Aman at Sea has picked its skipper. Ertan Vasvi will take command of the Amangati, the first ship from the ultra-luxury hotel group's new maritime venture, ahead of its maiden season in May 2027.
The Amangati is a deliberately small vessel: just 94 guests, built as a joint venture between Aman and Cruise Saudi. The company positions it somewhere between a traditional cruise ship and a private superyacht charter — an intimate format where the crew-to-guest ratio and service style matter as much as the itinerary. Vasvi himself framed the challenge that way when the appointment was announced, noting that at 94 guests, navigation and hospitality effectively sit in the same pair of hands.
The debut plan is now clear. The ship departs Palma de Mallorca on 7 May 2027 to open its first Mediterranean season, then heads west for a maiden Caribbean season in autumn 2027. Before any of that, Vasvi joins during the final phase of construction, working with the shoreside team and personally recruiting and training the deck and bridge crews who will run the yacht's early sailings.
His CV fits the brief. Vasvi started with Silversea in 2009 as an officer of the watch and safety officer, working up to staff captain across both the expedition and classic fleets. He moved to Seabourn as staff captain in 2018, then spent two years from 2021 in Genoa as the shoreside lead for deck, nautical and expedition operations during the build and delivery of two new ships — experience that is directly relevant to overseeing a vessel still under construction. He has held command since 2023 and trained at the Nautical Academy of the Technical University of Varna in Bulgaria.
Why should travellers care? Because captain appointments at this stage signal that a new ship is moving from renderings to reality. If Aman's formula on land — quiet, highly staffed, design-led properties — translates to sea, the Amangati will compete with the likes of Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and Four Seasons Yachts rather than mainstream luxury lines. Bookings for 2027 debut seasons on ships this small tend to move quickly, so anyone eyeing the inaugural Mediterranean summer or the first Caribbean autumn should watch for cabins opening. The May 2027 start from Palma also makes it easy to pair a sailing with time in Mallorca itself.
