With new owners, new docks, new signs to help you get around and more boats than ever before, the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show will open at a new time this year, starting on Wednesday, Nov. 1 and running through Sunday, Nov. 5. And you need to put on your walking shoes. This year the show will have 1,500 boats at seven different locations, although the main event is still centered at the Bahia Mar Resort and Yachting Center, where the docks will stretch for 1.6 miles along the Waterway.
The Lauderdale show, an icon in the industry, was started in 1959. In the past year, Show Management sold the show to Informa, a London-based show and events producer, which has made a significant investment to improve the show’s infrastructure, with the new docks, new tents and new 8- and 12-foot totems with information and maps to help you get around. The new owners even promise to upgrade the food on the cocktail barges (including oysters and stone crabs from Coconut’s, just up the street).
The show’s primary attraction, of course, is the introduction of new boats, everything from megayachts to jet skis, plus such other yachting accoutrements as helicopters, Ferraris and submarines. On a more manageable scale, new boats being introduced at the show include the Doug Zurn-designed MJM 43z, with three Mercury Verado outboards, the Fountaine Pajot MY 44, Sunreef 68 power cat, Vicem 58 Classic, Prestige 520, Adler Suprema Hybrid, and many more.
All told, the show will include 1,000 exhibitors from 30 countries, displaying about $4 billion worth of boats, engines, electronics and boating gear. If you want to beat the crowds, you can buy a VIP ticket for $225 a day, which includes access to an air-conditioned lounge at the Hall of Fame Marina with gourmet food, an open bar and concierge.
Totally aside from the show, Lauderdale is a boater’s mecca, with 165 miles of canals (the city is often called the Venice of America), sprawling waterfront homes, the historic New River in the heart of downtown, the charming Las Olas shopping and dining area, and the massive Port Everglades, which leads out to the Atlantic. And great waterfront restaurants and bars.
For more about the show: http://www.flibs.com
Here are our own reviews of 34 new cruising boats you can see at the show:
ADLER SUPREMA HYBRID
The all-new, carbon-fiber, aggressively-styled Adler Suprema Hybrid will make her U.S. debut at the Lauderdale show. The 76-foot yacht, designed by Nuvolari-Lenard, is powered by a diesel-electric propulsion system that includes carbon-fiber props, twin 100kW e-engines and twin Cat 1,150-hp diesels. It can run up to 8 knots under electric power, and it tops out at 28 knots under diesel.
“It’s a unique yacht with a sophisticated design and a number of modern features usually found on much bigger boats, such as state-of-the-art hybrid propulsion, iPad controls, heated floors and a strong, lightweight and efficient hull made from carbon,” said Philipp Pototschnik, the CEO of Swiss-based Adler Yacht.
Using a Hybrid Marine Solutions power system designed by German and Austrian engineers, the Adler can run an hour at 8 knots in a totally electric mode. In a hybrid mode, the company says it has a range of 3,500 nm at 8 knots.
The semi-custom yacht can be ordered with three to five staterooms, plus a two-person crew cabin. In the three-cabin version, the full-beam master is midships and includes a walk-in wardrobe closet and an en suite head. The two guest cabins, also with en suite heads, are in the bow and stern.
Aside from its hybrid propulsion, the Adler Suprema has quite a few head-turning features. One is the iPad control system where the owner can monitor and change the yacht’s systems, even when he’s not on board. Then there’s the privacy feature, where you can change the clear glass windows into opaque glass panels at the touch of a button. For comfort, the boat has under-floor heating on the main deck and in the heads. And finally, there are chilled cup holders to keep the drinks fresh.
Specs.: LOA: 76’0”; Beam: 20’0”; Draft: NA; Disp.: 98,000 lbs.; Fuel: 1,373 gals.; Water: 232 gals.; Power: 2x100kW ATE e-engines plus 2×1,150 Cat diesels.
AMERICAN TUGS 395
Although American Tugs are made in LaConner, Washington, about half are now sold on the East Coast as owners recognize the boats’ many advantages, including a sturdy hull, raised-pilothouse design, and ease of living on board. The new American Tugs 395 offers all that (including a ten-year hull warranty) plus a two-stateroom, one-head layout, a large salon and a pilothouse that can seat four, in addition to the captain. The pilothouse also has six opening windows, visibility all around, and side doors that give immediate access to the side decks.
The 395 has a cruising speed in the 15-knot range and, with a single 380-hp Cummins diesel, a range of about 1,000 nm if you dial back to 8 knots. The cockpit is protected by an overhang from the boat deck, while the side decks are wide and the rails are high. The master stateroom in the bow has a walkaround queen bed, lots of storage and a large head with stall shower. A guest stateroom has a single upper and double lower berth. The American Tugs 395 has Sapele mahogany paneling all around for an upscale look. Specs.: LOA: 41’6”; Beam: 13’3”; Draft: 3’5”; Disp.: 25,000 lbs. Fuel: 400 gals.; Water: 150 gals.; Power: 1×380-hp Cummins diesel.
AQUILA 44
With its 21’6” draft carried all the way forward, the Aquila 44 catamaran has space – and more space – just about everywhere. The three-stateroom, three-head boat also has a lot of privacy. The master stateroom is forward with a king-sized bed, a small settee in a separate seating area and a large head and shower. The two separate hulls, meanwhile, mean the two more staterooms, one on the port side and one to starboard, are totally private, a major advantage during cruise with family or friends.
In the salon, the galley is aft, with a dining/sitting area forward; it’s bright and light, with windows all around. Up top, the bridge deck can hold a crowd. The upper helm seat can hold four, there are settees on each side and a wet bar and grill, with more seating, is aft. If you need to reach the bow for, say, anchoring or line handling, built-in stairs lead from the bridge down to the foredeck. For power, the Aquila 44 has two 225-hp Volvo diesels, which produce a cruising speed of 14 knots and a top speed of 19 knots. MarineMax Vacations uses the Aquila 44 in its charter fleet.
Specs.: LOA: 43’8”; Beam: 21’6”; Draft: 2’8”; Disp.: 35,053 lbs.; Fuel: 290 gals.; Water: 206 gals.; Power: 2×225-hp Volvo D4 diesels. http://www.aquilaboats.com http://marinemaxvacations.com
AZIMUT 66 MAGELLANO
A contemporary, stylish Italian version of a classic trawler, the Azimut 66 Magellano is a four-cabin, four-head cruiser that is designed to bridge the gap between traditional blue-water boats (think Grand Banks or Fleming) and more avant-garde designs. It also has what Azimut calls a “dual-mode” hull, with two chines and a less rounded bottom than previous Azimuts, which means it can run efficiently through all speed ranges. If you want to go slow, the 66 Magellano has a range of 1,000 nm at 9 knots. If you’re in a bit of a hurry, the boat tops out at 23 knots.
The Azimut 66 Magellano has a vertical bow to cut waves, and carries substantial volume forward. It offers a lot of space, inside and out, even for a 66-foot boat. The main deck has a sliding door forward, separating the salon from the helm and galley area. The salon itself has walnut paneling and cream-colored furnishing, an L-shaped sofa, dining table, bar and entertainment center.
The accommodation deck below has full-beam master, two VIP staterooms and a smaller fourth cabin for children or crew. The bow carries a padded lounge area (perfect for the Med, Florida and the Bahamas) and there’s a shaded seating and dining area aft. The flybridge also has a large dining table, a sunpad and room for lounge chairs. Specs.: LOA: 66’1”; Beam: 17’10”; Draft: 5’5”; Disp.: 86,000 lbs.; Fuel: 1,190 gals.: Water: 264 gals.; Power: 2x 800-hp Volvo Penta D13 diesels. Price: $2.3 million. www.azimutyachts.com
BACK COVE 32
The Back Cove 32 was just named Best Powerboat Under 35 Feet at the Newport International Boat Show, a major honor for the Maine-built classic couple’s cruiser. I’ve been a fan of Back Coves since I tested the very first one they made, a 26, ten years ago, and I’ve tested every model since then. The single-diesel, fuel-efficient, user-friendly themes of the brand, combined with their iconic Downeast lines, make them very appealing, and the new 32 lives up to the company’s reputation.
