Wide world

Dutch design studio Vripack focuses on extra width, rather than length, for the new Rock XWide.

02 November 2023

Dutch design studio Vripack has introduced the Rock XWide, an updated version of the Rock 85, boasting a wider beam and significantly more space than the original design.

When the Rock 85 launched from the studio’s drawing boards in 2018, it boasted a voluminous open plan layout that Vripack claimed to offer 20 per cent more internal volume than any other 26-metre boat on the market.

Five years on, and the new iteration – Rock XWide (meaning extra width) – has reinvigorated the design yet again, now with 35 per cent more interior space and 25 per cent more exterior space than the original design.

“Rock XWide has an impressive 8.5-metre beam,” says Vripack co-creative director, Bart Bouwhuis. “We not only made the design wider but also developed a refined interior layout. We went ‘boom’ on the reinvention, and the results are incredible.”

By adding extra width amidships, rather than widening the side decks, the heart of the interior remains relatively unchanged, save for more room for family dining, more space for socialising and a freer flow of movement.

The Rock XWide is an updated version of the Rock 85 with more width.

Vripack says Rock XWide has 35 percent more interior space and 25 percent more exterior space than the original design.

The Rock XWide has an impressive 8.5-metre beam.

The heart of the interior remains relatively unchanged, aside from more space.

The first hull is currently under construction at Turkish shipyard Evadne Yachts.

The robust yacht now holds more toys on the top deck.

Double sliding glass doors open onto an all-new 2.5-metre aft deck plunge pool.

The previous door, which led from the main saloon to the aft deck, has been replaced with double sliding glass doors that open onto an all-new 2.5-metre aft deck plunge pool.

The additional interior room is most noticeable in the guest cabins, which have increased from three lower deck suites to a substantial four, without compromising on size.

A full-beam owner’s suite on the main deck forward brings the total number of generous guest cabins up to five – an achievement for a 26-metre boat that is fully built under CE-A regulations.

The robust yacht now holds more toys on the top deck, larger tender storage on the swim platform and a transatlantic range. Two crew cabins are twinned with a lighter and larger galley than in previous models, and a new crew mess with breakfast bar seating.

“The revisions were developed on feedback from the current Rock owners, who have sailed the world in their yachting homes from the Mediterranean to Asia,” says Bouwhuis.