For decades the whole point of designing an IMOCA 60 has been to win the Vendée Globe solo round the world race. However, the adoption of the class by The…
New yachts
Flax 27: update to already impressive offering
The Flax 27 was one of the stand-out boats at Boot Düsseldorf in 2019. It’s a work of art that showcases what can be achieved with natural fibre and bio-resins.…
Video: Sailing the Hallberg-Rassy HR50
The eagerly awaited first new Hallberg-Rassy HR50, the fifth of Rassy’s new-generation twin-rudder designs, provides greater volume for accommodation and stowage, and the longer waterline and increased beam aft equates…
First look: Olympic 32 designed for double-handed racing
This short-handed one-design offshore race boat is a Finot-Conq design commissioned by the Ultimate Boat Company and aimed at the two-handed offshore class that was originally scheduled for the 2024…
Video: test sailing the Allures 51.9
Allures builds alloy centreboard cruisers with fibreglass decks and superstructures, which many contend is the the ideal combination for cruising. With that in mind, we picked the right boat to…
Video: Onboard the JPK 39FC – 40 foot French cruiser
Although best known for its extremely competitive smaller offshore racing boats, this Breton yard also has a range of serious, yet fast and lightweight, cruising yachts of which the JPK…
First look: Infiniti 52 – DSS foil 50 footer
The first DSS foiling Infiniti 52 has emerged from the shed at Composite Builders in Holland, Michigan. This design is intended to transform offshore racing, combining speed without the need…
First look: Arcona 415 – electric production yacht
The new Arcona 415 is pitched as the first series-produced yacht with electric propulsion as standard. Arcona already has a long history of developing boats with optional electric motors, dating…
Video: ICE 70 – onboard the sleek high performance cruiser / racer
The ICE 70 is a gorgeous Umberto Felci design and has been conceived for fast cruising and racing at the highest levels, both with full and reduced crews and promises…
First look: Beneteau First 36 – Sam Manuard designed performer
This Sam Manuard design is arguably one of Beneteau’s most important new models for years. The company’s First range used to dominate the performance cruiser/racer market. These were fast, yet…
First look: Spirit 30 – Spirit’s smallest ever yacht
The sleek classic style of all Spirit Yachts is guaranteed to turn heads and the Ispwich-based yard’s smallest new model for many years, the spirit 30 is no exception. The…
First look: Persico FLY40 – foiling one design
The Persico FLY40 is a new one design class, which is the direct outcome of the Italian yard’s involvement in the last America’s Cup. It scales down the concept of…
Video: onboard the new Oyster 595
Your world becomes a very small place when the ease and convenience of travel is lost, a notion that has really hit home in the last couple of year, However,…
Video: Onboard the stunning Solaris 60
The first example of this stunning Javier Soto Acebal Mini Maxi, the Solaris 60, is now on the water and it’s fair to say Solaris maintains their reputation as a…
First look: Contest 49CS and 50CS
This Dutch builder of quality semi-custom yachts has two new models based on the same Judel/Vrolijk hull design in build. The 50CS is a centre cockpit sloop that replaces the…
First look: Baltic 146 Path
With speed comes an increasing demand for comfort where modern fast cruising superyachts are concerned. And in the case of Baltic 146 Path, this purposeful new 45m design, there are…
Sailing the fastest offshore monohull, the ClubSwan 125
It’s tricky to gauge speed and scale against anything else when you have to sail a few miles offshore to avoid dredging the English Channel. Nevertheless, sailing onboard the new…
First look: Swan 98 – high performance, Italian flair
The pandemic seems to have in no way slowed Nautor’s Swan, as it presented two new superyachts at the Monaco Yacht Show, the Swan 98 and Swan 120 – this…
First look: Swan 120 – designed for outside living
Being moored stern-to in Monaco’s Port Hercule during the recent Monaco Yacht Show 2021 was the perfect place to showcase a trump feature of the Swan 120. Its ‘beach deck’…
Video tour: YYachts Tripp 90
Over the past few years YYachts has cemented a reputation for producing large composite yachts that are remarkably uncomplicated and therefore easy and fun to sail. The German yard’s latest…