The winners of the World Superyacht Awards 2019

Length: 39m

Original builder: Vitters

Refit yard: Pendennis

Refit naval architect: Tripp Design

Refit exterior design: Tripp Design

Refit interior design: Nauta Design

Of the yachts in the highly competitive Refit category, the Vitters-built 38.2-metre sloop G2 was selected by the Judges as the winner. Built from advanced composites to a design by Bill Tripp and launched in 2009, the original owner’s requirement was for a fast yacht suited to long range cruising. Her new owners had a clear vision of their needs which, with a circumnavigation in mind, were similar in scope to the original but their personal interior taste called for enhanced interior light and clean modern design.

On deck, the aft cuddy was surplus to their needs and was removed to create a flush open deck, to which sunbathing cushions were added, while 40% of the old teak was replaced, the caulking changed to grey, and the main cockpit extended to permit a larger guest dining area. To lighten the interior, two large new skylights were cut into the deckhead of the main saloon, while 11 larger portlights were fitted to the guest cabins, where the original, and now dated, honey-toned wood was replaced by a lighter, contemporary style created by Nauta Design.

At the same time, the owners' cabin was increased in size and its layout modified, a complex task which necessitated moving some structural bulkheads. Additionally, the yacht was made as maintenance-free as possible for her upcoming circumnavigation by servicing, upgrading or replacing all machinery and systems, and bringing forward the 10-year Class Special Survey. Navigation and communication equipment was also replaced while the hull, mast and deck structures were repainted. The Judges considered that the extent, quality and outcome of the 11-month refit was exemplary – and well worthy of a Neptune.

Length: 42.2m

Builder: Pendennis

Naval architect: Hoek Design

Exterior design: Hoek Design

Interior design: Owner/Hoek Design/Hermès

Admiration for Modern Classics – yachts that borrow their outward appearance from the ‘Golden Age of Yachting’, but are otherwise completely modern in their comfort, performance and technology – remains widespread, and Vijonara, a Truly Classic 127 designed by Andre Hoek, was considered by the Judges to be a near perfect example of her breed.

Not only was she built to the very highest standards, with the quality of her craftsmanship – especially her woodwork – being rated as outstanding by the Judges who visited her, but her polar diagrams also revealed that she possesses extremely good performance under sail, particularly in lighter breezes. The Judges considered that the twin-cockpit deck layout, with a private aft cockpit linked to the master cabin and the helm station located forward, adjacent to the guest cockpit, worked extremely well by providing privacy for the owner and a sense of safety while being at the heart of the sailing action for the guests. But perhaps the most important factor in choosing her as the winner was found inside, where her welcoming accommodation areas are all beautifully paneled in wood and trimmed with fine leather supplied and crafted by Hermès. As such, Vijonara exuded the charm and character, as well as a sense of luxurious comfort that one might expect in a great classic yacht.

Length: 106.7m

Builder: Oceanco

Naval architect: Dykstra Naval Architects/Oceanco

Exterior design: Ken Freivokh/Nuvolari Lenard

Interior design: Gerard P. Villate/Nuvolari Lenard/Ken Freivokh

Black Pearl, the Judges considered, was a huge step forward from the first yacht of this type, Maltese Falcon, surpassing her on practically every level.

Here was a sailing vessel with all the facilities, comfort and performance of a motor yacht, but one that has the potential to cross oceans without the use of any diesel fuel whatsoever, as propulsion is left to the wind and the total demand for household electricity could be met from her shaft generators. Interestingly, provision has been made for the future integration of solar power generated from her sails – an emerging technology that is not yet ready for service. This, and a host of other attributes, was more than sufficient for the Judges to award a Neptune to this remarkable yacht.

Length: 33.5m

Builder: Cantiere delle Marche

Naval architect: Cantiere delle Marche/Hydro Tec

Exterior design: Nauta Design

Interior design: Nauta Design

After the photographs were screened and the Judges had discussed the yachts in this class, it was becoming clear that one yacht stood out from the crowd. That impression was confirmed by the secret ballot in which the Judges almost unanimously selected the explorer yacht Mimi La Sardine as the winner.

Not only does she possess the attractively rugged exterior lines of an explorer, but her 5,000nm range, seaworthiness and long autonomy means that she also had the other necessary attributes of this type. Other features that the Judges particularly liked were her very distinctive interior, and a quality of build that was beyond reproach.

In particular, it was considered that the yacht’s general arrangement clearly allocated onboard activities to suitable areas, with the bridge deck being used as a ‘dining deck’ rather than a second saloon. Incorporating a beach club may be too much to ask in a yacht of this size but this design has, nevertheless, created such an area with a wide flight of stairs descending from the main deck aft to the bathing platform. These two areas are divided by a removable rail, rather than the fixed bulwark found on most yachts, so that there is a sense of connectivity and easy communication between them. The Judges also admired the ‘beach house’ style of the whole yacht that successfully makes use of a wide range of organic materials and unfinished wood to create an immediate ‘holiday atmosphere’ that at the same time is also sophisticated and luxurious. This, the Judges concluded, is a great family yacht where everyone will feel at ease.

Length: 49.6m

Builder: Wider

Naval architect: Wider/Sydac

Exterior design: Wider/Fulvio De Simoni

Interior design: Wider/ideaeITALIA

This class contained five yachts built by notable shipyards. Each yacht certainly displayed some enviable attributes, but the voting revealed the winner to be the Wider 165, Cecilia.

This, the Judges considered, was a yacht that points the way to the future with one of her most significant aspects being a propulsion system in which diesel generators drive electric-powered motors fitted to azipods located at the stern of the vessel. While many yachts in the past have employed this propulsion system, few have taken full advantage of its flexibility by positioning the engine room in the bows, thus releasing the prime midships area of the lower deck for accommodation – a purpose for which it is ideally suited. This layout also means that the crew quarters, which are spacious for a yacht of this size, have also been moved further aft where motion is less pronounced.

