The natural, organic and discreet elegance of Arcadia's A96

To achieve this sort of speed from a semi-displacement hull, the yacht is lightly built in fibreglass, using vacuum infusion for the upper deck to minimise weight. Key areas are also reinforced with carbon fibre, although the material is not widely employed. “We used FEM analysis to control weight, taking care of even the smallest detail such as wiring and piping,” says Ansalone. “With kilometres of cables on board, that has an impact on the final weight. The boat is 125 tonnes deadweight – that means 1.7GT per tonne.”

We shouldn’t get too carried away by the lightweight angle, though, because this is actually a very well-equipped yacht. It boasts fold-down balconies, lots of sliding exterior windows and a big crane for a tender or toys weighing up to 600 kilograms. A huge section of the superstructure is glass, with seven-metre-long sliding panels on both sides of the main deck.

A quick look online confirms that the A96 is certainly towards the bigger end of the spectrum for gross tonnage, although it is in good company with the likes of Numarine and Sanlorenzo. Staking its claim to a place at the big yacht table, the A96 is configured with an owner’s suite forward on the main deck, comprising a narrow walk-in wardrobe, a study area with a small desk and a full-beam bedroom and bathroom. Four goodsized guest cabins are arrayed around the central stairs on the lower deck, offering two twins and two VIP doubles.

The interior by Lobanov Design is deceptively simple: white gloss wall panels, headboards in grey leather by Lelièvre and textured carpets in hand-tufted bamboo silk. It feels restrained but relaxed, enlivened by the incredible natural light that pours in through the large windows. Even close to the waterline on the lower deck, these feel as big as you could decently make them, and they pull your gaze out to sea.

Fold the doors back and just two slim black pillars remain- the rooms merge into the side and aft decks, transforming the boat into a vast, shady veranda

But the effect is really brought to its highest pitch in the two saloons, one on the main deck and one more intimate on the deck above. Here, the ceilings seem practically to float on the glass that runs around three sides of the rooms. Slide and fold the doors back, and just two slim, black pillars remain – the rooms merge into the side and aft decks, transforming the boat into a vast, shady veranda. And that’s without deploying the fold-down balconies on either side of the main saloon, which bring the seascape to your dinner plate.

On the upper deck, solar cells set into the glass overhead cast dappled shadows that feel a little like leaves. It is an impressive feat by Arcadia, creating ambience using 4.5kW of solar generation. In the heat of a Mediterranean summer, some 20kWh of energy could be harvested in the course of a day. As an optional add-on, it could be stored in a massive 120kWh lithium battery bank until needed. “Everything is thought out to prevent the owner needing to use the air con,” says Ansalone.

Now, why does a boat with 4.5kW of solar panels need so much battery capacity, you might reasonably ask? Well, it’s all about the yacht’s other secret weapon: it has been designed to overnight in silence. Even with the 250,000BTU air con running full blast and the CMC stabilisers keeping you level all night long, there should be no need to fire up the twin 35kW generators for eight hours. A less power-hungry use profile would naturally extend that period dramatically.

Arcadia has made a calculated gamble with the launch of the A96. It is the first time it has worked with Lobanov Design, after switching from long-time partner Francesco Guida. And for Igor Lobanov, there was a change of gear required to get into the project. “We stepped into this project after doing the fuel burners from Mangusta, so it was the exact opposite challenge: lots of openings and a different philosophy,” says Lobanov. “I’ve always found the Arcadia brand fascinating, because it’s such a bold statement. They gave much more meaning to a more compact yacht.”

Lobanov is perhaps best known as the exterior designer behind the 110-metre Kaos (ex-Jubilee), delivered in 2017 by Oceanco, but for this project his team focused on the interior design. The studio had to bulk up its capacity by taking on an extra designer, but the approach was always clear and drawn from Arcadia’s focus on open-air living. “That’s what we wanted; it’s less about the interior and more about the nature,” Lobanov says. “We tried to transmit natural, organic and discreet elegance… smooth shapes, to create a less symmetrical layout – fluent and natural, the way you draw the furniture to your house. It emphasises the connection to the sea first of all, which is why you can enjoy three open sides in every saloon.”

Arcadia calls it “art deco-inspired”, and to some extent I see its point: simple, geometric forms and industrial black metal frames are in evidence. But for me, the interior has a holistic, calming feel to it – comfortable and elegant but not showy. It is dominated by oak planking with a tatami rice-straw finish underfoot, rough, matt sandstone vanity units in the bathrooms and neutral leather panelling on the walls.

“When we selected the materials, we focused on natural integrity,” says Lobanov. “We picked out stones and gave them very little craftsmanship – you will see in the bathrooms lots of natural-finish stone, wood with three-dimensional feeling, and we used the carpets to look like sand dunes or ripples. There are lots of natural and organic elements on this interior.”

But not all the features that mark out the A96 immediately meet the guest’s eye. For a boat that operates with a maximum of five crew, the designers put a lot of emphasis on privacy. Clever layout means that the crew area forward on the lower deck connects via its own staircase to the galley and pantry behind the main saloon, and again on up to the deck above. The bridge also connects directly to the upper deck pantry.

As is often the case, the bridge does dual service as a technical area and a place where guests or the owner might spend time. “It could even be an owner-operator model – it’s not impossible,” says Ansalone. So there is a dark sofa built into the middle of the rear bulkhead of the bridge, for looking at the instrument read-outs and admiring the view ahead.

And although guests might never spot the innovation, Arcadia has teamed up with Garmin to develop an eye-catching way of maximising situational awareness at the helm. Just as in some high-end cars, you can visualise the boat’s surroundings as if viewing everything from above. Cameras around the hull feed images into the Garmin plotter, which stitches them together into a bird’s-eye view. A rangefinding grid lets you see instantly how far you lie from obstacles such as the dock, or another boat. The only thing missing is a “park” button.

If you stick to a frugal 10 knots, the four IPS drives consume 72 litres per hour, which translates to a range of some 1,760 nautical miles. At full speed, consumption balloons to 720 litres per hour, while range shrinks below 450 miles. All the same, Arcadia is calling this yacht a cross-over and, though this is a much-abused term, I think they’ve really got it right. Combining the manoeuvrability of the Sherpa with the volume of the A-line makes for a heady mix of function and fun, comfort and capability.

Or as Ansalone puts it with the poetry of Italian: “We try to exalt all the beauty on the sea – exciting all the senses with the scent and sound of nature around. That is real luxury, in our opinion.” It might require a more experienced owner to recognise the A96’s true design advantages, but that was always the case with “slow yachting”.

And there seem to be plenty of such owners out there, because the debut boat on view at Cannes found a buyer at the show, while a second hull sold soon afterwards. “We fell in love at first sight of the enormous spaces and the beach platform, the look of the boat and the comfort of the spacious rooms,” says the new owner. “The power of the four new-generation motors gives perfect stability with cruising pleasure.”

First published in the February 2024 issue of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.