Axantha Superyacht – Boat Review by Modern Boating
“Super Yachts & Dream Boats – The science of luxury”
Man is a creature of paradoxes. Of inner conflict. Of competing urges.
Consider the guy who wants to explore the wilderness. He wants to see the majesty of the world before he departs it. So he plans a trip to the most inhospitable corners of our blue planet, where nothing but penguins survive, to see the ice mountains for himself.
Fair enough. But, at the same time, he has a penchant for three-course meals. On fine china set on a mahogany table. Perhaps with Beethoven booming through the stereo. And after that, he doesn’t mind sleeping under a goose-down doona in a king-size bed. You see what I’m driving at here.
Can such a man satisfy both urges at once ?
Yes, if he’s wealthy enough. We all know what a superyacht is: a fuel-guzzling folly for which forests of teak were felled and oceans of oil drained dry, a stupendously selfish vessel that exists only so that some billionaire can spend two weeks a year cruising the Mediterranean or Caribbean, being the envy of his merely millionaire friends. A superyacht may gleam physically, but metaphysically, it’s as dull as a Donald Trump reality TV show.
For the super-rich who actually want to go places, however, there’s the explorer superyacht. And as far as explorer superyachts go, they don’t get much better than Axantha.
Launched in 2003, Axantha was built at the JFA yard in France to a design by Dutch superyacht-design firm Vripack. She’s described in the yard’s marketing material as a ‘research vessel’. I can imagine an arctic researcher pondering this euphemism from his leaky, superannuated Russian icebreaker somewhere south of the Kerguelen Islands.
It took JFA two years to build this research vessel’s aluminium hull and superstructures to Lloyd’s classifications. Twin 3406 E DI-TA Caterpillars, good for a cruising speed of just over 13 knots and a range of 4000nm, power her.
The guest accommodations comprise an owner’s suite and four staterooms on the main deck, while the quarters for seven crew are forward. The captain’s cabin is aft of the wheelhouse. There’s a large observation lounge on the bridge, perfect for contemplating icebergs and sipping martinis. Forward of the wheelhouse is the owner’s private saloon, which opens to the main deck through a picture door.
Axantha’s interior is in European cherry. Two big tenders live on the foredeck, along with a crane (concealed in the forward mast) to launch them. As befits a super…sorry, research vessel, she’s fitted with gear from Europe’s top suppliers: Heinen & Hopman did the air conditioning, KoopNautic the stabilisers, Cramm the hydraulics. One small note of Aussie pride: Muir supplied the windlass.
And now for a few million euros, Axantha could be yours: though she was launched a mere five years ago, she’s proving too small for her owner, who has already commissioned a larger ‘research vessel’, again from JFA.
Creature of paradoxes indeed.
Overview:
A real Dream Boat, the Axantha was designed to go cruising and exploring anywhere in the world.
Main Features:
With a luxury superyacht of this size there are too many features to list – some of the most outstanding are the “research lab”, European cherry interior, observation cocktail lounge filled with ice-breaking opportunities.
Boat Specifications
Length overall : 37.18m
Length along the waterline : 33.2m
Beam : 8.2m
Draft : 2.44m
Fuel : 42,000L
Water : 12,515L
Hot water : 230L
Engine : 2 x 3406 E DI-TA Caterpillars
Generator : 2 x 60kW Onan
Cruising speed : 13.8 knots
Material : Aluminium
Guests : 10
Crew : 7
Author: Daniel Tillack, Editor