Cannes show turning 40

While many of us this week are thinking about Cannes Film Festival, there’s another big Cannes festival getting set to celebrate in 2017.

Photography by Cannes Yachting Festival - Abracadabra Studio

17 May 2017

The Cannes Yachting Festival (CYF) will be entering its fourth decade this year, a show that has gone from strength to strength over recent times. It now stretches across some 300,00- square metres of exhibition space with 10 kilometres of total dockage and three kilometres of floating pontoons. In 2016, over 50,000 visitors attended the show which had 630 boats on display and 530 exhibitors.

For this year’s events, the show has launched a new-look website. The site is responsive to improve on-the-go user experience for mobile and tablet devices, helping visitors to navigate the docks over the week.

As the first of the Northern Hemisphere’s autumn shows, many yacht and boat brands use the CYF as a launch pad for new model launches and major company announcements. This allows them maximum impact for the following weeks and months, as many of the brands migrate first to Monaco Yacht Show and then across the Atlantic to the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, which this March was acquired by Informa, owner of the Monaco event.

Originally just set in the heart of the picturesque Old Port of Cannes, these docks are packed to the gunwales with new boats fresh out of the yard, as well as equipment manufacturers and service companies.

Having grown in popularity over the years, the CYF has expanded to meet growing demand for on-water space with a second location, across the Croisette in Port Pierre Canto, with many of the larger superyacht brokerages setting up shop away from the furore of the busy Old Port. This is where pre-owned yachts upwards of 22 metres can be found.

The CYF runs a free water shuttle between the two locations to accommodate visitors, which takes approximately seven minutes in travel time across the picturesque waterfront of the Cannes Croisette.

A number of hotels are currently running special offers and dedicated yacht show service by booking via local travel company b-network, said the show organisers.

Although we can still expect to wait a number of weeks at least until announcements of what will be on display or debuting this year at CYF, some companies are ahead of the curve and declaring their expected displays early.

Turkish builder Mazu Yachts has announced that its 42 Walk-Around (pictured below) will be making its world premier at the CYF, having already been sold to a client. The 11.99-metre centre-console boat has a beam of 3.7 metres and displacement of eight tonnes.

Twin 435hp Volvo Penta IPS 600s take the speedometer up to 47 knots, with a gentler cruising speed of a still-impressive 32 knots. The Volvo Penta propulsion system offers superior performance including 40 percent longer cruising range, 20 percent higher top speed, 30 percent fuel consumption reduction, 30 percent reduction in CO2 emissions and a 50 percent lower perceived noise level.

Although the boat is high on the technical stakes, it still offers a refined layout and detailing, including Alcantra coverings and Foglizzo luxury Italian leather trim. A large queen-sized cabin with generous headroom is found on the lower deck forward, as well as a large bathroom to starboard. Seating is available on a V-shaped settee forward of the console as well as to its rear, and a generous swim platform offers the perfect spot from which to enjoy the water.