Bold

Bold was the 50th yacht drawn by Espen Øino and a sharp turn for her builder, SilverYachts, which had made its name with slim, elegant hulls before producing this grey, angular ship. The owner asked for a world cruiser that could carry a helicopter, run economically and live outdoors. The answer was built entirely in aluminium and ranks among the fastest explorer yachts afloat, with stores for up to five months away from port.

Her social core breaks with convention. Instead of the usual saloon and dining room on the main deck, there is a loft with a ceiling rising to 2.8 metres and an oak floor, opening into a winter garden wrapped in sliding glass. Air-conditioned when it is hot and sealed when it is cold, that garden holds a long table that can open fully to the air. It is why Bold works as well in Norway as in the Caribbean.

Aft, a deck more than thirty metres long serves as a lounge, a dance floor and the landing pad, certified for a twin-engine eight-seat helicopter. When the aircraft is away, the same hangar turns into a screening room and a club. The bridge deck aft can take a second machine and has its own bar and rotisseries, and the top deck has a whirlpool behind a pane of glass and an open-air screen, both sheltered from the wind.

The owner's deck brings a private saloon and his-and-hers bathrooms; the remaining seven guest cabins sit one deck below. With twenty crew, the toy list goes well beyond jet skis: Laser dinghies, kites, dive kit and game fishing.

This is a boat for groups who plan days around activity and nights around a party, and who like the idea of flying to a glacier or a remote beach for lunch. The helicopter itself is chartered on top. Bold is the wrong pick for anyone after classic varnish and soft lines, or for a couple wanting quiet romance: she is a large, extrovert ship designed never to sit still for long. When the northern season ends she heads west, to the Caribbean and the coasts of Central and South America.