The Best Of 2018

Just 10 years ago, the world economy plunged into the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. 

What a difference a decade makes. 

While builders are not producing the number of new builds that they were 11 years ago, design and technology have advanced significantly. 

In 2018, the editors of Yachts International attended the most prestigious yacht shows in the world and visited numerous shipyards to see the latest launches. The following are our picks of the year’s best builds, finest designs and most impressive technology. 

Best New Motoryacht | 80 meters+

Winner: Oceanco/Dar

The 295-foot (90-meter) Oceanco Dar is decidedly different from the traditional white superyacht. With exteriors by DeBasto Design, Dar has an aggressive profile characterized by an unprecedented use of glass. The glass allows for an innovative layout with sweeping views from almost everywhere on board. Her interior, by Valentina Zannier, head of Nuvolari Lenard’s interior design department, follows a nature theme. Every detail of the furnishings is implemented with a high level of design, artistry and craftsmanship. builtbyoceanco.com

Honorable Mention: Golden Yachts/O’Ptasia (see photos in gallery)

Best New Motoryacht | 50-80 meters

Winner: Tankoa/Solo

Designed inside and out by Francesco Paszkowski, with an interior collaboration with Margherita Casprini, the Tankoa-built, 236-foot (72-meter) Solo is the next generation of the yard’s 226-foot (69-meter) Suerte, which launched in 2015. Solo has a 42,796-gallon (162,000-liter) fuel capacity with an estimated range of 6,000 nautical miles at 12.5 knots. With her long waterline, she reaches top speeds of 17.5 knots. The main engines are equipped with Eco Spray SCR, which significantly reduces emissions, according to the builder. The yacht is also equipped with a carbon monoxide monitoring system, which lets the captain adjust speed to keep emissions at a minimum. tankoa.it

Honorable Mention: Turquoise/GO (see photos in gallery)

Best New Motoryacht | 30-50 meters

Winner: Rossinavi/Flying Dagger

Rossinavi’s 161-foot (49-meter) Flying Dagger is sporty and fast with exterior design by Team for Design/Enrico Gobbi. With her water-jet propulsion, she reaches a top speed of 31 knots and has a cruising speed of 24 knots. 

Much research went into making her quiet with little vibration. The modern interior by Lazzarini Pickering is light, bright, minimalistic and artistically well appointed. According to the Rome-based designers, the interior concept was to have the feeling of water from every corner. rossinavi.it

Honorable Mention: Arcadia 105 (see photos in gallery)

Best New Motoryacht | 20-30 meters

Winner: Pearl 95

Pearl Yachts has been edging its way into the big-boat market, and it has reached that threshold with this 95-footer (29-meter). Designed by Dixon Yacht Design (exterior) and Kelly Hoppen (interior), this innovative yacht combines many features found in a much larger yachts, such as a beach club, balconies and a luxurious interior. Sole-to-ceiling, opening side doors flank the main salon. There are accommodations for 10, plus quarters for five crew, making this vessel an all-around good-looking and practical package. pearlyachts.com

Honorable Mention: Ocean Alexander 90R (see photos in gallery)

Best Explorer Yacht

Winner: CBI Navi/Stella di Mare

CBI Navi’s new long-range explorer was built for a multigenerational family with amenities for all ages. The youngsters have an area with comic and cartoon designs, and the grandfather gets a wine cellar that can hold 800 bottles. The exterior design on this 128-footer (39-meter) is by Sergio Cutolo of HydroTec. Interior design is by Fossati Design Bureau. 

Accommodations are for 14 guests in five staterooms. Propulsion is a pair of 1,000-horsepower Caterpillar C32 Acert diesels that produce a maximum speed of 14 knots and a maximum cruising range of 6,900 nautical miles at 10.5 knots. cbinavi.com

Honorable Mention: Feadship/Sherpa (see photos in gallery)

Best Supersail

Winner: Pendennis/Vijonara

Built and designed for experienced owners, the 128-foot (39-meter) aluminum-hulled Vijonara is the second yacht in Andre Hoek’s Truly Classic 128 series. 

