Photography by Gilles Martin-Raget
Yachting Italian Style: Keeping Up Appearances
January 1, 2004
The current trend in yachting is bigger and faster. Today’s technology has
made it easier to build bigger boats whose speed is not compromised by an
increase in size. Because the charter market dictates the yacht production
market, the more that charter companies use bigger boats, the more that yacht
manufacturers have to keep up.
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Like a military stealth boat, the 118-foot WallyPower flies under the radar. The
high-tech toy comes with three gas turbines capable of 70 knots and an angular
crystal prism superstructure. The full-height tempered glass gives passengers a
panoramic view while deterring the paparazzi. (Click image to enlarge)Azimut-Benetti is the world’s largest megayacht producer, making Benetti boats solely in the 80- to 230-foot range. The aptly named 145-foot More was introduced by Benetti last year and exemplifies the growing trend for overscale yachts. Commissioned by a European owner for charter, the contemporary design, inspired by the late Italian designer Gio Ponti, is clean but not minimalist. The neutral-toned raw silks, luscious palette of marbles, ash burl paneling, chic contemporary lighting, furnishings from top residential designers, and subtleties, like the fiber-optic lighting on the paintings, make up the panoply of luxurious details. The sundeck features a barbecue and Jacuzzi, and to ensure five-star service, there are five cabins to house a crew of 10.
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Of course, if you prefer to keep it simple, in
a high-tech sort of way, you might prefer to leave the crew behind and do a duet
with your first mate on a Wally. Wallys are very fast and very comfortable. You
can man the helm, trim the sheets and ease the sails yourself with a handheld
remote about the size of what you’d use to increase the volume on Super Bowl
Sunday. Wally yachts are the ultimate in high tech and speed. So clean are the
lines, the inlets and the glass superstructure that they look like military
stealth boats. In 1998 Wally introduced “the terrace on the sea,” a large, open
stern at water level that can be accessed from both the main saloon and the
deck. The 118-foot Wally model introduced in August 2003 made it from Portofino
to St.-Tropez (about 127 miles) in two and a half hours. Sixty knots is its
comfortable cruise speed, but you can push it to 70 if you’re running late for
the party. So far, the only one in the U.S. resides in San Francisco. (Click image to enlarge)A more domesticated example is in Ferretti’s aerodynamic visuals. Known for its family-friendly designs, Ferretti made its official debut in the market segment of leisure megayachts with the introduction of the Ferretti 880 in 2003. Family friendly or not, it maintains its aerodynamic contours with a clever foldaway option that hides its bulky swim platform when not in use. And the owners can maintain their bella figura with the help of a large walk-in closet in the master suite. Even laden with all the amenities, the Ferretti 880 zips along at a cruising speed of 27 knots. Beauty lies in the details.
Azimut-Benetti
www.azimutyachts.net
available at Allied
Richard Bertram Marine Group
954.462.5527
www.richardbertram.com
Ferretti
Group USA
954.525.4550
www.ferretti-yachts.com
Wally
+377.931.00090
www.wallyyachts.com
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