If you’re looking for a luxury experience out on the water, a motor yacht or power cruiser is the best choice of vessel. It offers you a combination of performance, features, and amenities. While these boats come in a wide variety of lengths, styles, and models, they have something to suit any budget and needs out on the open ocean.
The motor yacht is a status symbol, and there’s a reason why billionaires purchase high-end motor yachts because no other form of transport, except for maybe a private jet, showcases wealth. In this post, we’ll look at the features and design of motor yachts and power cruisers, and we’ll make a few suggestions for top-performing models.
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What are Motor Yachts & Power Cruisers?
If you’re looking for an ocean-faring vessel for longer seafaring trips, you can’t beat the luxury accommodations and performance offered by motor yachts and power cruisers. These boats can stay out on the water for days or even weeks at a time. They allow for island-hopping in the Caribbean or travel through the South Pacific with ease.
These boats are the pinnacle of class and luxury, making all other vessels, even top-end models like cabin cruisers, look inferior in comparison. Typically, motor yachts and power cruisers have extended lengths compared to other boats, with the smallest models starting at around 40-feet.
Every foot adds thousands of dollars to the price tag of these boats, and a 90-foot model can cost hundreds of thousands if not, millions of dollars. These boats come fully equipped with everything you need to live the life aquatic.
There are purpose-built decks, plenty of cabin space, luxury accommodations for several people, and all the amenities you would find in luxury hotel rooms. There’s a full bathroom and shower, and some models come with hot tubs built into the deck.
The motor yacht is the entertainer’s dream, providing you with TVs, satellite communications, Wi-Fi, and more. There are several categories of motor yachts, including pilothouse, flybridge, sedan bridge, aft cabin, and express-style boats.
The bridge boat is the most popular style in motor yachts and power cruisers. You get plenty of space for overnight accommodations, plenty of deck space, and a helm on the bridge and in the cabin. As a result of the design, these boats fare well in all seasons and all ocean conditions.
A motor yacht or power cruiser relies on its design to categorize the vessel, with elements like cockpits or flybridges and outdoor areas defining the boat. You have plenty of options for diesel and petrol motors, and different hull designs, from planning to full-displacement, determining the speed and handling of the vessel.
Benefits of Motor Yachts
There are several benefits to owning a motor yacht or power cruiser. These boats come with so many features that you have everything you need for life out on the water.
International Sailing
The motor yacht or power cruiser offers you all the luxuries and amenities you need to spend days or weeks out on the water. The larger models can handle long international trips through the South Pacific or the Caribbean, and they have enough fuel capacity for very long journeys.
Suitable for Offshore Sailing
Power cruisers and motor yachts are great choices for offshore sailing. Due to the length and stability of these boats, they can withstand rough ocean conditions in storms. The powerful motors, extra width, and deep hulls on these vessels make them exceptionally stable on the water.
Power and Handling
The power cruiser and motor yacht come with huge engines offering you exceptional power and cruising capability. The long hull on the boat means that they turn slowly and lack the maneuverability of smaller models. However, they have enough power to cut through large swells with ease, and the handling is smooth and steady.
Dynamic Cruising Experiences
These boats are cruisers, offering excellent performance for slow, steady cruising through the islands. The longer models feel effortless to drive, gliding through the water with ease.
Plenty of Storage
The motor yacht and power cruiser come with plenty of storage facilities for all your gear. These boats can accommodate everything you need for your time out on the water, from watersports equipment like skis and tubes to dive gear and fishing equipment. The accommodations come with cabinets and wardrobes, and the kitchen features a full fridge and freezer on most models, with plenty of room for food storage.
Luxury Living Accommodations
The yacht and power cruiser offers you the best liveaboard accommodations. The longer the boat, the more luxurious the fittings and finishes. Most models over 60-feet in length will come with multiple bedrooms, featuring queen-size beds. The decks and lounge areas feature plush couches and seating, with split-level designs allowing for shaded dining areas. Some of the largest models offer you an experience that’s more like a floating hotel.
Entertainment Paradise
The motor yacht and power cruiser are entertainers’ dreams. They feature full electronic setups, including TVs, audio systems, plenty of speakers, and loads of deck space to start the party on the water.
Comes with Smaller Boats or Skis for Watersports
Since most power yachts and cruisers are large boats, they are not suitable for getting close to shore. As a result, many of these boats, especially the luxury models, come with jet skis or inflatable dinghy boats that let you get to the beach or take fishing or diving excursions away from the boat.
Full Amenities
Motor yachts and power cruisers feature every amenity you could possibly imagine in a watercraft. As mentioned, the larger models are more akin to floating boutique hotels than a boat. You get full kitchens, refrigerators and freezers, sinks, and some models even have dishwashers. These boats come with the widest range of customizations available for any setup you want.
Multiple Sizing Options
Typically, motor yachts and power cruisers come in lengths from 40 to 90-feet. Models over this length will cost a fortune, and every foot adds thousands of dollars to the price tag of these luxury vessels.
