Boat Reviews

Williams Launches Tender with SOLAS Option

By Peter Janssen on July 18, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Williams Jet Tenders will launch its new 16-foot Dieseljet 505 with an optional SOLAS certification at the Monaco Yacht Show, starting Sept. 28. The new luxury RIB has been modified to meet all the stringent requirements of SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea). SOLAS-certified tenders are considered the gold standard in rescue vessels, and they’re a legal requirement for yachts over 500GT. The new Williams Dieseljet with the SOLAS option is capable of towing life rafts, serving as a man-overboard recovery boat or functioning in many other emergency situations. Matthew Hornsby, the commercial director for Williams Jet Tenders, says, “Not…

Wally Building WHY150 Space Ship

By Peter Janssen on July 11, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Wally just announced that it’s making a new Wally WHY150 yacht, the second in its WHY series, designed for extra space and comfort on board. The first WHY, the 200, at 88 feet, was launched in September. The latest 150, at 78 feet, is scheduled to be launched in February. The WHY stands for Wally Hybrid Yacht, but the hybrid part doesn’t refer to propulsion. Instead, it means a hybrid hull built for both displacement and semi-displacement cruising. But what really sets the WHY series apart is the massive space inside the yacht. The new 150 has a high bow…

Invictus Making New GT320S Outboard

By Peter Janssen on July 5, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Invictus Yachts just announced that it will debut its new GT320S twin-outboard cruiser at the Cannes Yachting Festival, starting Sept. 6. Standard power on this latest Invictus comes from twin 300-hp Yamaha outboards, but the boat can support outboards up to a total of 900 hp. The GT320S is the Italian builder’s fourth outboard boat, reflecting the growing popularity of outboard propulsion. “The outboard configuration strongly expresses and states the character and soul of the owner who chooses it,” said Christian Grande, who has designed everything from luxury cars to superyachts and is Invictus’ principal designer. The interior of the…

New Sustainable Electric Elegance 38

By Peter Janssen on July 4, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The slender, Italian-styled and silent Electric Elegance 38 is a new entry in the sustainable boating field, and it certainly has the classic looks that should turn heads in the Med or anywhere else it chooses to go. The Electric Elegance 38 is relatively light in weight, with a carbon-fiber hull weighing less than 12,000 pounds, and it has twin shafts driven by two 300kW motors. New owners can choose among three battery packs, delivering 300kWh, 350kWh, or 450kWh. The idea behind the Electric Elegance is to combine clean, modern lines that will never go out of style with a…

Horizon Unveils New 68 Power Cat

By Peter Janssen on July 2, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Horizon Power Catamarans just unveiled plans for a new Horizon PC68, a four-stateroom, four-head cruiser with an open salon, an innovative Portuguese bridge deck, and various options for its massive flybridge up top. Horizon says it’s celebrating a record-breaking year, reaching a milestone of 50 boats sold. The 68 will be the newest of the company’s range of power cats that now has a PC52, PC60 and a flagship PC74. Horizon is offering buyers several options for the PC68, all taking advantage of the big cat’s 24’ 6” beam. Up top, the company offers an option of an open bridge…

New Sirena 78: Lots of Choices

By Peter Janssen on June 30, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Sirena Yachts just announced that it’s building a new 78 cruiser with the Turkish builder’s elegant, modern-European lines and a lot of options for a new owner. The 78 will debut at the Cannes Yachting Festival in September. The new 78 is designed to be run by an owner-operator or by a crew. It’s in the middle of the Sirena lineup that already has a 58, 66, and 88. And it has Sirena’s plumb bow, a long, low hardtop over the flybridge and an aft deck that’s protected by the overhang from the boat deck above. It also has the…

XO Boats Unveils Rugged New DFNDR 8

By Peter Janssen on June 28, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

XO Boats, the relatively new builder in Finland, just announced that it’s starting work on a 26-foot DFNDR 8 go-anywhere, all-purpose boat that will top out at 50 knots with twin outboards. The new DFNDR 8, like other XO boats, has a rugged aluminum deep-V hull with a 23-degree deadrise at the transom. XO says it uses military-grade aluminum because it’s sturdy, sustainable, and easy to maintain. The DFNDR 8 is designed for owners who want to be able to go out in less-than-ideal conditions, and it will be fun to drive. Indeed, Erkki Talvela, the CEO of XO Boats,…

Wayne Gretzky Builds 34-Foot Mahogany Boat

By Peter Janssen on June 27, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Wayne Gretzky, probably the greatest hockey player of all time, and his wife, Janet, are now cruising on Lake Coeur d’Alene in Idaho on their new 340 HT Steinway mahogany boat from Coeur Custom there. The Gretzkys actually took delivery of the boat last September, but then used it for just two days before closing their vacation house in Coeur d’Alene and heading south. This summer they’ll enter it at the Coeur d’Alene Antique and Classic Boat Festival, starting August 13. The boat took 12 months to build, and it’s made of Sapele wood with 16 coats of varnish, white…

Rosborough 246: A No-Frills Pocket Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on June 27, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The Rosborough 246, a no-frills pocket cruiser built by Eastern Boats in Milton, New Hampshire, almost cries out, “Great Loop.” With its protected cabin, V-berth for two, enclosed head and single-outboard power, the Rosborough is fully capable of tackling the Great Loop, or almost any other coastal cruising destination. Indeed, John Hauck, an 82-year-old retired Special Forces major, has completed the Great Loop twice on his 2003 Rosborough 246. Rosboroughs were originally made as commercial fishing boats in Nova Scotia, where they earned a reputation as salty and reliable performers. Rosborough sold the molds to the 246 to Eastern Boats…

Leopard Building New 40 Power Cat

By Peter Janssen on June 21, 2022 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Leopard is building an all-new 40 powercat in its factory in Cape Town, South Africa. It will launch the cat there at the end of the year, and then hold a world premiere at the Miami show in February. The new 40 is the smallest entry in the Leopard powercat fleet, which now has a 46 and a 53. The company says the 40 will have all the comfort and seaworthiness of its larger siblings, but in a smaller package. The company says the flybridge on the 40 is the largest in its size range. It has an upper helm…

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