Antigua Charter Yacht Show 2018 draws to a close

By Rebecca Bradbury 10 December 2018

The ear-splitting clamour of nearly 90 charter yachts blaring their horns in Antigua at 5.30pm on 9 December marked the end of yacht viewing for another year at the Antigua Charter Yacht Show.

Taking place across the three show locations of Nelson’s Dockyard Marina, Falmouth Harbour Marina and the Antigua Yacht Club Marina, the long-running yachting event once again hosted a fine fleet of superyachts as well as an action-packed social programme.

Charter and other industry professionals from across the world flocked to the show and, over five days, were able to tour the superyachts in attendance, meet the captains and crews, and participate in lunches, yacht hops, informative seminar sessions and micro charters around Antigua.

The show aims to equip charter brokers with the insider knowledge needed to best match their clients with the most suitable yacht for the upcoming Caribbean season, and all hands were on deck to ensure show-goers received the best impression possible of the fleet cruising the region over the winter.

One of the must-see yachts, returning for a second year in a row, was the 90m/295ft superyacht ‘Phoenix 2’ from Lurssen and she was joined by other iconic offerings, such as Oceanco’s 81m/267ft superyacht ‘Alfa Nero’ and the 78m/257ft superyacht AMARYLLIS from Abeking & Rasmussen.

These well-known charter vessels were joined by some recently launched yachts, including the privately owned 77m/253ft superyacht GO from Turquoise, the 50m/163ft Heesen superyacht HOME and Benetti’s 42m/138ft superyacht SKYLER which, after hitting the water in July, was the the newest build on the scene.

Charter professionals from across the world flocked to the show and, over five days, were able to tour the superyachts in attendance

During the day, all the superyachts opened their doors for exclusive tours but, by night, select yachts hosted a number of parties for attendees. This opened up networking opportunities as well as the chance to see how charter yachts can adapt from offering charter vacations to entertaining on a grand scale.

Another popular feature of the Antigua Charter Yacht Show is its culinary contest. This year, the competition challenged superyacht chefs to prepare a ‘New Year’s Eve Dinner Party’. Chef Peter Frost of the 65m/213ft superyacht ETERNITY picked up first place in the ‘Yachts 160ft and over’ category.

The results were revealed in a prize-giving ceremony at Nelsons Dockyard's Admirals Inn in the evening of 8 December and all the winners will be revealed in a forthcoming article.