Middle class, high seas

Halkidiki hopes to lure more seafaring Chinese luxury travelers.

"Affordable luxury" was the theme of the 15th annual Hong Kong Gold Coast Boat Show staged over the May Day holiday. The show targeted both Hong Kong residents and mainland Chinese.

"Most people look at yachting as a sport or relaxation for only the elite - perhaps a misconceived concept - but buying a boat is much like buying a car," media quote Gold Coast Yacht and Country Club general manager Robert Blythe as saying before the event.

"What you can afford determines the type of car you will buy - or, in this case, a boat. For example, you can pick up boats for less than HK$100,000 ($12,900). That essentially is affordable luxury."

Italian luxury-yacht maker Ferretti Group in 2013 declared plans to introduce smaller vessels, ranging from 6 to 8 meters, to the Chinese market to appeal to the growing middle class.

China's yacht ownership reached about 16,000 vessels, and manufacturing output approached 8 billion yuan last year, says the 2014 China Yacht Industry Report by the Beijing-based China Cruise and Yacht Industry Association.

But the country's yachting boom sails through legally uncharted waters.

Since yachts currently float within the private-property category, no specific laws regulate them. Hence, their for-profit use drifts through legal limbo.

While more mid-range options appeal to the middle class, premium yachting - on bigger boats, over greater distances, with exclusive privacy - continue to grow in popularity among the affluent.