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Superyachting Amid Canada's East Coast Splendor

• Diane Byrne • Season 8 • Episode 4

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Embark on a maritime adventure with Amanda and Adam Langley, the pioneering duo behind Superyacht East Coast, as they chart a course through Canada's East Coast's yachting splendor. Uncover the secrets of navigating serene waters from the balmy Northumberland Strait to the awe-inspiring fjords of Newfoundland. This episode offers a treasure trove of surprises, including unexpectedly swimmable waters and a refreshing climate that rivals the American East Coast's summer warmth. Learn the ideal times to cruise these northern waters and discover why this region promises to become your next nautical home away from home.

Set your compass for an episode filled with the allure of the high seas as we reveal the unspoiled beauty and outdoor adventures that await you along Canada's Atlantic provinces. With the Langleys as our guides, we're not just cruising; we're transforming into ambassadors for the unique charm and maritime traditions of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. From the thrill of iceberg spotting off the rugged Newfoundland coast to the tranquil sails up the St. John River, join us as we lift the veil on this hidden yachting haven.

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Email us at info@megayachtnews.com.

Diane M. Byrne:

Welcome everyone. When it comes to summertime superyacht cruising, plenty of people visit destinations up and down the East Coast, especially northern destinations like Massachusetts, rhode Island and Maine. What if I told you there were 26,000 more miles yes, 26,000 more miles of fantastic, unspoiled coastline to explore if you just point your yacht's bow a little farther north and a bit more to the east? Welcome to the region known as Canada's East Coast, which is comprised of the provinces of New Brunswick, nova Scotia, prince Edward Island and New Finland and Labrador. These are yachting's best-kept secrets, according to Amanda and Adam Langley, who founded Superyacht East Coast to promote the destinations, help captains build itineraries and ensure services and experiences are elevated. Amanda and Adam are joining me on the podcast today to share insight into why you should visit and what you can expect when you go. So, adam and Amanda, welcome to Megayacht News Radio. It's great to have you, thank you for having us.

Adam Langley:

Thanks, Diane. It's our pleasure to be with you here today.

Diane M. Byrne:

So the two of you have backgrounds respectively in waterfront development and marketing, which obviously suit promoting a destination quite well, but how did you make the connection between what you were doing before and the superyacht world? Adam, why don't you start?

Adam Langley:

Sure. My background for over a decade was working for the province of Nova Scotia developing marine infrastructure in our ports and recognized in doing so. There was a gap in visitor audience attraction. When you build infrastructure it needs to be sustainable and an opportunity arose to invite visitors to our region and the superyacht sector became an obvious market that wasn't visiting Nova Scotia. So we began to reach out to that market and educate them on all the reasons why they should explore our part of the world.

Diane M. Byrne:

Amanda, what would you add to that I?

Amanda Langley:

think, observing Adam and his passion for marine tourism in general and exploring the superyacht market in his previous roles developing the number one and number two most visited ports or waterfronts in the province it it wasn't hard to get on board with that enthusiasm. He kind of he exudes it and it's contagious, and my background is in branding and marketing and I also. I worked for the province of Nova Scotia doing that, and so when he went off and started his company, his consulting company, we quickly realized that we needed a brand that spoke to the actual audience that's coming here and not just our. A Langley Developments consulting company wasn't really flashy enough or sexy enough, I like to say. So I came on board and the rest is history where we both do this full time now and I can honestly say we're both doing what we're supposed to be doing.

Diane M. Byrne:

So absolutely, absolutely, because you've certainly made a lot of connections with captains and helped a number of them out. So when it comes to the area, obviously it's a summertime destination, but your summers and the summers in the rest of the United States East Coast might be slightly different. So what months would you say really are the prime ones for cruising? Just to give a little bit of example for some readers who are not from the East Coast, if you go up to New England, really June, july, august is typically the season, although some of the yachts have been going up in May. Even though it's not necessarily the warmest time, it's quite beautiful and some boats will even extend their stays into September, because September is absolutely spectacular in New England and it is still technically also summertime. So what would you say, amanda? When are really the best times for the yachts to be coming?

