When revered Australian luxury motor yacht builder Riviera promises a truly unique boating festival of fun and learning, there’s absolutely no doubt that you’re in for a very spectacular and valuable experience.

For one you know the Riviera Festival of Boating educational offering will be first-class – as it is with everything iconic Riviera undertakes – with a vast array of workshops designed to help luxury motor yacht owners gain the skills and confidence to use their boats to their full potential.

But there’s also a significant and salient Festival fun factor: one for which Riviera is internationally renowned and one which – much like its impressive range of motor yachts – never fails to amaze, inspire and leave a lasting impression upon members of the marque’s global family of owners, dealers and future Riviera owners.

Now in its 4th year, the 2015 Riviera Festival of Boating (21-24 May 2015) has three brand-new and completely different social celebrations for which hundreds of tickets have already been purchased.

This year the Festival’s spectacular social events include a Fragrance Masterclass and Luncheon for the ladies on Friday 22 May, a Dock of the Bay cocktail evening and red-carpet on-water boat show also on 22 May, and then The R Factor gala event on Saturday evening, 23 May.

“There is very strong interest in every one of over 70 educational and social events on offer at the Festival, including our 11 brand-new workshops and three brand-new social events,” said Riviera director of brand and communications, Stephen Milne.

“In fact, Festival registrations are now 53 per cent up from the same time last year, which all points to a fantastic four days of fun and learning but also to the fact that people should book their attendance early to avoid disappointment,” he said.

The Riviera Festival of Boating attracts thousands of people from around Australia and from right around the globe to the home of Riviera at Coomera on Australia’s Gold Coast.

“Festival visitors all share a passion for the luxury boating lifestyle and for the most spectacular motor yachts built in Australia,” said Mr Milne. “They also share a love of a great time among great people … and we believe this year’s Festival social events will certainly help create memories to last a lifetime.”

• The Fragrance Masterclass and Luncheon – hosted by internationally trained perfume erudite Samantha Taylor on Friday 22 May from 10pm-2pm – will delve into the intriguing world of perfume perfection, with ladies making their own personalised scent and also sharing tips and tricks on how to select, store and wear perfume.
• The Dock of the Bay cocktail evening – on the Riviera Marina from 6pm-9pm, also on Friday 22 May – will feature sumptuous seafood and soothing sounds, as well as an exclusive and stunning red-carpet, on-water showcase of beautiful new boats.
• The R Factor gala event – within the Riviera factory on Saturday 23 May from 6.30pm-11.30pm – will be an action-packed, formal dinner with matched wines filled with fun and spectacular performances as some of the best voices in Australia battle it out for supremacy, followed by dancing to the vibrant sounds of a fantastic live band.

“This year we are also proud to be elevating our partnership with Club Marine one step further and offering aGourmet Experience with Bart Beek exclusively for R Insurance policy-holders on Thursday, May 21,” said Mr Milne.

“Five times throughout the day, two lucky people will get to learn on-stage from Club Marine’s resident culinary craftsman and prepare a delightful dish to savour with a cool beverage, much to the envy of on-lookers.

“This is just another example of what we can do when we set our minds to it at Riviera.

“We have for many years staged some spectacular events right here at our world-class facility at Coomera – in fact we are blessed that we have the infrastructure here to be able to stage events for up to 1000 people.

“To be able to work with a giant building as a blank canvas enables us to hold any number of unique events.”

In addition to its stunning on-water showcase which will not be displayed anywhere else this May, Riviera will reveal three new model announcements and an entirely new design and style of Riviera, exclusively at the 2015 Festival of Boating.

Festival visitors will also be granted VIP car-parking status at the gates of the Gold Coast International Marine Expo, and VIP seating at the Riviera Yacht Club restaurant and bar.

The Riviera Festival of Boating shares the dates of the 2015 Gold Coast International Marine Expo – a massive showcase of all things aquatic featuring everything from luxury motor yachts to jet skis, kayaks to fishing equipment … and everything else in between.

Expo will have over 400 boats on display and a showcase of the latest marine equipment and accessories from hundreds of individual exhibitors.

“The Expo aligning with the Festival this year creates a very compelling reason for visitors to come to the Gold Coast and Queensland to enjoy four fantastic days featuring every marine display you could possibly imagine,” said Mr Milne.

“Where else in the world can you attend a boat show held in the biggest boat factories and shipyards in the country?

“If you love boating, you’ll just love the Gold Coast in May,” he concluded.

To register to attend any of the Festival educational and social events, please visit www.FestivalOfBoating.com.