You walk on the boat through a centerline door in the transom, and then the deck is level all the way forward to the companionway. The cockpit has matching L-shaped settees in both corners, and can be partially protected by an optional Sure-Shade awning. Forward, there’s a convertible U-shaped settee to port, with a cruising galley to starboard, all under hardtop.
Below, the head compartment is to port, while a separate shower stall is to starboard. A generous island berth is forward. Interior highlights are all in American cherry, but there is no wood on the exterior of the boat in keeping with Back Cove’s low-maintenance tradition.
The Back Cove fleet now stretches from 30 to 41 feet.
Specs: LOA: 37′; Beam: 11’10”; Draft: 3′; Disp.: 15,000 lbs. Fuel: 185 gals.; Water: 80 gals. Power: 1×370-hp Volvo diesel or 370-hp Yanmar diesel. Base Price: $320,000. http://backcoveyachts.com
BENETEAU SWIFT TRAWLER 35
The Beneteau Swift Trawler 35, an update of the popular Swift Trawler 34, just made its debut at the Newport show. The new 35 has all the features of the 34, plus upgrades inside and out, the most obvious being new twin transom doors that open out to create a massive open space from the swim platform through the cockpit into the salon.
I have a very warm spot in my heart for the Beneteau Swift Trawler 34. Five years ago, I spent more than a week on one with George Sass Sr., the photographer, as we cruised 700 miles of the Great Loop from the top of Lake Michigan down to Chicago and then down the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers to Hoppie’s Marine Service, 20 miles below St. Louis. We found that living aboard was easy, with a large master and smaller guest cabin, a single head with shower, a bright open salon and a large cockpit where we relaxed each morning with coffee and each evening with something else.
The 34 was particularly easy to drive; visibility from the helm was great, and the door next to the helm opened to the starboard side deck, making line handling easy. Best of all, the single 425-hp Cummins diesel produced an all-day-long comfortable cruising speed of 16 knots, consuming just under 16 gph. The 34 was a solid-running, fuel-efficient, long-range cruiser on a semi-planing flared hull, and its modern French looks drew second- and third-looks everywhere we went.
The new Swift Trawler 35 has the same engine, so the performance should be the same, but it seems to have more windows to let in lots of natural light. The U-shaped galley on the port side opposite the helm has been redesigned a bit, there’s a new awning that extends from the flybridge out over the cockpit, and the flybridge itself comes with either a soft top or a Bimini, both with built-in LED lights.
Specs.: LOA: 37’0”; Beam: 13’0”; Draft; 3’8”; Disp.: 18,187 lbs.; Water: 80 gals.; Fuel: 211 gals.; Power: 1×425-hp Cummins diesel. For more:
http://www.beneteau.com/us/swift-trawler/swift-trawler-35
COASTAL CRAFT 45
Coastal Craft, founded in 1996 by Jeff Rhodes in Gibsons, B.C., about 25 miles north of Vancouver, is something else in the recreational boating market. Originally catering to the fishing and work boat industry, Coastal Craft are all built with commercial-quality welded aluminum hulls, with an emphasis on reliability, safety and seaworthiness. Gibsons is about 25 miles north of Vancouver on Georgia Strait, where the waters can be unpredictable at best.
The new Coastal Craft 45, the company’s flagship, is built with a planing hull (topping out at 32 knots), an upscale interior, two staterooms and two heads, and a large flybridge with boat deck. Inside, the large helm station has a doublewide seat, good visibility and joystick controls for the Volvo IPS 600 pod drives; there are also joystick controls in the cockpit to help with docking or fishing, and the flybridge. The interior is filled with cherry accents and has a teak and holly sole. The forward master has a queen and separate head and shower, as does the guest stateroom. A settee in the salon converts to a queen bed. Safety is a priority, with high side rails, solid handholds inside and out, safe passageways between decks, high quality hatches and doors, and watertight compartments and bulkheads.
Designed for serious cruising, the Coastal Craft 45 has a range of 400 nm at 27 knots, or about 1,500 nm at 8 knots. I tested a smaller Coastal Craft a few years ago in Vancouver with Rhodes, and I was impressed by the quality of the build and the interior, by the boat’s performance, and by the emphasis on cruising safety.
Specs.: LOA: 48’6”; Beam: 15’3”; Draft: 7’4”; Disp.: 38,500 lbs.; Fuel: 470 gals.; Water: 100 gals.; Power: 2×435-hp Volvo diesels with IPS 600 pod drives.
CUTWATER 30
The trend toward outboard power keeps getting stronger and stronger. Now Cutwater Boats is introducing a new 30-footer with twin Yamaha 300-hp outboards because, says Cutwater President John Livingston, “We’ve had customers asking us to build a boat like this for a while now.” Livingston also says the new boat is “our biggest, fastest and most exciting Cutwater to date. The boat absolutely screams across the water.”
I haven’t tried the new 30 yet, but two summers ago I drove a Cutwater 28, with a single 260-hp Volvo diesel, from New York Harbor to Quebec City, and it cruised easily at about 16 or 17 knots. I think the new 30 with 600 horsepower would easily double that, particularly since Cutwater redesigned the hull to accommodate the higher speed. The new boat has a fuel-efficient, double-stepped hull to get the boat on plane faster and what Cutwater calls a Laminar Flow Interrupter to make for positive turning at speed.
The 30 sleeps six people in three separate areas. The forward cabin has an island double berth, a hanging locker, four portlights in the hull sides and an opening hatch overhead. The master head has a vanity, toilet and separate shower with a curved sliding door. Two more people can sleep on the convertible dinette, while two more can fit in a 6’8”-long cabin that’s tucked under the raised dinette.
The cockpit is made for fishing with a 30-gallon live well and large fish boxes, but it doubles as an entertaining center, with seats that extend out from the hull sides and a drop-in BBQ grill, sink and shower. On the foredeck, two flush hatches open up to reveal cushioned seats with a forward lounge.
As with all Cutwaters, the new 30 comes ready to cruise, with bow and stern thrusters, a nav package that includes a Garmin autopilot, Garmin 7612 GPS/chartplotter andGarmin radar, plus a 5-kW gas genset and Kyocera solar panel. The boat also is trailerable with a bridge clearance of 9’9” with the mast down; its height on a trailer is 13’2”. The Cutwater line now goes from 24 to 30 feet; all the boats are made in Washington state.
Specs: LOA: 30’; Beam: 10’; Draft: 2’5”; Disp.: 10,200 lbs.; Fuel: 300 gals.; Water: 80 gal.; Power: 2xYamaha 300hp counter-rotating outboards. Price: $299,937.
FLEMING 55
The quintessential serious cruising boat, the Fleming 55 has become a classic since it was first launched in 1986. Some 235 Fleming 55s have been built since then, reflecting hundreds of refinements and tweaks to reflect changing technologies and lessons learned on the water. Most of these refinements, of course, come from Tony Fleming himself, the founder of the company who cruises around the world on his Fleming 65 Venture, which he uses as a test bed to make sure the boats are constantly updated.
