What a rush! Sixty knots on the Yellow Sea just off Qingdao: “It is the equivalent of 300 kilometers per hour on land,” shouts the captain above the roar of the twin engines as we plough through the blue-green seas. No, this is not a normal day out in China.

It started in the southern wing of Beijing airport, from where the private planes depart. There was no need to worry about missing the flight; it only takes off when everyone – ten of us – is ready. Ambling leisurely onto the plane, we quickly find ourselves armed with glasses of champagne. Charles Zhang of Sohu proposes a toast, which becomes the motto of the weekend – “Happy Days!” – going on to point out that the average human is only on this planet for 30,000 days and that we should be making the most of each and every one of these. We raise our glasses, agreeing.

A short hour later, we touch down in Qingdao, where Traugott Kaminski, head of Sunseeker China, whisks us off to the Crown Plaza. The early summer weather in Qingdao is nice and cool, and my senses absorb red tiles and green trees, blue skies and blue seas.

Sunseeker, founded in 1962, is a British yacht manufacturing company dedicated to designing and manufacturing high-end luxury yachts. As a badge of quintessential Britishness, they have featured twice in James Bond films. Resolving to break into the China market, Sunseeker China settled on Qingdao, bringing not only a new lifestyle for those whose urban nerves need relaxing, but also the yachts, a marina for parking the yahcts as well as training for crews and yacht maintenance. This is a completely new industry to China and potentially big business in the long run.

We cruise along on the Manhattan 64, one of Sunseeker's classic models. The top deck is for sunbathing and enjoying the fierce breeze. The middle deck is for lounging, chatting to the captain and having a drink, whilst the bottom floor is divided into a master bedroom and two guestrooms.

Only three guests at a time fit into the accompanying speedboat and experience the ultimate in thrill rides. The other guests watch lazily from the Manhattan 64 as the speedboat draws curves across the blue-green sea. Occasionally, the wind carries a scream of pleasure snatched from the speedboat.