Disadvantages of Motor Yachts
While the power cruiser and yacht offer you the best luxury boating experience possible, they come with a few drawbacks.
Expensive Price Tags
As mentioned, the power cruiser and yacht are the most expensive watercraft available. These boats have starting price tags of around $500,000, with high-end models fetching $10,000,000 or more. They are truly the best boat option for the wealthy elite.
Not Suitable for Water Sports
Due to the vessel’s size and lack of maneuverability, these boats are not suitable for water sports. However, nay models come with smaller boats or jet skis included, allowing for watersports like wakeboarding and skiing. The vessel does serve as a wonderful dive boat, allowing for liveaboard trips through popular dive destinations like the Red Sea and the Caribbean.
Expensive to Maintain
Motor yachts and power cruisers come with expensive price tags, and they also cost a fortune to maintain. You’ll also pay a significant sum in annual marina fees to dock your boat.
High Fuel Consumption
Power cruisers and motor yachts have high-powered motors to propel the heavy vessel. As a result, they drink plenty of fuel. Diesel models are available for better economy, while petrol-based models are more for performance. Some manufacturing brands offer green tech motors offering you excellent fuel economy for long trips at sea.
Not Trailerable
Due to the sheer size of these boats, you can’t fit them on a standard trailer. You’ll need to hire a specialist yacht transport service if you need to remove it from the water for repairs.
Top Motor Yacht and Power Cruiser Brands
There are dozens of premium motor yacht and power cruiser brands and hundreds of models available in various lengths. For the purpose of this article, we’re going to look at all of the best models and brands available, regardless of the astronomical price tags associated with these vessels. Here are our top choices for the best power cruisers and motor yachts available.
Benetti
Benetti is the world leader in superyacht design and construction. Lorenzo Benetti founded the company in 1873, with Azimut purchasing the brand in 1984. The Benetti range is exclusive, with opulent features and luxuries, giving you everything you would expect in a premium model.
Relax in luxury and enjoy your time out on the water. Benetti offers you seven models, starting at 95-feet. These boats are custom-built to order, with a long list of customizable options allowing you to set up your boat to your requirements.
Benetti offers custom-made motor yachts in its Mega and Giga ranges, with the “Lionheart” model being one of its most popular luxury models. If you have the budget, and money isn’t a problem, Benetti brings you one of the best ranges of motor yachts available.
Feadship
As one of the leading brands in luxury motor yachts, Feadship is an acronym for “First Export Association of Dutch Shipbuilders.” This elite shipyard produces some of the most sought-after models for society’s elite.
Feadship has a reputation for being the best motor yacht brand in the world when it comes to custom-built watercraft. Purchasing a motor yacht from this brand is like buying a home; you’ll work with the company to design your ideal boat, fitted with any customization you want in the vessel.
Our choice for the top models in the range is the “M/Y Faith.” This beautiful watercraft is a superyacht for the rich, giving you a 5-star experience out on the water.
Oceanco
This brand is another well-known company with an established reputation in the superyacht market. Founded in 1987, this brand has more industry awards than any other manufacturer, despite its relatively short time in business.
Oceanco makes superyachts for the elite, with some models reaching up to a colossal 420-feet, with onboard jet skis and dinghies, luxury accommodations, and full electronics for navigating the world’s oceans. Oceanco also utilizes green technology in its builds, giving you a motor yacht that reduces your environmental impact on the sea.
Azimut
This motor yacht company is also the owner of the Benetti brand. While Benetti is the more famous choice, Azimut also designs and builds some excellent watercraft for ocean-going experiences. The recognizable Italian design on these vessels shines through in the build quality, with impressive finishes and styling aesthetics that just scream high-end luxury when looking at the boat.
Most of the Azimut range of motor yachts includes cutting-edge electronics and technology. They also offer you a range of hybrid engines for economy and power. The manufacturer also uses nanotechnology in the boat’s coating, giving you a long-lasting vessel that looks fantastic, even after decades of service.
Sunseeker
If you’re looking for the best entry-level brand for motor yachts and power cruisers, check out the range offered by Sunseeker. Sunseeker is a recognizable brand in boats, producing a lineup of many models.
The motor yacht and power cruiser range from Sunseeker offer you smaller lengths, from 50-feet up, with more affordable price tags than the other brands mentioned in this review.
While they may be more affordable than boats from the other brands, you get excellent design and build quality, with materials like carbon fiber on the hull for added strength and lightweight design.
Wrapping Up
If money isn’t an object, and you want the best luxury experience out on the water, a motor yacht or power cruiser offers you the ideal model for your aquatic adventure. You get a boat loaded with every amenity you can think of and full functionality for anything you want to do on the water.
Sail through international seas, visit islands, take long dive trips, or just enjoy a cruise down the coastline. While these boats come with heavy price tags, they are worth every penny if you have the budget and you want a premium experience out on the water.
