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From Solar-Powered Catamarans to Giant Sailing Yachts: The 12 Most Innovative Boats on the High Seas

These yachts are shaping the future of luxury boating., julia zaltzman, julia zaltzman's most recent stories.

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Yachts that make you look twice. That’s what our round-up of future-forward superyachts on the water today make us do. From aft decks dedicated to the ultimate helipad to silent hybrid cruisers, and even optical illusion design, it’s a rubbernecker’s paradise of top notch amenities and visionary thinking all rolled up into one dynamic yacht package. Whether you’re a salty sailor at heart or keen on speed machines, here we identify eight innovative vessels that will make you want to hop aboard without a second thought.

Feadship 312-foot ‘Bliss’

Launched in May 2021, Bliss has the Dutch shipyard’s all-new hybrid propulsion system. Designed and engineered in partnership with De Voogt Naval Architects, the diesel-electric hybrid system is paired with Polar Code compliance, meaning guests can cruise the more sensitive Polar regions with greater efficiency and as light a footprint as possible. Welcoming nine guests in an interior designed by Remi Tessier, the 312-foot world traveler packs true go-anywhere capabilities, along with a gym, wellness space, a pool and a convertible helideck.

Royal Huisman’s 184-Foot Sailing Yacht ‘Aquarius’

When design simplicity meets cutting-edge technology, the result is 184-foot ketch Aquarius . Built for an owner who likes to race and explore in equal measure, the Royal Huisman sailing yacht shows how performance and classic design do not have to be mutually exclusive. Fast yet easy to sail, Aquarius has a ketch rig developed in collaboration by the yard, its sister company Rondal, and Dykstra Naval Architects. She pairs 9,843-square-feet of sails with the latest in navigational aids to be a world explorer. Classic teak decking and good seakeeping qualities make her a true sailor’s yacht.

Heesen 262-foot ‘Galactica’

The 262-foot Galactica, built by Dutch shipyard Heesen in 2022, rewrites the rules of engineering. The owner’s brief requested fast and big, which led to an all-aluminum build to keep weight down and achieve speeds close to 30 knots, and a newly patented “backbone” for strength and rigidity. Developed in partnership with Dutch hydrodynamicists Van Oossanen, Galactica ’s fast displacement platform is created using two long, flat metal plates that are joined together by a vertical plate in the middle. This prevents the hull from flexing in water. Four MTU engines deliver 19,000-hp, and the addition of a fully-certified helipad means no place is off limits.

Ulstein Verft’s 290-Foot Motor Yacht ‘Olivia O’

Olivia O is a yacht that means business. Robust in every way, she is owned by a commercial shipping magnate with a love for industrial boats. Built by Norwegian shipyard Ulstein Verft Olivia O ’s rustic appeal is exemplified by the use of metal in the Espen Øino-designed interior, from windows with steel borders to corridors with painted metal ceilings. On water, she is defined by Ulstein’s trademarked X-Bow, which was originally designed for use on offshore vessels. Olivia O is the first yacht to ever feature it. Launched in 2020, she bridges the gap between luxury superyacht and authentic rugged explorer.

Oceanco’s 350-Foot Sailing Yacht ‘Black Pearl’

Scooping the top spot for largest DynaRig sailing yacht in the world, Black Pearl is designed by Nuvolari Lenard (assisted by Villate Design). A tri-deck sailing yacht, she boasts three revolutionary 70m DynaRig carbon masts and a sailing system designed by Dykstra Naval Architects. What’s more impressive is that all 2,900sqm of her black, highly distinctive sails can be set in a rapid seven minutes, and all at the push of a button. Her hybrid propulsion system, and other environmental onboard systems, such as waste heat recovery, propel her among a new generation of environmentally sustainable, and highly efficient vessels.

Benetti 351-foot ‘Lana’

One of the most exciting additions to the gigayacht club, Lana was built to discover the four corners of the globe. One of the largest yachts delivered by the Italian builder, Lana is powered by an unusual Rolls-Royce hybrid-electric propulsion, delivering fuel efficiency and long-range cruising. Delivered in 2020, she boasts a large pool on the sun deck that comes with its own heating system, meaning guests can enjoy a splash wherever she cruises. A waterside beach club with folding terraces creates a floating apartment at sea, equipped with a Hammam, massage room, and a dedicated professional therapist makes up one of the 33 full-time crew.

Bilgin 262-foot ‘Tatiana’

Launched in 2020, Tatiana the new flagship yacht from Bilgin Yachts heralded the arrival of cutting-edge, metal-hulled Turkish-built superyachts. With an internal volume of 1,689 gross tons—more than twice that of Bilgin’s previous flagship— Tatiana is defined by long overhangs and a sweeping sheer line penned by Unique Yacht Design. But it’s the 1,200-square-foot lower deck beach club with its two fold-down sea terraces that steal the limelight. The centerpiece is a 30-foot long, freshwater swimming pool. A second glass-bottomed pool on the main deck bathes the beach club below in dappled sunlight. When the shell doors are closed, guests can pamper themselves in the spa that enjoys a hammam, massage room and wet bar with a backlit floor.

Oceanco’s 360-Foot ‘Kaos’ (ex-‘Jubilee’)

The mighty motor yacht Kaos , formerly known as Jubilee , was built by Dutch shipyard Oceanco. For her Moscow-born exterior designer Igor Lobanov, she represents the need to always have faith in your own vision. Topping both length and volume records in the Netherlands at the time of her launch, Kaos’s layered double decks—the very thing that originally put so many people off the concept—are, for Lobanov, the key to the design’s success. “When you’re travelling on a small tender it gives the scale of a bigger yacht, but as you get closer to the yacht you realize her actual size. That’s what we wanted to achieve. We wanted it to be a design trick.” The illusion has been created with smoked glass panels between the decks that run the length of the superstructure and areas of teak decking inaccessible to guests, but which from a distance look like genuine deck spaces. Perfection.

Nobiskrug’s 262-Foot ‘Artefact’

Renowned for a truly striking exterior before she had even hit water, Artefact is the latest launch from German shipyard Nobiskrug. Designed by Gregory C Marshall, she boasts an extensive use of both structural and decorative glass, and includes a number of new technological and engineering features to minimise its environmental impact. These include a large battery storage system which allows the boat to operate without internal combustion engines for a limited time. The biggest-volume 262-foot superyacht in the world, she is also among the first superyachts to meet IMO Tier III emissions regulations and features an innovative diesel-electric propulsion system developed with electric motor manufacturer ABB.

Sanlorenzo 112-foot SX112

As the flagship of Sanlorenzo’s SX crossover line, the premise of the 111.5-foot SX112 is to introduce a new way of living at sea. Described by the Italian builder as a “floating building,” the innovative design enhances guests’ onboard connectivity to the outdoors. It’s achieved by reducing barriers to the outside and closer indoor-outdoor connection. Greater emphasis has been placed on the stern, which has a spacious internal beach area with easy access to the water and beyond, and elsewhere, retractable terraces maximize the outside connection. Exterior designed by Zucccon International, the SX112 gifts superyacht living space typically found on a much larger yacht aboard a compact platform.

Sunreef 78.7-foot 80 Eco

Is there anything more responsible than an electric sailing yacht that creates renewable energy? We don’t think so. The Sunreef 80 Eco is a sustainable transatlantic catamaran that combines electric propulsion with superyacht living and reliable sailing performance. Designed for long offshore navigation, it even generates its own electricity while under sail via a hydro generation system. A total of 1,765-square-feet of ultra-lightweight composite-integrated solar panels are spread across the mast, boom, superstructure, Bimini and hull sides generating up to 32kWp. Inside, the 78.7-foot multihull enjoys living quarters and accommodation for up to 10 guests, thanks in part to a 38-foot beam. It’s like a luxury pied-à-terre on water.

