Cruising Life

Cranchi and Garmin Big Winners of European Powerboat of the Year Awards

By Peter Janssen on January 22, 2019 Cruising Life

Cranchi and Garmin were big winners at the 13th annual European Powerboat of the Year awards at the Düsseldorf boat show. The prestigious awards were decided by a jury of editors from eight European boating magazines; they considered 24 finalists drawn from more than 200 new boats launched in Europe last year. The awards were divided into four size categories, a displacement hull category, and an innovation category. The Nordkapp Noblesse 660 won in the small boat class, up to 25 feet. The judges said it was a new concept in the day cruiser segment, with a protected cockpit and excellent…

Docking Made Easy (Very Easy) with Raymarine’s New DockSense and Virtual Bumper

By Peter Janssen on January 21, 2019 Cruising Life

With a little help from its own brand of artificial intelligence, Raymarine just developed a new DockSense system with a Virtual Bumper zone that automates docking. It introduced the new system at the Düsseldorf boat show, and will demonstrate it on a new Prestige 460 at the Miami boat show, starting Feb. 14. Prestige, a Beneteau brand, is the first production boat company to use the new system. DockSense uses intelligent object recognition and motion sensing to help dock a boat. It relies on FLIR vision camera technology and video analytics to integrate information from the boat’s surrounding imagery with…

New Head-turning 48 Wallytender: First Boat Under the Ferretti Group

By Peter Janssen on January 21, 2019 Cruising Life

Yes, I know this isn’t the typical cruising boat that we usually cover, but a pretty boat is a pretty boat, and this one has a fairly unusual heritage. The new Wally 48 Wallytender, just announced at the Düsseldorf Boat Show, is the first boat in the new partnership of Wally and the Ferretti Group, along with the news that the Ferretti Group (Ferretti Yachts, Riva, Pershing, CRN and Custom Line) is buying Wally. The 48 Wallytender is being built at the Ferretti plant in Forli, Italy, with the first boat scheduled to be launched in June. The new Wally keeps…

Vicem Introduces New Cold-Molded, Long-Range, 22-knot 67 Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on January 21, 2019 Cruising Life

Vicem, the high-end Turkish builder, is starting work on a new long-range, cold-molded, three-stateroom, three-head 67 Cruiser that it will introduce at the Newport International Boat Show in September. The Vicem 67 Cruiser will have twin 600-hp Volvo diesels with a cruising speed of 18 knots and a top speed of 22 knots. Vicem says the new 67 is designed for the way cruising people live today, with a series of social spaces throughout the boat. The flybridge, protected by a hardtop, holds the upper helm, a forward-facing companion seat, a U-shaped settee and a galley. The salon has a…

Five Great Adventure Charter Destinations. Wat Chalong, Anyone?

By Peter Janssen on January 21, 2019 Cruising Life

Here are five great adventures to think about for the coming year, developed by the experts at The Moorings, the worldwide charter powerhouse. If you want to get off the beaten track and tackle some new places and new charter experience, take a look. First, the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins in Belize. With the second-largest barrier reef in the world and lots of secluded beaches, Belize has plenty to offer for charter enthusiasts. But it also has the well-preserved site of the Xunantunich Mayan Ruins, with 25 temples and palaces. Second, Skradin and Krka Waterfalls National Park in Croatia. The park…

Divers Swim With Enormous Great White Shark, Perhaps Largest Ever (and Pregnant), Off Hawaii

By Peter Janssen on January 19, 2019 Cruising Life

Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher, found herself diving next to an enormous great white shark recently off Oahu, Hawaii, recently. She thinks it may have been Deep Blue, at 20 feet long and 8 feet wide the largest great white ever recorded; she once swam with Deep Blue off Guadalupe Island, Mexico. Ramsey came across the shark while it was feeding on the carcass of a sperm whale about 15 miles offshore. NOAA had towed the carcass there because it had been attracting smaller sharks near the beach where it died. Ramsey said that tiger sharks were feeding on the…

With a New Fast, Sleek 55 Cruiser, Hunton Yachts Aims To Become a Global Luxury Brand

By Peter Janssen on January 16, 2019 Cruising Life

With a totally new, totally sleek 53-knot performance cruiser, Hunton Yachts is emerging as a force to be reckoned with in the global luxury boating market. The two-cabin, two-head Hunton 55 will be introduced to the U.S. at the Miami boat show in 2020. It will be followed by a new Hunton 45, an updated version of its current 43, while the company’s 8-meter and 10-meter RIBs are being sold as high-end, high-performing tenders and day boats. “My vision is to make Hunton a global luxury brand,” Fiona Pool, Hunton’s CEO, said in a phone interview from the company’s offices…

Reliant Launches New X40, a Creative 40-Knot Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on January 15, 2019 Cruising Life

Reliant Yachts just launched its new X40, the first in its express series, a creative 40-knot cruiser with a clean aesthetic and a Turkish cold-molded build. It is the latest entry from the Reliant team under industry veterans David MacFarlane and Jim Ewing, based in Newport, Rhode Island. The X40 is designed to make a statement, with its raked wraparound windshield, plumb bow, straight lines and low profile. One nice touch: the cap rail is painted the same metallic sliver as the hull. And the new express is a true convertible; you can remove the carbon-fiber hardtop if the weather’s…

Arrive in Style: Take a Chopper and a Speedboat to the Miami Show

By Peter Janssen on January 14, 2019 Cruising Life

Here’s a new, and unbeatably cool, way to get to the Miami boat show on Virginia Key next month. While most of us are waiting for Uber cars, shuttle buses or water taxis, you fly in on your helicopter, which delivers you to a floating landing pad just off the Miami Marine Stadium, where a new HCB speedboat picks you up and takes you to the show. All this was conceived by ILandMiami, a startup that designs, manufacturers and operates the Marine Utility Vessel, a floating landing site that can hold a helicopter up to 7,000 pounds with six passengers.…

Meet Furrion’s New Smart Boat with AI. Just Say “Hi Angel” and Look into the Smart Mirror

By Peter Janssen on January 13, 2019 Cruising Life

Furrion, the luxury innovation company, just introduced its latest idea, a smart boat, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Working with a 78-foot customized Numarine yacht named Adonis, Furrion is using artificial intelligence so owners can interact with Angel, a virtual on-board concierge, and with a series of Smart Mirrors with touchscreens that use facial recognition to make everything on board just right for you. Numarine’s Adonis was the first yacht ever displayed at the CES, although two years ago Furrion displayed an innovative RV with a hot tub and a helicopter on top. Matt Fidler, the co-founder of…

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