Akula Superyacht

Enrico Gobbi's Team for Design drew the interior of Akula and Francesco Paszkowski her exterior, a dark grey hull under long modern lines with the outdoor areas pushed wide, and the pairing was named Yacht of the Year in its class in 2024. She is a 171ft (52m) Baglietto superyacht, the third of the yard's T-52 line, delivered the same year.

Accommodation and crew

Five cabins sleep twelve guests, three on king beds, two on doubles and the last two on pullman berths, and the master suite runs the full beam with a walk-in wardrobe and his and her bathrooms. Ten crew look after those twelve, which comes close to a crew member for each guest, and twelve is also her limit by day.

Comfort under way

Her stabilisers work while she sits at anchor as well as under way, so she rolls less at rest and on passage alike, and a substantial cruising range lets her make longer voyages. She cruises at 12 knots and tops out at 16.

On deck

The beach club spreads over three levels at the stern, with oversized loungers, terraces stepping down to the water and a fully equipped gym. The main deck carries a retractable pool, the sun deck a jacuzzi with shaded lounge areas and space to eat outdoors, and the sky lounge on the bridge deck slides its floor-to-ceiling glass open on three sides to turn into an open-air dining room. At the bow, a retractable staircase from the flybridge leads down to a secluded retreat of sun pads and extra seating.

Water toys

Two tenders travel with her, a 44ft Fjord Open chase boat on two Volvo IPS drives and a 46ft Novamarine Black on three Mercury outboards, so there are two boats for runs ashore. Two Yamaha waverunners each seat three riders, two Seabob F5SR carry cameras, and waterskis, a wakeboard and towables give a tender something to pull, while two paddleboards and two Seaeagle Razor kayaks, each built for two, cover the quieter paddling.

Where she cruises

Nassau in the Bahamas is Akula's home port, and the Bahamas lie all around her. In the Caribbean, where the Novamarine is her tender, she reaches St Barths, St Martin, Anguilla and the British and US Virgin Islands, island waters with beaches for the tenders to run to. In the Mediterranean, with the Fjord towed behind her, she works France, Italy, Spain and Monaco.

Charter notes

Akula suits two couples or a family across generations: children are welcome and the crew can look after them. Hire runs by the week or from three days, with her fullest calendar in January, February, March, July, August and December, and her custom swimming pool that floats in the sea with a net against jellyfish gives a family a protected patch of water to swim in.