The single most useful piece of advice on choosing a superyacht tender: start from the brief, not from the boat. Most disappointing tenders are the result of falling in love with a beautiful platform that turned out not to suit the mothership, the cruising programme, or the people who would actually use it. This page walks through the framework we use when shaping a brief.
Step 1: Understand the constraints
Three constraints set the envelope before any preference matters:
- The mothership. Garage dimensions (length, beam, headroom), davit class and lifting capacity, swim-platform geometry. The tender must fit, lift, and pair with what already exists.
- The cruising programme. Med season, Caribbean season, expedition, transatlantic. The cruising ground dictates the sea-state envelope, the regulatory environment (SOLAS or not), and the typical operating distances.
- The role mix. What jobs does this tender need to do? Guest transfer, beach landing, water-toy support, chase, SOLAS rescue, crew shuttle. Most yachts above 50m carry two or three tenders rather than asking one boat to do everything.
If you can write these three things down on one page, the shortlist follows quickly.
Step 2: Pick the category
Once the constraints are written, the category usually shapes itself. The pillar page lists every category with the briefs each one fits. Most owners end up in one of these four:
- Limousine for guest transfers in any weather, with arrival presence.
- Open guest tender for fair-weather day use and sub-30 minute hops.
- RIB as the working tender for water-toy support and crew shuttling.
- SOLAS rescue tender if the yacht's regulatory class requires it.
Step 3: Set the size band
Tender size is bounded by the mothership; chose at the upper end of what the garage and davit will hold. Common bands:
- Mothership 30m to 50m. Tender 4m to 7m. Compact jet drives or small RIBs.
- Mothership 50m to 70m. Tender 6m to 11m. Mid-size limousines, working RIBs, SOLAS-coded craft.
- Mothership 70m to 90m. Tender 9m to 14m. Larger limousines, chase platforms, SOLAS rescue.
- Mothership 90m+. Multiple tenders, often including a 14m+ limousine and a chase boat.
The tender garage sizing page covers the lifting and stowage envelope in more detail.
Step 4: Set the budget envelope
Tender budgets correlate roughly with category and size:
- Compact jet (sub-7m). EUR 100k to 400k.
- Open guest tender (8m to 12m). EUR 400k to 1.2m.
- Limousine tender (10m to 16m). EUR 1m to 4m.
- Chase boat (10m to 20m). EUR 0.6m to 3m+.
- SOLAS rescue tender (5m to 8m). EUR 250k to 1m.
The cost guide covers the breakdown.
Step 5: Decide new vs pre-owned vs custom
A short framework:
- Pre-owned if the yacht delivery is fixed and tight, or if depreciation tolerance is low. The used-tenders page covers the framework.
- Production new build if the brief is generic and lead time matters. Axopar, Frauscher, Saxdor, Williams.
- Semi-custom if the brief needs spec adjustments but the hull is fine. Most yacht briefs.
- Full custom if the spec is highly specific and the budget supports it. Limousine yards, expedition platforms.
Step 6: Shortlist three boats, see them
Two boats is too few; five is too many to evaluate well. Three lets you compare substance against substance. Sea-trial each one in conditions that match the cruising ground; do not just sit at the dock with the brochure.
Where to start
The contact page is the start. We will work the brief shape with you, propose the shortlist, and run the sea trials end-to-end.