A pilothouse motoryacht, the Fleming 55 has three staterooms and two heads, a large, 130-square-feet cockpit, a flying bridge that can seat 11 plus an aft boat deck. The comfortable salon, with galley forward, and the pilothouse, with an L-shaped settee and interior access to the flybridge, all are filled with rich teak; fit and finish are exquisite throughout the boat.
The 55 has a moderate deadrise semi-displacement hull, with a deep keel to protect the running gear. Powered by twin 500-hp Cummins diesels, the 55 tops out at about 18 knots, but if you dial back to 8 knots the boat has a range of 2,000 nm. And Flemings are safe at any speed. I rode out a night of 60-knot winds off California’s Channel Islands on Venture three years ago with Tony Fleming, and the boat was solid as a rock.
Specs.: LOA: 55’9”; Beam: 16’0”; Draft: 5’0”; Disp,: 67,801 lbs.; Fuel: 1,000 gals., Water: 300 gals.; Power: 2×500-hp Cummins diesels.
FOUNTAINE PAJOT MY 44
You won’t be lonely on this new Fountaine Pajot MY 44 power catamaran. It comes with three staterooms, all with en suite heads, an absolutely enormous salon and flybridge, and lounges fore and aft. You can embark on some blue-water extended cruising with a lot of your friends, and you can do some serious entertaining with a larger crowd closer to home.
The Fountaine Pajot MY 44 was just introduced at the Dusseldorf boat show in January. It is now undergoing sea trials off La Rochelle, France, and it’s scheduled to appear in the U.S. before the end of the year. For all its space for easy living and socializing, this new cat from the respected French company is built to perform in any sea condition, and it is designed both for comfort (the twin hulls work against rolling, at anchor or underway) and efficiency: with standard twin 350-hp Volvo diesels and IPS drives the range is 1,000 nm. Volvo’s IPS joystick provides fingertip low-speed maneuvering and easy docking.
All three staterooms are in the side hulls. The luxurious master features a sea-facing, island queen bed and views from panoramic windows in the port side. Two guest staterooms, also with large windows, are on the starboard side. A fourth private cabin forward is optional.
The salon is a large open area with wrap-around windows, the lower helm on the starboard side, seating areas to port and an aft-facing galley that opens to the cockpit. A large lounge is aft in the cockpit, while a hydraulic swim platform gives easy access to the dinghy or water sports. The flybridge has an upper helm, sunbathing lounges and a dining table, and can be protected by an optional hardtop and enclosure. The foredeck has even more lounging areas.
Specs.: LOA: 44’0”; Beam: 21’7”; Draft: 4’3”; Disp.: 45,000 lbs.; Fuel: 528 gals.; Water: 198 gals.; Power: 2xVolvo diesels from 350- to 600-hp with IPS drives.
GRAND BANKS 60
The all-new, light-weight, high-performing Grand Banks 60 just made its U.S. debut at the Newport Show. The three-stateroom, two-head classic cruiser is the flagship of the Grand Banks Heritage fleet, which had topped out at 54 feet. Built under the leadership of Grand Banks (and Palm Beach) CEO Mark Richards, the new 60 is stronger and lighter and made with more sophisticated materials than any previous Grand Banks, reflecting Richards’ decades of experience as one of the leading sailboat racers in the world.
A totally reimagined Grand Banks, the new 60 has a low center of gravity and impressive balance for a comfortable and fuel-efficient ride throughout the speed range. We just tested it on Long Island Sound and registered a top speed of 31.1 knots. It has a warped hull shape with a fine entry and only 8 degrees of deadrise at the transom. The deck and flybridge are carbon infused, while all vinylester resins and a cross-linked Corecell foam core all make for a highly efficient power-to-weight ratio. Monocoque construction bonds all the bulkheads and interior furniture directly to the hull and deck for extra strength and extra quiet.
Designed to be operated by an owner/couple, the owner’s stateroom is full-beam, midships, and separated from the engine room by a full-beam utility room. The new beauty has a large, protected flybridge, and an extended boat deck provides weather protection over the aft deck below. For cruising safety, the side decks are wide and the bulkwarks are high. The new 60 carries a CE Category A rating.
Inside, the salon, galley and helm are all on the main deck, and the salon is unusually bright, with light from the wraparound effect of huge windshield panels, side windows and the rear window and door. The galley has Silestone solid surface countertops.
The boat has the flowing, contemporary looks to become a modern classic. The lines and proportions all seem just right. And the new 60 has all the world-class fit and finish that have marked Grand Banks for decades.
Standard power comes from two 725-hp Volvo D-11 diesels; the boat we tested had twin 1,000-hp Cat diesels. Dialed back to 7.3 knots, the boat had a range, with a 10-percent reserve, of an incredible 5,026 nm.
Specs.: LOA: 65’4”; Beam: 19’2”; Draft: 4’7”; Disp.: 63,900 lbs.; Fuel: 1,530 gals.; Water: 300 gals; Power: Standard: 2×725-hp Volvo Penta D-11 diesels; Optional: 2×1,000 hp-Cat diesels. Base price: $3,280,000.
GREAT HARBOR TT35
The new Great Harbour TT35, which was just launched at the Annapolis show, combines two growing trends: Outboard power, and trailerability. It’s designed to pack in all the comforts of a single-stateroom, liveaboard trawler with the ease, efficiency and cost-effectiveness of an outboard-powered boat that can be launched and retrieved and then trailered to cruising grounds all around the U.S. and Canada.
The new Great Harbour has home-like amenities, including a queen island berth in the master stateroom, a full-featured galley and a large head with a separate shower. The salon can hold extra guests for overnights, while the cockpit is covered for protection from the weather; it also can be fitted with a full weather enclosure. And the drop-down “tailgate” extends the cockpit and serves as a swim platform. The boat’s shallow draft – only 15 inches – opens up gunkholing possibilities on the Great Loop or elsewhere.
The hull form provides a combination of speed and efficiency. Powered by two 60-hp Suzuki four-stroke outboards with heavy-duty lower units, the Great Harbour tops out at 25 mph; the company says that at its cruising speed of 15 mph, the TT35 burns less than 4 gph.
The boat has its own custom aluminum trailer and it can be towed by a standard, full-size pickup. And its power generation and climate control are designed to function on land as well as at sea, so the boat can function as a “boater home” during long land trips.
Specs.: LOA: 35’8”; Beam: 10’4”; Draft: 15”; Disp.: 6,500 lbs.; Fuel: 135 gals. Water: NA; Power: 2×60-hp Suzuki outboards.
http://greatharbourtrawlers.com
GREENLINE 39 HYBRID
Operating in two cruising modes, the Greenline 39 Hybrid can run under its 220-hp Volvo diesel at an 11-knot cruising speed, topping out at 18 knots, or under its electric power at 4 knots, topping out at 6.5 knots. Under diesel power, range is 1,000 nm at 7 knots; under electric power, however, range is only 20 knots. What this means is that under its green, electric, low-carbon footprint, the Greenline 39 Harbor can cruise around a harbor or two, or enter a quiet anchorage at night, silently and efficiently.
Either way, the Greenline 39 is a low-profile, light-filled, two-stateroom, one-head cruising boat with a fold-out transom that extends the swim platform to give more open space to the cockpit and make watersports super-accessible. A flip-up window opens the galley aft to the cockpit, making it easy to serve food and drinks inside and out. To maximize space inside the salon, the Greenline designers made the side decks asymmetrical; the port side is quite narrow, while the starboard side is wide enough to make going forward easy and comfortable.
Four solar panels on top of the salon can power all systems on board for three hours in the electric mode. The Volvo diesel connects to a Mahle electric drive system. A clutch allows the boat to be powered by diesel alone, or electric alone. The diesel and an electric motor connect to a bank of rechargeable lithium battery packs. Built in Slovenia, the Greenline 39 Hybrid will be available in the U.S. early next year.
