With its positively raked bow, vertical bridge windows, sweeping buttresses and striking fashion plates, the steel-and-aluminum Benetti B.Now 50M cuts a contemporary dash. The design of this 163-foot-9-inch trideck marries Plana naval architecture with an overall concept and exterior by UK-based studio RWD. The latter does not only the big shapes well, but also the detailing that so often makes the difference between a good yacht and a spectacular one.

One big feature makes this yacht design sing: the Oasis Deck option. The first few B.Now 50Ms didn’t have it, but the Oasis Deck will be on 15 of the 20 sold to date. They include Hull No. 9, Asani, which is the B.Now 50M that I got aboard.

The Oasis Deck has 1,250 square feet of beach club with a 270-degree panorama astern. There are multilevel terraces, fold-down wing decks, and a wide swim platform with a plunge-pool focus. The pool is no token either. It measures almost 12-by-9 feet with an all-glass aft wall that displays the yacht’s name and home port.

And that’s just one of the yacht’s outdoor entertainment zones. The bridge deck has lounging and sunbathing on a forward terrace, an alfresco dining space and more sunbathing space aft. Almost two-thirds of the sun deck has hardtop protection. There’s dining and sun-lounging space, a wet bar with stools and a hot tub forward. While Asani’s space planning was worked up between RWD and Benetti’s in-house team, its decorative inputs were chiefly conceived by two London-based firms: Bergman Design House and Lass Studio, both in close association with the yacht’s American owner. The idea was to create a neutral base, which is why the yacht has a light-dark contemporary vibe. Joinery is mostly oak, either light or stained dark. Calacatta marbles and leathers provide the principal contrasts. Furniture is mostly freestanding and comes largely from Interdecor Design.

In the main salon, there’s a more formal lounge aft with a dining area forward—a conventional layout compared to most of the other B.Now 50Ms. The sky lounge feels a bit more informal with an L-shaped sofa, big-screen TV, games table and two-stool bar.

The owner’s stateroom aboard Asani is rather special. It’s full-beam and forward on the main deck with a dressing room, a forward-facing king berth, corner sofas, a desk, and a marble bathroom with a freestanding oval bathtub in addition to the shower stall and twin basins. Electric sliding glass doors to starboard reveal a private 14-foot balcony with a deck chair, coffee table and rain shower. It’s the perfect spot for “me time.” I prefer this narrow style of balcony to the fold-down variety, which is more exposed.

Four guest staterooms are on the lower deck: two doubles and two convertible twins. A twin-berth cabin on the bridge deck can serve overspill guests, although Asani will reportedly use it to enhance service. Instead of running with 12 guests and 10 crew, the plan is for 10 guests, 10 crew and two private staff. Asani’s captain was previously with a 230-foot Abeking and Rasmussen, and the chief officer comes from an even bigger Lürssen.

The captain’s cabin is on the bridge deck, while crew quarters are forward on the lower deck, including a single-berth cabin for the chief officer. Crew areas have discreet access to all decks on the port side via stairs up and down to a professional main-deck galley. Fine dining is said to be especially important to the owner. There are pantries on the main and upper decks to enhance service even further.

Tenders are on the foredeck with high bulwarks for privacy. The fretted apertures look just like the line of hullside windows. There’s room for a 20-foot jet tender, an outboard-powered rescue RIB and a pair of Sea-Doos. Enclosed stowage is in the “adventure room” abaft the engine room and beneath the cockpit. It holds stand-up paddleboards, kayaks, Seabobs, wetsuits and diving gear.

Propulsion is twin 1,400 hp V-12 MANs, and straight ZF gearboxes and shafts. They reportedly provide a top speed of 15 knots and a sweet spot around 12.5 knots, with total fuel consumption at a little over 50 gallons per hour. Range is 3,800 nautical miles. The quoted eco-range is 4,500 nm at 10 knots, more than enough for ocean crossings.

As this issue went to press, Asani had just crossed the Atlantic Ocean to arrive in St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands for its first proper Caribbean winter season. The 3,300 nm passage took a little more than 13 days.  

In Demand

Benetti’s B.Now 50M is proving popular. No fewer than 20 of these steel-and-aluminum tridecks have been ordered, and nine are afloat. The yard is handing one over every three months. Benetti says it can build these yachts 30 percent faster than the industry average. Hull No. 1, Iryna, was delivered in January 2022. Hull No. 9, Asani, was delivered in September 2024. The next available build slot is for late 2027 or early 2028.

Winning Formula

The Oasis Deck concept has proved a triumph for Benetti and UK yacht design studio RWD. The name was first used for Oasis Class 40M and 34M composite trideck models, launched in 2020 and 2022, respectively. Both models are still selling well. Oasis Decks have since become options aboard the B.Now 50M model and its larger siblings: the 57M, 60M, 67M and 72M.

Maximum Capacity

The open foredeck garage and the owner’s balcony on the starboard side fall outside any of the calculations of gross tonnage. Maximizing usable space aboard is the name of the game when designing yachts less than 500 gross tons. Straying above that threshold would have a big impact on build regulations and operational requirements, adding significant cost.

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Ferretti Yachts’ Infynito 90 takes inspiration from the explorer market. It is marketed as a long-range, go-anywhere motoryacht with eco credentials, including solar power, sustainable sourcing and recycled materials.

The Infynito 90’s exterior and space planning are the work of Filippo Salvetti’s studio. The yacht measures 88 feet, 6 inches long and has a 24-foot-1-inch beam, but more interesting are the almost 1,100 square feet of exterior deck area and the 1,500 square feet of interior real estate. Ferretti Yachts says the interior volume is around 25 percent bigger than the market average, with an open-plan main deck and sky lounge above.

Most striking is the yacht’s partially enclosed foredeck, which Ferretti refers to as an all-seasons terrace. It’s a real wow feature, fully protected from above by a roof that stretches from the forward-raked bridge-deck windows to the ultra-high stem. The foredeck is open to the sides, with a view forward via a window. The superstructure’s overhead section can have the standard UV-filter glass skylight, solar panels or louvers.

Various options are also available for the yacht’s forward area. The first hull has seating around a hot tub. The second hull has a two-piece bar with a teak top, carbon legs and six bar stools. The standard offering has an L-shaped sofa and table immediately forward of the opening picture window that connects to the salon. No matter which setup an owner selects, the bow area is all sun pad that conceals the ground tackle. Generous overhangs protect the full side decks, cockpit and upper deck aft.