Amanda Langley:

Oh, my goodness, Honestly I would say July through July and August are spectacular, but I think some of the most magical cruising periods of time are in September and even into October. You know, the weather is still beautiful, the leaves are starting to change, we're kind of seeing that shoulder season being pushed a little bit, but in terms of your warmest summer temperatures and swimming temperatures are great. And you know, july and August, people are starting to come in June, but it's still it's. It's the weather's a little bit more unpredictable until july, would you agree, adam?

Diane M. Byrne:

oh sorry yeah, adam definitely when what are?

Amanda Langley:

what are the?

Diane M. Byrne:

yachts. You know what are the yachts asking. Are they asking you what the temperatures are like, what if it's good for swimming? Or is that even something that they're looking to do with the guests?

Adam Langley:

I think when it comes to water temperatures, they're pleasantly surprised when certain areas of the region are quite swimmable. The Northumberland Strait between Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island has waters up into the high 70s and 80s in the summertime, so that's a pleasant surprise. But you know, our ambitious locals get their boats in the water in April for sort of May to October season, but, as Amanda mentioned, it's really late. June through to October is the more predictable environment for cruising and, as Amanda mentioned as well, September is just absolutely spectacular and I would say, in comparison to New England and Maine, as far as the season starting, we lag by a couple weeks In June. I find a lot of yachts are circling almost in other destinations waiting for the weather to break in our area and then they'll start to migrate north. Weather can be a little bit unpredictable in the spring, so people do adjust accordingly.

Amanda Langley:

We have guests who are very used to tropical temperatures and you know especially crew working in that heat and that humidity. They kind of enjoy and welcome those days that aren't super hot here and they're refreshing and the you know the scenery definitely makes up for any. You know temperatures that you have to put on a light sweater. They kind of welcome that. They're like, oh, it's so refreshing.

Diane M. Byrne:

Right, right, when you're out in that baking heat day after day, that nice crisp feeling in the air certainly is a welcome change. And it's still nice. It's not like, oh my gosh, I got to go run and put on six sweaters and two jackets. Definitely, and put on six sweaters and two jackets yeah, definitely so. When it comes to providing captains and owners with information on a new place to explore, that's obviously never a hard sell. Everybody's looking for something new and interesting and intriguing, right, but when you have 26,000 miles of coastline to explore, that's a lot of territory. So how do you help narrow down? And let's just take Nova Scotia as an example. How do you help narrow down what Nova Scotia has to offer, given that even that has tons and tons of coastline? I know there's multiple provinces. I know there's other areas of people visit and we can get to those in a second. But I really wanted to start with Nova Scotia because, from where I sit, it seems like that's what a lot of the yachts are interested in. So is that perception true, adam?

Adam Langley:

Well, Nova Scotia has taken a lead in raising its profile as a destination and being that first province of call. I guess you could say it's almost across the street from Maine, crossing the Gulf of Maine, so proximity plays a role there. So a lot of the ports are more evolved as far as infrastructure goes. In Nova Scotia you could say there's more of a coordinated network of ports and services across the province. So that's giving captains a lot of confidence in coming to Nova Scotia and from there using the province as a jump off to explore other, perhaps more remote, parts of our region, which is very exciting for captains and owners that are more into the expedition and exploring the use of their yachts, knowing that you know backtracking to Nova Scotia is a safe platform for them to continue their itinerary. So overall, I think you know Nova Scotia, just being closer to New England and Maine has given it more prominence and we have been doing a lot of marketing and promoting of Nova Scotia to help support the further development of Atlantic Canada as a regional destination.

Amanda Langley:

Yeah, and I would add to that and say you know, part of our business it's kind of a two part, so part of it is marketing the region and working with yachts and educating them and engaging them as a destination working with yachts and educating them and engaging them as a destination. But our other work is in port development and working with actual waterfronts and what infrastructure, services and experiences they need, and so through that we've sort of built a connected network of what we like to call ports of confidence and most of that work has happened to date in Nova Scotia. So we also have a lot more confidence speaking and recommending ports within our province, just because of the nature of the work that we've done to date.

