Further proof that the worldwide economic slowdown isn’t affecting the megayacht market: International Shipyards Ancona (ISA) just inked its first-ever 50-meter (164-foot) contract.
Being referred to as the ISA 500, the trideck vessel (top image), is based on ISA’s nearly year-old 48-meter megayacht series (second image), but with one immediately noticeable departure, if you compare the two: no stern stairway. In fact, those stairs, rising from the integrated swim platform straight up to the sundeck, have become a hallmark of ISA. But ISA and Vallicelli Studio, the design team the yard collaborated with, decided to give the 500 a transom door that folds down, revealing what ISA terms “the beach room.” It’s essentially a combination of a giant swim platform and a staging area for boarding watertoys, including the guest tender, which is to be housed in an adjacent garage but launched through a door in the hull side.
Another feature setting the 500 apart is the panoramic view in the saloon. Though it’s not fully visible in the drawing here, a continuous line of windows to each side meet aft at wide, sliding glass doors, which should give anyone sitting in the saloon the feeling of nearly being outdoors. But for the full alfresco effect, guests should head to the sundeck, more than 56 feet long and outfitted with a pool, sunpads, and (of course) a bar within elbow’s distance of each. A dining table sits amidships, beneath the mast and an extendable shade.
Since she’s a full-displacement design, with a steel hull, the 500 is expected to achieve moderate speeds: nearly 17 knots at top end and 14.5 knots at cruise, thanks to twin MTU 12V4000 M71s.
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