Ideaeitalia’s Davide Bernardini and Alessio Battistini developed the interior options, which they say aspire to softness and sobriety rather than minimalism. The result is what the Italians do best: contemporary cool. The Infynito 90 that I got aboard had parquet soles in the main salon, with an aft lounge, an open galley amidships, and a dining table with marvelous views on three sides.

One deck up, the sky lounge can be an open plan, with the upper helm separated by bulkheads and a sliding door for crew privacy.

The standard accommodations layouts have three or four staterooms, all on the lower deck. There is the possibility of a main-deck owner’s stateroom, with three or four staterooms on the deck below. I’m told that the third and fourth hulls have the main-deck master arrangement.

On the lower deck, the amidships stateroom occupies the full beam with a forward-facing king berth, en suite head, walk-in closet, and 24-by-82-inch picture windows on each side. Another stateroom is in the bow with a transverse double berth and en suite head. The third twin-berth stateroom is to port. The optional fourth stateroom with crossover bunks can instead be outfitted as a children’s play space, mini gym or laundry room.

The crew area is just abaft amidships, acting as a buffer between the largest stateroom and the engine room. A pair of twin-bunk cabins are on each side, with a mess space between them.

There are two engine options, both spinning out via V-boxes. The standard offering is twin 1,550 hp MAN V-12 diesels, which reportedly provide a top speed of 20 knots and a 15-knot fast cruise. The Infynito 90 that I got aboard had the bigger 1,800 hp MAN V-12 diesels, which push along comfortably at 22 to 23 knots, depending on load and weather. During our runs, the best we managed was 22.8 knots with a negligible breeze, tiny seas and a relatively light load. A fast cruise would be more like 15 to 17 knots with the bigger diesels, allowing a range of about 400 to 500 nautical miles. At 12 knots, the quoted range with this powertrain is 1,200 nm. At 10 knots, it’s perhaps a little over 2,000 nm.

Driving this boat is a real pleasure. The helm has a light, responsive fly-by-wire steering system with a self-centering wheel. Visibility is good because the bridge position is high and well forward, and there are wraparound windows with minimal mullions to deliver broad views. A blind spot immediately beneath the bow is similar to what I’ve experienced on comparable yachts; to minimize that issue, there are side-deck doors for maneuvering in close quarters. Wing stations and a stern station are on the options sheet.

With its standout design features and numerous options, the Ferretti Yachts Infynito 90 offers owners a chance to cruise in whatever way they prefer. It is indeed a yacht inspired by the desire to head out on the water and explore. Some owners won’t ever want to come back.

Sounds Good

The Infynito 90 that I got aboard was exceptionally quiet. The normal level of conversation is 65 decibels. At 20 knots with the doors shut, I recorded just 52 decibels on the bridge, 62 decibels in the main salon and VIP stateroom, and 67 decibels in the owner’s stateroom, which is closest to the machinery space. While cruising at the 10-knot speed limit in a channel in Venice, Italy, I could barely tell the engines were running.

Infynito and Beyond

The Infynito name is meant to suggest a seamless connection with the sea and sky, and a visual continuity between interior and exterior spaces. The spelling rather cleverly includes Ferretti Yachts’ initials.

Sun Soaking

Solar panels over the forward terrace and atop the superstructure can contribute up to 7 kWh of power. What’s more, opting for solar does not necessarily mean losing the louvered foredeck overhead. The photovoltaic cells can be incorporated into the louvered panels, easing the load on the generator.

Little Sister

The next Infynito from Ferretti Yachts is expected to debut at this month’s Cannes Yachting Festival. Called the Infynito 80, it will have a 77-foot-9-inch length overall. Whereas the Infynito 90 is a trideck, the 80 will have a raised pilothouse and a flybridge that can be open or partially enclosed. With twin 1,400 hp MAN V-12s, the new model will reportedly have a top speed of 23 knots and a 1,000-nautical-mile range at 12 knots.

Take the next step: ferretti-yachts.com

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Some people buy a shallow-draft yacht because they spend a lot of time in the Bahamas. Other people want the speed benefits. Both are true of Bob Book, who, with his wife, Amy, has owned dozens of vessels over the past 50 years. What he calls “the most important thing” about his newest Heesen is something you’d never expect. Actually, it’s two things: his two golden retrievers.

“We don’t like staying on anchor because we have to take them out at night,” he says. Their previous Heesen, a 154-footer from 2017, had a 10-foot draft. Their current 164-foot Heesen has a draft of 7 feet, 3 inches fully loaded. It makes a world of difference in the Bahamas, he says: “We can get in anywhere, so we can go to the Exumas, we go into Highborne, we go into Staniel. We couldn’t do that with the other boat.”

It’s not every day that a pair of dogs dictates the depth of a yacht. But it’s not every day that a shipyard has a client like Book. Self-described as cursed for being “a perfectionist in an imperfect world,” he’s extraordinarily detail-oriented about technical features and creature comforts alike. In fact, the gusto that he brought to the engineering of this project is matched by his enthusiasm for tailoring every part of the interior.

Soon after cruising began aboard the 154-footer, a Heesen 47M Steel, Book knew he wanted to buy another boat from the Dutch shipyard. This latest Book Ends started as the spec build Project Sapphire in 2020. The contract signing came in 2021, after Book visited the shipyard.

Project Sapphire was a good fit for a few reasons. First, it was a Heesen 50M Aluminum. “She’s really sexy,” Book says. “I like her lines. I like her shape.”

Second, Heesen had tweaked the hull design. This one had a shallower draft than prior 50M Aluminum deliveries, and the yard anticipated 12 percent better efficiency with a top hop of 23 knots. “The 47-meter was a ship, a great boat,” he says, “but it was a slow boat because it’s full-displacement steel, and I wasn’t willing to make that compromise. I’m a speed freak.” One of his “slower” center-consoles hits 50 knots, he notes, adding that the new Book Ends has seen 27 knots.

The next order of business was customizing the interior and on-deck areas. Project Sapphire was already pretty far along, with work by Cristiano Gatto Design. Book gathered with a variety of designers and rethought everything.

Today, there isn’t a corner on board without his influence. This yacht has custom carpeting, with tiny real-silver balls in the salon. Wispy sheets of silver leaf are under glass as the dining area tabletop, fluttering while underway. He added seemingly routine things, such as recessed lighting that outlines sculpted ceiling details.

“None of this was here,” Book says. “I have a guy who’s a genius in Florida. He templated the whole thing. He laid on the floor for hours figuring it out. We did it in 60 days, and it’s magnificent. It changes the whole feel of the boat.”

Book is just as proud of areas out on deck. He’s a fan of the foredeck lounge, for instance. “When you’re underway, this is the greatest spot to sit,” he says. “You feel like you’re on a sailboat. You don’t hear anything.”