Specs.: LOA: 39’6”; Beam: 12’3”; Draft: 2’11”; Disp.: 16,535 lbs.: Fuel: 185 gals.; Water: 80 gals.; Power: 1×220-hp Volvo D3 diesel and 10 kW electric motor. Price: $359,000.
HAMPTON ENDURANCE 658
A high-quality, unusually spacious, long-range cruising boat, the Hampton Endurance 658 is designed to be run by a couple, and it’s designed with redundant systems throughout to keep them safe at sea. And if they want to cruise with a large family, or entertain a crowd back in port, there’s plenty of room for that too.
The Hampton Endurance 658 essentially is a three-stateroom, two-head cruiser, but it also has a crew cabin, which you reach via stairs from the aft port side of the salon, with another head, separate shower and small galley. It’s just aft of the large stand-up, user-friendly engine room, where there’s space all around the twin 1,000-hp Cat 12.9 diesels. The boat’s in-line backup systems include a spare genset, dual Racor fuel filters, water pumps and twin PTOs for hydraulics.
The salon is bright with windows all around. Two lounge chairs and a TV are on the port side, across from a sofa that’s also a pull-out queen berth. The fit, finish and craftsmanship are excellent. The galley is two steps up and is filled with home-style GE appliances; it has a breakfast bar with three chairs. All the way forward on this boat, the Compass Rose, is a large U-shaped dining table that offers guests great views forward and on either side. Two ship’s doors lead to the side decks, while on the port side interior stairs lead up to the flybridge for safety underway.
The aft deck has twin wing stations, port and starboard, for docking, with controls for the engines and bow and stern thrusters. There’s a day head here (the fourth on the boat), and a fridge is under a gleaming teak table. Forward, a Portuguese bridge offers another spot to relax or enjoy the passing scene.
Up top, the fully enclosed and air-conditioned flybridge is massive, with three helm chairs, an L-shaped lounge and teak table. The boat deck holds an AB inflatable with a 40-hp Yamaha and a Steelhead crane.
On the accommodation deck, the midships, full-beam master has a king-sized bed and lots of closets and moving-around space. The head is aft, and full-beam, with his-and-hers toilets, separated by a large, frosted-glass shower in the middle. A VIP stateroom with a queen-sized bed is in the bow, and a guest cabin, with either convertible twins or a queen bed, is to port. A large head with shower is across to starboard.
The 658 has a hybrid, semi-displacement hull, designed by Howard Apollonio, to make it efficient across the speed curve. The boat has a range of 1,300 nm at 8.5 knots, and tops out at about 20 knots. It burns only 24 gph at 14 knots.
Specs.: LOA: 68’0”; Beam: 18’0”; Draft: 5’2”; Disp.: 102,500 lbs.; Fuel: 1,750 lbs.; Water: 400 gals.; Power: 2×1,000-hp CAT 12.9 diesels.
HINCKLEY PICNIC BOAT 37 MK111
A newer version of the iconic Picnic Boat, the new Hinckley 37 MK111 is larger, faster and more comfortable than its predecessors. The new 37 has all the gorgeous lines of the original, but it now offers a cruise speed of 32 knots and, powered by twin 370-hp Yanmar diesels and Hamilton jet drives, it tops out at 35 knots.
Hinckley launched its first Picnic Boat, Dasher, in its yard in Southwest Harbor, Maine, in 1994. It was 36 feet long, driven by a single diesel and it had water jet drives, so that you wouldn’t snag a prop 0n Maine’s many lobster pots, while you could take the boat up to a beach or sandbar for a picnic outing. The boat set a new standard for aesthetics; the lines, drawing from its Maine lobster boat heritage, were flowing and beautiful, with a sweeping sheer and an eye-catching tumblehome. And there was teak everywhere, glistening from up to ten coats of varnish. (My wife and then-young daughter were with me when I tested Dasher, and they’ve wanted a Hinckley ever since.)
The new MK111 has all that, plus. Michael Peters designed a new hull, at 37 feet, and added enough beam to hold the twin engines. He also deepened the deadrise from 15 degrees at the transom to 19 degrees, to make the boat more comfortable in a seaway. And the boat has Hinckley’s patented JetStick 11, for fingertip control and easy docking.
Visibility from the helm is excellent all around, and you can push a button to open the large side windows and the overhead hatch for more ventilation, if you want. The captain and mate have Stidd helm seats. The engines are completely below deck; the entire deck lifts for access.
The Picnic Boat has always been a social boat. The 37 has a bench seat across the transom plus two rear-facing seats forward, leaving the large cockpit open. Forward, down two steps, the cabin has standing headroom, a surprise given the boat’s low profile, a V-berth in the bow, a large head with shower to starboard, and a galley to port. The new 37 has a SCRIMP Carbon E-glass composite hull with Corecell foam core and vinylester resin.
Specs.: LOA: 36’11”; Beam: 11’3”; Draft: 2’1”; Disp.: 16,100 lbs.; Fuel: 220 gals.; Water: 40 gals.; Power: 2×370-hp Yanmar diesels and Hamilton jet drives.
HORIZON POWER CAT 52
With its wide beam, low draft, long range and room for most of your family and a lot of your friends, the new Horizon Power Cat 52 is designed for both long-distance cruising and easy living and entertaining on board. One of the major advantages of a cat, of course, is the amount of space that can be packed between the hulls, and in the Horizon 52 that is put to good use. The salon with galley is simply huge and bright, with two large sofas and 360-degree views all around, plus an extra office area for a desk and chair. The owner’s stateroom occupies the entire starboard side hull with a queen bed, full-height closets and an en suite head.The VIP cabin is forward in the port hull, also with a queen bed; the guest cabin, with two twin beds, is aft of it. Those two cabins share the port head.
Up top, the flybridge seats six, and there’s left-over space for a 12-foot tender. The cockpit, meanwhile, has a seating and dining area for eight, with its own fridge and icemaker. Boarding doors on each side make for easy access.
With twin 550-hp Cummins, the Horizon 52 is a strong performer, with a 25-knot top speed. It’s also fuel-efficient. If you throttle back to 8 knots, range is more than 1,000 nm. Specs.: LOA: 51’7”; Beam: 22’0”; Draft: 4’3″; Disp.: 60,451 lbs.; Fuel: 800 gals.; Water: 250 gals.: Power: 2×550-hp Cummins diesels.
http://horizonpowercatamarans.com
HUNT SURFHUNTER 32
More and more boat owners are turning to outboard power, as the engines become more powerful, more fuel-efficient and so quiet that you often have to look at the tach to see if they’re running. In its new Surfhunter 32, Hunt has embraced that trend by hanging two 250-hp Yamahas off an Armstrong bracket on the transom, producing a top speed of 44 knots and opening up the cockpit with more space for fishing or relaxing. The new Hunt 32, of course, has the iconic deep-V hull that was started by C. Raymond Hunt on the original Bertram 31 in 1960.
The new 32 is a stretched version of the popular Surfhunter 29, with a redesigned interior and bridge deck. Visibility from the helm is excellent all around. Varnished teak companionway doors lead to the cabin below, with a full-sized V-berth, enclosed head with shower, and a galley with a single-burner stove, fridge and microwave. The best thing about a Hunt, however, aside from its classic good looks, is the ride. Over the years, I’ve driven Hunts in all kinds of weather up the ICW from Florida to Rhode Island, and up the Reversing Falls at the top of the Bay of Fundy; these are great boats.
Specs.: LOA: 31’1”; Beam: 10’6”; Draft: 3’0”; Disp.; 9,000 lbs.; Fuel: 235 gals.; Water: 28 gals.; Power: 2×250-hp Yamaha outboards.
