaurant every night.\u2019\u00a0
\nDasha goes on, \u2018When you\u2019re out in these destinations, local fishermen will often come up and sell the catch of the day. So you want to make sure the chef knows how to cook that, what it\u2019s best paired with, etc. Our chefs are amazing at that.\u2019
\nThere is much to be said for the combination of luxury accommodation with high-octane destinations, but a truly unforgettable charter experience is found in the details. With this in mind, the latest addition to the Tinkoff Collection is sure to prove a resounding success.<\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n
\t Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dasha Tinkova On Life Onboard Luxury Explorer La Datcha When the 77m Damen explorer yacht La Datcha was delivered in September this year, the industry marvelled at news of her radical charter itinerary. Pushing the boundaries of explorer yachting to … <\/p>\n