The main deck aft has an elevated seating area, giving everyone unobstructed views and allowing conversation with anyone at an adjacent bar and seating area. “That was supposed to just be a flat sunbed, which nobody would want to lie on anyway,” Book says.

From center-consoles to superyachts, Book cannot get enough of the boating lifestyle. He also can’t speak highly enough of Heesen. “Heesen has a great young management team in place,” he says. “Niels [Vaessen], who I’ve known for many years, is the former CFO and now the CEO. He’s great. I’ve known Thom Conboy for years. He’s probably the most knowledgeable sales ambassador Heesen could ever have. He knows every aspect of boating. And Mark Cavendish [director of sales and marketing] is fantastic.”

Book is already hinting that he’ll commission another superyacht from the shipyard, saying simply that the next Book Ends will be “bigger and faster.”

No doubt his two golden retrievers will approve too.  

Book Ends, the Restaurant

If you’re ever in Viareggio, Italy, order a T-bone or other fine cuts of beef at the Book Ends steakhouse on the harbor. Bob Book partnered with a local restaurateur to open it in December 2023. Photos and paintings of some of his yachts hang on the walls.

35, 36…

Counting just superyachts, the current Heesen is Book’s 19th boat. Among all his boats past and present, it’s number 35. A 68-foot Riva under construction as a tender makes number 36. The next Heesen could be number 37—unless the buying itch strikes in the interim.

Lights, Please

The dining area chandelier is by Riki Lighting, which designed the signature chandelier for the recently opened Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Although the company doesn’t do residential or yacht projects, Book persuaded the CEO to make an exception. “He loved the whole boating experience,” Book says. “It’s really a beautiful piece.”

Take the next step: heesenyachts.com

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Sporty is not an obvious adjective for a tri-deck packing nearly 400 gross tons, but it fits the new Custom Line 140 flagship and its previously launched sisterships, the CL120 and CL106. All three models are composite, have bold styling and share key design cues. The exteriors and space planning are the work of Francesco Paszkowski, while the interior decoration is by Margherita Casprini, working closely with the Ferretti Group’s in-house team at Custom Line Atelier.

The yacht they created is a triumph. Beyond the Custom Line 140’s super-cool lines, there’s 3,230 square feet of usable space inside and 2,150 square feet of real estate outside. A fold-down garage door allows for a beach club, a conventional cockpit and an extra-large space on the upper deck aft, with the guest spaces having full protection from decks above. There’s more seating forward and on the sun deck, which is partially protected by a carbon-fiber hardtop and which has a wet bar, a lounge and a hot tub. And the sun deck is a 750-square-foot blank canvas for owners, in terms of furniture to dress the space.

Inside, the Custom Line 140 is calm, light and bright, thanks to a plethora of glazing. Stained- and bleached-oak veneers play off dramatic marbles throughout the yacht, whose furnishings have natural tones and textures. The main salon and dining area are open plan and measure around 450 square feet. Owners can choose free-standing furniture as they see fit here too. The Custom Line 140 that I got aboard mostly had pieces from Minotti. Also an option for owners: an opening glass door to starboard in the main-deck lounge and opening glass doors on both sides of the sky lounge. In the sky lounge, these doors transform the space into an entertainment zone for parties.

On the main and upper decks, guest lobbies are amidships to starboard. Partial side decks are on the main deck, with doors amidships to the portside pantry and adjacent lobby. There are full side decks on the upper deck, although there’s a stair break just abaft the bridge, which means you can’t quite circumnavigate it.

Guest accommodations consist of five en suite staterooms and a total of 11 berths. The owners’ stateroom is forward on the main deck and occupies 505 square feet. Owners enter to starboard through a dressing area with two walk-in closets. The en suite has double-door access, a bathtub and a shower, or owners can opt for a walk-through shower stall between the his-and-hers sides. The big feature in the bedroom is an optional fold-down balcony, cleverly engineered to be deployed by guests as well as crew (of course, with safety overrides).

The other guest staterooms are belowdecks, all conventionally located amidships. The two aft are mirror copies: 160-square-foot doubles with outboard-view king berths and en suite heads. The other two staterooms, forward, are 130 square feet apiece, one with an inboard-facing double berth and the other with forward-facing twins and a Pullman berth. However, as the name Custom Line suggests, owners have flexibility when it comes to interiors. For instance, some owners may prefer to specify one of the staterooms on that lower deck as a gym, a study or a media room.

Day heads are off the main- and upper-deck lobbies. For the Custom Line 140’s crew of seven, there’s a captain’s cabin on the bridge deck and three cabins forward on the lower deck, along with a crew mess and a laundry room. All the crew areas are connected by a separate crew staircase for discreet access across all decks, including to the main deck’s galley and pantry, and to the upper-deck pantry. The pantries are also linked with a dumbwaiter. It is unusual to see this sort of guest-crew separation aboard what is, effectively, a production yacht.

There are two garages aboard the Custom Line 140. The main one, at the stern, has a door to port and can take a 20-foot tender or a 17-foot tender and a PWC. The other garage is under a lid forward of the windscreen with room for a smaller tender or a PWC. The first Custom Line 140 keeps a rescue boat there.

With its twin 2,638 mhp MTU 16V 2000 M96Ls and straight-shaft propulsion, this yacht is reportedly good for a top speed of 21 to 22 knots and a fast cruise of 17 knots, with a range of around 700 nautical miles, allowing for a 10 percent reserve. At an eco-cruise of around 12 knots and 1,400 rpm, that range would extend to around 1,500 nm. There are no alternative engines available. The hull has a planing profile and is trimmed with Humphree Interceptors.

The first Custom Line 140 is expected to remain in the Mediterranean this summer. Two more have been sold, and one of them should arrive in the United States this year. If the current sales pace continues, the future for this sporty-looking yacht is bright.  

In the Details

Fabricated in aluminum, the Custom Line 140 is defined by silver-painted hexagonal-section Y-stanchions and chunky handrails along the main side decks. These elements allow light into the main salon via full-height picture windows, and they also allow for great views out for the guests.

In the Beginning

At the 1996 Genoa International Boat Show, Ferretti was a one-brand business, known mostly for building flybridge yachts. The company announced that it was developing a second brand, Custom Line, that would kick in where the Ferretti flybridge and raised-pilothouse portfolio ended. Back then, the biggest Ferretti  measured 80 feet length overall. The first Custom Line 94 launched in 1998, setting the Ferretti Group on a path of becoming the multi-brand builder it is today, not only with Custom Line but also with Pershing, CRN, Riva, Itama, Bertram and Wally.