Adam Langley:

Yeah, other provinces are recognizing that and want to be part of it. So it's a coordinated effort to build a regional network and manage expectations of both the visitor and these ports of call so that we end up not disappointing anyone. Yachts understand what they're getting into. They know where the supports are, they know the connectivity of the services and the local communities understand where there's opportunity to elevate their infrastructure to attract new visitors while creating even better environments for their locals and their own communities. So we are very purposeful in connecting waterfront development to marine tourism because they don't act independent of each other. They're really one product.

Diane M. Byrne:

Right, right, 100%. I know one of the connected ports, as you so aptly put it, is Cape Breton Island. When you and I had spoken a few weeks ago, I remember you saying that captains have been telling each other about it, and Lord knows. Captains are the best promotional people in the world, right? They talk a lot, they share a lot of information. What is it that they're excited about, and does that correspond to what you all could see them becoming excited about when you first started this?

Adam Langley:

There's no question, cape Breton is a very special place. It is an island, it's the northern part of our province. If you can't make it to Scotland, go to Cape Breton, because it's very reminiscent of Scotland. I mean, nova Scotia means New Scotland.

Adam Langley:

There's Highland Mountains, there's an incredible coastline, an exterior coastline to the island, but the real magical part is it has an inland sea with over a thousand kilometers of coastline, deep water cruising inside the island. When you enter it through this really awesome parks canada canal, it's almost like a magical reveal of this lake system and you can exit through the other side of the island through a channel. So it's, it's very surprising a lot, especially when you have these bigger yachts coming into this environment. It's just it's again not to overuse it, but it feels like a magical experience. Then you layer on many different cultures, from from first nations to, uh, like french acadians, to the english and french who fought over the island for centuries, and so that's got the history, the culture, the food, and then the natural environment of the scenery it's hard to describe and I think when yachts enter that environment they're just in awe of this place that they have discovered.

Amanda Langley:

Kate Breton's also continuously, year after year, wins number one island in North America by Condé Nast. And what's the other one?

Adam Langley:

There are several publications that are recommended.

Amanda Langley:

Yeah, travel and Leisure. So I mean it gets these kind of accolades but it's still managed to be quite humble and stay under the radar. So you still feel. I mean, when they tell us that all the time we feel like we were discovering this place and that's kind of the magic that we don't ever want to lose it it is. It is yachting's best kept secret, for sure I find yachts, including visiting cape breton.

Adam Langley:

they come expecting to spend a couple days and then, you know, leave two weeks later because they're continuously, continuously finding new things to explore, new experiences to encounter, new people to talk to. And I think the people are a big part of what makes the attraction of Nova Scotia, atlantic Canada. We're maritimers, we're seafaring people a lot of us and it kind of gives the captains and the owners that feeling that they've entered a real, authentic maritime community that is very connected to the, to the ocean.

Amanda Langley:

Nice, I think they can all take sort of a deep breath and relax a little bit when they come here. I think the authenticity and just being welcomed and being able to kind of just settle into each community. And each port is so different even how it looks, what attracts people to that area, the scenery, what there is to do community. And each port is so different even how it looks, you know what, what attracts people to that area, the scenery, what there is to do it, the culture. Each port is so different from one another. There's it's just a diverse cruising ground.

Adam Langley:

We're all helping me all the services so that they're, you know, accessible to visitor and also then helps our local boaters have better services. But you're not going to find a super yacht marina in ocean atlanta, canada, like not I've found one. But I think the point is we're helping build authentic waterfront and port experiences because that is the attraction. But you know those will be layered with, you know, floating docks and power and water and wi-fi and all the other ancillary services that you would expect. But it's in a more authentic environment that makes that makes the attraction of the port or the destination.

Diane M. Byrne:

Nice, nice. Now what about? What about Prince Edward Island and the other provinces? When you speak with the captains, what do you tell them to get them excited for? Not just themselves, obviously, because they have to enjoy it, but what gets them excited about what they'll be able to tell the owners and the guests?

