Charter yachts scoop top prizes at the BOAT Design & Innovation Awards 2023

By Nina Done 9 February 2023

Held last night in a prestigious ceremony attended by the crème de la crème of industry designers, architects and builders, BOAT's Design & Innovation Awards heralded a selection of brand new superyachts and their cutting-edge design elements and innovative technologies, with charter yachts storming to victory in six categories.

The winners of the Design & Innovation Awards, decided by an independent panel of judges, were announced as part of the Superyacht Design Festival in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

As ever, the awards acknowledged the talented design teams behind a selection of superyachts delivered in the past year. Nineteen categories were put forward, including fourteen categories eligible for individual superyachts.

Rather than judging the yachts in their entirety, the winners are recognised for individual aspects of superyacht design including naval architecture, exterior design, lifestyle features and interior styling.

Winner: Outstanding Exterior Design, Motor Yachts 60m and above and Judges' Commendation award

Marking the third collaboration between esteemed builder Lürssen and innovative design studio Nuvolari Lenard, the 115m (378ft) superyacht AHPO is a masterclass in design and more than worthy of this accolade.

Impressed by her sleek profile with its open fore and aft deck design, Judges appreciated the designers' ability to showcase such an elegant profile harnessing only a limited “palette of shapes”, as well as for her expansive alfresco living areas that are harmoniously balanced with her interior styling.

Motor yacht AHPO also received the Judges’ Commendation Award for Artisanship, noting the yacht’s interiors featured numerous high-quality materials emphasising the exacting craftsmanship that went into each element. In particular, the judges were drawn to Nuvolari Lenard’s designer Valentina Zannier’s beautiful bronze “olive tree” balustrade, which follows the yacht’s spiral staircase up through several decks.

Ahpo from €2,600,000 per week + expenses

Winner: Best Interior Design, Motor Yachts 500 GT and Above

The Parisian design studio Agence Jouin Manku was recognised for their unique styling on board the striking 75m (246ft) superyacht KENSHO, with its groundbreaking layout and calm, sensory spaces setting a new standard in superyacht design.

The designers’ reimagined the usual yachting areas, with Zen elements being foregrounded to evoke a broad range of emotions. Overall, the design studio, in collaboration with the owner and Azure Yacht Design, created an interior that has been unanimously lauded by the judges, who appreciated the Owner’s spaces and lofty ceiling heights of 2.7-meters, as well as for the attention to the smallest detail; from her hand-painted decorative panels and artistic treatment of the ceilings and corridors, to the extraordinary achievement of crafting a bathtub and shower walls from a single piece of marble.

Equally, the judges were impressed by the harmonious connection forged between her interior and exterior spaces, albeit with different designers.

Kensho from €900,000 per week + expenses

Winner: Best Naval Architecture, Semi-Displacement or Planing Motor Yachts and ECO award

The 37m (122ft) Gulf Craft Majesty 120 yacht ROCKET ONE took home the gold in this category as the judges had been particularly impressed by the Naval Architect, Soyaslan Marine to deliver on a brief that ‘prioritized efficiency over a wide speed range, particularly regarding the bow wave, directional stability, seakeeping and rudder response.’

Harnessing advanced composite materials such as vinyl ester and carbon fiber, the tri-deck yacht presented as the most efficient of the finalists in this category. The judges were also impressed by the research that went into the yacht's development, resulting in a hull that is 15 percent lighter than its contemporaries, as well as to the micro-refinements made by the team to reduce resistance.

Yacht ROCKET ONE also picked up the ECO award for its heat recovery system, which designed novel ways in which to reuse heat on board to reduce electrical consumption.

Rocket ONE from $200,000 per week + expenses

Winner: Outstanding Lifestyle Feature: Beach Club

Delivered in 2022 to much-acclaim by Golden Yachts, the 88m (288ft) superyacht PROJECT X made quite an impression on show-goers during her world debut at the Monaco Yacht Show last year, with her beach club drawing much admiration. So, it is small wonder that PROJECT X’s sprawling beach club picked up this year’s Best Lifestyle Feature.

The brainchild of studio Massari Design, the yacht’s beach club is more than just a place to store the toys, instead it has been reimagined as a waterside haven in its own right. The judges were particularly drawn to the rotatable circular seating area, described by Massari as a “spinning nest”, instantly creating an inviting ambience, as well as offering the practical function of movement.

Adding to the allure of this vast space is a spa complete with sauna, Hammam and a beauty treatment room, as well as a juice bar and lounging area which are infused with light from the glass walls of the swimming pool above, which cleverly mirror the same X-shaped theme.

Project X from €1,100,000 per week + expenses

Other notable mentions include the Innovation of the Year award to 33m (107ft) motor yacht LADY FLEUR for her tender platform/swimming pool and the 60m (196ft) Heesen yacht LUSINE scooping the Judges’ Commendation award for her sophisticated and elaborate lighting scheme.