McConaghy Boats’ 140-Foot Trimaran ‘Adastra’

Costing over $20 million to build when launched in 2012, the owner of this custom-built transatlantic trimaran—shipping magnate Antony Marden—has cruised the seven seas for seven years turning heads everywhere he goes. Adastra ’s space age design comes from the boards of British studio Shuttleworth Design and was built in China by McConaghy Boats. Her speedy and light-weight hull is made from a super-strong e-glass/Kevlar foam sandwich, while her superstructure is made up of carbon fiber with a lightweight Nomex honeycomb core. Currently for sale, she provides the rare opportunity to own a yacht with “amazing seaworthiness” and looks like nothing else out there right now.

This story was originally published on August 7, 2020. It has been updated to reflect the most innovative vessels on the water as of the current publishing date. 

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Welcome to Leonardo Yachts. In close collaboration with the leading designers in the yachting world such as Hoek Design and Dykstra Naval Architects, we build daysailers that embody the true essence of a modern classic yacht. Our modern classic sailing yachts combine the timeless appeal of a classic yacht with the cutting edge technology of a modern cruiser. Enjoy the exceptional comfort and unrivaled performance or our Spirit of Tradition yachts, without making compromises on beauty and elegance. Our modern classic sailing yachts truly are the ideal combination of old and new…

Like a true modern classic yacht, our Eagles all have a classic look with the characteristic long overhangs, classic yacht lines and high gloss mahogany varnished exterior woodwork. The looks are completed by the Edson classic steering pedestal with Ritchie stainless steel compass and the stainless steel 7 spoke steering wheel with high gloss varnished mahogany rim. The interior of our modern classic sailboats can be made in different styles from matt varnished mahogany for a truly classic look or a classic styled white interior with mahogany or teak finish. But also light oak is possible or full teak wood, whatever your preference would be.

The classic lines and looks are integrated in a modern sailing yacht. The designs are made with the latest technology giving the yachts very good and easy to handle sailing characteristics. The modern keels in fin shape can be even upgraded for more performance to a bulb shaped deep draft keel making them fast and easily manouvrable. The modern technology can also be found in the electric package for the winches by which adjusting the sails becomes as easy as pushing a button. The sails from North Sails also hold the latest technology with the 3Di design, making the sails very shape stable to increase the sailing performance. To complete a race set-up, a carbon mast and boom can be added to get the most out of the speed. Standard, our modern classic yachts are delivered with Volvo Penta engines, but off course electric propulsion is available for all models.If you share our passion for modern classic sailing, we would be honoured to help fulfil your aspirations. Together we build the most beautiful Spirit of Tradition boats ever seen.

Get in touch and explore all our options.

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Practical Sailor Takes a Look at Trends in Modern Boat Design

Is the quest for speed and interior comfort trumping smart design in todays sailboats.

Practical Sailor editors have noticed the increasing tendency in newer-model sailboats to be ill-mannered in gusty conditions. Establishing balance between the sails and the hull is one of the main factors in quality boat design. For correct trim, many things must be considered: the ballast package location, the combined longitudinal center of gravity (LCG), and the longitudinal center of buoyancy. At the same time, to maintain a balanced helm, the keel must promote sufficient lead (the fore and aft distance between the center of effort and the center of lateral resistance). To highlight how these boat design principles play out, Practical Sailor looks at classic sailboats such as the Bill Shaw-designed Pearson 32, Ericson 41, Valiant 40, and Peterson 44, and compares their keel/sail ratios and lead values to more modern sailboat designs such as the Catalina, Hunter, Tartan, and Beneteau.

In the course of taking out boats for testing, Practical Sailor editors have observed an increased tendency for new-model sailboats to be ill-mannered in gusty conditions. We have been watching this trend for several years, and it seems to be becoming more usual than unusual.

In a typical situation, we will be sailing the test boat on the wind in 12 or so knots of breeze and everything is fine. Then, the breeze picks up to about 15 knots and the helm loads up. OK, thats to be expected, so we flatten the main, drop down the traveler, and that takes care of it.

Then we get a puff. Were already on the point of needing to reef, so in the puff, were overcanvassed. Instead of just heeling farther, the boat begins to round up. Fighting it with the helm is hard work, and easing the main so it luffs doesn’t help much.

Photo by Ralph Naranjo

We take in a reef, which usually means we roll in a bit of the jib or a bit of the main, or both, and the helm lightens up. We trim to the new wind and sail along, a bit slower now in the light spots, but then the next gust comes along, and the helm immediately loads up again.

In the worst case weve experienced, the boat rounded up so quickly that it tacked, even though the helm was hard over in the opposite direction. To prove that wasnt a fluke caused by a temporary diversion into a parallel universe, it did the same thing on the other tack.

Practical Sailor editors are old enough to remember a generation of cruising boats that didnt behave in this manner. For sure, there have always been twitchy boats, but most, when hit by a gust, would heel a little more, put some pressure on the wheel or tiller, and once the boat picked up speed, the pressure would come right off. A boat like that will sail for a long time with a loose lashing on the helm.

So, where does this bad habit come from? Several trends in modern cruising yacht design can share the blame. One of them is builders inclination to tilt their designs toward the performance end of the cruisers spectrum. Many recent and current cruising boats, if suitably fitted out with racing sails and the hardware and software to tweak them, could put up an impressive show on the race course.

The sensitivity to trim that accompanies such potential isn’t always suited to cruising shorthanded or with a family, when balance and good manners are key both to enjoyment and, to a degree, safety.

Establishing Balance

Many factors contribute to the balance of a sailboat. The obvious and principal pair are the sails and the hull. When working up a new design, the architect develops these in close association, but both are in turn influenced by other aspects of the boats design as it evolves.

In the standard approach, the designer works up preliminary drawings to express the basic requirements of the design brief, which normally include a desired length, displacement, cabin arrangement, and sailplan to provide the desired performance.

He then sketches out the hull lines (the matrix of contours that define its three-dimensional shape and its volume) to enclose the interior and meet expressed performance goals. The preliminary lines also serve as a basis on which to perform a number of calculations, one of them being the location of the center of buoyancy (CB).

With everything roughed out, the designer then “weighs” every item that will go into the complete boat, from the hull laminate to the toothbrush holder, but excluding the ballast. He combines these weights and their locations on the three axes, X, Y, and Z, to calculate the center of gravity (CG) of the whole package. Computer programs have helped to speed up this process and make volume calculations more accurate, but the process hasn’t changed much.

For the boat to float on its desired lines, the ballast package must then be designed and located to bring the combined longitudinal CG (LCG) of hull and ballast to the same fore-and-aft location as the CB (LCB). Once everything has been resolved satisfactorily, the designer can finalize the lines, carry out the necessary calculations, and establish shape and locations for the keel and the sailplan.

On most boats of current design, the ballast also constitutes the fin keel, and in that role, its location determines the center of lateral resistance (CLR), which in conjunction with the center of effort (CE) of the sailplan, influences how the boat balances under sail.

Even as boat design procedures have evolved from three-dimensional modeling using half hulls, through two-dimensional modeling using pen on vellum, to three-dimensional virtual modeling on computers, the fundamental principles have remained constant. One of the fundamental values used for predicting the proclivities of a boats helm is the dimension termed “lead.” Lead, pronounced “leed,” is the fore and aft distance between the CE and the CLR, expressed as a percentage of the waterline length (DWL).

