This vintage motor yacht was built in Scotland in 1914. Promptly
requisitioned by the British government for the war effort, she saw service beginning in 1915 as
H.M.S. Waterwitch, acting as a troop ferry first
at Lemnos and then in the Dardanelles. She is reported to be one of only two Royal Navy vessels at
Gallipoli still in service, from war's end serving the Occupation Authority in Istanbul. Five
years passed before she was in 1923 turned over to the Turkish owners who had commissioned her
construction. For the next sixty-two years Halas was employed as a passenger ferry on the
Bosphorus. Purchased in 1985 by her present owners, she was totally refurbished over a period
of four years and outfitted for entertainment and holiday charter employment. Anchored on the
Bosphorus during winter and early spring months, this elegant vessel caters exclusive
receptions and dinner parties. Cruising Turkey's Turquoise Coast during the balance of the
year, Halas has repetitively played host to British royalty and to others of discerning
taste.
Her state-of-the-art reception and dining facilities make Halas
the ideal setting for business meetings to be held in absolute
privacy. She is similarly appropriate for wedding, anniversary, and other receptions. She is able
to seat up to sixty guests for the most select of dinner parties impeccably served. Her three
kitchens provide exquisite dining from menus prepared by accomplished chefs from the choicest of
local meats, sea foods, and produce.
Bosphorus Tours
During winter and spring months
Halas may be booked for tours of the Bosphorus. Up to thirty guests may be accommodated
overnight in fifteen luxuriously appointed cabins.
Summer Cruises in the Gulf of Fethiye
In June of
each year Halas sails south to Gocek, a riviera town on the Gulf of Fethiye
twenty-five minutes
by road from Dalaman International Airport. The Gulf of Fethiye, ancient Lycia's Glaucus Sinus
or Gulf of Telmessos, is surrounded by lower slopes of the Taurus Mountains, pine clad to the
water's edge, and its crystal-clear water invites swimmers and snorkelers. It is an area of
flat-water cruising easy on those not accustomed to open sea, and is rimmed with innumerable
coves, anchorages, and archaeological sites. The Club Marina at Gocek is home port to Halas
until the end of
Accommodations
2 Suites
2 Cabins
Large Twin Beds
8 Cabins Standard Twin
3 Double-Bed Cabins
All
Air-Conditioned
October when she returns to Istanbul. Halas may be chartered for
periods of unlimited duration or by the cabin for scheduled three to six day cruises among
idyllic bays, coves, and inlets dotting the Gulf of Fethiye.
Technical
Specifications:
Year Built: 1914 Refit: Annually Length: 171 ft
Beam: 28 ft Draft: 11 ft Engines: (2) 512 hp Caterpillar Maximum Speed:
15 kts Cruising Speed: 12 kts
Equipment:
Air-conditioning Refrigerators Deep Freezes VHF Radio-Telephone
Television, DVD Player Stereo Music System Tenders with Outboard Water Skiing
Tender & Outboard
Dear Homo Sapiens, There is no need to continue reading
this page. What follows is intended for search engine robots and spiders and not necessarily for
human beings. Further information concerning motor yachts on cruise in Turkey and Greece may be
obtained by clicking on the blue links immediately above. Thank You. You must be searching
for a luxury cruise in Turkey, a crewed charter yacht excursion cruising the Bosphorus, the
Dardanelles, the Aegean coast of Turkey, or the Gulf of
Fethiye. You may be considering an excursion around the Gallipoli Peninsula to Cape Helles and to
ANZAC Cove, or of putting ashore at Troy. You may be considering a Blue Cruise, perhaps Cleopatra's
own Blue Cruise, her honeymoon route, including a 32 BC visit to the Gulf of Fethiye's ancient Lydae.
You may be considering one of these excursions in the way of a reunion, perhaps an historical society
reunion, or a gathering of war veteran offspring. You may even be considering a honeymoon with wedding
party, or a honeymoon anniversary with wedding party. Cleopatra, it might be noted, had plenty of
company on her honeymoon, and not just attendants. For starters, there were four barges carrying the
entire Egyptian treasury and all of the necessary royal guard. Then there was Antony's fleet of war
galleys, a fleet increasing at each waypoint, increasing by conscription and eventually exceeding
five hundred in number. With rowers and centurions embarked. And then there was Antony himself,
destined to soon see his fleet reach Actium and dissipate in hours. Would you like to charter a
vintage motor yacht to cruise Cleopatra's honeymoon route up Turkey's
Turquoise Coast and among Aegean Islands of Greece? All the way to Ephesus and
Greek Samos? On your honeymoon or anniversary? Or would you like to charter a crewed motor yacht
to cruise the south coast of Turkey to Antalya and its annual opera and ballet festival? Or both?
Cleopatra and Aida! Do you already plan to holiday in Greece or Turkey? Would you like to holiday
aboard a vintage motor yacht chartered in Turkey? One which for most of her life was steam
propelled, her boilers and expansion turbines now replaced by large Caterpillar diesels? To cruise
the Aegean from Gocek? Are you searching for Gocek in Turkey? For Marmaris in Turkey? For Tilos or
Khalki in Greece? Well, come aboard Halas, a vintage motor yacht offering an unforgettable holiday
at each of these places. Come aboard a crewed charter yacht with an experienced crew able to
show you Cleopatra's route up the Turkish coast to Ephesus and Greek Samos, able to revisit its
war-time haunts at Lemnos and in the Dardanelles, able to show you Saint Paul's routes along
the same coast and among Greece's Scattered Islands, including Tilos and Khalki. A proper crewed
yacht on cruise in Turkey and Greece. Contact Blue Cruise Yacht Charters today at
bcycharter@aol.com