Cannes Boat Show 2015 Report

The Autumn Boatshow season started in earnest for Grabau International with the Cannes Yachting Festival .

One of the stand-out yachts at the show this year was surely the Brenta 80 DC ‘Cool Breeze’ from Michael Schmidt Yachtbau. ‘Cool Breeze’ is Michael’s own personal yacht and he was in attendance showing visitors around this striking and beautifully designed fast cruising yacht with interior design by Sir David Chipperfield. In addition to the centre-cockpit version shown, there are also aft cockpit and aft-cockpit deck-saloon variants. For more information click here.

Also standing out from the crowd was ‘Dragon’, the Vismara V50 from the Vismara Pret-A-Porter range. This exciting new range of semi-custom yachts allows owners to pick and choose from a number of options developed and designed by the acclaimed Vismara Design Team. Every aspect of this yacht shows a clever ‘clean sheet’ approach to designing and building a safe & secure yet quick and responsive blue water cruising yacht. Notable highlights are her deep and secure semi-covered cockpit, her twin engine configuration and her tender garage. For further details of this fascinating new yacht, click here.

Although not a new-comer to the Boatshow scene, Amel never fails to impress and with both the 55 and the range-topping 64 on display, their stand was packed from morning until evening every day. The Amel 64 is really something quite special builds upon almost 50yrs of yacht building experience doing things ‘the Amel way’. For more information click here.

Stepping away from the sailing yachts and over to the ‘dark side’, the array of sleek and eye-wateringly expensive machinery within the powerboat world was mind-boggling. On the French Riviera the market for GBP1.5 million RIBs appears to be live and kicking. Carbon fibre now appears to be de rigueur and if you don’t have carbon fibre toilet seats, you simply aren’t trying hard enough. With everything on display from the smallest of jet tenders up to the largest of super yachts there was something here for everyone.

Now back in the UK, the Southampton Show beckons, followed in quick succession by Salone Nautica in Genoa (30^th September – 5^th October) where we will be premiering  the exciting new Italia Yachts 12.98, along with displaying the 9.98, 10.98 and .European Yacht of the Year’ 13.98 and then the United States Sailboat Show in Annapolis (8-12^th October) where we will be displaying the Saturn Yachts 48CC and the Italia Yachts 13.98. Stay tuned for further reports from each of these prestigious shows.