“Skenes Elements of Yacht Design,” as revised by Francis S. Kinney, and other references for yacht design provide rules of thumb for calculating lead from the sailplan and the hull profile. (See illustration above).

Looking at the diagram, its easy to see how lead is an elusive quantity. First of all, no boat sails with the sailplan as shown-the sails are never flat and on centerline. The traditional range for lead places the CE forward of the CLR by 14 to 19 percent of DWL. This value is lifted from “Skenes,” for years the first reference for any designer. Since that book was written and updated, hull forms have changed, and with them, optimum values for lead.

On designs with fin keels, lead is often calculated with reference to the keel alone. One feature remains constant whatever the design. Moving the centers closer together-reducing lead-increases the tendency to weather helm. Moving them apart reduces that tendency. If the lead is too great, the result may be lee helm, which is generally considered undesirable-and is in fact, rare.

In Kinneys prime years, the 1960s to the 1980s, the basic working sailplan of a sloop included a 150-percent genoa, which would have the effect of moving the CE closer to the CLR. Many designs today have headsails with short or even no overlap and very often a full-battened mainsail with lots of roach. The different aerodynamic characteristics of such rigs might well affect optimum lead, something which designers can only determine through experience. (If a boatbuilder offers an in-mast furling mainsail as an option, its effect on lead will differ from that of the “classic” sailboat.)

The effective CLR can also be very different from that calculated. On a deep-bodied, full-keel hull, that difference simply might be the difference between the geometric center and the center of hydrodynamic pressure of the whole profile.

A sharp bow with a pronounced “chin” might well move the effective CLR forward. On a modern, fin-keeled boat with a shallow, broad canoe body like that of a dinghy, the keel makes a proportionately larger contribution to lateral resistance, so the location of the keel will strongly influence where that resistance operates.

Obviously the rudder, too, is part of the lateral plane, but if our objective is to sail with light to neutral pressure on the helm, under normal conditions, it should not be making a significant contribution to lateral resistance. Its role is to provide a means to change the boats direction and to compensate for the constant fluctuations in the forces applied to the boat in the normal course of sailing. A certain amount of pressure in the form of weather helm helps by providing positive feedback to the helmsman on the state of balance. That said, on many racing hulls, the rudder is designed to contribute lift and has an active role in driving the boat to windward. (It is worth noting that those wide-bodied race boats also tend to have twin rudders.)

Then and Now

Even in the age of computer modeling, yacht design remains a series of compromises. At the moment, it seems the pendulum has swung to a point where high-volume, wide-beam shapes dominate. With them come large rigs to overcome skin drag and its negative effect in light air. As a result, theres a need to sail the vessel as flat as possible or suffer the consequences.

The sailplan and outboard profiles of boats from different eras represent the shift in yacht design that has occurred during recent decades. The modern boats have longer proportional waterlines, indicating higher potential speed. It also means that the boats immersed volume, or displacement, has been distributed over a greater length.

Given two boats of similar displacement like the classic Pearson 32 and the modern Tartan 3400 (above), the Tartan winds up with a shallower canoe body. This also contributes to its being potentially faster and, if both boats had the same draft, would give the keel a slight advantage in span, and therefore effectiveness to windward.

So far so good, but a shallower canoe body forces the cabin sole upward, especially if the belowdecks accommodations are to take full advantage of the wide beam favored in the modern hull. To achieve comparable headroom with its older counterpart, the cabintop has to go up, too, and to ensure sitting headroom on the settees under the sidedeck, so does the freeboard.

Ultimately, the whole deck moves upward. To ensure the boom doesn’t sweep everybody out of the cockpit during an unplanned jibe, the boom too goes up. If sail area is not to be compromised, the entire mainsail goes up, and with it, its center of effort. The bigger the boat, the less pronounced these differences become as the proportions become more relaxed.

Differences are visible, too, between the boats keels; the modern Tartans is smaller in area. While it might be claimed that less wetted surface promises higher sailing speeds in light air, some builders accept a smaller keel to simplify the manufacture of the hull.

In a perfect world, the designer draws a keel to suit the boats sail area and other characteristics, places it to obtain the desired sailing performance, then massages the needed ballast to both fit the keel and trim the boat correctly. The volume of the ballast is usually less than that of the keel, and the builder has to do some intricate laminating work to mold a keel to receive ballast internally or a stub to which to bolt it externally.

On many production boats today, the keels are bolted directly to the bottom of a fair canoe body, a practice which eliminates much labor. The consequence is that the area of the keel is determined by the weight, and therefore the volume, of the ballast. To achieve the desired hydrodynamic properties and mechanical strength-it mustnt bend under the influence of normal sailing loads-a given volume of ballast can be formed into a limited range of shapes. Placing ballast in a bulb at the bottom aids the keels efficiency by creating an endplate effect and raises stiffness by placing ballast low, but it means that the keels lateral plane is sharply reduced.

For a more dramatic representation of how changes in keel design can affect helm balance, compare a Cruising Club of America (CCA) design like the Ericson 41 above, to a modern equivalent with comparable sail area like the Beneteau 46.

When sailing, two boats are subjected to similar forces on the sails. Resisting that side force are the immersed hull, the keel, and the rudder. If the hulls offer similar resistance, the remaining force is shared between the keel and rudder. If one keel is smaller than the other (as is clearly the case here), the effect is to increase the share taken by the rudder.

When the sails are trimmed properly and all is in balance, the rudder will carry a small load. If however, you hit a gust, the rudder must pick up a high proportion of the added side thrust until balance is restored, usually by some adjustment to sail trim.

Simply put, boats of the general modern type are not forgiving in changeable conditions, say, for example when the apparent wind is in the 12- to 18-knot range. At the higher end, youd want to be reefed; at the lower end, probably not.

On a day when you expect the wind to soften rather than harden, youd rather not put in the reef, so that you can maintain speed in the lulls. In the puffs, you want your hands free to ease the traveler and flatten the jib, which is hard to do if the helm is a handful. Compounding the problem on most boats, the mainsail controls are usually not within reach of the helm.

On racing boats, such sensitivity isn’t an issue. On the contrary, sufficient crew are on hand to make adjustments on the fly as quickly and often as needed to keep the boat sailing at her fastest.

Cruising boats are often sailed shorthanded and by crews who are not looking for a constant physical workout. An autopilot might be doing most of the steering, and good balance is helpful in protecting it from having to work too hard-or from being overpowered.

Another striking difference between the older and newer designs is visible in the plan (overhead) view. By 1980, cruising-boat hulls were already becoming beamy relative to boats of the 1960s and 1970s. The current trend is to carry the beam aft, so that in the region of the rudder, its as much as 85 percent of the maximum beam, far wider than the 55 percent to 60 percent once considered acceptable. The principal beneficiary of this extra breadth is the boats interior-builders often offer twin double cabins aft where a generation ago they might have squeezed in a quarter berth and a cockpit locker. The cockpit, too, becomes roomier, and the transom, scooped and sculpted, is transformed into a swim platform and dinghy dock.

Photo by Jarrod Scanlon

All this additional boat aft adds weight aft, in both construction materials and outfit. To compensate, the ballast-that is to say, the keel-has to be fitted farther forward.

The full beam aft does provide a significant boost to the boats ability to carry sail. As the boat heels, the center of buoyancy moves quickly outboard, away from the center of gravity. This lengthens the righting arm, giving a positive contribution toward stability, but it also moves the immersed centerline of the hull away from the static centerline along which both the keel and the rudder are attached. Depending on the hulls shape, this can create a distortion in the immersed volume, which can in turn affect the dynamics acting on it.

