Azimut Grande 26M

About the Azimut Grande 26M

Azimut introduced the Grande 26M at the Cannes Yachting Festival in September 2022 as the successor to its Grande 25 Metri in the Grande superyacht series. Alberto Mancini shaped the exterior and Achille Salvagni the interior. The feature that defines the boat is what Azimut calls Deck2Deck: the teak door of the tender garage folds out level with the main deck, stretching the rear cockpit into a terrace of roughly 18 square metres right beside the water. The point was to give an 85-foot boat the kind of waterside living space that normally demands something far larger.

The owner's suite sits on the main deck behind full-height glass, an arrangement borrowed from much larger yachts, leaving four en suite guest cabins below — three doubles and a twin — so ten guests sleep aboard in all. Crew quarters sit forward, which means service moves through the boat without crossing guest spaces. Days settle into three places: the fold-down terrace at water level, the saloon with glass down both sides and oak floors laid on the diagonal, and the 50-square-metre open top deck with its bar and dining. The foredeck adds a quieter lounge with curved seating and a sunpad, facing away from it all.

Azimut has not published a hull count, but the model remains in production, with deliveries continuing since its 2022 debut. Rivals include the Princess Y85, Sunseeker 88 Yacht, Ferretti 860 and Sirena 88; what separates this one is engineering. Carbon fibre makes everything above the hull roughly 30 per cent lighter than a conventional build, which is how it carries five cabins and a main-deck owner's suite without growing. Twin MAN V12 engines drive pod units — steerable propellers under the hull instead of traditional shafts — cutting fuel use by around 20 per cent. Top speed is about 28 knots; range at 10 knots is around 900 nautical miles.

Best suited to families or groups of up to ten who want superyacht spaces — a main-deck owner's suite and a terrace at the waterline — without the size, crew and running costs of a 30-metre-plus yacht.