The Silolona Sojourns Team

History

Our journey starts well before our Phinisi’s came into being with our Founder Patti Seery. An American entrepreneur with a sense of wanderlust, a passion for South East Asian culture and a deep desire for taking people on ultimate sailing adventures. Patti’s wanderlust, saw her travel from her home in the United States to Mexico during her studies a trip which had a profound effect what would be her future. Further adventures and her desire to learn more about the world, eventually brought her to the shores of Indonesia in the early 1980’s.

Fascinated by the mesmerizing black sails of traditional Phinisi cargo ships that docked in the Indonesian ports, Patti embarked on numerous sailing sojourns throughout Indonesia’s stunning island archipelago – creating a spark in Patti’s mind for taking foreign guests on similar sailing expeditions, that showcased the stunning beauty of the region, as well as Indonesia’s rich cultures and heritage. Setting up the first explorers club in Indonesia, Patti organized sailing trips across the Indonesia, building deep connections with local communities.

A personal family trip on a traditional wooden Phinisi years later, set in motion Patti’s passion for travelling by traditional means, but knowing the limitations of traditional wooden Phinisi’s and the need for comfort and safety, she set out to build her own. Her search for the perfect boat builders brought her to Sulawesi, where she met the Konjo boat builders, that would eventually work alongside Patti in the construction of what would become termed the ultimate Phinisi – MSV Silolona and Silolona Sojourns was born.

The Silolona Team

Silolona Sojourns offer bespoke private charter sailing experiences throughout South East Asia. Starting out in Indonesia, we now offer sojourns in Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Our destinations are exceptional due to their remoteness and unique beauty, offering an unparalleled insight into the traditions, cultures, and history of the peoples that live there. We are one of the regions pioneers in private charter sailing, working in a way that sets us apart from other operators. From our unique style of travel and our approach to planning our guests journeys, to our concept of building bridges with local communities and investing in our people.

Headquartered in Bali, Indonesia, we also have professional yacht charter brokers who head up our sales and marketing team throughout Asia and Europe, enabling us to quickly with a unique level of professional service and knowledge to respond to our clients needs. Our success is largely due to the dedication of our team, who are trained to deliver beyond exceptional service levels, many of them have been with us since the beginning of the Silolona journey. Their passion for delivering exceptional on board service as well as their expert sailing knowledge, makes them truly exceptional sailing professionals – and a key part to our continued success.

A family owned and managed business, following Patti’s retirement Tresno our CEO and Patti’s son has taken the helm. Leading Silolona Sojourns into its next phase, whilst retaining the tenacious spirit and unique style, that Silolona Sojourns has become distinguished throughout the world for. Based in Bali and a fluent speaker of Indonesian, Tresno has spent most of his life in Indonesia and helped to design with Patti our second Phinisi – MSV Si Datu Bua.

“For many years I chartered boats for my voyages, but they all shared the same problem; No matter the cost they lacked the comfort, service, or degree of traditional integration that is important to the experience. I needed a vessel that would integrate into my sojourns, a delightful experience in its self, yet only a part of the overall experience.”

— Patti Seery