JEANNEAU NC 33
The brand-new, French-styled Jeanneau NC 33 will make its North American debut at the Lauderdale show. The two-cabin, one-head, light-filled cruiser is powered by twin 220-hp Volvo diesel sterndrives, which make it both nimble and quick. The NC 33 already has been nominated for the European Powerboat of the Year 2018 award.
The boat is designed for easy and comfortable cruising. The interior is bright and open, with large side and front windows and a glass door that slides all the way open between the salon and cockpit. A large sunroof lets in more light overhead.
Visibility from the helm, on the starboard side, is excellent. There’s also a door next to the helm to provide easy access to the side decks – an unusual feature on a boat this size; so is the side access door aft, which makes boarding more comfortable. The salon and cockpit are all on one level.
The salon has a large settee on the port side with a nice touch: The forward seat flips so it can face forward or aft; the passenger can either enjoy the view underway or join the social area around the dining table. The galley is opposite, on the starboard side.
Below, the large master stateroom is forward, with a double berth and a large head with separate shower. A guest cabin, with twin berths, is aft. The cockpit has a retractable awning and convertible seating for lounging or dining, with access to the swim platform on the starboard side.
With a hull by Michael Peters, the acclaimed Sarasota, Florida, naval architect, the NC 33 cruises at about 23 knots and tops out at about 31 knots. A joystick to make docking fingertip-easy is optional.
Specs.: LOA: 34’5”; Beam: 10’10”; Draft: NA; Disp.: 11,830 lbs.; Fuel: 137 gals.; Water: 46 gals.; Power: 2×220-hp Volvo diesels sterndrives.
https://explorejeanneau.com/2017/10/17/introducing-the-nc-33-new-for-2018/
KADEY-KROGEN 52
Boats don’t come much saltier, or more bullet-proof, than Kadey-Krogens. And the new 52, a go-anywhere-in-the-world displacement trawler, promises to be no exception. A traditional long-range cruiser, the 52 has a raised pilothouse, Portuguese bridge, large protected cockpit, and spacious accommodations to make living aboard almost as comfortable staying at home – except that the passing view will be much more interesting.
You enter the large salon through a weathertight door from the cockpit. Forward, on the starboard side, is gourmet galley with a full-size Jenn-Air fridge and four-burner Viking range with oven. Another weathertight Dutch door leads to the side deck. On the port side of the salon, stairs lead up to the pilothouse, with a teak wheel, dual helm chairs, and an aft settee that converts to a watch berth when you lower the teak table. More weathertight Dutch doors lead to the side decks.
The 52 comes in a two- or three-cabin arrangement, with the master either forward or midships. With two cabins, you’ll have an additional dedicated office space. Both the master and guest staterooms have heads with stall showers. Since Kadey-Krogens are made for long range cruising, you won’t have to leave anything at home; there is storage space everywhere.
A single 231-hp John Deere diesel tops out at 9.6 knots, but the 52’s range is remarkable. At 9 knots, range is 1,700 nm; at 7 knots, it’s 3,300 nm. For comfort underway, the Kadey-Krogen 52 has a 5,300 pounds of encapsulated lead ballast. And the new 52 has the benefit of completely new tooling. Specs.: LOA: 52’8”; Beam: 17’3”; Draft: 5’5”; Disp.: 70,000 lbs.; Fuel: 1,400 gals.; Water: 400 gals.; Power: 1x 231-hp John Deere diesel.
KROGEN EXPRESS 52
Even with a flying bridge and raised pilothouse, the Krogen Express 52 manages to carry a classic low profile, enhanced by a long, flowing sheer line that emphasizes the boat’s distinctive profile. And the “Express” part of its name is not a misnomer: With twin 480-hp Yanmars the Krogen Express tops out at about 22 knots. Dial back to 8 knots and the boat has a range of 1,680 nm. With a semi-displacement hull, this express offers the best of a get-home-fast speed and a go-anywhere-without-refueling range.
Inside, the Krogen Express exudes fine craftsmanship and cherry finishing everywhere. A raised bench seat aft of the helm in the pilothouse converts to a double berth; Dutch doors open to the wide side decks. Below, the master in the bow is bright, with six portholes and hatches, and massive, with 7’4” standing headroom; an en suite head has a separate shower stall with a seat. A guest stateroom can be configured as an owner desires, including an L-shaped settee that converts to a bed plus a desk. The engine room is one of the best in the business; you can stand up and walk around. Specs.: LOA: 57’6”; Beam: 15’11”; Draft: 4’0”; Disp.: 43,000 lbs.; Fuel: 700 gals.; Water: 370 gals.; Power: 2×480-hp Yanmar diesels. Price: $1.6 million.
LAGOON SEVENTY 8
The flagship of the Lagoon motor yacht fleet, the new, luxurious, long-range Lagoon Seventy 8 was just launched at the Cannes Yachting Festival in September and will make its U.S. debut in Fort Lauderdale. The company says the idea behind the massive 78-foot-long cruiser with a 36-foot beam is to compete in the top end of the world-wide motor yacht market.
The Seventy 8 will emphasize comfort, luxury and seaworthiness. The cat’s twin hulls provide stability and space, while the three-foot draft gives the boat access to shallow bays and coves around the world. We don’t have details yet, but the interior spaces will be large for living aboard and entertaining, while the lines and proportions have been drawn to give the boat a timeless elegance. The exterior was designed by Patrick Le Quement; the interiors by Nauta Design.
Part of the Beneteau Group, Lagoon has made more than 3,000 large sailing catamarans over the years, while recently entering the powerboat marketplace. Made in Bordeaux, France, the Lagoon Seventy 8 is a motor yacht version of Lagoon’s Seventy 7 sailboat.
MARLOW 53 EXPLORER
The new Marlow 53 Explorer is a fuel-efficient, long-range, state-of-the-art cruiser that has enough fuel to cruise from West Palm Beach to Greenland and back without stopping (if all goes well, of course). For shorter trips, the new Marlow offers the same elegance, comfort and sophisticated engineering as its siblings.
David Marlow uses aviation-like standards in the yachts bearing his name, with lots of Kevlar, carbon fiber and modified epoxy, while keeping both the overhead height and the center of gravity low. The new 53 tracks straight with Marlow’s exclusive Strut Keel. The engine room has standing headroom and walkaround access to the twin John Deere diesels.
The boat’s salon has a desk and long L-shaped settee on the starboard side, and another settee between the bar and a granite-topped cabinet forward on the port side. The galley and dinette are in the pilothouse area.
Below, the large master stateroom has a centerline queen bed and a luxurious head with his-and-her toilets and vanities separated by a shower. The VIP stateroom forward has a queen berth with lots of storage and a head with shower. A smaller stateroom with upper and lower berths is under the steps. The flybridge has twin Stidd helm chairs, two settees and a hidden grill with sink, fridge and icemaker.
Specs.: LOA: 56’7”; Beam: 17’3”; Draft: 4’5”; Disp.: 66,000 lbs.; Fuel: 2,000 gals.; Water: 300 gals.; Power: 2x John Deere diesels.
MJM 43z
You can’t say the people at MJM Yachts aren’t thinking ahead. They just launched their new MJM 35Z, with two outboards, and now they’re lunching a new 43Z, with three, at the Lauderdale show. MJM says it has created the 43Z in response to requests from owners, particularly in the Carolinas and Florida, who want outboard-powered cruising boats.
Outboards have indeed become more popular in the past few years as they have become more technologically advanced, offering fuel-efficient, high-speed and low-noise-level performance. An outboard boat also has obvious advantages when running in shallow water, or in areas with lots of lobster pots. In the long term, it’s easier to replace an outboard engine when you need a new one; all you have to do is bolt on a new one.
