Royal Huisman shares first look on board award-winning 65m sailing yacht Aquarius

A year after her delivery in May 2025, Dutch shipyard Royal Huisman has unveiled the interior images of its 65-metre sailing yacht and 2026 Sailing Yacht of the Year, Aquarius.

The superyacht was commissioned by an experienced yachtsman as a successor to his smaller 56-metre Aquarius (now Apsara), and reunites the original design and build team: Dykstra Naval Architects, Mark Whiteley Design and Royal Huisman, alongside the owners’ project manager, Godfrey Cray, and captain, James Turner.  According to the yard, the brief was to enhance, not reinvent, the original build, focusing on increased volume, accommodation and "spirited sailing performance" while retaining family comfort and a classic elegance.

While bigger is generally considered better in the yachting world, large sailing yachts bring a set of unique challenges, as Erik Wassen of Dykstra Naval Architects explained at the yacht's delivery last year: "Once you step over the 60-metre hull length, it’s a challenge to get enough sail area on the boat for a mast height of 62.5 metres. That’s normally the threshold (to fit under the Bridge of the Americas)."

He continued: "But this owner said: 'I’ve done that; I’ve gone through the Panama Canal, so I’m not too worried about the mast height.' That gave us a new opportunity to provide the boat with ample sail area, and we raised the mast five metres, so it’s 67.5 metres air draught. She can’t cross the Panama Canal, but she has a lot of sail area, so in light breeze conditions, she sails well."

In line with the owner's brief, the new Aquarius features an additional nine-metre increase in length – achieved through a spoon bow – that grants around 45 per cent more volume, with space for a fourth guest cabin, an expanded gym and media room and a newly configured owner's cabin with a wraparound sofa. The increase in volume has also allowed for a larger crew area, mess and galley - the latter of which is now 67 per cent larger. 

The interior has been designed around relaxation and convivial living. For example, the yacht's main saloon – which is 62 per cent larger than the previous – sees the entire social seating area on the starboard side for uninterrupted conversation by the centerline "traffic flow". Aft, the owner's suite has been positioned across one level, rather than stepped, and features a large walk-in shower, while the main cockpit, owners' cockpit and both deckhouses were proportionally scaled up.

The yacht's design palette is consistent across all living and sleeping areas, with cream walls, swietenia wood cabinetry, marble counters, painted white overheads and a rich American mahogany scheme running throughout. 

According to the yard, a side-by-side comparison of the two yachts shows many similarities while maintaining Whiteley's original "New England Relaxed Elegance decor. The floors are finished in wood, though runners and area rugs add "colour and cosiness" - all adding to the yard's definition of the yacht to have a "light classic contemporary" interior.

Aquarius has two masts, including a 61-metre mizzen rig, a lifting fin keel with a variable draught of 4.8 to 7.6 metres and a total downwind sail area of more than 4,500 square metres. In terms of aesthetic differences, the yacht has a slightly lower forestay, a different ratio between the main and mizzen masts and a lower-profile deck house.

Rondal and Doyle Sails collaborated with Royal Huisman for the yacht's sail-handling and sailing systems, ensuring optimal performance on a race circuit with a crew of 30, but also that she is easy to sail around the world with a reduced delivery crew. Following her delivery last year, the yacht has already travelled 20,000 nautical miles in 18 months, including two transatlantic crossings, a high-latitude cruise in Norway and competing in the St. Barths Bucket.

"For Aquarius, the brief was not simply to build bigger," said Royal Huisman's CEO, Peter Naeyé. "It was to preserve the character the owners loved, while adding the volume, performance and technology refinement their next chapter required. That is exactly where a fully custom Royal Huisman yacht proves its value: every detail can be tested, optimised and made personal, without losing the spirit of the original idea."

Drawing on experience from the original, Aquarius has semi-hybrid power generation, battery and load smoothing, climate control improvements, sideboarding arrangements and a sail and mast design that takes full advantage of the load reductions offered by Doyle’s structured luff developments and Carbo-Link’s solid carbon Elipse rigging. The yacht is capable of reaching a maximum speed of 14 knots, with a cruising speed of 12.5 knots - though Captain James Turner noted that she achieved speeds of 16.7 knots on her owner's first outing.

Aquarius' owner said of the build: "Both ships are impressive sailing yachts, but the new one accelerates faster, and with its drop-down keel, it performs better upwind. She sails beautifully, with perfect balance, speed and stability. I love being at the wheel when we are sailing between 12 and 16 knots! When asked if I would do anything different were I to begin a new Aquarius, my answer is, 'Nothing!'"

According to BOATPro, Royal Huisman has two yachts currently under construction, including the 81-metre sailing yacht Project 412.