Inside the Oyster community: Owners share their experiences at the annual Oyster Palma Regatta

From impromptu welcomes in the marina to ocean crossings and plans for a round-the-world rally, owners at the 50th Oyster Yachts Palma Regatta explain why buying one of the British-built sailing yachts means gaining far more than a boat. Lucy Pughe-Morgan attends to find out more...

What do you do if you turn up to a sailing regatta and there's no wind? "You have a very expensive floating picnic," announces Allie, skipper of Raydar Love.

With 23 of the Oyster sailing yachts dotted across the sea at Badia de Palma waiting for the green light, the community that the brand has built was hard to ignore. "Ah, there's Janpagne! Oh, and here comes Maia!" Stefan Zimmermann Zschocke, the CEO of Oyster Yachts, would call out as boats drifted closer, as if greeting old friends.

A group of owners sat down with BOAT during breakfast at Port Adriano to share their experiences of being part of the Oyster community. A fleet of Oysters rested a stone’s throw away in the marina, preparing for the race due to start a few hours later.

Andrew Moore, owner of Annie III, an 18.1-metre Oyster 565, is an experienced sailor who, when choosing to commission his own yacht, decided he “wanted a boat that was focused on luxury cruising but also critically had the after-sales support and the owner’s community”. Although the yacht had only joined the family in May that year, he already felt part of that shared experience.

When Richard Matthews founded Oyster fifty years ago, he introduced a tradition: every owner receives a flag to fly from their stern as a signal that fellow Oyster sailors are welcome on board for a drink. "It works even without the flag," Moore says. When he arrived in Palma, owners welcomed him without an introduction or invitation. "Wonderful," he calls it.

Another member, Eric Rosen, shares his path to ownership began in a laboratory in California. An engineer by trade, he'd cycle home each evening past Monterey Bay, watching sailboats cut across the water. "I asked myself why I was spending all day in a lab when I could be out there instead," he recalls, adding he had almost no sailing experience at the time, but was inspired by the freedom. 

Years later, he drove from California to Rhode Island to see Black Lion. He bought an Oyster 595 on the spot. At this year's Palma gathering, his yacht, the 19.1-metre Maia, was moored randomly beside that very boat and he was able to share the story with its current owner. "There's an unstated expectation that we're all part of this," Rosen explains. "Every time you pull up and there's an Oyster, it's like meeting family." He pauses. "Since I don't have a family of my own, it became an extended one. You gain more than a yacht when you buy an Oyster."

Each Oyster reflects 50 years of bluewater sailing, with owner feedback feeding into the design and build process. Custom-built, Rosen's 595 was the first fitted with six lithium iron phosphate batteries so he was able to run air conditioning in every berth overnight without a generator; a configuration he's particularly proud of.

Stefan also spoke about the company's evolving approach. "Every project teaches us something about technology, hospitality, space" the CEO explains. "We're still a modular builder, but we're always willing to discuss what's possible. That's what makes it different."

New to the Oyster community, Mark Digby's 19.4-metre Oyster 625 Janpagne – named after his wife, Jan, and her favourite drink – was launched in 2017 and is expected to join the world rally in 2028.  He saw his purchase as "an opportunity to truly become part of a community" and he subsequently spent time sailing in Greece with the previous owner, "learning how the boat works and getting a feel of it".  

“When buying a yacht, you want to trust it with your life. And if you’re in the middle of the ocean, you want to trust your life to something that is solidly built and has a great reputation and support services so you’re not on your own."

“One of the surprising upsides is becoming part of a community and you can see that in the camaraderie," he shares. "Everyone is willing to give you the benefit of their experience and how they’ve solved niggling problems."

His favourite feature? "Rather selfishly, the owner's cabin." Digby learned to sail on half-tonners in the Irish Sea, where you're "cold, wet, and somebody has most likely been sick on you". Against that backdrop, the ability to close a door and retreat into comfort was, for him, the ultimate luxury.

Richard Hadida, who became the new owner of Oyster in 2018, sails his own Oyster 885, the 27.1-metre Lush, and has done 18 transatlantics and two circumnavigations. He shares the “global freedom” he has found alongside a brand that “delivers luxury with no compromises”. “People want to explore the world,” he shares, “and that’s why they buy an Oyster”.

Hadida also discussed the Oyster fleet's focus on regenerative tourism. “We try to leave the place better than you found it", he explains. "It’s a step up from leaving just footprints in the sand, because we want it to be better.”

Working with Sarah Darwin, the great-great-granddaughter of Charles Darwin, in the Galapagos was another example. "We were trying to reintroduce species that were made extinct by man, such as some varieties of mockingbirds. 

"So far, we have identified 21 animals and so at each Oyster Rally we’re going to try and put back one of the species with the Galapagos Conservation Trust that Sarah is on the board of, which is the Charles Darwin Foundation." He ends, "It’s something we’re pioneering but hoping will become a mainstay."

Taking part in the rally for the first time, Hadida was joined on the adventure by his family, including his two-and-a-half-year-old son, Harry, the youngest participant that year, and an experienced crew. When they return to Antigua in spring 2027, Harry will have spent nearly half his life on a sailing yacht.

Back in Palma, the wind finally arrived. Hanging around on the Mediterranean is hardly a chore when you're on an Oyster, but after an hour's delay, the horn blew, sails unfurled, and the floating village transformed into a fleet with the Oyster community in full sail.

By evening, Rosen's Oyster 595 Maia had lifted the trophy in Class 1, while the Oyster 56 Olanta took Class 2. Glasses clinked on board, and the evening continued with a long dinner among friends, the Oyster flags flying for another night.