For MJM Yachts, the new 43Z is an extension of the popular 40Z, which is powered by Volvo’s IPS pod drives. The 43Z, powered by three 350-hp Mercury Verado outboards, comes with joystick docking and Skyhook station keeping.
The 43Z is another collaboration of Doug Zurn, the Marblehead, Mass., designer (and the “Z” in the boat’s name), Bob Johnstone, the legendary founder of MJM (and J/Boats before that), and Mark Lindsay of Boston BoatWorks in Charlestown, Mass. Like other MJMs, it is built with advanced epoxy composite construction, and it has MJM’s signature low profile, long sheer and classic Down East lines. It is certified ISO Category A Ocean for stability and seaworthiness; a Seakeeper 5 gyrostabilizer is optional. The new 43Z has a flush deck with boarding doors on each side for easy entry, and has a low air height of only 10 feet with radar, which is particularly important if you’re cruising on the Waterway or the Great Loop.
The 43 has an extended hull, rather than a swim platform for the outboards, and the deadrise at the transom is 18.5 degrees. The company says top speed will be 46 knots; cruising speed, 35 knots. It predicts the new 43Z will have a range of 500 nm.
Specs.: LOA: 44’0”; Beam: 12’0”; Draft: 3’1”; Disp.; 18,960 lbs.; Fuel: 540 gals; Water: 100 gals.: Power: 3×350-hp Mercury Verado outboards.
THE MOORINGS 433PC
The newest power cat from the worldwide charter giant, The Moorings 433PC, with three staterooms and two heads, is designed as a mid-sized cruising boat for families or groups of up to eight guests. A well-mannered cat built by Robertson & Caine in South Africa (and also sold under the Leopard brand), The Moorings 433PC offers a comfortable, safe, relaxed cruising vacation with more than enough room, inside and out, for everyone onboard.
The large, air-conditioned salon has windows for visibility all around, a galley forward, a convertible settee that can sleep two, and big glass doors that open to the cockpit, which has a large seating area and dining table. But what’s unusual is that another door opens from the salon to the foredeck, a signature feature of The Moorings’ new cats; if you open this door forward and the cockpit doors aft, you can have a continuous indoor-outdoor living space on board.
A large owners’ suite occupies the entire starboard sponson, with the berth aft and the head with shower forward; the two guest staterooms are on the port side and share a head with shower. Up top, the flybridge affords great views all around; it has the helm station, another settee with a dining table, an electric grill and bar.
Initially, the new Moorings 433PC will operate out of the company’s large base in Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. If you buy the boat to charter, you have access to your own boat, or one like it, for up to 12 weeks a year at one of The Moorings 20 charter locations around the world. Specs.: LOA: 42’7”; Beam: 22’1”; Draft.: 3’1”; Disp.: 25,794 lbs.; Fuel: 264 gals.; Water: 206 gals.; Power: 2/260-hp Yanmar diesels.
NORDHAVN 59 COASTAL PILOT
Hull number one of the 20-knot Nordhavn 59 Coastal Pilot just made its East Coast debut at the Newport show in September. This three-stateroom, two-head Nordhavn, which tops out at twice the speed of previous Nordhavns, is the first to be built for coastal cruising, as opposed to the open-ocean, blue-water boats that have made the company famous. “This is a boat for people who don’t need ocean-crossing capabilities,” says Jim Leishman, vice president of PAE, Nordhavn’s parent company.
Designed for owners moving down from larger blue-water boats, or others just getting into coastal cruising, the 59 Coastal Pilot was launched at Nordhavn’s Dana Point, California, headquarters last summer and then displayed in Seattle. Earlier this summer a Nordhavn crew brought it back south, where it was loaded on a freighter for delivery to the East Coast. After the Newport show, the 59 Coastal Pilot also will be displayed at the Annapolis power show in October.
Powered by twin 715-hp Cummins QSM 11 diesels, the 59 has a fuel efficient, semi-displacement hull that tops out in the 18-20 knot area; if you dial back to 8.5 knots, the range is about 1,000 nm. Although it’s a coastal cruiser, the new 59 is still built like a little battleship, per Nordhavn’s tradition. The boat has a CE – Category A unlimited offshore rating for its sea-keeping abilities and strength.
In the new 59, the main deck consists of a salon, large galley and dinette with a lower helm (not a separate, raised pilothouse). The helm has a double-wide seat, with an L-shaped settee, seating four, to port. The dinette table is aft of the helm. The raised aft deck is protected by an overhang from the flybridge, and can be enclosed with canvas or Isinglass. The flybridge has seating for up to 12 people, with twin settees on each side of the helm. The boat deck aft has a Steelhead 800-pound davit and can hold a 14-foot tender.
Access to the engine room is from a door on the port side of the cockpit. The engine room is separated by two structural and insulated bulkheads, and has Nordhavn’s usual standing headroom and walk-around space on the inboard and outboard sides of the engines.
On the accommodation deck, the 59 Coastal Pilot is designed for either two or three staterooms, with two heads. This boat has the three-stateroom arrangement, with the owner’s stateroom full-beam amidships, with two comfortable chairs, an en suite head with dual sinks, a large shower and an equally large linen locker. A separate laundry is forward. A large VIP cabin is forward, and the third cabin, with three berths, is between the VIP and the master. The VIP and the third cabin share a head with shower.
Specs.: LOA 58’9”; Beam: 17’0”; Draft: 4’2”; Disp.: 82,000 lbs., Water: 444 gals.; Fuel: 1,100 gals. Power: 2x 715-hp Cummins QSM 11 diesel engines.
NORDIC TUGS 44
There’s no mistaking a Nordic Tug. The iconic salty tugboat lines, even down to the faux smokestack, have identified the brand ever since the first one, a 26-footer, was introduced at the Seattle boat show in 1980. The new Nordic Tugs 44, which replaces the popular 42, has all the personality, performance and solid sea-keep abilities of its predecessors.
Nordic Tugs are built in Burlington, Washington, for serious cruisers, people who will go up the Inside Passage to Alaska or from Maine to Miami and the Bahamas as a matter of course. The 44 has a two-stateroom, two head layout with a large salon and U-shaped galley, a raised pilothouse (with doors leading directly to the side decks), and an optional flybridge. There’s inside access to the bridge from the pilothouse, for safe and comfortable cruising. The master stateroom in the bow is exceptionally large and comfortable, with more than 7-foot headroom. And almost as an extra surprise, an office/nav station is opposite the guest stateroom with a desk, leather chair and plenty of room for electronics and charts.
I drove a new 44 recently on the Connecticut River off Essex, home of Wilde Yacht Sales, Nordic Tugs’ largest dealer. With a full keel and large rudder, the boat tracked well, handled easily and was a solid, fuel-efficient performer. Top speed, with a single 510-hp Volvo diesel, was 17 knots. At 7.5 knots, the boat has a range of 1,400 nm.
Specs.: LOA: 44’8”; Beam: 13’10”; Draft: 4’6”; Disp.: 31,400 lbs.; Fuel: 600 gals.; Water: 175 gals.; Power: 1×510 Volvo diesel.
NORTH PACIFIC 49 PILOTHOUSE
For a user-friendly boat that’s easy on the outside and elegant on the inside, take a look at the North Pacific 49 Pilothouse. There’s no wood on the outside, you just hose it down, while the inside has rich teak throughout, a large pilothouse for easy navigation, and an unusual full-beam salon for comfortable living. With a semi-displacement hull, the North Pacific 49 is a rugged, solid trawler meant for safe coastal cruising or living aboard.