The system also allows for fuel economy as her pair of 535kW gensets, which supply house load as well as propulsive power, are a third of the output of those found aboard Cecilia’s competitors, leading to both economy and extremely low noise levels. But it was not just her technical aspects that impressed the Judges, who also admired the float-in tender dock at the stern that carries a significant tender as well as a submarine in its own independent bay. When these are launched and the twin side doors opened, this area becomes a most desirable beach club. This was seen by the Judges as a yacht that was rightly rewarded for her advanced, forward-looking design.

Length: 56m

Owner: Joey Kaempfer

Builder: Perini Navi

Three entries were received for the Voyager’s Award: Beluga and Silentworld, which cruised remote islands in the Coral Sea off the Queensland coast of Australia, and the voyage of Rosehearty, which crossed the Drake Passage at the southern tip of South America to Antarctica. The Judges considered all of them adventurous – well beyond the bounds of everyday cruising. After much discussion and a secret ballot it became clear that the Judges favoured the Antarctic cruise that was undertaken by the 56-metre Perini Navi Rosehearty.

This formed one element of a wide-ranging cruise from the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal to the Galapagos, Tahiti and Fiji, before returning to Chile to sail south through the Patagonian ‘Canals’ and across the Drake Passage to King George Island, just off the coast of Antarctica. Throughout this initial period the owners and charter parties came and went, making it ineligible for the competition that calls for a single group to be aboard for the duration. The cruise considered by the Judges started when the owner’s party flew into King George Island, just off the Antarctic mainland. From here the first passage was southwest to Deception Island, a volcanic cone emerging from the sea, whose flooded crater can be entered through a narrow passage descriptively named the Devil’s Bellows. A relatively serene anchorage gives access to abundant sea life, thermally warmed beaches and amazing scenery. Onwards, their path took them to Trinity Island, Melchior Islands, Port Lockroy, Palmer Station – a US scientific base on Anvers Island – and, dodging storms, back to Port Lockroy. Then it was a sail to Paradise Bay on the Antarctic mainland before the final leg took Rosehearty south-west along the coast to cross the Antarctic Circle, followed by a stormy crossing of the Drake Passage to Cape Horn and Puerto Williams. A voyage of a lifetime!

Discovering the beauty of the north-eastern coast of Sardinia in the late 1950s, His Highness the Aga Khan had a vision of creating an exclusive destination for elite tourism, while preserving the natural heritage. The Costa Smeralda Consortium was established in 1962 to promote sustainable development of the area and in 1967 His Highness founded the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda together with Andrè Ardoin, Giuseppe Kerry Mentasti and Luigi Vietti as a non-profit-making sporting association for fellow sailing enthusiasts.

From its inception, the Club has aimed to organise international regattas, and in 1980 two important world championships were created: the Maxi Yacht World Championship and the Swan World Cup. In addition to a busy sporting calendar, the YCCS also promotes activities relating to the YCCS Sailing School and the One Ocean Foundation, created in March 2018 from an environmental sustainability project launched in 2017 to mark the Club’s 50th anniversary. In 1981 the YCCS laid down the first Italian challenge for America’s Cup. Just two years later the 12-Metre Azzurra came a triumphant third in the qualifying regattas for the finals in Newport. Thanks to her success, the first 12-metre Class World Championship was held in Porto Cervo in 1984. That same year, the Royal Perth Yacht Club chose the YCCS to act as Challenger of Record for the 1987 edition of the America’s Cup. Motor yachts have also been a longstanding passion for His Highness. In 1992, the 67-metre motor yacht Destriero crossed the Atlantic in 58 hours at an average speed of 98.323km/h. This spectacular adventure won Destriero not only the Columbus Atlantic Trophy, the prize instituted by the New York Yacht Club and the YCCS for the fastest return Atlantic crossing, but also the Virgin Atlantic Challenge for the fastest crossing awarded by former record holder Sir Richard Branson.

In 2014, His Highness took delivery of 50-metre Alamshar, the only all-gas-turbine-powered yacht in the world. As well as his many successes in the yachting world, His Highness has been deeply engaged with the work of the Aga Khan Development Network. As the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, from the age of 20, he has dedicated his efforts to improving living conditions and opportunities for the most vulnerable populations in developing countries.

Length: 90m

Builder: Oceanco

Naval architect: Azure/Oceanco

Exterior design: Luiz de Basto

Interior design: Nuvolari Lenard

In selecting the winner of the Motor Yacht of the Year title, the Judges were faced with the task of choosing a single yacht from amongst the eight individual winners of the Semi-Displacement and Displacement Motor Yacht classes. Determining the winner of this highly coveted title is not just a simple matter of choosing the largest yacht, or the yacht that won its class by the greatest margin, as Judges are also required to consider how each of these vessels might have advanced the design, construction and appearance of future generations of yachts. Making this decision was neither easy nor quick. After a lengthy debate the final choice, made by secret ballot, revealed that DAR was the winner by a good margin.

With inspiration for her exterior lines drawn from nature – her build name was Project Shark – she has an attractive profile and excellent deck spaces, including a superb beach club and an enviable owner’s deck incorporating a private pool and lounging area. Her interior reveals spacious facilities for the owner on his private deck, and pleasing public areas and guest staterooms, all well-proportioned and interestingly decorated. The crew are also well provided for, with high-quality recreational and mess facilities, while their cabins are equally well appointed. On a technical level the installation of the huge areas of darkened glass on the superstructure, and the flush-mounted doors that penetrate it, called for totally novel application and fixing techniques. Lastly, this massive project was delivered to her owners on time and budget and they enjoyed their first season’s cruising as planned.