O'Madeleine shows what Greece can build

Captain Paris Dragnis established Golden Yachts in 1996 as an offshoot of an established shipping company. From consulting on yachts built in other shipyards, it went on to build an impressive fleet of its own. It includes the flagship 95-metre O’Pari, 88-metre Project X, 85-metre O’Ptasia and 78-metre Malia (delivered as O’Rea in 2023).

While many builders gradually build larger yachts, Golden Yachts is exploring a smaller segment of the market. O’Madeleine is the smallest yacht to date to emerge from the facility in Perama near the port of Piraeus: she is 60 metres long, 11 metres in beam, but a significant 1,247GT (and remarkably elegant for her volume).

Golden Yachts’ design director Dimitra Agapitou decodes the interior as we enter the main saloon from a spacious aft deck. “We have the Nordic style. We have a serene look, the natural feeling, the textures, natural oak, cured stones, but still we tried to keep the luxury language, so we have real stingray details, straw details, classical fabrics, silk,” she says as I take in the vast space.

To realise the vision, they turned to Massari Design, which has completed three projects with Golden Yachts, to set the tone with the main and upper saloons, and Studio Vafiadis, which, in addition to the exterior, handled the comfortable yet refined guest cabins and the automotive-inspired bridge.

Despite the dual cultural influences, two design studios and several subcontractors to build the interior, the yacht feels calm and consistent. The palette repeats across the well-lit common areas and all seven guest cabins, achieving the unified atmosphere the owner and architects wanted.

Sculptural in form, the design balances long, athletic lines with recesses and glazed transparency

The main saloon sets the tone: full-height glazing brings the scenery and reflections of the sea inside an open space with high ceilings. A standout is the stunning dining table resting on a single leg beneath a surface of backlit agates, cut and joined with resin by an Italian artisan.

At the invitation of Agapitou, I examine the tabletop closely, looking – unsuccessfully – for a seam. Then she directs my attention to the sculptural foot under the table. Surely, this piece will be a great conversation starter.

Speaking of the table, Alessandro Massari says, “We were looking for something that stands out. The agate is formed by bubbles of lava in the volcano and over millions of years, it becomes this beautiful material. It is full of imperfections, and you must select it carefully.”

The table also incorporates a light. “I wanted it dimmable because it might have been too bright at night. It changes colour too. The pedestal is only one minimalist piece, and it is quite a feature. It was a challenge to support all that stone,” he says, but he wanted to minimise the entire structural weight, so it remained one piece.

He worked extensively on the ambient lights as well, which highlight interesting details on the ceilings, the bulkhead and the furniture. The technical lighting, developed with Cantalupi and controlled via Crestron, shifts through six preset scenarios, from crisp daylight to soft evening tones.

Massari says you want proper light for the right time of day over the whole 24-hour period. “Lighting can be added value, or it can become a headache.”

She demonstrates a mature confience: a Greek-built yacht that stands beside Northern European peers in engineering, finishing and concept

Materials are selected for their elegance and ease of maintenance. On a charter yacht, “the materials might be stressed more”, Massari points out.

For instance, he kept suedes, which he loves on walls, to a minimum and elevated them to the ceilings where they help dampen sound and soften the ambience but are not as exposed to degradation by touch. The wood floors are textured – pleasant on bare feet, they also better conceal wear and tear.

One of his favourite features is the staircase, which wraps around a lift, both structural feat and sculpture with its cantilevered steps. He also loves the upper deck marble-clad bar conceived as a “stone cave”, which pushed the craftspeople to invent new fabrication methods.

Nearly all interior pieces were built in Italy by small specialist ateliers, co-ordinated through Golden Yachts’ project team. One key point of the brief was to make spaces that can serve different purposes.

Such is the case with the beach club and adjacent garage, which is finished with high-quality materials and can be used by guests as an extension of the elegant lounge by the waterside. Golden Yachts tends to turn its beach clubs into signature spaces, and O’Madeleine expands the idea further.

Behind the large folding transom, protected by a hatch that opens up (without visible hinges), a lounge with bar and sofa precedes a well-finished garage with a dedicated massage area. well-finished garage with a dedicated massage area. One key point of the brief was to make spaces that can serve different purposes.

Such is the case with the beach club and adjacent garage, which is finished with high-quality materials and can be used by guests as an extension of the elegant lounge by the waterside. Golden Yachts tends to turn its beach clubs into signature spaces, and O’Madeleine expands the idea further.

Behind the large folding transom, protected by a hatch that opens up (without visible hinges), a lounge with bar and sofa precedes a well-finished garage with a dedicated massage area.

