Letting It All Out

With a focus extending beyond interior refinement, yacht designers are bringing a breath of fresh air to onboard sanctuaries.

- Julia Zaltzman

While oceanside living may seem like an obvious perk of yacht ownership, boatbuilders are only now looking outside the interior box for opportunities to infuse life on board with alfresco flair.

A pioneer of this paradigm shift is Benetti, with its 131-foot Oasis 40M. “We realised that owners, particularly of yachts below 500 gross tonnage, were spending time in beach clubs that felt like dark basements,” says Sebastiano Vida, head of product at Benetti. The Oasis deck, with its large foldout wings, swimming pool, and proximity to the water, “not only expands the exterior space but enhances how owners use it,” he says. Thirty examples of the Oasis 40M have been delivered or are under build—an extraordinary number for any superyacht. This outward approach is also now the defining feature of seven other Benetti craft—ranging from 131 to 236 feet—including its new B.Now series. The recently launched