Effect of Keel Area

Another factor entering the equation is the area of the keel. This, too, is apparent when comparing the drawings of the older and newer generation boats. Many of the standard tracts on the design of sailing yachts are, lets say, vague on what keel area is adequate or even desirable, although many designers have come up with their own formulas.

Because the keel is reacting in the water to forces generated on the sails by the wind, it makes sense that the area of a fin keel should be related in some way to sail area.

When naval architect Dave Gerr took over as director of the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology, he found the course materials for sailing yacht design had little detailed explanation on this topic, a gap he subsequently filled. Briefly, he recommends no fin keel should be less that 2.5 percent of the sail area (mainsail 100 percent foretriangle) and need be no more than 5 percent. The smaller value is appropriate for a racing boat with a full crew aboard to trim and tweak the sails to every change in the wind. The larger area is suited to cruising boats, which need to be more forgiving to shorthanded crews.

Current Design Trends

In the past, racing measurement rules have been criticized because the boats designed to compete under them have become type-formed, sometimes with unwelcome consequences in how they handle. We might just as easily level criticism at present-day marketing and manufacturing methods for doing the same to cruising boats.

Lets face it, but for a few differences in sailplans and keel shapes, modern cruising sailboats are quite generic below the sheerline. They are all beamy; they carry their beam aft; they have long waterlines; they have dinghy-like underbodies; and they have spade rudders. The forces that have created this shape have at least as much to do with how many people can sleep and shower in them comfortably as with how the boats will sail.

Dishing out the hull shape in this manner makes it fairly easy to push through the water, but arranging the keel, rudder, and sails so they work in concert has become a more complex problem, exacerbated by having to compensate for extra weight of accommodations aft, something thats less of an issue in raceboats.

The byproduct of these design parameters is zesty performance, a bonus for the marketing department, but speed for its own sake is not the first priority of cruising sailors. In the brochure for the Beneteau 37, the boats polar diagram shows a maximum theoretical sailing speed of over 12 knots in 30 knots of wind. When cruising sailors encounter 30-knot winds, they are more likely to hunker down in the expectation it will blow even harder than they are to set the chute to go surfing. What they want is a boat that will take readily to hunkering, and all the signs indicate those boats are getting fewer in number . . . and they are mostly older designs.

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Classic vs. Modern Sailing Yachts: Which Should You Choose

Classic vs. Modern Sailing Yachts: Which Should You Choose?

Sailing is one of the oldest forms of transport in human history but that doesn’t mean it’s lost its charm in the modern era. Luxury sailing yachts offer a vintage escape. A holiday that is slow and steady, calm and captivating. Here, we explain the main types of luxury sailing yachts to choose from for your next charter.

Classic sailing yachts

Believe it or not, there are still a handful of century old sailing yachts coasting in international waters. Classic sailing yachts are generally those built before 1975, with many built even earlier. They have often undergone a refit to ensure they suit the modern traveller, but they maintain as much of their history and tradition as possible. They have stayed true to the original sailing yacht style with wooden hulls, traditional decks and the long, pointed sailing yacht shape we’ve come to know and love.

Why would you choose a classic sailing yacht? Perhaps to take yourself back to a simpler time; when life was less busy, and the world moved slower. Perhaps to experience the opulent feelings of the golden ages of the early 20th century. Or, for some it’s the feel of the yacht in the water. The solid, steady movements and the quiet solitude of sailing compared to motoring on the seas.

Meet our classic yachts for charter

Creole, 1927 | 2008.

FROM €266,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €21,280 LEARN MORE

ENDEAVOUR, 1934 | 2012

FROM US$111,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT US$14,430 LEARN MORE

CROCE DEL SUD, 1933 | 2011

FROM €85,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €6,800 LEARN MORE

The modern classics

In the 1980s a new breed of sailing superyacht emerged. It was known as the modern classic and it merged everything that boat enthusiasts loved about the classic style, with the modern advancements and tech to improve their movement, stability and sometimes speed. It will look and feel like you’re travelling on a historic sailing yacht, but it won’t make you feel like you’ve regressed to a time before modern conveniences.

Meet our modern classics for charter

Atalante, 2015.

FROM €84,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €6,720 LEARN MORE

ATHENA, 2004 | 2011

FROM €350,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €28,000 LEARN MORE

ELEONORA, 2000 | 2008

FROM €75,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €6,000 LEARN MORE

Modern sailing yachts

As with everything old, there are those who strive to make it new again. Reimagining the sailing yacht is the task of modern sailing yacht designers. They don’t always follow the traditional hull design or materials. They prefer modern or contemporary interiors that are more like what you’d expect on a 21st century yacht. And they don’t always follow the rules of sailing. These are the yachts to choose if you want the feel of sailing with every single luxury expected of a modern yacht.

Meet our modern superyachts for charter

Silver lining, 2017.

FROM US$290,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT US$23,200 LEARN MORE

HEMISPHERE, 2011

FROM A$280,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT A$22,400 LEARN MORE

ALL ABOUT U 2, 2019

FROM €140,000 P/WEEK MEMBER DISCOUNT €11,200 LEARN MORE

Any yacht, anywhere with Ahoy Club

When we say any yacht, we truly mean it. Our fleet of charter yachts includes an impressive 900+ sailing yachts at a range of great prices. If you’d like to escape the speed of modernity and enjoy the pace of simpler times, browse our sailing yachts to find your perfect fit.

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Sailboat Design Evolution

• By Dan Spurr
• Updated: June 10, 2020

You know the old saying, “The more things change, the more they stay the same”? As a judge for the 2020 Boat of the Year (BOTY) competition at this past fall’s US Sailboat Show in Annapolis, Maryland, I helped inspect and test-sail 22 brand-new current-model sailboats. And I came away thinking, Man, these aren’t the boats I grew up on. In the case of new boats, the saying is wrong: “Nothing stays the same.”

OK, sure, today’s boats still have masts and sails, and the monohulls still have keels. But comparing the Hinckley Bermuda 40, considered by many to be one of the most beautiful and seaworthy boats of the 1960s, ’70s and even ’80s, with, say, the Beneteau First Yacht 53, which debuted at the show, is pretty much apples and oranges.

To get a better sense of what has happened to yacht design, boatbuilding and equipment over the past three, four or even six decades, let’s take a closer look.

Design Dilemmas

At the risk of oversimplification, since the fiberglass era began in the late 1940s and ’50s, the design of midsize and full-size yachts has transitioned from the Cruising Club of America rules, which favored all-around boats (racers had to have comfortable interiors) with moderate beam and long overhangs, to a succession of racing rules such as the IOR, IMS and IRC. All of them dictated proportions, and each required a measurer to determine its rating.

As frustration grew with each (no handicap rule is perfect), alternatives arose, such as the Performance Handicap Racing Fleet, which essentially based one’s handicap on past performance of the same boats in the same fleet. Also, one-design racing became more popular, which spread beyond identical small boats to full-size yachts, popularized in part by builders such as J/Boats and Carroll Marine. The ethos there was: Who cares about intricate rating rules? Let’s just go out and sail fast and have fun!

And that might best sum up the design briefs for the monohulls in this year’s BOTY competition: good all-around performance with comfortable, even luxurious accommodations. Gone are interiors that noted naval architect Robert Perry called “the boy’s cabin in the woods,” deeply influenced by stodgy British designers of the past century and their now-old-fashioned (though ­sea-friendly, one should note) concepts of a proper yacht, drawn and spec’d by the same guy who designed the hull, deck and rig. Today, dedicated European interior designers are specially commissioned to inject modernity, home fashion colors and textures, amenities, and more light—even dubiously large port lights in the topsides.