Serious Growth

In terms of dollar volume, Custom Line is the Ferretti Group’s biggest brand. Last year, it delivered more than 20 yachts that averaged around 115 feet length overall. Around 300 Custom Lines have been delivered to date. Custom Line models range from 93 feet to 164 feet. They include the three sporty 106, 120 and 140 CL models, along with five semi-displacement Navetta models: the 30, 33, 37, 42 and 50. The Navetta 50— the first aluminum model in the series—will debut in 2024.

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Space is usually the reason that owners step up to a larger superyacht—say, a length overall of 197 feet or more. On those yachts, there are easily enough staterooms to accommodate up to 10 family members and friends; there are several lounging areas inside and out, spread across a few decks; and there is enough room for a party or for privacy. Getting all this in a yacht of less than 500 gross tons, which typically caps around 164 feet long, is just not possible.

Or is it?

Paolo Vitelli, president of the Azimut-Benetti Group, was convinced there’s a way. Not only that, but he believed yachtsmen would like a semicustom series with a steel hull, long range, volume rivaling much bigger boats, and four decks. He was thinking in ways yachtsmen hadn’t seen: Steel alone is a radical departure from the norm in this size range. Four decks are unheard of too.

He was right. The 121-foot Benetti B.Yond 37M landed about a dozen contracts before Hull No. 1, Goga, appeared at international yacht shows in 2022. As of January, the next available delivery date is in 2027.

Increasingly, yacht buyers are realizing that volume dictates how roomy a project will look and feel. To that end, the Benetti B.Yond 37M has a volume just shy of 400 gross tons. Strong-selling American- and European-built series yachts, even those that are 10 to 20 feet longer, are unable to rival that volume.

Of course, long-standing physical dimensions remain important. Each of the four decks aboard the new Benetti is a healthy length. This includes the partially sheltered sun deck, which is a full-fledged deck for up to 12 people. With a barbecue, a dining area, a seating area and pedestal observation chairs, Goga’s sun deck even has windows inset into the hardtop’s sides.

Benetti further sidesteps convention with the yacht’s 28-foot beam and an anything-but-cookie-cutter general arrangement. As much as series builders and designers say clients can arrange rooms as they see fit, inevitably, they suggest that the staterooms go belowdecks while the salon and dining area sit on the main deck. Even for yachts with main-deck master staterooms, conventional layouts still dominate. By contrast, the standard configuration for the Benetti B.Yond 37M places four guest staterooms and the master on the main deck. The lower deck is entirely for seven or eight crewmembers and all service areas.

More surprisingly, though, Goga follows an alternate arrangement, which Vitelli personally selected, since he intended to cruise aboard (and did for a month with his family). The master stateroom is on the bridge deck, with sliding-glass doors to an alfresco dining and sunning area. In the forward main-deck space where the master otherwise would have been are two guest staterooms. Just abaft them, there’s a playroom. In the not-too-distant past, a dedicated rumpus room would have been unthinkable, especially aboard a yacht of Goga’s dimensions. Perhaps in a sign of the times, nine of the contracts signed so far include the playroom. Owners can also fashion the space as a media room.

The B.Yond 37M also has an open-air toy “garage” four steps down from the main deck aft. The main deck has neither a traditional aft-deck leisure area nor sliding doors leading into a main salon; instead, the main lounge is one deck up, offering better views and freeing more deck space for toy stowage. If you’re wondering why the toys aren’t stowed below, in a garage, it’s because the yacht has a beach club with a sauna down there—once again providing owners and guests with leisure areas not found on comparable-length yachts. The toys launch to either side via fold-down bulkheads.

Finally, the bigger thinking extends to the propulsion package. Goga has a diesel-electric system with lithium-ion batteries created in collaboration with Siemens Energy, allowing four operational modes. Enhanced Comfort Mode is for low-speed coastal trips or nighttime cruising, with just the gensets and electric motors engaged. Extended Range Mode uses the main MANs powering the electric motors for full-speed, 14-knot trips. Eco Transfer Mode sees one MAN running solo, which Benetti says lets the yacht cruise up to 8,200 nautical miles at 9 knots. Eco Cruise Mode is a zero-emissions operation in which the battery pack’s capacity determines the potential range for short excursions.

Based on an average yearly 1,000 hours of use, with 400 hours spent cruising and the rest at anchor, Benetti says the system reduces carbon-dioxide emissions by up to 24 percent and nitrous-oxide emissions by up to 85 percent.

With the Benetti B.Yond 37M, Vitelli really did prove that it’s possible to get much more in a smaller length overall.

The Legacy of Stefano Righini

The Benetti B.Yond series is among the last projects designed by Stefano Righini, who died in October 2021. Righini’s pen strokes characterize the looks of nearly every Azimut and Benetti yacht currently afloat too. In total, approximately 6,000 of the brands’ yachts bear his signature.

Capable Compact Cruiser

With a reported range of 5,000 nautical miles at 10 knots, the B.Yond 37M encourages owners to cruise farther and stay independent of shore longer. The yacht has the capabilities of a larger, full-displacement build in a size that’s better for small coves and many more marinas. 

Crew Care

Because of the B.Yond 37M’s volume and deck arrangements, the crew gets more space for amenities and operations. They have a mess opposite the belowdecks galley, and a laundry area. They also have their own stairway, independent of the guests’ stairs, and a dumbwaiter connecting all decks.

Take the next step: Benettiyachts.it

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The Armenian word lusine translates to “moon” in English. That’s why, aboard the 198-foot Heesen Lusine, lunar and celestial themes are everywhere, from wall features to the teak decking. A crescent moon, for instance, is in the middle of the helipad. Even the font of the yacht’s name runs from thin to thick, reflecting the moon’s four waxing and waning phases.

Sinot Yacht Architecture & Design in the Netherlands created the opulent, almost art deco interior, which Heesen says is by far the most complicated and expensive it has ever produced. Initially, the yacht’s owner was inspired by Heesen’s then-Project Ceres (which launched as Galactica), but he ended up developing a fully custom vessel. At 1,079 gross tons, and based on a Fast Displacement Hull Form by Dutch naval architecture firm Van Oossanen, Lusine is Heesen’s longest and biggest-volume steel-hull yacht to date. The overall design process was led by Frank Laupman’s team at the Dutch firm Omega Architects.

Lusine’s profile fuses contemporary and modern styling to stunning effect. While the bow is conventionally pointed, the superstructure is more angular and extends a little farther forward than usual. The high foredeck terrace is vast and capable of hosting quite a party. The bridge-deck wing stations are exaggerated to create much wider side decks, and there is a hint of a bird’s wing amidships in the superstructure relief that cleverly integrates all the upper three decks without actually breaking the horizontal sweeps of glass along the main and upper decks.