Vijonara is customized with a deck layout that includes an open-plan owners’ stateroom with a study. Hermès created bespoke fittings and furnishings for the yacht. For performance, she has a bowsprit for downwind sails such as an asymmetrical spinnaker. The owners’ representatives, MCM, oversaw the build at Pendennis in Falmouth, U.K. pendennis.com

Honorable Mention: Brooklin Boat Yard/Sonny III (see photos in gallery)

Boats of Distinction

Winner: Galeon 650 Skydeck

The Galeon 650 Skydeck is an innovative yacht in terms of space, volume and functionality. The cockpit has an electric shade for dining with protection from the elements. It also has a hydraulic swim platform, which extends with 20-foot (6-meter) balconies on each side. 

The top deck with its glass sunroof has three observation chairs and a sunpad. Movable sofas and a table are on the foredeck. galeon.pl

Honorable Mention: Palm Beach 50GT (see photos in gallery)

Best Concept Yacht

Winner: Oceanco/Tuhura

Oceanco went way out on a limb with Tuhura, which is a fully engineered and buildable concept. Conceived with Lobanov Design for exterior styling, Achille Salvagni for interior design, and Lateral Naval Architects for engineering, Tuhura is reminiscent of early indigenous canoes from around the world. According to Lateral, the simplicity of the canoe form leads to a naturally efficient hull with low resistance, good seakeeping and excellent maneuverability. 

Interior design influences are from East Asia and the Pacific Islands. builtbyoceanco.com

Honorable Mention: Nauta/Moonflower (see photos in gallery)

Best Exterior Design

Winner: Oceanco/Dar

Dar’s curved main superstructure is a black, organic form that reminded Luiz DeBasto of a shark shape, so he designed the yacht’s mast like a fin. DeBasto also wanted to achieve clean sightlines along the hull of the 295-foot (90-meter) yacht. During construction, the vessel was known as Project Shark, with her wing stations adding to the hammerhead theme. 

Her exterior design dictated that there be no frames to hold the glass in place, in order to achieve a monolithic look. Almost 4,306 square feet (400 square meters) of glass was used in her superstructure. luizdebasto.com

Honorable Mention: Rossinavi/Utopia IV (see photos in gallery)

Best Interior Design

Winner: Abeking & Rasmussen/Elandess

Harrison Eidsgaard created exterior and interior design for the 244-foot (74-meter) Abeking & Rasmussen Elandess. Nick Houghton was the project leader for Eidsgaard. The yacht’s interior layout is unconventional, with a central staircase that has guest spaces radiating from it. At the top of the staircase is a skylight, which is the bottom of the top deck swimming pool. Her lower deck has what is often referred to as a Nemo lounge—sofas facing windows in the hull that extend below the waterline. Another interesting feature on the yacht is the observation lounge, which is where the bridge ordinarily is positioned. eidsgaard.com

Honorable Mention: Turquoise/GO (see photos in gallery)

Best Refit

Winner: Amico & Co./Harmony

The 180-foot (55-meter) Amels-built Harmony, originally launched as the 170-foot (51.8-meter) Kiss the Sky in 2001, underwent a six-month refit at Amico & Co. in Genoa, Italy. Imperial Yachts managed the refit. Nearly 10 feet (3 meters) were added to the stern, with a beach club created from the gutted lazarette. Luca Dini Design was engaged for interior restyling. The yacht’s prior 2009 Patrick Knowles refit was reinvented to make the more ornate interior contemporary and modern. The bridge deck bar and TV were removed so the layout could be rearranged. The crew quarters also were revamped, and the galley was replaced. amicoshipyard.com

Best Innovation

Winner: Sanlorenzo/SL102

The first asymmetrical 102-footer (31.1-meter) from Sanlorenzo, the SL102 was created in collaboration with American designer Chris Bangle (formerly of BMW) and developed with Zuccon International Project. 

The yacht has a single main side deck on the starboard side, a design that allowed the extension of the main deck interior all the way outboard to the hull and superstructure limits. The master stateroom is flush with the port hullside, while to starboard, there is a side deck. Several layouts are available. sanlorenzoyacht.com

Honorable Mention: Amels/Volpini 2 (see photos in gallery)

BONUS PHOTOS | Have a closer look at all of this year's winners and honorable mentions in the gallery below:

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