Once the seven-metre Novurania or 5.4-metre Castoldi tender deploys (when they aren’t stored in the forward garage), a wooden screen unfolds to create a relaxing massage zone. Massari takes credit for this simple yet elegant solution. “I think on a yacht this size, a massage area is a must,” he says. Finishes match the guest areas, erasing the line between utility and leisure.

As mentioned, there are two spots to park tenders and toys: at the bow and in the internal garage. “This is very interesting to me. At the end, [O’Madeleine] became a bit of an expedition yacht. It is good to have big tenders on board. It makes the boat suitable for many challenges, exploring, having fun or allowing two groups to go in different places,” Vafiadis says. “It gives you the freedom [to choose].”

Another key area is the “verandah” on the top deck, where Massari’s feature bar is located, a vast space under an eye-catching skylight feature that can be temperature-controlled, enclosed or left open and serves as a gym, a cinema or a lounge for parties.

Forward of it is a beautiful custom-built pool surrounded by glass and stainless steel polished to a mirror shine. Loose furniture by the likes of Paola Lenti adds to the flexible use of space, which is also very practical thanks to an intelligently positioned crew stairway.

The spacious guest cabins repeat the same design language as the lounges with a refined attention to detail and sustainable materials

Studio Vafiadis worked with the shipyard on the well-conceived general arrangement. “Practicality was front of mind,” Vafiadis says. “[There are] four large cabins on the lower deck, one twin, one double and two VIPs, and these cabins have an openable bathroom, so they become a huge space.”

They also, as he says, provide a feeling of “sweet and sour” – meaning, they combine the warmth of leather, wood and soft fabrics with the cool of Carrara marble.

As this suggests, the yacht’s practicality does not eschew luxury. The owner’s cabin, full beam on the main deck, merges a private lounge and workspace with panoramic glazing.

Lacquer, mother-of-pearl inlays and stunning Calacatta viola marble in a huge shower provide refinement without ostentation. Few of the ceilings on board are plain, flat surfaces, with wood slats beneath backlit ceilings giving the illusion of skylights in cabins.

“We have a serene look, the natural feeling, the textures... but still we tried to keep the luxury language, so we have real stingray details, straw details, classical fabrics and silk”

The spacious guest cabins repeat the same design language as Massari’s lounges with a refined attention to detail and sustainable materials, such as the eggshell used on nightstands. A seventh cabin on the upper deck functions as a VIP suite, complete with floor-toceiling windows, contemporary Italian furnishings and an inviting California king bed.

The first few weeks of charter, which immediately followed delivery, kept the captain and crew of 15 on their toes. “It was busy because we had to adjust everything,” says Captain Manos Panitsas, but, “we have great shore support.”

During her first summer, he says guests spent most daylight hours in the beach club, which can be expanded with a floating dock. This, the captain says, effectively creates a four- to five-metre floating terrace – a hit with charterers who prize proximity to the sea.

His experience is that O’Madeleine is both comfortable and manoeuvrable thanks to two sets of CMC electric stabilisers, independent rudder steering and a powerful bow thruster.

Twin Caterpillar engines deliver a comfortable 14.5 to 15 knots cruising speed and a top speed over 17 knots at 90 per cent load, which Dragnis says can be sustained for long range if required. On the fun side, she packs a huge array of toys and the captain has in mind a couple of additions for the next season.

Golden Yachts’ operational rule is that each yacht must be ready for charter by Easter. Back at the yard at the time of this writing, O’Madeleine is going through a final punch list, which had to wait until after she was launched, commissioned and sent straight into a 15-day charter (before returning to Perama for detailing and then onward to Monaco for the all-important yacht show).

The calculated gamble worked. Three charters later, she closed her first season with repeat clients and already has a strong reputation in Fraser Greece’s fleet.

It’s in character for this ambitious shipyard that is willing to push the envelope. O’Madeleine does more than add another noteworthy hull number to Golden Yachts’ résumé.

She demonstrates a mature confidence: a Greek-built yacht that stands beside Northern European peers in engineering, finishing and concept. Building on this track record, the shipyard is also making progress on two alluring 85-metre yachts.

One is under construction for a client, the other for the family. O’Madeleine is as comfortable at anchor in a quiet bay as she is crossing open water, as practical for charter as she is for a private escape. Above all, she embodies a proud shipbuilding tradition reinvented for the 21st century.

For Golden Yachts and Vasilis Dragnis, she isn’t just proof that a yard in Greece can build at the top level. She is the invitation for the world to notice that it already does.

First published in the January 2026 issue of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.