The pilothouse on the 49 is a true pilothouse, with twin adjustable helm chairs, a settee that converts to a berth, good visibility and doors opening to the foredeck (or to stairs up to the flybridge and then down to the cockpit). Owners can choose from several options in the oversized salon, with the galley forward to port. Four steps down from the salon, a centerline companionway (with a linen closet) leads to the master in the bow, with an island queen berth and en suite head with shower, or to the guest stateroom to port, with a pair of single berths and a drop-down third berth. The two singles can be pushed together to make a queen bed. Across to starboard is the guest/day head, also with a separate shower.
With a 355-hp Cummins diesel, the North Pacific 49 tops out at about 11 knots. A 6 kW genset, bow thruster and folding radar arch are standard. Specs.: LOA: 52’0”; Beam: 15’5”; Draft: 4’10”; Disp.: 48,000 lbs.; Fuel: 500 gals.; Water: 350 gals.; Power: 1×355 hp Cummins diesel.
OUTER REEF 610
Designed to be run by a cruising couple, the new Outer Reef 610 Motoryacht is spacious, fuel-efficient and easy to maneuver. Indeed, in early July hull number one carried its new owners, a couple from Newport, Rhode Island, on a shakedown cruise from Fort Lauderdale up to their home in five days with just two pit stops, although they had a captain from Outer Reef to help them get acquainted with the boat. Then they cruised New England waters for the rest of the summer themselves.
The heart of the Outer Reef 610 is the pilothouse, with its adjoining galley and weathertight doors leading to the port and starboard side decks. It has an L-shaped settee on a raised platform (a great place to enjoy the passing view), with a teak table on a stainless-steel pedestal. There’s a Stidd helm chair and a custom Outer Reef wood steering wheel. A curved teak stairway leads to the accommodation deck below. Forward is a Portuguese bridge with seating and a hinged door to the foredeck.
The salon is large and comfortable with an L-shaped settee and a teak coffee table. Teak is everywhere, on the cabinetry, lockers and wall paneling. The galley has a teak and holly sole, as well as Corian countertops, freezer and fridge, an electric cooktop and oven, a microwave and a dishwasher.
Below, the full-beam master is midships with a centerline king bed, an L-shaped, walk-in closet, teak end tables and a large en suite master head with Corian countertops, large shower, and a teak and holly sole. The VIP stateroom is forward with a queen bed and two hanging lockers. The guest cabin is to port with side-by-side twin berths and one hanging locker. The guest head is large with a glass shower door and access from the VIP stateroom or the lower hallway.
The flybridge has a Stidd helm chair facing a stainless-steel destroyer wheel; two L-shaped settees provide lounging space. Stairs on the starboard side lead down to the pilothouse. A 1,000-pound davit is on the boat deck. The aft deck is protected by an overhang from the flybridge to make alfresco dining comfortable, and a large swim platform gives access to water sports.
Specs.: LOA: 61’2”; Beam: 17’2”; Draft: 5’0”; Disp.: 93,000 lbs.; Fuel: 1,000 gals. Water: 300 gals.; Power: 2×500-hp John Deere diesels.
PALM BEACH 65
The Newport show was the U.S. debut of the Palm Beach 65, which is made in the joint Palm Beach/Grand Banks factory in Malaysia. A luxurious – and beautiful – three-stateroom, three-head boat designed by world champion sailor Mark Richards, the Palm Beach 65 can be ordered with Volvo IPS pod drives or with straight shafts. This particular boat is powered by Volvo D-13 900-hp diesels with shaft drives; bow and stern thrusters make maneuvering easy. I tested this boat recently on Long Island Sound and it topped out at 30.2 knots; the ride was remarkable with the bow barely rising as the big boat came up to speed and the hull – a semi-displacement affair designed by Richards – barely leaning as the boat carved 25-knot turns.
The Palm Beach 65 is much more than just another pretty boat, although one with gorgeous lines and world-class teak accents everywhere. Push a button and the transom lifts up to display a 10.5-foot RIB in the garage. From the helm, push other buttons and the side and back windows power down. The galley is huge, as is the master stateroom, with a king-sized bed and separate laundry room (the owners plan on living on board in the Bahamas).
Specs: LOA: 70’; Beam: 19’: Draft: 3’6”; Disp.: 50,700 lbs.; Fuel: 1,320 gals.; Water: 336 gals.; Power: 2x D13 Volvo diesels.
PRESTIGE 520
The brand-new, French-styled Prestige 520, designed for easy cruising or entertaining, is making its U.S. debut at the Lauderdale show. With three cabins (plus an optional captain’s quarters) and a top speed of 26 knots, the Prestige 520 has a new luxurious, light-filled interior, where large windows create a bright, soft atmosphere in the salon. Its aggressive raked windshield and sleek, low profile mark it as a full-fledged member of the Prestige lineup.
In the salon, the galley is aft, per the current custom, then a super-sized U-shaped lounge and table are on the port side, with an L-shaped settee to starboard. The helm is to starboard; four centerline steps lead down to the accommodations deck.
The full-beam, midships master has a centered bed; the stateroom is large enough for a sofa on the port side. The VIP cabin is in the bow, with scissor berths that can be separated or pushed together, and a smaller guest cabin on the port side has two berths. The 520 has two large heads with showers.
For lounging, there a large sun pad on the bow, with pop-up lounge chairs, while aft the cockpit has an L-shaped settee across the transom. The large swim platform provides access to the garage for a tender, or the optional captain’s quarters with its own head. On the flybridge, the helm with a double bench seat is to port, and a large L-shaped lounge with a table is to starboard.
Powered by twin 435-hp Volvos diesels, the new Prestige cruises at a comfortable 22 knots. The Volvo IPS joystick controls make for easy docking and low-speed maneuvering.
Started almost 30 years ago, Prestige is part of the powerful Beneteau group, and has sold more than 2,500 yachts worldwide.
Specs.: LOA: 52’9”; Beam: 14’9”; Draft: 3’5”; Disp.: 31,085 lbs.; Fuel: 344 gals.; Water: 169 gals; Power: 2×435-hp Volvo IPS 600s.
RANGER TUGS 27
As more evidence of the increasing move to outboard power, Ranger Tugs just introduced its 2018 R-27 with a single Yamaha F300 outboard, opening up the cockpit a bit, adding to the boat’s overall length, and certainly producing a bump up in speed. We don’t have any performance details yet, but we do know that the shift to an outboard will appeal to a portion of Ranger’s potential market that wanted some more juice. The Kent, Washington-based company will still offer the popular R-27 with a standard 200-hp Volvo D3 diesel.
Over the years, I’ve cruised on Ranger Tugs in the San Juans and the Canadian Gulf Islands and have always enjoyed their comfort, creative use of space and easy living on board. With a standard bow thruster, and remote, the 27 is easy to handle around a dock, while the two-cabin, one-head layout makes cruising comfortable for a family or a small group of friends.
The forward cabin has a V-berth that sleeps two adults comfortably; the bed is more than 6’5” long, and the cabin has a head with shower. The salon includes a midship office space with a desk and a chair; it converts to a berth that sleeps two, while the dinette table is on a hydraulic piston and converts to a berth or lounge area. The signature Ranger Tugs curved windshield and overhead glass provide a lot of light for the salon. The standard galley includes a sink, fridge, inverter, microwave and combination propane stove/oven.
All Ranger Tugs come fully equipped and ready to cruise. The standard 27 includes a Garmin 7612 chartplotter and autopilot and AIS 300. With its 8’6” beam, the Ranger 27 can be trailered easily from one cruising destination to another. The boat comes in two versions: The Northwest Edition, with a diesel forced-air furnace and downrigger plugs and pads, for $184,937, and the Luxury Edition, with a generator and air conditioning, for $199,937.
