Yacht Stories
Stories from the world of superyachts — new builds, sustainability, business, and the events that shape the season.
Events
Cannes Yachting Festival 2026: Premieres & Prizes
Technology
The Superyacht That Breathes Hydrogen
Expedition
A 195-Metre Research Vessel That Also Happens to Be a Superyacht
Design & Engineering
Sails Built From Carbon, Not Canvas
Business & Regulation
The Paperwork Behind the Deck Chairs
Market & Charter
Why 2,300 Charter Yachts Still Aren’t Enough
Events
Forty New Yachts, One Weekend
Business & Regulation
The Refit Boom Reshaping Northern Europe’s Yards
Design & Engineering
Inside the World’s Quietest Owner’s Suite
Expedition
Why Explorer Yachts Are the Fastest-Growing Segment
Technology
The Rise of the Multihull Superyacht
Events
Cannes Yachting Festival 2026: Premieres, Prizes and the Boats Everyone Was Talking About
Sources: Boat International, YachtCharterFleet, Robb Report
Six Days, 680 Exhibitors, Two Harbours
The Cannes Yachting Festival returned to the Vieux Port and Port Canto from 8–13 September 2026, bringing together around 700 boats from 5 to 50 metres across 680 international exhibitors. New powerboats and motor yachts lined the Vieux Port in the heart of the old town, while Port Canto hosted sailing yachts and a dedicated brokerage fleet — and organisers reported more than 150 world premieres and roughly 56,000 visitors walking the pontoons over the six days.
The Premieres Everyone Was Talking About
Among the headline launches, the Fairline Targa 58 GTO made its world debut alongside the 70-knot Anvera 200 hyperyacht, while Pearl Yachts unveiled the Pearl 73 and Bering Yachts showed the explorer-styled Bering BC60 for the first time.
Sanlorenzo used its annual Cannes press conference to unveil SHE in a global premiere, and Azimut previewed three new models at once — the Grande 44M, Seadeck 9 and Magellano 27M. Fountaine Pajot arrived with three new catamarans, Riva showed its 96’ Argo Super, and the Iliad 53F Offgrid Hybrid made its European debut, underlining just how much of this year’s newbuild demand is chasing explorer and hybrid-propulsion designs.
Award-Winning Design
Cannes also hosted the announcement of this year’s Best of Boats Award finalists — 30 boats shortlisted across seven categories, with winners recognised around the show floor. The Sunreef Ultima 88 took Catamaran Best Design for its raised helm and expansive multihull living space; Azimut’s Grande 44M claimed the Special Jury Prize for the engineering behind its flagship debut; the Excess 11, a 37-foot hybrid catamaran, won Best Innovative Boat for pairing electric-assist sailing with genuine cruising comfort; the Pearl 73 took Best Layout in its size class; the Baglietto FAST50 was named Best High-Performance Yacht; and the Icona 70 won Best Exterior Design.
Turkish yards had one of their strongest showings yet. At the World Yachts Trophies, held in Cannes on 12 September, Sirena — the shipyard behind the newly launched Sirena 118 — was named Best Shipyard of the Year, while fellow Turkish builder Bering Yachts turned heads with the debut of its explorer-styled BC60. That momentum carried into the wider awards season: at the International Yacht & Aviation Awards in Venice, Turkish yards swept three categories outright — Bilgin Yachts’ 80-metre Al Reem won Motor Yacht Over 60 Metres, Mengi Yay’s Cabana took the 25–40 Metre Motor Yacht award, and Numarine’s Orpheus, designed by Can Yalman, won Best Interior Design for yachts under 40 metres — a run of results that underlined just how central Turkish shipyards have become to the top end of the industry.
The Big Yachts on the Brokerage Docks
Away from the premieres, Port Canto’s brokerage fleet did plenty of talking of its own: 43 yachts were listed for sale at a combined asking price of more than $500 million, led by the 55-metre Heesen After You at €32.5 million — the largest yacht at the show. Yet brokers described a show defined less by sheer volume than by the calibre of the client walking the docks, with fewer but more serious buyers than in recent editions — a signal many read as returning confidence after a cautious couple of seasons.
A Fixture of the Yachting Calendar
Beyond the pontoons, the Festival’s Concours d’Elegance sent a fleet of vintage yachts parading across the Bay of Cannes, while a curated Innovation Route spotlighted sustainable propulsion and next-generation design. For a Riviera stretch already synonymous with film premieres each May, September now belongs just as firmly to yachting — six days that set the tone for how the industry talks about design, sustainability and the market heading into the winter order books.