47m NILAYA Completes First Transatlantic Crossing

NILAYA is a 47m Royal Huisman sailing yacht, featuring design by Nauta and Reichel/Pugh. Towards the end of 2023, this yacht completed her first transatlantic crossing, showcasing her exceptional interior comfort and impeccable performance capabilities. Sailing to Antigua, NILAYA successfully matched her owner’s expectations for speed, robustness, reliability and silence. 

She features low, modern lines and a concealed deckhouse, with careful proportions and a broad, open transom. NILAYA is able to achieve 17 knots on a broad reach in 18 knots of wind, showing her to be capable of effortless pace under sale. 

Mario Pedol, co-founder of Nauta Design, commented: ‘She will be the world’s lightest aluminium sailing superyacht by length, rewriting the story of high-performance superyachts.’

To achieve this light-weight sailing yacht, Royal Huisman applied its Featherlight methodology adapted from spacecraft technology to NILAYA’s design, coupled with a harmonious collaboration with Nauta and Reichel/Pugh to make significant weight savings. Notably, she was the first yacht built on the yard's featherlight specifications. 

‘The final outcome represents a new concept in aluminium construction,’ explained Pedol. ‘Nilaya has a displacement which is 15% more than an equivalent full-carbon boat. That’s a lot less than any other comparable aluminium yacht on the water.’

NILAYA’s exterior profile is as beautiful as it is pragmatic: she features a coachroof that blends seamlessly with the sheerline whilst the hull’s double chines are shown off by the wide stern that flies above the water. 

‘A wooden plinth between sections incomposite and the teak deck makes them visually lighter, and also conceals the string lights that illuminate the deck at night,’ commented Massimo Gino, co-founder of Nauta. ‘Teak inserts on the bulwarks, coamings and coachroof further enrich the deck.’

The owner desired an exceptional onboard lifestyle from NILAYA, which is met in the interior design. The interior is centred around the raised-deck house saloon: a magnificent social hub. Finished in a mix of contrasting woods, pale upholstery and inflections of muted blue and terracotta, her indoor areas are a statement of sophisticated bliss. 

Guests are offered spectacular 360-degree views in the spacious dining to port and comfortable lounging to starboard, whilst a generous skylight keeps them in touch with the wind and the sails above. 

NILAYA features the highest quality build possible, setting her out to be an exceptional and ground-breaking sailing yacht. Her programme remains under wraps; however, hopes are high for her to make an appearance at the St Barths Bucket in March 2024.