Overhangs, bow and stern, have virtually disappeared. Why? It seems largely a matter of style. Plus, the bonus of increased usable space below, not to mention a longer waterline length for a given length overall, which translates to more speed. Former naval architect for C&C Yachts and Hunter Marine, Rob Mazza, recalls that 19th-century pilot cutters and fishing schooners operating in offshore conditions generally had plumb bows, so in a sense, bow forms have come full circle.

Today’s boats are carrying their wide beam farther aft. Gone are the days of the cod’s head and mackerel tail. Wide, flat canoe bodies are decidedly fast off the wind, and might even surf, but they pay a comfort penalty upwind.

These boats have lighter displacement/length (D/L) ratios, which means flatter bottoms and less stowage and space for tanks. The Beneteau 53 has a D/L of 118, compared with the ­aforementioned Bermuda 40 of 373. Among entries in this year’s BOTY, the heaviest D/L belonged to the Elan Impression 45.1, with a D/L of 195. Recall that when Perry’s extremely popular Valiant 40 was introduced in 1975, the cruising establishment howled that its D/L of 267 was unsuitable for offshore sailing. My, how times have changed!

Perhaps more important, one must ask: “Have the requirements for a good, safe bluewater cruiser actually changed? Or are the majority of today’s production sailboats really best-suited for coastal cruising?”

The ramifications of lighter displacement don’t end there; designers must consider two types of stability: form and ultimate. As weight is taken out of the boat, beam is increased to improve form stability. And with tanks and machinery sometimes raised, ­ballast might have to be added and/or lowered to improve ultimate stability.

What else to do? Make the boat bigger all around, which also improves stability and stowage. Certainly the average cruising boat today is longer than those of the earlier decades, both wood and fiberglass. And the necessarily shallower bilges mean pumps must be in good shape and of adequate size. That’s not as immediate an issue with a deep or full keel boat with internal ballast and a deep sump; for instance, I couldn’t reach the bottom of the sump in our 1977 Pearson 365.

And how do these wide, shallow, lighter boats handle under sail? Like a witch when cracked off the wind. We saw this trend beginning with shorthanded offshore racers like those of the BOC Challenge round-the-world race in the early 1980s. As CW executive editor Herb McCormick, who has some experience in these boats, says, “They’ll knock your teeth out upwind.” But route planning allows designers to minimize time upwind, and cruisers can too…if you have enough room and distance in front of you. Coastal sailors, on the other hand, will inevitably find even moderate displacement boats more comfortable as they punch into head seas trying to make port.

A wide beam carried aft permits a number of useful advantages: the possibility of a dinghy garage under the cockpit on larger boats; easy access to a swim platform and a launched dinghy; and twin helms, which are almost a necessity for good sightlines port and starboard. Of course, two of anything always costs twice as much as one.

Some multihulls now have reverse bows. This retro styling now looks space-age. Very cool. But not everyone is sold on them. Canadian designer Laurie McGowan wrote in a Professional BoatBuilder opinion piece, “I saw through the fog of faddishness and realized that reverse bows are designed to fail—that is, to cause vessels to plunge when lift is required.” Mazza ­concurs: “Modern multihulls often have ­reverse stems with negative reserve buoyancy, and those are boats that really can’t afford to bury their bows.”

McGowan also cites another designer critiquing reverse bows for being noticeably wet and requiring alternative ground-­tackle arrangements. The latter also is problematic on plumb bows, strongly suggesting a platform or sprit to keep the anchor away from the stem.

Rigging Redux

If there was a boat in Annapolis with double lower shrouds, single uppers, and spreaders ­perpendicular to the boat’s centerline, I must have missed it. I believe every boat we sailed had swept-back spreaders and single lowers. An early criticism of extreme swept-back spreaders, as seen on some B&R rigs installed on Hunter sailboats, was that they prevented fully winging out the mainsail. The counter argument was that so many average sailors never go dead downwind in any case, and broad reaching might get them to their destinations faster anyway—and with their lunch sandwiches still in their stomachs.

That issue aside, the current rigging configuration may allow for better mainsail shape. But as Mazza points out, it’s not necessarily simple: “By sweeping the spreaders, the ‘transverse’ rigging starts to add fore-and-aft support to the midsection of the mast as well, reducing the need for the forward lowers. However, spreader sweep really does complicate rig tuning, especially if you are using the fixed backstay to induce headstay tension. Swept spreaders do make it easier to sheet non-overlapping headsails, and do better support the top of the forestay on fractional rigs.”

Certainly, the days of 150 ­percent genoas are over, replaced by 100 percent jibs that fit ­perfectly in the foretriangle, often as a self-tacker.

Another notable piece of rigging the judges found common was some form of lazy jacks or mainsail containment, from traditional, multiple lines secured at the mast and boom; to the Dutchman system with monofilament run through cringles sewn into the sail like a window blind; to sailmaker solutions like the Doyle StackPak. This is good news for all sailors, especially those who sail shorthanded on larger boats.

Construction Codas

Improvements in tooling—that is, the making of molds—are easily evident in today’s boats, particularly with deck details, and in fairness. That’s because many of today’s tools are designed with computer software that is extraordinarily accurate, and that accuracy is transferred flawlessly to big five-axis routers that sculpt from giant blocks of foam the desired shape to within thousandths of an inch. Gone are the days of lofting lines on a plywood floor, taken from a table of offsets, and then building a male plug with wood planks and frames. I once owned a 1960s-era sailboat, built by a reputable company, where the centerline of the cockpit was 7 degrees off the centerline of the deck—and they were one piece!

Additive processes, such as 3D printing, are quickly complementing subtractive processes like the milling described above. Already, a company in California has made a multipart mold for a 34-foot sailboat. Advantages include less waste materials.

Job training also has had an impact on the quality of fiberglass boats. There are now ­numerous schools across the country offering basic-skills training in composites that include spraying molds with gelcoat, lamination, and an introduction to vacuum bagging and infusion.

The patent on SCRIMP—­perhaps the first widely employed infusion process—has long ago expired, but many builders have adopted it or a similar process whereby layers of fiberglass are placed in the mold dry along with a network of tubes that will carry resin under vacuum pressure to each area of the hull. After careful placement, the entire mold is covered with a bag, a vacuum is drawn by a pump, and lines to the pot of resin are opened. If done correctly, the result is a more uniform fiberglass part with a more controlled glass-to-resin ratio than is achievable with hand lay-up. And as a huge bonus, there are no volatile organic compounds released into the workplace, and no need for expensive exhaust fans and ductwork. OSHA likes that, and so do the workers.

However, sloppy processes and glasswork can still be found on some new boats. Surveyor Jonathan Klopman—who is based in Marblehead, Massachusetts, but has inspected dozens, if not hundreds, of boats damaged by hurricanes in the Caribbean—tells me that he is appalled by some of the shoddy work he sees, such as balsa cores not vacuum-bagged to the fiberglass skins, resulting in delamination. But overall, I ­believe workmanship has improved, which is evident when you look behind backrests, inside lockers and into bilges, where the tidiness of glasswork (or lack thereof) is often exposed. Mechanical and electrical systems also have improved, in part due to the promulgation of standards by the American Boat & Yacht Council, and informal enforcement by insurance companies and surveyors.