Not only is the craftsmanship throughout Lusine exceptional, but the level of detailed design goes way beyond the norm as well. For instance, almost every piece of furniture is custom-size, and the breathtaking parquet soles, rich joinery and intricate marquetry are made from rare woods, special stones, and unusual leathers and skins, such as stingrays and puffer fish. One of the biggest design statements is the yacht’s circular staircase and glass elevator connecting all four decks, with a contoured leather mural depicting sea, land, air and then star themes as guests rise from the yacht’s lower deck to the top deck.

Lusine’s main-deck gathering spaces are conventional enough. Entering from the cockpit seating and dining space, the main-deck salon has lounge and dining areas aft, with an amidships galley and pantry to port. A companionway to starboard leads to the formal, double-glass-door entrance and to a side-boarding ladder beyond. The double-pedestal, cornice-topped dining table has radial Macassar veneers inlaid with gold leaf, blue agate and sycamore. The custom chandelier above is from Preciosa.

Accommodations are for 16 guests in eight en suite staterooms: three with double berths on the upper deck and five with twin berths on the lower deck. The lower-deck staterooms can also be used by personal staff.

The 540-square-foot owners’ stateroom is aft on the upper deck, where many other yachts have a sky lounge. Views from here are fabulous, with a 180-degree panorama to the sides and across the upper deck’s aft lounges, dining area and hot tub. The whole space can be secured for owner privacy.

Forward on the main deck is the L-shaped VIP stateroom, conceived for close family. It has an en suite double-berth stateroom and an adjacent en suite twin-berth stateroom. Both open onto a starboard-side private sitting room, which connects to the yacht’s main lobby.

The crew complement is 15. A captain’s cabin is to port abaft the modern, paperless bridge, with the remainder of the crew cabins forward on the lower deck.

Lusine has room for three Boston Whaler tenders: a 270 Vantage, a 210 Dauntless and a 180 Dauntless. The smallest and largest are housed with various toys in a forward garage, which has hinge-up doors to either side of the bow. The 210 is kept in the stern garage with more toys.

For air arrivals, a touch-and-go helipad is on the after end of the top deck. Interestingly, the area around the mast base and at the top of the central staircase is enclosed to create an alternative foyer for guests arriving this way. The space includes a pilot’s cabin.

Propulsion is twin 2,575 hp MTU 12V 4000 M65L diesels, which reportedly deliver a top speed around 18 knots and an ocean-straddling 4,200-nautical-mile range at 13 knots. Twin Naiad fins provide stabilization, and onboard power comes primarily from twin 315 kW Zenoro generators. The yacht’s air conditioning is built to high-tropical specification.

Lusine embodies all the knowledge and experience that Heesen has amassed by delivering more than 80 metal motoryachts with an average length of 155 feet in the past 20 years. The yard consistently delivers around four big yachts annually—not tied to the four phases of the moon but stellar nonetheless.

Touchstone

A coffee table in the main salon contains a small slice of lunar meteorite. A few of these rare rocks have been found on Earth and matched forensically with samples brought back from NASA’s Apollo missions. Scientists believe that the rocks arrived in debris showers following crater-creating events. A meteorite with proven provenance is the closest thing to a moon rock that money can buy; the real ones are owned by U.S. government agencies. 

Now for Sale

Sadly, Lusine’s owner died right around the time the yacht was delivered. It’s now listed for sale “as new” with Burgess and is lying in the West Mediterranean. The asking price at press time was $82 million.

Ever Larger

Lusine is Heesen’s largest steel-hull motoryacht to date, but the yard’s largest project so far is the semi-displacement, all-aluminum, 263-foot, 1,700-gross-ton Galactica, which departed the Oss, Netherlands, yard in early 2022. Galactica is also reportedly the world’s largest and fastest motoryacht with a conventional shaft-line propulsion. Heesen says the vessel is capable of 29 knots, with four MTU 20V 4000 series engines.

Busy Builder

Heesen mostly builds semi-custom projects on common platforms. In recent years, most have been fast-displacement or semi-displacement hulls in steel/aluminum or all aluminum, but, occasionally, there’s a full-displacement steel/aluminum or all-aluminum project in the mix. Lusine is a good example of its steel-hull yachts.

Take the next step: heesenyachts.com

The post Heesen Yachts ‘Lusine’ Reviewed appeared first on Yachting.

I looked around the flybridge of the Grand Banks 85 Skylounge and counted 14 people as the yacht cruised comfortably at around 21 knots just off the coast of Cannes, France. There was room to spare on this deck inside and out, with an L-shaped lounge, a Vitrifrigo ice maker, and a drawer fridge and freezer creating an alfresco oasis with ocean vistas.

Grand Banks CEO Mark Richards was at the bench-style helm seat forward and to starboard, with a view of three Garmin multifunction displays illustrating all mission-critical data on board the yacht and beyond the bow. He had unobstructed sightlines through three gently raked windows. The sky lounge’s retractable roof was open, the side windows were open, the aft door was open, and the cross breeze coming off the salt was downright balmy.

It was quite a memorable moment as I got to know the Malaysia-based builder’s new flagship. In sheer size and scope, the Grand Banks 85 makes a statement. This yacht comes in at more than 87 feet length overall and displaces 108,000 pounds, with a 22-plus-foot beam and an air draft of just under 26 feet. It’s a formidable cruiser.

It’s also eminently warm and inviting. The teak-sole cockpit can be accessed by stairs flanking the transom off the full-beam, integral swim platform, which can stow a 14-foot AB Inflatables Alumina tender with a 40 hp outboard. (The tender can also stow aft on the sky-lounge deck, and be launched via davit.) In the cockpit, a bench seat is set against the transom, and loose chairs fill out the alfresco dining area for six or more. The entire area is protected from the elements by the sky-lounge overhang.

A door off the cockpit to port provides access to the salon, where an abundance of glass in the 85 Skylounge’s superstructure creates a bright interior. The salon’s 7-foot headroom enhances the sense of volume. There is a U-shaped settee to starboard, forming a guest conversation nook, with two barrel chairs to port. A walkway to port leads up an 8-inch step from the salon, providing access to the formal dining table for six guests to starboard.

The main-deck interior has a relaxed feeling, created via natural light coming in from the nearly 360 degrees of windows, through indirect lighting, and from the use of satin-finish teak. Standing in the salon, I had an unimpeded view from the cockpit door through the windows forward on the port side.