Adam Langley:

Well, I mean, if you like beaches, then Prince Edward Island is your place and I know a lot of yachts that go there really enjoy kite surfing and we're expecting to have that type of opportunity when they're there, because it's one long beach and the interior is a lot of farmland. It's red mud and sand. It's a very interesting space. But that part of our region between Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and Northumberland Strait region, which also butts up against New Brunswick, is we almost call it, a resort kind of environment. There's just a lot of cottage people. It's sort of beach country, a lot of water sports, and that's a bit of the unexpected experience I think that yachts find is that they're in an area where they actually can enjoy and interact with that water environment, that they're in an area where they actually can enjoy and interact with that water environment that they, you know, for for a lot of reasons, felt was going to be very frigid and not as accessible we like to call it the med of the north.

Adam Langley:

I like that but I think overall, between the four atlantic provinces, the, the diversity of the, the landscape and the seascape changes so dramatically and so quickly that you're just never bored of the horizon.

Adam Langley:

It's just constantly changing, whether it's blue water ocean, atlantic, sailing along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, dotted with thousands of inlets and harbors and islands, it's, as we said, the warmer waters of the Northumberland Strait, the inland sea in Cape Breton, the fjords of Newfoundland. There's a river in New Brunswick called the St John River that you can actually get, you know, a 150-foot yacht fairly far up this river into the interior of the province, which is spectacular, and then you have jump-off points to the St Lawrence Seaway to get up into the Great Lakes, or you can go further north to the, you know, the lower arctic and the Northwest Passage, or you can turn right and go to Greenland. So, as far as a position and extending experiences elsewhere, we're just a really great and a great location for transatlantic or other exploration into the interior of Canada or back into the US through the Great Lakes. I mean, I could go on forever, it's, you know.

Amanda Langley:

It's Newfoundland, iceberg season and the fjords and the outdoor adventure and hiking, all those opportunities, and similarly in Cape Breton. You know, if you're into anything outdoor adventure, that's where we would send you as well, Whereas if you're into beach life or you know, Seafood's everywhere. But there's certain things that we get excited about showing people because we realize what an amazing region this is for experiences that people don't know about, and if they don't know about it, then that's what we're here for. We have to tell them.

Diane M. Byrne:

A moment ago or two, amanda, you said something that I think is really going to resonate with a lot of people, so I want to give you kind of the last word in terms of the questions. You said that when people visit they can take a deep breath. It's kind of like I was imagining people taking that deep breath and their shoulders are relaxing and then kind of just sitting back and just saying wow are relaxing. And then kind of just sitting back and just saying wow and feeling like almost like in a strange sense almost like their home, like they're being welcomed into a super wonderful, relaxed, welcoming community. Is that what the overall feel is like?

Amanda Langley:

You just gave me goosebumps, because I actually think that you capture that feeling and we see it time and time again Captain, guests, owners, the crew everybody feels that and when we work with them, I think that's one of the greatest joys of this work is that we end up being friends or at least friendly, and with these people and we've stayed in touch with so many of them and I think it's because they do feel a little bit like they found a home here and so many captains, once they visit here, they get just this passion. Maybe they feed off our passion for the region, but they become ambassadors and they really believe in this work that we're doing and building this as a region, a destination for yachting, and they want to help. We get asked that all the time what can I do to help? Like people need to know about this. So, yeah, I think you really captured that. There's definitely something here that we can't explain until you experience it for yourself.

Diane M. Byrne:

Yeah, definitely something that needs to be seen and experienced rather than just read about or heard about. Right? Well, Adam and Amanda, thank you so much for joining me today on Megayacht Newsradio and sharing your enthusiasm for Canada's East Coast. I am absolutely positive that more than a few people are going to be doing a little bit more of a deep dive into the area and giving you a buzz to learn more. I certainly want to pack my suitcase right now and come up, because it's been so hot in Florida that crisp air sounds perfect.

Amanda Langley:

Make sure that you follow Superyacht East Coast on Instagram, facebook and LinkedIn, because there's all sorts of tips that we share and, you know, we have itineraries and experiential ideas on our website as well, at superyachteastcoastcom.

Diane M. Byrne:

Perfect, perfect. You took the words right out of my mouth. Everybody. You can visit their website and get all the information you need, and definitely follow them on social media. Again, adam and amanda, thank you so much.

Adam Langley:

This has been terrific well, thank you, and we look forward to welcoming everyone to canada's ocean playground. Come on up excellent.

Diane M. Byrne:

Until next time, everybody. I'm diane burn.

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