We all know stainless steel isn’t entirely stainless, and that penetrations in the deck are potentially troublesome; allowing moisture to enter a core material, such as end-grain balsa, can have serious consequences. The core and fiberglass skins must be properly bonded and the kerfs not filled with resin. Beginning in the mid-1990s, some builders such as TPI, which built the early Lagoon cruising catamarans, began using structural adhesives, like Plexus, to bond the hull/deck joint rather than using dozens of metal fasteners. These methacrylate resins are now commonly used for this application and others. Klopman says it basically should be considered a permanent bond, that the two parts, in effect, become one. If you think a through-bolted hull/deck joint makes more sense because one could theoretically separate them for repairs, consider how likely that would ever be: not highly.

Fit-and-Finish

Wide transoms spawned an unexpected bonus; besides the possibility of a dinghy “garage” under the cockpit on larger boats, swim platforms are also possible. In more than one BOTY yacht, the aft end of the cockpit rotated down hydraulically to form the swim platform—pretty slick.

Teak decks are still around, despite their spurning for many years by owners who didn’t want the upkeep. In the 1960s and ’70s, they were considered a sign of a classy boat but fell from favor for a variety of reasons: maintenance, weight and threat of damaging the deck core (the bung sealant wears out and water travels down the fastener through the top fiberglass skin into the core). Specialty companies that supply builders, like Teakdecking Systems in Florida, use epoxy resin to bond their product to decks rather than metal fasteners. And the BOTY judges saw several synthetic faux-teak products that are difficult to distinguish from real teak—the Esthec installed on the Bavaria C50 being one example.

LPG tanks no longer have to be strapped to a stanchion or mounted in a deck box because decks now often incorporate molded lockers specifically designed for one or two tanks of a given size. To meet ABYC standards, they drain overboard. In tandem with these lockers, some boats also have placements or mounts for barbecues that are located out of the wind, obviating the common and exposed stern-rail mount.

Low-voltage LED lights are replacing incandescent bulbs in nearly all applications; ­improvements in technology have increased brightness (lumens), so some even meet requirements for the range of navigation lights. Advances in battery technology translate to longer life, and depending on type, faster charging. And networked digital switching systems for DC-power ­distribution also are becoming more common.

Last, I was surprised at how many expensive yachts exhibited at Annapolis had nearly the least-expensive toilets one can buy. Considering the grief caused by small joker valves and poorly sealed hand pumps, one would think builders might install ­systems that incorporate higher-quality parts or vacuum ­flushing, and eliminate the minimal hosing that famously permeate odors.

Dan Spurr is an author, editor and cruising sailor who has served on the staffs of Cruising World, Practical Sailor and Professional Boatbuilder. His many books include Heart of Glass , a history of fiberglass boatbuilding and boatbuilders .

Other Design Observations

Here are a few other (surprising) items gleaned from several days of walking the docks and sailing the latest models:

• Multihulls have gained acceptance, though many ­production models are aimed more at the charter trade than private ownership for solitary cruising. You’d have to have been into boats back in the ’60s and ’70s to remember how skeptical and alarmist the sailing establishment was of two- and three-hull boats: “They’ll capsize and then you’ll drown.” That myth has been roundly debunked. Back then, the only fiberglass-­production multihulls were from Europe, many from Prout, which exported a few to the US. There are still plenty of European builders, particularly from France, but South Africa is now a major player in the catamaran market.
• The French builders now own the world market, which of course includes the US. Other than Catalina, few US ­builders are making a similar impact. In terms of volume, Groupe Beneteau is the largest builder in the world, and they’ve expanded way beyond sailboats into powerboats, runabouts and trawlers.
• Prices seem to have outpaced inflation, perhaps because, like with automobiles, where everyone wants air conditioning, electric windows and automatic transmissions, today’s boats incorporate as standard equipment items that used to be optional. Think hot- and cold-pressure water, pedestal-wheel steering, and full suites of sailing instruments and autopilots.
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Anna: The modern classic yacht that conceals some serious technology

• January 21, 2020

Anna is a custom 65ft Spirit of Tradition yacht with some very high-tech features concealed beneath her classic exterior, reports Alison Langley

When approaching Anna moored at the dock, it’s hard to immediately tell whether she is a restored classic or a recently built replica. In fact, neither is true; Anna is a new build designed to include both the virtues of a classic yacht and the technical achievements of a modern cruiser.

Anna ’s story began two decades ago when owner Tony Merck began thinking about stepping up from small classic daysailers, like the Herreshoff 12 1⁄2 and the Bjarne Aas-designed International One-Design, into a larger cruiser that could maintain a classic aesthetic.

Merck had watched the birth of the Spirit of Tradition genre and had followed boats like the Pedrick-designed carbon beauty Savannah , as well as the Joel White-designed W-Class day racers. But his ambitions lay less with recreating an early 20th Century racer. Instead he admired the sturdy, able cruisers from past designers such as Fife and Alden, while he also loved the modern construction and high specification of this new generation of classics.

Anna ‘s classically sumptuous cockpit

In the summer of 2015, Tony approached Robert Stephens of Stephens Waring Yacht Design and work began on proposal sketches for the boat that would become Anna at their design offices in Belfast, Maine. Stephens has had a lot of experience with modern wood construction, having worked in the Spirit of Tradition genre since before it even had a name.

Tony and his wife Ann knew they wanted her to be built in Maine, but were not set on a yard. Robert Stephens and business partner Paul Waring took Tony on a guided tour of five top Maine yards before deciding to go with Lyman Morse, of Thomaston. Coincidently, Tony had played soccer and rebuilt old cars with yard founder Cabot Lyman in prep school some 50 years before.

Systems expertise

Lyman-Morse is well-respected in the custom boat world, but were not then as well known for building wooden boats as many other Maine yards with expertise in cold-moulded wood construction . Lyman-Morse did, however, have a reputation for high-quality glassfibre and carbon boats, but won the job thanks to their systems expertise and a modern approach to construction, including the integration of old-school hand craftsmanship with cutting-edge equipment like five-axis CNC machines.

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I was hired by Ann Merck and Lyman-Morse early in the project to photograph the entire project from start to finish, and make a coffee table book about Anna as a surprise gift for Tony. Project manager Lance Buchanan made sure my visits were timed so I could capture the build at the right moments.

Anna was built using a wood composite cold-moulding system. Her hull is planked in four layers of wood – an inner layer of tongue-and-groove Douglas fir strip planking, screwed and glued to the laminated Douglas fir frames. That’s followed by two layers of diagonal veneers, and a final layer of longitudinal strip planking, the whole sheathed in two layers of biaxial/mat glassfibre and epoxy.

Her deck is built as a sandwich, separate from the hull: plywood laid over a temporary mould, covered with CoreCell foam, then another ply skin, with a laid teak weatherdeck. Once interior components were in place the deck/cockpit/deckhouse assembly was installed as a unit.

Anna ‘s wineglass transom

Modular build

Lyman-Morse built Anna ’s interior in modules, allowing them to fabricate the galley, head, and main saloon off the boat and then lift each completed section into the hull. When each module was installed, the bulkheads mated against the curvature of the hull perfectly, with no trimming or additional tweaking required. Anna ’s construction adage became, literally, ‘measure once, cut once’.

Since Anna ’s design brief called for a classic ambience, that meant that hundreds of feet of hydraulic lines, electrical wires, and even halyards needed to be concealed beneath the yacht’s joinery. The designers at Lyman-Morse and Stephens Waring worked closely to come up with innovative ways to hide these wiring runs and mechanical spaces. By creating a complete 3D model of Anna they were able to plan these tiny crevices before construction began.

Stephens Waring brought in interior designer Martha Coolidge to contribute her fine eye to the style and detail of the interior, which was painstakingly developed with a combination of hand-coloured sketches, computer renderings and tactile examples. “I think we went through 17 iterations of the brass light-switch covers!” recalls Stephens.