There’s an open-style, reverse-angled stairway to port, leading to the sky lounge, while a bulkhead forward of the dining space to starboard separates the galley. Since this is a yacht that will likely have crew, the galley is set up for chef-level meal prep with a Miele oven, a four-burner electric cooktop, a Panasonic microwave, a Liebherr fridge and freezer, a Nespresso machine and a nearly 18-inch-deep, pull-out pantry for serious summer-cruising provisions. There is also a docking station located here with side-deck access to starboard via a pantograph door.

Five steps down from the salon and galley is a landing with access to a day head with a shower stall, which is a precursor to the accommodations spaces. Owners can choose from several three- or four-stateroom setups. This owner chose to give up a full-beam master stateroom and instead get an additional stateroom for his grandkids. The layout of this amidships master includes an en suite head to port with his-and-hers sinks. There is also an average 6-foot-9-inch headroom, a 42-inch Sony TV, two closets, a table with seating forward of the berth, and a cleverly concealed piano. (Yes, a piano.)

In the full-beam layout, the head is set abaft the berth, and there is a walk-in closet that’s also abaft the berth, to port.

The grandkids’ stateroom—next to the master and to port—has two bunks. There is also a forepeak VIP with an en suite head. Abaft that VIP and to starboard is the fourth guest stateroom, with twin berths and an en suite head.

Two crew cabins, a crew mess, a galley and a head are aft with engine-room access. Owners have choices for engines too: The standard motors are twin 1,000 hp Volvo Penta IPS diesels, but owners can also have twin 1,300 hp MAN straight-shaft diesels. With the larger-engine option, owners can also choose an optional stern thruster, in addition to the standard bow thruster.

Some other notable options include a Seakeeper gyrostabilizer, Victron solar panels for the flybridge hardtop, a passerelle, Garmin electronics, KVH satellite and a 23-bottle wine chiller.

This 85 Skylounge had the IPS diesels, which provide a top hop of 26.5 knots, according to the builder. At top speed, fuel burn is 100 gallons per hour, resulting in a range of 699 nautical miles. At the vessel’s 21-knot cruise speed, fuel consumption drops to 57 gph, and range climbs to 972 nm. At a 9-knot jog, fuel burn falls to 9 gph, and the 85 Skylounge can cruise nonstop for about 2,500 nm.

A timeless exterior design, today’s technology, and a hull form penned for seakindliness, efficiency, comfort and performance make the Grand Banks 85 Skylounge a thoroughly modern yacht ready to take adventurous cruisers waypoint-hopping until they feel like stopping. Or not.  

Shallow-Water Access

The Grand Banks has a 4-foot-11-inch draft with Volvo Penta IPS diesels, and a 4-foot-1-inch draft with straight-shaft MANs. In either scenario, the yacht is primed for the Bahamas, cruising and exploring with the ability to access most anywhere an owner may want to go. This is a great trawler for the island hopper.

Built for Blue Water

The Grand Banks 85 Skylounge has an infused, foam-cored, E-glass hull, with the deck and superstructure built via infused carbon fiber. According to the builder, all bulkheads and furniture are also structurally bonded to the hull, enhancing overall strength even further.

The Range

The 85 Skylounge is Grand Banks’ largest model, but the builder also offers 54- and 60-foot flybridge or sky-lounge yachts, as well as 44- and 60-foot Eastbay express cruisers. All these models run on the same V-warp hull form.

Serious Seakeeping

Under CEO Mark Richards, Grand Banks has implemented its patented V-warp semidisplacement hull design across its fleet, including this 85-footer. Starting with a fine entry, the deadrise transitions with notable flare amidships, which helps “roll water away” from the hull’s surface. Farther aft, the deadrise reduces to 6 to 8 degrees, adding stability and lift, and resulting in a vessel with little to no bow rise when throttling up. The hull design also enhances overall performance and efficiency, and leaves a flat wake. 

Take the next step: grandbanks.com

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Every few years in design—be it for fashion or home decor—a trend comes back in a renewed way. Last year, for example, a number of designers embraced the bright color bombs from the 1990s to draw more attention to walls, railings, kitchen cabinetry—you name it. Other designers channeled the 1960s and 1970s in everything from album art to area rugs.

These fun, funky, even psychedelic styles were a far cry from the minimalist, geometric simplicity that became trendy about five years ago. The throwbacks weren’t bold for bold’s sake or retro for retro’s sake, either. Rather, visual distinctiveness was the order of the day.

Benetti has been thinking about this concept since 2020. The shipyard wanted to create a yacht that hearkened back to some of its deliveries from the 1960s and 1970s, in terms of exterior styling and interior design. However, the yacht also needed to appeal to today’s cruisers, who expect amenities that didn’t exist 50 years ago.

The result is the Benetti Motopanfilo 37M.

“It’s not nostalgic,” says Carl Pickering of Lazzarini Pickering Architetti, the design studio responsible for the interior. “We wanted to return to a more nautical language.”

Pickering and his business partner, Claudio Lazzarini, felt it was crucial that this yacht look like a yacht and not a floating home. So did Benetti and exterior stylist Francesco Struglia. The nearly 122-foot Motopanfilo (pronounced “moh-toh-pan-fee-loh”) 37M appears much more linear compared with modern mega-yachts, much the way recreational craft did five decades ago. Ribbons of bronze paint rim the after bulwarks, further outlining the upper-deck overhang. Struglia wanted to capture the essence of classic wood cap rails.

He also captured the essence of classically rounded transoms with a slightly curved design. It’s a look that went by the wayside when designers began incorporating integral swim platforms, which have only gotten wider and deeper in recent years. The Motopanfilo 37M does have a beach club, thanks to the fold-down transom. Because the yacht is semicustom, the beach club can include whatever clients wish. The owners of Hull No. 1, Koju, chose a hidden sink and a removable, hooded sunshade, the latter designed by Lazzarini Pickering.

Also at the waterline, the yacht has a modern-day must: a tender garage. It’s a side-launching area, capable of holding PWC and a traditional tender.

The strongest connection between the nautical past and present, however, comes inside. Gone are the primarily lacquered surfaces that, in recent years, relegated wood to soles. Gone too are the grays and other muted tones of surfaces and soft goods, as well as austerely shaped furnishings and accessories. As Pickering says, these seemed to step straight out of a home in Architectural Digest, not really the essence of a yacht. Instead, the owners of Koju embraced Lazzarini Pickering’s initial concept of pale, matte-finished wood underfoot and overhead.

