Boat Reviews

Walker Bay Launches Big New Revo 21 RIB

By Peter Janssen on November 2, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Walker Bay just introduced its new Revo 21, a fast, comfortable boat that the company says is the world’s first 21-foot luxury sport RIB. It is indeed versatile; you can use it for just about anything you want to do on the water – fishing, diving, picnics, water sports or just driving around the harbor or the next cove. With a beam of 9’ 5”, the Revo 21 is wider than most 21-foot RIBs, and that extra space has been put to good use. The boat can hold 12 people, including forward seating for seven with comfortable cushions and a…

Greenline Planning New 58 Fly Hybrid

By Peter Janssen on November 2, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Greenline just had the debut of its new 68 hybrid, the flagship of its Slovenian fleet, at the Fort Lauderdale show, and it announced that it’s working on a new 58 Fly, which will be its next largest yacht, for a launch next fall. Greenline says that the 68, which can operate for as long as two days on battery power alone, is the largest production hybrid in the world. The planned 58 Fly will have all the same eco-friendly advantages as the 68, including the ability to run under diesel or solar/electric power, but in a slightly smaller package,…

Nordhavn Launches New 80 at FLIBS

By Peter Janssen on October 27, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Nordhavn is having the world-wide debut of its new 80 at the Fort Lauderdale show, as well as displaying its new 41, the smallest cruiser in its legendary blue-water fleet. The new Nordhavn 80 is something of a departure for the company; it looks a bit more like a superyacht than like most previous Nordhavns. Jeff Leishman, Nordhavn’s design chief, drew the 80 with straighter lines, larger windows, thinner mullions, and generally more of a contemporary European influence than was visible in Nordhavns in the past. If you think this Nordhavn is different, consider the hot tub on the extended…

New Retro Reward 17: A Fun, Soft Ride

By Peter Janssen on October 25, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The third week of October is pushing the boating season in Connecticut, but there we were, heading out of Mystic Harbor at about 35 mph in hull number one of the head-turning Reward 17, grinning from ear to ear. Even though we were going into a 15-knot or so headwind, with 3-foot seas, the Reward 17, driven by a 170-hp Rotax engine and a waterjet, delivered a ride that was soft and easy. To show the boat’s maneuverability, Chris Ashley, who designed it and built it, turned the wheel and put us into a jet-drive turn; an immediate turn. But…

True North Launches New 34 Outboard Express

By Peter Janssen on October 19, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

True North, now owned by Catalina, just introduced its all-new 34 Outboard Express at the Annapolis show. The new 34 has a one-level open plan in the pilothouse and cockpit, with the galley up, and it’s driven by twin 300-hp outboards. With its Downeast lines, dating to an earlier lobster boat heritage, the True North 34 is a versatile cruiser with a spacious cockpit and a single cabin and head below. Its looks go back to the original True North, a 38, launched by the Pearson Marine Group, in 2001. The original True Norths were called the SUVs of the…

Axopar Shows New 25 With a Cuddy Cabin

By Peter Janssen on October 18, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Axopar just had a pre-production showing of its new 25 Cross Bow boat at the Cannes Yachting Festival. It has a hardtop and a cuddy cabin with a toilet below, and Axopar’s slippery deep-V hull with twin steps. The beam is just 7’ 4”, so it can be trailered in the U.S. An innovative Finnish company, Axopar launched its first boat, a 28, in 2014, and then moved up to a 37 and 32 that became popular in the American market. Owners loved to drive them, they’re fun, and their signature low-profile, narrow-beam design created a lot of attention. Last…

Silent-Yachts Sells First 100-Foot Solar Flagship

By Peter Janssen on October 18, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Silent-Yachts just sold the first Silent 100 Explorer catamaran, a 101-foot luxury yacht capable of crossing oceans under solar power. An Austrian company, Silent-Yachts says its new flagship, with a beam of 44’ 7”, has the living space equivalent to that found in a monohull half again its size. Hull number one will be launched in 2023. Solar cells on the top of the four-deck Silent 100 Explorer provide up to 40kWp and feed a battery bank with a capacity of 800kWh. The yacht also has twin 340kW electric motors. It has an economical cruising speed of 6 to 8…

Sweden’s Windy SR44 Luxury Cruiser Now in U.S.

By Peter Janssen on October 14, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Built in Sweden, the Windy SR44 is being introduced to the United States at the Fort Lauderdale boat show by Nautical Ventures, its distributor here. The Windy SR44 is already a success in Europe. Indeed, it was nominated for a European Boat of the Year Award last year. It’s easy to see why the Windy, a super-modern, high-performance, luxury sports yacht, is a standout that will turn heads on both sides of the Atlantic. With its precision handling, super-sized sun lounges and accommodations for four below, it is just as appealing for a weekend cruise in the Bahamas as it…

Cruisers Will Launch New 34 GLS at Lauderdale

By Peter Janssen on October 13, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Cruisers Yachts will introduce its new 34 GLS at the Fort Lauderdale show, starting Oct. 27. The twin-outboard family boat is the first that Cruisers has made since MarineMax bought the 68-year-old Wisconsin company in May. Cruisers now has 16 models, from 33 to 60 feet. The GLS series is its entertainment-centered line. The new 34 joins a GLS 42 and GLS 38. The 34 GLS certainly has a social theme. There’s seating for eight in the bow, plus more in the cockpit (with Swiss Army knife-like seats that flip back and forth) and more in the helm deck. And…

New Greenline 68: Largest Production Hybrid Yet

By Peter Janssen on October 12, 2021 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The Greenline 68 Oceanclass Hybrid, the largest production hybrid yacht ever built, will make its debut at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, starting Oct. 27. The new Greenline, the flagship of the Slovenian company’s fleet, can run on diesel or solar/electric power, giving an owner the option of operating a silent, emissions-free vessel for up to 1,000 nm at 5 knots. The luxury yacht gets its green power from a 320kWh lithium battery bank paired to integrated solar panels on the hardtop over the flybridge. It can operate for as long as two days just on the batteries alone.…

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