8,212ft of tongue and groove (Douglas fir) planks were used for the inner layer of the hull

Anna is intended for easy daysailing, and her deck layout reflects this. A roller-furling boom from Southern Spars makes simple work of the large, high aspect ratio mainsail. A self-tacking jib will be the go-to sail for most of her career.  Anna ’s captain, Jim Murphy, enjoys sailing with guests aboard. “I love to call ‘Ready about’ and watch the guests ask ‘What happens now?’ and see their faces when I say ‘Nothing’, and just spin the wheel,” he comments with a grin.

But ease of sailing has not dulled the experience. Murphy explains: “Under sail, Anna is like a wonderful dancer. Her motion, her response to the sea and helm are like no other boat that I have sailed. An absolute joy.” For Anna ’s forays onto the racecourse, she switches to the ‘race jib’, a 100% working jib that fits on the furling headstay. A Code Zero and masthead asymmetric round out her inventory.

Hidden high tech

Anna ’s traditional style masks lots of high-tech systems. Sail handling systems are all push-button: electric winches, roller-furling boom and jib, and hydraulics to drive the sail controls. Two hidden systems maintain her classic lines while adding 21st Century functionality: a below deck anchor deployment system, and a side-boarding platform that eases access from a tender and provides a swimming ‘porch’.

A hydraulic boarding platform enables easy access to the water for all generations. The step-stool ladder deploys automatically

Beneath the saloon is a state-of-the-art engine room with turbodiesel motor, lithium ion batteries and multi-compressor air conditioning. A touchscreen nav plotter in the raised saloon disappears into the furniture with a touch of a button. Her deck saloon windows are power-operated at rear and sides, allowing airflow and communication with people sitting in the cockpit at the push of a button.

Following her launch in April 2018, Anna has completed two sailing seasons, split between Rhode Island, Maine , and Nova Scotia , with a good mix of day sailing, Spirit of Tradition racing, and overnight sails. She’s earned silverware in both Sprit of Tradition races and design awards but, more importantly, she’s fulfilled the ambition her owners had 20 years earlier to expand their world of classic sailing.

Specification

LOA: 19.96m (65ft 6in) LWL: 14.58m (47ft 10in) Beam: 5.13m (16ft 10in) Draught: 2.28m (7ft 6in) Displacement: 25,855kg (57,000lb) Sail area: 190m 2 (2,040ft 2 ) Built: 2018 Design: Stephens Waring Yacht Design Builder: Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding Co

About the author

First published in the January 2020 edition of Yachting World.

Messing about in boats since 1975.  Online Since 1997.

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Modern Sailing members can get qualified to charter our Sportboat Fleet by completing ASA 103, Sportboat Coastal Cruising or the Upgrade to Sportboat Fleet Clinic . 

The Premium Sportboat Fleet

Sailboats in our Premium Sportboat Fleet are larger than our Sportboat fleet (>27') and are equipped with tiller steering, inboard diesel engines, and basic overnighting features.

To charter Premium Sportboats, members must be both Sportboat and Cruising Boat (Silver, Gold, or Platinum Fleet) Rated.

• To charter a Premium Sportboat 29' to 32', a Sportboat Fleet and Silver Fleet (minimum) Ratings are required.
• To charter a Premium Sportboat 33' to 34', a Sportboat Fleet and Gold Fleet (minimum) Ratings are required.

The Silver Fleet

Our Silver Fleet is the largest fleet of Catalina 30s and 320s in the Bay Area. A dependable and spacious yacht, the Catalina 30 was a popular design that launched in the late 1980s. Our Catalina 30 fleet is used for private and group sailing lessons all year long, rain or shine. Larger than the Catalina 30, the Catalina 320 has a sporty racer/cruiser design that delivers both sailing performance and spaciousness below deck. These yachts are perfect for a day or evening sail on the SF Bay with your closest crew.

Club members can rent sailboats in the Silver Fleet after successfully completing a Fleet Rating Checkout on any size vessel or by completing the ASA 103, Basic Coastal Cruising course at Modern Sailing. Hire a captain for a Skippered Sail to enjoy the bay if you are not a Modern Sailing club member.

The Gold Fleet

Our Gold Fleet consists of Beneteau, Jeanneau, Dufour, and Catalina yachts ranging from 35 - 37 ft. long. Enjoy a luxurious sail with the modern amenities that these yachts are renowned for. Conveniently rigged, these yachts feature stack-packs, in-mast furling, dutch reefing systems, and dodgers. The interiors of our Gold Fleet sailboats astound with sleek designs, spacious galleys, and comfy berths. Gold Fleet yachts are popular for day sails and overnight charters at Angel Island, Paradise Cove, and Jack London Square.

The Platinum and Catamaran Fleet - Luxury yacht charters on San Francisco Bay

Experience all that the SF Bay has to offer - in style . Complete with all the amenities needed for simple, comfortable sailing, these Jeanneau, Beneteau, Fountaine Pajot, Seawind, and Lagoon 40 yachts will complete your bay sailing experience. Sized 38 to 40 feet in length, their spacious designs can accommodate 6-8 guests overnight with room to spare.

Pricing Structure

Pricing is tiered and varies according to vessel size and age.

Only Full Day [9:00am - 8:00am the next day] reservation types are bookable online.   Please call our office at (415) 331-8250 or email us if you'd like to make a Sunset [4:00 - 8:00pm] reservation.

Pricing is subject to change without notice. Learn about club membership or hire a captain for a Skippered Sail if club membership isn’t for you. 

How to Get Fleet Rated for Bareboat Chartering

Bareboat charters are available only for members who have successfully completed the required ASA Certification Courses or have undergone a successful Fleet Rating Checkout.

Experienced Sailors

Experienced sailors joining the club are not required to possess certifications but must submit a sailing resume and successfully complete a Fleet Rating Checkout with one of our instructors. Sailors seeking a Fleet Rating to charter have the option of doing a Checkout Clinic or a Private Checkout.

To get started on scheduling a Fleet Rating Checkout, please complete and submit this electronic Request Form .

Beginning Sailors

New members who are beginners can gain access to our fleet by completing ASA Certification Courses at Modern Sailing:

• Completion of our Berkeley ASA 103, Sportboat Basic Coastal Cruising certifies sailors to charter our Berkeley Sportboat Fleet.
• Completion of ASA 103, Basic Coastal Cruising on a 30'+ cruising boat in Sausalito or Berkeley certifies new sailors to charter Silver Fleet (30’ – 32’).
• Students who completed ASA 103 on a cruising boat can add the Sportboat and Premium Sportboat (29'-32') Fleet rating by completing the Upgrade to Sportboat Fleet Clinic .
• Students who completed ASA 103 on a tiller-steered sportboat can add the Premium Sportboat Fleet and Silver Fleet Ratings by taking the Upgrade to Silver Fleet Clinic .
• Students who are Sportboat Fleet and Gold Fleet (minimum) Rated can charter Premium Sportboats sized 33' to 34'.
• ASA 103 graduates who have skippered 4 on-the-water days (4 or more hours each) can qualify to charter the Gold Fleet by completing the Gold Fleet Upgrade Clinic .
• Completion of ASA 104, Bareboat Cruising certifies sailors to charter Silver, Gold (33’ – 37’), and Platinum (37’ – 44’) Fleets.
• To charter catamarans, completion of ASA 114, Cruising Catamaran at Modern Sailing is required. (Note: ASA 103 or 104 or a Fleet Rating Checkout on a monohull is required to charter monohulls in addition to catamarans.)

When a Fleet Rating Checkout is Not Required...

