Charter Southern Cloud, a 40m sailing yacht for 12 guests in Raja Ampat from $70,000/week + expenses. Refitted 2024. Rates verified August 2026.
Southern Cloud is a 40-metre (131-foot) sailing yacht accommodating up to 12 guests, available for private charter in Raja Ampat from $70,000 per week plus expenses. Built by Faenoe Yachtvaerft in 1989 and comprehensively refitted in 2024, she is one of the few genuine sailing yachts working the archipelago’s October–April season — canvas aloft over the richest reefs on Earth. Rates verified August 2026.
| Length overall | 40 m (131 ft) |
|---|---|
| Guests | Up to 12 |
| Type | Sailing yacht |
| Builder | Faenoe Yachtvaerft |
| Year | 1989 · refit 2024 |
| Charter rate | From $70,000 per week + expenses |
| Raja Ampat season | October – April |
Most vessels in the Raja Ampat charter fleet are motor yachts or Indonesian phinisi. Southern Cloud reads differently at anchor: a proper displacement sailing yacht with more than three decades of ocean miles in her wake, brought fully up to date by a 2024 refit. When the trade breeze fills in across the Dampier Strait, her crew can shut the engines down and let the boat do what she was designed to do in 1989 — carry her guests quietly, heeled a few degrees, between islands that look like green icebergs run aground.
That quietness matters in Raja Ampat. The archipelago rewards slow travel: manta rays circling a cleaning station, hornbills crossing between ridgelines at dusk, the percussion of rain squalls moving over limestone. Under sail, none of it competes with generator hum. For charterers who grew up racing or cruising and find motor-yacht passages sterile, Southern Cloud restores the connection between wind, water and progress — while her 2024 refit keeps the systems, safety equipment and guest comfort to modern charter standard.
With capacity for 12 guests, she suits multi-family groups, dive parties and celebration charters that want a real yacht rather than a floating hotel. Her weekly rate also positions her attractively: at $70,000 per week she carries the same guest count as flagship phinisi charging far more — Lamima, for comparison, starts at $175,000 per week in the same waters.
Raja Ampat’s prime charter window runs October to April, when seas are calmest and visibility on the reefs is at its best. The archipelago is navigable year-round — low season brings quieter anchorages and softer rates — but most Southern Cloud itineraries are booked inside the prime months. December to March carries a peak-season premium of roughly 10–20%, particularly over Christmas and New Year.
| Season | Window | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Prime season | October – April | Best sailing and diving conditions; book 9–12 months ahead |
| Peak weeks | December – March | Premium of 10–20%; Christmas/New Year fills first |
| Low season | May – September | Quieter anchorages, softer rates; many Indonesian-fleet yachts reposition to Komodo |
Charter rate: from $70,000 per week plus expenses (fuel, provisioning, park and anchorage fees, crew gratuity). Rates verified August 2026. Raja Ampat Marine Park entry fees — currently around IDR 700,000–1,000,000 per person per year — are confirmed at booking. See our full Raja Ampat yacht charter cost guide for a complete budget breakdown.
The classic seven-night northern loop is ideal sailing country: open reaches across the Dampier Strait, then short hops between anchorages. From Sorong the route crosses to Arborek and the Manta Sandy cleaning stations — roughly 53 nautical miles, about eight hours — then works Cape Kri, Sardine Reef and Blue Magic before sailing northwest to the Fam Islands and Melissa’s Garden, the Piaynemo lookout, and the wild lagoon labyrinth of Wayag, returning via The Passage between Waigeo and Gam. See the full day-by-day northern loop itinerary, or browse all Raja Ampat itineraries to pair her with a Misool leg in the south.
Raja Ampat sits at the centre of the Bird’s Head Seascape, where scientific surveys have recorded more than 1,700 fish species and 550 coral species — the highest marine biodiversity documented anywhere. From Southern Cloud’s anchorages, our dive guides run tenders to Cape Kri, holder of the world species-count record for a single dive, to Blue Magic for oceanic mantas, and to Manta Sandy, where a strict queueing etiquette protects the cleaning station. Non-divers snorkel the same reefs from the surface, visit Arborek village, paddle the mangrove channels of The Passage, or simply sail — which on this yacht is an activity in its own right.
Charters begin long before Sorong. Once dates are held, our concierge desk confirms the contract and expense structure, arranges Raja Ampat Marine Park entry cards for every guest, and builds the provisioning list around your table — dietary requirements, cellar preferences, celebration details. Dive plans are matched to certification levels ahead of time so guides, tanks and paperwork are ready on day one. On arrival day you fly into Sorong, are met airside, and are aboard within the hour; the first anchorage is typically reached the same afternoon. At the end of the week the same team manages disembarkation and onward flights, and can extend the trip either side with Bali or Sorong arrangements. One WhatsApp thread, one accountable team, from first enquiry to the flight home.
From $70,000 per week plus expenses — typically fuel, food and beverage, park and village fees, and crew gratuity. Peak December–March weeks carry a 10–20% premium. Rates verified August 2026.
Up to 12 guests, making her one of the larger-capacity sailing yachts available for Raja Ampat charter.
She was built by Faenoe Yachtvaerft in 1989 and underwent a refit in 2024 ahead of her current charter seasons.
Fly to Sorong (SOQ) — around four hours from Jakarta, with connections via Makassar, Manado or Bali. Our concierge meets you at the airport and transfers you to the harbour for embarkation; Waisai and southern Misool boardings can be arranged by itinerary.
Tell our concierge desk your dates, group size and diving ambitions and we will confirm Southern Cloud’s availability, hold an option, and design the route around wind and season. If she is committed, we will propose the closest match from the wider Raja Ampat charter fleet — for a classic sailing alternative at a more intimate scale, see Shamoun, a 33-metre sailing yacht for 9 guests.
WhatsApp +62 811-3823-875 or email sales@komodoluxury.com — operated by Komodo Luxury, planning Raja Ampat charters end-to-end since 2015.
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