Specs.: LOA 27’0”; Beam: 8’6”; Draft (motor down): 2’9”; Disp.: 7,000 lbs.; Fuel: 150 gals;. Water: 40 gals.; Power: 1xYamaha F300 outboard.
SABRE 45 SE
The all-new Sabre 45 Salon Express just won The People’s Choice Award at the Newport International Boat Show, meaning that more people who paid to go to the show liked this classic Down East two-stateroom, two-head, user-friendly cruiser than any other boat there. And it’s easy to see why.
From start to finish, this new built-in-Maine beauty is made for the way people cruise today. At 45 feet, with IPS joystick controls, it’s easy for a relatively new cruising couple, or a pair of old salts, to handle. They can live on it for a long time, cruising by themselves, if they want; they also can cruise with a pair of guests in a separate stateroom (friends, children, grandchildren, whatever), or they can go out for the day with a lot of friends who just want to relax in the bright, light-filled salon and sociable cockpit.
Even the mid-level galley, two steps down from the helm, is still part of the social scene, and it too is bright, with light streaming in from the windshield and salon windows above and a portlight over the sink.
Two more steps down, in the accommodation deck, the master stateroom forward has a large centerline island bed with several lockers and drawers. The iconic Herreshoff-styled cherry interior will delight the most ardent nautical purist. The master head has a separate stall shower and ceramic tile sole. The guest cabin, on the starboard side, has twin beds on tracks. You can slide them together to form a single island bed if you want. It shares the day head, with shower. Just aft of the guest stateroom is a small storage room with room for a gyro, a washer/dryer or perhaps a wine cellar.
For the captain, driving is easy, with excellent visibility all around. He and his mate can relax in matching Stidd helm seats. A side door opens to the starboard deck, a big advantage when docking or going through a lock. The salon has a bench settee on the port side and an L-shaped settee to starboard, with a high-gloss varnished hi-low table.
In the cockpit, a U-shaped lounge is aft against the transom, with a two-person bench set against the aft bulkhead on the starboard side. The forward part of the cockpit is protected by an overhang from the cabin roof; an optional SureShade offers more protection. A polished stainless-steel-and-glass door leads in to the salon.
Above all, the Sabre 45 is a sea boat, true to its heritage. With twin 435-hp Volvos, it tops out at 32 knots. At a 15-knot loafing cruise, it burns only 18 gph, and is unusually quiet, registering just 73 dB(A) at the helm, making for a comfortable cruise for all on board.
Specs.: LOA: 49’0: Beam: 14’8”; Draft: 3’9”; Disp.: 37,000 lbs.; Fuel: 450 gals.; Water: 150 gals.; Power: 2×435-hp Volvo D6 engines with IPS pod drives.
SIRENA 64
The new Sirena Yachts 64 offers a world-class design pedigree and the promise of comfortable long-range cruising on a three-stateroom, three-head thoroughly modern yacht. Designed by German Frers, one of the best names in naval architecture, the new Sirena has an interior by Spadolini Design Studio. It is built in Turkey, the first hull produced by Sirena Yachts, the powerboat arm of Sirena Marine. Founded in 2008, Sirena Marine has built some 250 powerboats so far, including the Magellano brand for Azimut. The new 64 has been an immediate hit. Indeed, four were sold before the boat was introduced to the U.S. at the Yachts Miami Beach show in February.
Frers says the boat comes with three optional interior layouts, all offering “generous volume for serious world family cruising.” The hull design was tank tested in Southampton, England, and can operate efficiently in either a planing or semi-displacement mode. With twin 850-CAT diesels, the Sirena 64 tops out at 27 knots; its most efficient cruising speed is 16 knots. Dialed back to 10 knots, the boat has a range of 1,000 nm.
Inside, the midships owner’s suite is both large and luxurious, with a full-beam head with separate shower. The other two guest staterooms also have en-suite heads and showers, while the two-person crew quarters, accessed from the cockpit, also has its own head and shower. Up top, the flybridge is covered by a hardtop, with a sunroof that can be opened in good weather. There’s a Jacuzzi on the bow, as well as sunbeds and a dining area. The cockpit has another dining area as well. The Sirena 64 also can be ordered in a four-stateroom version.
Specs.: LOA: 68’0″; Beam: 19’3″; Draft: 4’2″; Disp.: 88,000 lbs.; Fuel: 1,400 gals.; Water: 383 gals.; Power 2×850-hp CAT 12.9 diesels.
SUNREEF SUPREME 68
The first Sunreef Supreme 68 power cat in the United States will be introduced at the Lauderdale show, and it’s simply vast. With more than 3,200 square feet of living space – luxurious living space, at that – it’s larger than many New York apartments. The Sunreef 68 is an elegant, contemporary European design with clean lines, where the interior and exterior spaces blend together to create vast open areas for lounging and dining whether underway or at a dock.
In the new 68, Sunreef keeps the salon and exterior deck, fore and aft, all at the same level. The main salon has floor-to-ceiling glass panels for lots of natural light, and a seamless space opening back into the cockpit and to both side decks through sliding doors on each side of the yacht. The salon has an L-shaped sofa, arm chairs and a dining table seating eight or 10, all in separate areas with lots of walking around space.
From the salon, you can walk forward to the full-beam (34’5”) master stateroom, which is simply huge. On the lower accommodation deck, there’s a single VIP stateroom on the port side and two additional matching staterooms on the starboard side, all with separate heads and showers.
You walk on the boat via two massive sets of stairs rising from the large swim platform, which also has access to the garage with room for a 16’4” tender or a pair of jetskis. On the flybridge, a large U-shaped lounge and table are aft of the helm, offering enough room for a good-sized crowd looking for panoramic views all around.
Specs.: LOA: 67’1”; Beam: 34’5”; Draft: 3’7”; Disp.: NA; Fuel: 1,849 gals.; Water: 264 gals.; Power: 2×225-hp diesels to 2×800-hp diesels.
VICEM 58 CLASSIC
Vicem, the Turkish builder that produces Downeast-style boats, is introducing a new 58 Classic at the Fort Lauderdale show. The new low-profile 58 is made with Vicem’s trademark cold-molded, laminated mahogany and formulated epoxy resin to provide a strong, smooth and quiet ride, and it has Vicem’s long, graceful sheerline and eye-catching tumblehome aft.
The 58 is a larger and newer version of Vicem’s popular 52, but its 16’7” beam provides more elbow room and the 58 has enough room for what the company calls an Open Galley below, with a generous eight-feet of headroom and a large amount of entertaining space all around. The boat comes in a two- or three-cabin configuration; the master stateroom is in the bow with its own en suite head and shower. A guest stateroom with two berths is a bit aft on the starboard side, also with a head and shower. In the three-cabin version, the extra stateroom, on the port side, takes up some of the open galley area.
The luxurious salon has windows on three sides plus two large, sliding glass doors that separate it from the cockpit. It has a classic layout with settees on each side, an entertainment system with a 40″ TV, and a beautiful raised mahogany helm and a large bench seat. A side door gives immediate access to the starboard deck.
The planing hull has a hard chine and a 16.5-degree deadrise at the transom. Powered by twin 725-hp Volvo diesels, it is expected to top out at about 29 knots and cruise at 25 knots, with a range of 325 nm. An optional bow thruster makes it easy to maneuver around the docks.
Specs.: LOA: 58’0”; Beam: 16’7”; Draft: 5’0”; Disp.: 59,500 lbs.; Fuel: 730 gals.; Water: 220 gals.: Power: 2×725-hp Volvo diesels.