Koju also has a series of striking arches, meant to mimic a whale’s ribs. The arches, in white lacquer with swaths of pale oak between them overhead, flow forward through the salon and dining area. The walls of the four guest staterooms belowdecks follow suit; their arches are wood, and the spaces between are lacquered. The walls also follow the natural shape of the hull, eschewing the common practice of squaring everything off and making it more residential-like.

“The luxury in a boat is in space—real or perceived,” Pickering says. The sense of space amid the 25-foot-3-inch beam is palpable, thanks to those ribs and shapes. It also helps that the yacht has large ports in keeping with current trends, as well as crisp white furnishings and accessories, with navy blues for extra nautical measure. The whalebone elements are practical as well: They serve as art niches in some areas and stowage in others, and they further hide the trunks for the air conditioning.

“Practical” is a good description for the overall ambience on board Koju. The curved, sliding glass doors between the salon and main deck aft can remain open all day long for owners or guests. Lazzarini Pickering recommended that the white and blue fabrics it designed for the inside also be used outside—and be able to hold up to salty swimmers.

Because as much as some things change, they also remain the same.

The Name Game

In Italian, moto panfilo means “motoryacht.” The term became associated decades ago with the large craft enjoyed by celebrities, royalty and other elites. For instance, Monaco’s Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace were photographed aboard a Benetti moto panfilo.

Material Matters

Benetti looked to the 1960s for inspiration on the Motopanfilo. Notably, that era marked an important period in the yard’s own history. The year 1960 was when the shipyard switched from using wood to using metal for its yachts.

Aerie Advantage

Unless you were aboard the yacht or standing dockside while someone was up top, you’d never know the Motopanfilo 37M has a fourth deck. It’s an observation area. Glass windscreens protect the sun pad that occupies most of the space.

Take the next step: benettiyachts.it

The post Benetti’s New Motopanfilo 37M Is Built with History in Mind appeared first on Yachting.

Why WHY200? The acronym stands for Wally Hybrid Yachts, which has nothing to do with hybrid propulsion, but rather a hull designed for a range of displacement and semidisplacement cruising speeds. And the numerals don’t reference length. They reflect the approximate volume (199 gross tons), which is a lot for a yacht with a length overall of just 89 feet.

But length is not what matters these days. Gross tonnage and beam—the feeling of space—are the important metrics. And on this yacht, that most important effect is achieved.

In all, there’s more than 2,150 square feet of indoor living space, including 1,075 square feet on the main-deck level. Wally says the yacht delivers 50 percent more volume, 60 percent more main-deck area and 40 percent more upper-deck area than any conventional planing yacht of the same length. All of that’s achieved without the speed concessions normally associated with displacement yachts.

Exterior design and styling make the Wally heritage clear, albeit on steroids. The top of the superstructure is virtually all tinted glass. There is extensive hull glazing set into the yacht’s metallic-silver topsides. The top tier effectively wraps around that tall reverse-raked stem, and it’s not just an exterior styling exercise (keep reading).

The transom area is a cross between a beach club and a sailing-yacht cockpit, which is not surprising given the 40 or so supersailers Wally has launched in the past 25-plus years. The swim platform and fold-down quarter-cheeks double as doors for two longitudinal garages. They can also create a walk-around stern.

The aft deck is configured more like a sailing yacht, with a wide central walkway flanked by sun pads and bench sofas, making for a more sociable vibe than a traditional transom sofa that spans the beam. There’s room for a cockpit table, and much of the aft deck is semi-enclosed by windowed buttresses to the sides and a substantial upper-deck overhang, all of which make for a much more intimate space.

Electrically opening glass doors lead to a full-beam main salon. This model has a maximum beam of 25 feet, and at its widest, the salon measures virtually 23 feet from picture window to picture window. A glass-walled structural staircase dominates the space and helps to create zones, all with decorative carbon fiber. The soles throughout the shared spaces are mostly 5-inch-wide teak planks, and the wall paneling is an off-white Alcantara—minimalist, chic and classic Wally. The first hull has a galley to port that Wally refers to as a “show kitchen,” and there’s a day head in the after corner to starboard.

The door to this model’s star attraction, the 398-square-foot master stateroom, is forward in the salon. What makes this space uber-special is bow glazing that allows a proper view. The WHY200 is the first production yacht with this feature. It’s 950 square inches, which is nearly the size of a 50-inch TV screen. I walked from there into the stateroom, which has a 200-degree wraparound panorama across an island berth with 6-foot-11-inch headroom. The feeling is impressive.

Other layout options allow for one big head and no island berth, or an entertainment space with a bar and circular dining table. The space is all the more dramatic for being ultra-quiet, principally because the engines are so far aft.

Belowdecks aboard Hull No. 1 are three en suite guest staterooms off a central fore-aft passage, all with inboard-facing athwartships berths. The biggest stateroom is in the bow, with a king-size berth to port and his-and-hers heads forward with a shared shower stall between them, plus a sofa. The other two staterooms are amidships and have queens.

There’s also a four-stateroom version available. It trades the forward VIP stateroom for two en suite, twin-berth staterooms with top-and-tail berths.

The amidships crew space spans 344 square feet. There are three cabins for six crewmembers, although the usual complement is likely to be four or five. There also are two shower rooms, a galley and a mess area. Access is via a staircase with two discreet doors to port, one from the forward corner of the aft deck and the other from the after corner of the salon.

The upper deck has a sky lounge with wraparound sofas. It’s a light and bright space, not least for having glazing on five sides of the cube. Not only are there glass doors to the terrace, picture windows to the sides and a glass wall separating the bridge, but there also are skylights above. All that glass means superb views from the helm for normal navigation.

The bridge console is addressed by three seats that are carbon-backed—one for the pilot and the others for guests. Doors on each side connect with partial side decks and the raised foredeck.

The amount of space aboard owes everything to the quad Volvo Penta IPS diesel installation beneath the aft deck. There are two options: four D13-900 IPS1200s or D13-1000 IPS1350s. At one-third load, they deliver maximum speeds of 20 knots or 23 knots, respectively, and brisk cruises of 16 or 19 knots. Above that load state, expect speeds to decrease by around a half-knot for every extra ton.

Similarly, ranges vary from 410 nautical miles at 17 knots for the smaller engines to 350 nm at 20 knots for the bigger package. At 10 knots, both setups should stretch to give or take 1,100 nm on four engines. And there’s always the option to run on just two engines, as IPS installations are always more efficient at higher revs.

