The Cat Meows

The era of the multi-hulled motor yacht has arrived.

- Michael Verdon

Traditionally, large power catamarans have been boxy and slow, often just knockoffs of sailing multihulls minus the masts. But the segment is quickly evolving toward elegance, speed and high design. For proof, look no further than contemporary launches such as Lagoon’s Sixty 7, Horizon’s PC74 and Aquila 70.

There’s also Rafael Nadal’s 80 Sunreef Power Great White (approximately US$5 million), which made a social-media splash last summer, in time for his 34th birthday. The striking yacht, with its azure blue hull, demonstrated a big cat’s potential: a palatial yet refined salon, rear steps leading directly into the water and sheer volume that can’t be matched by a traditional, narrower monohull.