A Fleet Checkout Rating is not required when a member:

• joins the club less than one year after completing ASA 103, ASA 104, or ASA 114 at Modern Sailing, or
• rejoins the club less than two years after the last bareboat charter at Modern Sailing.

How to Get Site Rated to Charter at Both Locations

• Students who completed ASA 103 and/or are Silver Fleet Rated (or above) in Sausalito can get rated to charter in Berkeley by joining a Berkeley Site Orientation Sail .
• Students who complete ASA 103 or are Sportboat Fleet Rated (or above) in Berkeley can get rated to charter in Sausalito by completing an Upgrade to Silver Fleet Clinic or Sausalito Site Orientation Sail .
• Completing ASA 103 at one location and ASA 104 at the other location qualifies members to charter at both locations.
• Once rated to charter at both sites, your original Fleet Rating will remain the same at both sites.

Click here to explore yacht charters on San Francisco Bay.

For more information, contact us. We would be happy to answer any questions that you have about membership and chartering.

News & Events

How to get rated to charter with a spinnaker at modern sailing.

Ready to elevate your sailing experience – especially in winter, or whenever wind conditions are light? Modern Sailing is now making it possible for you to experience the uplifting joys of flying an asymmetrical spinnaker during your bareboat charters!

• Read more about How to Get Rated to Charter with a Spinnaker at Modern Sailing

Daylight Savings' End Brings Changes to Bareboat Chartering

Daylight Saving season ends on November 5, bringing some seasonal changes to chartering at Modern Sailing. The changes described below will go into effect on Monday, November 6.

• Read more about Daylight Savings' End Brings Changes to Bareboat Chartering

Sail the Windward Islands 2024

Flotilla Dates: April 13-23, 2024

Discover St. Lucia and the enchanting Windward Islands of the Caribbean with Modern Sailing School & Club!

The Windward Islands offer a delightful cruising venue of lush tropical islands draped with stunning bays and white sand beaches that spill into warm turquoise waters.

• Read more about Sail the Windward Islands 2024

Unlimited Sailing Sportboat Membership Program

Pay less to play more! Modern Sailing is excited to offer a membership program to make it easier for you to enjoy sailing more frequently! Pay no additional cost when you charter our Berkeley location's J/24s and J/80s as often as you want .

• Read more about Unlimited Sailing Sportboat Membership Program

Oopses, Ouches, and Accidents – What Every MSC Charterer Needs to Know

Sailing can be relaxing, refreshing, invigorating, and sometimes challenging. As an activity that involves human nature and working with the temperamental forces of wind and waves, an incident or accident that results in loss or damage can happen to any skipper.

• Read more about Oopses, Ouches, and Accidents – What Every MSC Charterer Needs to Know

Club Sails - a fun variety of social sails for members and their guests!

Club Sails are a great way for club members to make new friends, learn, and practice while sailing the beautiful San Francisco Bay. There are no certifications or experience required to join a Club Sail. With a wide variety of Club Sails, there's something fun to fit every sailor's schedule!

• Read more about Club Sails - a fun variety of social sails for members and their guests!

Professional Yacht Management Services by MSC

Love the idea of boat ownership, but not the maintenance? Place your yacht in the Modern charter fleet and enjoy more of the benefits of ownership while we manage the finer details of her care and berthing. Sail when you want to - we'll do the rest! And when your boat goes sailing without you, her income helps offset her expenses.

• Read more about Professional Yacht Management Services by MSC

Your First Charter: 5 Essential Resources for New Modern Skippers

Congratulations, new skipper! You've proven that you have what it takes to safely sail on San Francisco Bay. Besides your sailing skills, what else will you need to know to ensure your first charter goes smoothly? Where can you find the help and the information that new skippers need most?

• Read more about Your First Charter: 5 Essential Resources for New Modern Skippers

Reciprocal Clubs

Looking for opportunities to sail beyond San Francisco Bay? Your Modern Sailing club membership gives you access to other sailing clubs along the beautiful California Coast! Set sail in San Diego, spend the weekend anchored at Catalina Island, or whale watch in Monterey Bay.

• Read more about Reciprocal Clubs

Steer Clear of San Francisco Bay Shipping Traffic

Some of San Francisco Bay's challenge and appeal as sailing grounds is the fascinating array of ships, tugboats and pilot boats, Coast Guard vessels, dredgers, tourist and commuter ferries, and many kinds of power and sailboats that share the Bay.

• Read more about Steer Clear of San Francisco Bay Shipping Traffic

Angel Island - Dock or Moor and Go Explore!

Angel Island State Park is the largest natural island in the San Francisco Bay and is an attractive destination for bay boaters. Ayala Cove, accessible within Racoon Straight on the north side of the island, has the largest public docks and moorings on the bay and is well-protected from wind and

• Read more about Angel Island - Dock or Moor and Go Explore!

Local Cruising Guides: Benicia

Are you ready to explore further into the bay? Would you like to try your hand at an overnight trip? Sail to Benicia to explore a historic, quaint waterfront town with an active art community! This local cruising guide offers an exciting overnight adventure - venturing into the San Pablo Bay, navigating new Straits, and a great selection of restaurants to reward you for your journey!

• Read more about Local Cruising Guides: Benicia

The Commodores Club - Frequent Charter Benefits Program

Modern Sailing provides an exclusive member benefits program to reward our most frequent charterers!

Qualification for the Commodore's Club is based on the number of bareboat charters you do within a calendar year. All bareboat charters count - Sunset or Full Day.

• Read more about The Commodores Club - Frequent Charter Benefits Program

How to get your IPC Card

ASA is proud to offer the first International Proficiency Certificate (IPC) for sailors available in the United States. This certificate is mandatory when chartering in most European / Mediterranean waters.

• Read more about How to get your IPC Card

Membership and Chartering

Members enjoy privileges at our Sausalito and Berkeley locations: a variety of social events aboard and ashore, discounts on courses and clinics, and access to charter a diverse and professionally maintained fleet of sportboats, cruising boats, and cataramans. Join the club and sail!

• Read more about Membership and Chartering

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Testimonials.

The vessel was clean and in fine condition - very nice boat for training, well-equipped.

The class was terrific. I know you must get many compliments about your sailing instructors...But I must tell you that Robert is outstanding. Having taught SCUBA, I really appreciate the way he is so sensitive to all on board, dealing with each so well, knowing quickly their strengths and weaknesses making each feel special and cared for.

I started sailing at Modern at the end of 2021 and threw myself into it, spending as much time out on the water as I could. I came to Modern with some flat water dinghy sailing experience and it was quite a transition learning to sail bigger boats in much tougher conditions. There was a lot to learn, but the Modern instructors, Club Skippers and fellow Modern sailors made learning fun and rewarding. My Modern instructors were clearly very experienced sailors and sailing with them was inspiring! I want to thank the maintenance crew and office staff for their dedication and hard work - you are the folks who make things work! There is a lot more to learn and I look forward to sailing with Modern for years to come.

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Modern Sailing School & Club

Sausalito Location 2310 Marinship Way, Sausalito, CA 94965 (415) 331-8250 (800) 995-1668

Berkeley Location 1 Spinnaker Way, Berkeley, CA 94710 (415) 331-8250 (800) 995-1668

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90 Sunreef Power yacht honored with the Golden Crown in the category Discovery of the year on the Russian market

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This image is featured as part of the article Sunreef Yachts to attend Moscow Boat Show for first time .

Please contact CharterWorld - the luxury yacht charter specialist - for more on superyacht news item "90 Sunreef Power yacht honored with the Golden Crown in the category Discovery of the year on the Russian market".

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