Tank capacity is 3,170 gallons. Stabilization on the first hull includes fins and gyros. Given that most owners are likely to spend more time at anchor than underway, the extra investment in onboard comfort is never going to be wasted. The two Seakeeper 16s and Humphree electric fins were all active during our runs, and the yacht was rock-steady throughout, hardly heeling even through hard-over turns. Moreover, that high bow rises little more than 2.5 degrees throughout the speed range, which makes moving around while underway so much easier.

Wally has always pushed the boundaries of boatbuilding. With the WHY200, the builder has introduced a forward-thinking exterior design with superyacht space, surprising sea views and admirable performance. Once I was aboard, it didn’t take long for this yacht’s “why” to become a “wow.”

Anchor Access

The ground tackle is all in a compartment beneath the owner’s stateroom, accessible via a crawl space from the VIP closet.

A Yacht is Born

Chief designer and Wally founder Luca Bassani gave creative inputs for this model, working with the Ferretti Group’s central design and engineering team. Laurent Giles in England handled the naval architecture, and the yacht was tank-tested at Solent University’s facilities in Southampton. The minimalist interior scheme comes from Andrea Vallicelli’s studio in Rome. The WHY200 is built at the Ferretti Group’s Mondolfo, Italy, plant.

Semidisplacement hulls make a lot of sense. “You get a much more comfortable ride when you are able to punch through waves at 16, 18, 20 knots,” Bassani says, “but then you have to design accordingly to cope with those waves. …One way of doing that is [to] raise the bow sufficiently, and we’ve used that logic to create a whole new space aboard.”

Toy Stowage

The yacht has two stern garages, each capable of accommodating a 13.5-foot tender or a PWC/Seabob/paddleboard combo.

Take the next step: wally.com

The post Wally’s WHY200 Impresses Inside and Out appeared first on Yachting.

When you’re buying a yacht, and if you’re considering a spec project, a number of factors work in your favor. You get a proven engineering package, where sisterships back up claims of cruising speeds that make quick work of island-hopping, or economical speeds that make transatlantic crossings possible. You get a shorter delivery time than with a custom build. And you have the opportunity to put your own stamp on the interior design, even when the yacht is already many months into the construction process.

Every spec yacht on the water today bears all of these advantages. Each also bears some changes made between the time the owners bought the yachts and the time they took deliveries.

Except for the 180-foot Heesen Moskito.

Yes, the owner relied on performance data verified by similar deliveries. Heesen Yachts had already handed over four previous projects in its 55-meter Steel series. The yacht’s fast-displacement hull form from Van Oossanen Naval Architects and twin MTU engines promised a 15.5-knot maximum speed and a range of 4,500 nautical miles at 13 knots. The owner also enjoyed a shorter delivery time. He acquired the yacht in late 2020 and took delivery in April 2021.

What makes Moskito an exception is that the owner didn’t change a thing about the superyacht. Not any of the systems, not any of the wall paneling, other materials, or even furnishings that Bannenberg & Rowell Design chose to give the yacht a distinctive touch—nothing.

“We wanted to take the breath away, without being aesthetically intimidating,” says Dickie Bannenberg, who runs the design studio with Simon Rowell. The interplay of design elements not commonly found on spec builds “instantly differentiates and enhances the feeling that, for a spec boat, this is really something with a lot of detail and quality and thought and expense.”

Treating a spec project this way can be risky, of course, but Heesen and the design firm had already created nearly a dozen spec yachts together.

“They do give us very free rein,” Bannenberg says. “They’ve never said, ‘We want you to do something based around X, Y or Z.’ We call the shots creatively. … We are trying to be progressive and interesting and original but, at the same time, target audiences as wide as possible.”

The shipyard strives for its spec yachts to be progressive in configuration too. After every two yachts in a series, Heesen incorporates changes based on the feedback of owners, captains and charter guests. So, even though Moskito is the fifth launch in the 55-meter Steel series, only its immediate predecessor, Solemates—whose owner changed the Bannenberg & Rowell interior—has staterooms spread across three decks. The VIP stateroom is on the wheelhouse deck instead of belowdecks and is enlarged to span the yacht’s full beam. Four guest staterooms remain belowdecks, and the master stateroom—926 square feet—occupies the main deck forward.

Additionally, Moskito is the second in the series to have a volume of 760 gross tons, an increase of 20 gross tons.

“In terms of creating an identity, each one is completely a one-off,” Bannenberg says of the studio’s approach to spec yachts. Aboard Moskito, there are contrasting rich eucalyptus and pale sycamore wood, for instance, with smoked-oak parquet soles in a chevron pattern.

“It really does hit that sweet spot of people looking for something fairly easygoing, by which I mean you can sit there not perched on the front of the sofa,” Bannenberg says. “You’re pretty happy kicking back with polo shirts and shorts, but at the same time, if you want to live a smarter or more dressy life, it’s good for that too.”

Moskito also has more than a few gentle curves amid its walls. Take the master stateroom, for instance. Though guests pass through a foyer to get to the sleeping area, it’s not until they really look at the wall behind the bed and then at the wall in the foyer that they realize they’re arcs. For shipyards building on spec, it’s much easier and less expensive to manufacture straight lines. Heesen has its own interiors department, allowing for this kind of design element.

Not only did the owner buy Moskito without changing a thing, but he also bought the superyacht sight unseen. He saw the yacht for the first time when boarding it in Malta upon delivery, having signed off on everything remotely. This included giving Bannenberg & Rowell carte blanche to select books and a few accessories to round out the overall design.

“We’ve had projects where people have said, ‘Select some art,’ or ‘Make some proposals,’ and we’ve put things together, and it doesn’t hit the spot,” Bannenberg says. “So it can cut both ways. In this particular case, I think we really did choose things to complement the overall vibe on board.”

It’s good to see that an exception can be exceptional.

Heesen’s Home

While several superyacht shipyards are in the Netherlands, Heesen’s home city of Oss sits 93 miles inland, closer to the land border with Germany than to the North Sea. A series of canals and rivers connects it to the sea.

Fantasy vs. Friendly

With spec projects, Bannenberg & Rowell Design envisions real-world scenarios. “We do like to think of the lifestyle—the family with two or three kids, or charters—and have things made practical,” Dickie Bannenberg says. “It’s not just a sort of homage to sharp design; it’s something very livable and comfortable.”

Here Comes the Sun

Alfresco areas are among the most popular places to be on board a yacht. Moskito’s outdoor spaces add up to nearly 2,700 square feet. Much of this is on the sun deck, which has a pool, a bar, and seating and sunbathing areas that are usable underway or at anchor.

The Hull Story

According to Van Oossanen, its fast-displacement hull form “reduces resistance values by 20 percent” when compared to “hard-chine hulls at semidisplacement speeds.”

Take the next step: heesenyachts.com

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