Jean-Paul Geelen and partner Cristina weren’t always owners of a yacht charter business. Originally from Dutch parents, he was born, raised, and spent the greater part of his life in Madrid, building his career in the satellite industry, while Cristina is a university lecturer also from Madrid. “We have always been keen sailors, so the love of the sea goes back many years, but the change in lifestyle to making this a way of life came in the wake of the lockdown, when I left the company and finally managed to find some time to complete the restoration of a nine-meter 1956 wooden hull motorboat that I had bought five years before but never had the time to finish. That summer, I finally got her back in the water, and together with Cristina, we had a wonderful summer cruising along the Galician south coast. Whenever we arrived at a port, there were always yacht lovers who came to congratulate us on the restoration of our boat, and many asked if we were chartering her. That’s when the idea of starting a classic yacht charter company arose.”

Due to his work, Jean-Paul has always been linked to the maritime industry, as shipping was one of his most important markets commercially, “So I have consistently been connected to the sea one way or the other, but we began searching for a larger boat when we decided to make a business out of it, and found a half-abandoned one at the dry dock of Kerkdriel, a small village in The Netherlands.” From there they transported her to Sanxenxo, a similarly picturesque village in Galicia, where they arranged for the renovation of Mooi, a 1966 18-metre Chris Craft yacht.

Cristina continues to give lectures online, combining it with the charter business that she and Jean-Paul have since set up. “We had previously sailed across the Mediterranean and in the USA in rented yachts, but after having lifted the Mooi onto a special heavy duty transport truck to Rotterdam, from where she was taken by ferry to Oporto, in Portugal, and finally again by truck to Sanxenxo, followed by almost two years of detailed renovation work, we now feel happy to call Marbella home and base ourselves here.” And from it they provide a range of experiences, including the typical day on the water, where guests sunbathe on the spacious deck, relax, swim out at sea or in a cove, socialise with drinks and various onboard homemade menu options, or book made-to-measure itineraries.

“One of our most popular charters is the sunset experience, which is a two-hour cruise along the Costa del Sol that takes in the coastline as well as the sun setting in the west as guests settle back with a glass of Champagne,” says Jean-Paul. Perhaps more unusual is the ‘underwater winery and oyster farm’, which is situated near Estepona – and yes, it really is underwater. “We meet their boat and then dive down to the bottom of the sea to recover exquisite sparkling wines, fresh oysters, and succulent scallops.”

In addition, the yacht itself relives the classic glamour of the 1960s, an American gentleman’s yacht with power and finesse that is the only one of its kind exported to Europe in its year of manufacture. “It has seen it all, cruising on Lac Leman in Switzerland, along the French Riviera, Monaco, and now reviving a sense of classic Marbella style in southern Spain.

“Being on this boat is a special experience, and we combine classic design with first-class service, so for people who enjoy this combination Mooi is the perfect yacht for them.” Though they focus primarily on these waters, Jean-Paul and Cristina can also be enticed to venture further afield, sailing beyond Gibraltar, to Morocco, and they have plans to eventually also include Mediterranean destinations such as France, Italy, and Greece. “The beauty of yachting is that you see the world from a different, more romantic point of view.”