Benetti: 150 Years of Italian Yachting

There are few names in yachting with a history as long as Benetti’s.

Founded in Viareggio in 1873, the Italian shipyard has lived through almost every chapter of modern yacht building — from wooden sailing vessels and early motor yachts to the rise of the megayacht and, today, a new generation of yachts built around space, informality and a much closer relationship with the sea.

Yet longevity alone does not explain Benetti.

What makes the yard particularly interesting today is its ability to use that heritage without becoming defined by it. The Benetti of 2026 feels distinctly contemporary: less formal, more architectural and increasingly focused on how owners actually want to live on board.

From Viareggio to the age of the megayacht

The story begins with Lorenzo Benetti, who purchased the Cantiere Darsena Lucca in 1873 and established the Benetti shipyard in Viareggio.

The company initially built commercial sailing vessels before gradually moving towards pleasure craft. By the middle of the 20th century, Benetti yachts had begun attracting an international clientele.

The 22-metre Gabbiano, launched in 1961, found owners among the European jet set, including Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly. Then, in 1979, came a yacht that would change the scale of the Benetti name entirely.

At 86 metres, Nabila was one of the largest private yachts of her era. Created for Saudi businessman Adnan Khashoggi, she became a symbol of a new age of yachting — and later appeared on screen in the James Bond film Never Say Never Again.

In 1985, Benetti was acquired by Paolo Vitelli, founder of Azimut. The acquisition created what would become the Azimut|Benetti Group and opened the next chapter in the yard’s industrial development.

Today, Benetti operates from its historic base in Viareggio and its vast Livorno facility, building yachts from approximately 34 metres to more than 100 metres.

Source: Benetti — heritage archive.

Oasis Deck®: a new relationship with the sea

If Benetti’s past was partly about establishing the scale of the modern megayacht, its more recent work has concentrated on something different: changing the relationship between the yacht and the water around it.

The clearest example is the Oasis Deck®.

Rather than treating the stern as a conventional aft deck above the sea, Benetti opened it outward. Fold-down wings extend the deck laterally, the view becomes almost uninterrupted, an infinity pool sits at its centre and the traditional boundary between yacht and water begins to disappear.

It sounds straightforward now because variations of the idea can increasingly be seen across the industry.

But when the Oasis concept emerged, it represented a significant shift in how an aft deck could be used.

The emphasis was no longer on formality. It was on swimming, lounging, entertaining and moving easily between the interior, deck and water.

In many ways, it captured a broader change in superyacht ownership: luxury becoming less about separation from the environment and more about access to it.

Source: Benetti — oasis. Includes official design renders.

The B.Now family: a platform for individuality

Benetti subsequently carried the same thinking into its larger steel yachts through the B.Now family.

These are yachts from 50 metres upwards, combining steel hulls and aluminium superstructures with proven technical platforms and a considerable degree of owner customisation. Exterior design has been developed with British studio RWD.

It is an interesting proposition.

Rather than choosing between a completely bespoke yacht and a rigid production model, an owner begins with an established engineering platform and then develops the yacht around his or her own lifestyle.

The result can be surprisingly individual.

And perhaps the best current example is the B.Now 67M.

Source: Benetti — b now. Includes official design renders.

B.Now 67M: the Oasis idea at a different scale

At 67 metres, the B.Now 67M shows just how far the original Oasis idea has developed.

The exterior is by RWD, while the interior concept has been developed with Sinot Yacht Architecture & Design. Accommodation is provided for up to 14 guests in seven cabins, with a range of approximately 4,500 nautical miles at 12 knots.

But again, the numbers are not really the story.

The defining space is aft.

Opening side wings transform the Oasis Deck into a broad terrace around a glass-fronted infinity pool, with almost uninterrupted views towards the water. The architecture encourages people to remain outside rather than treating the beach club as somewhere visited occasionally during the day.

The owner’s accommodation moves upwards, creating a more private environment with its own terrace and pool, while full-height glazing and large openings continue the connection with the exterior throughout the yacht.

The first B.Now 67M with Oasis Deck®, Iryna, was delivered in 2025. Another example, Lady Estey, went on to win her displacement category at the 2026 World Superyacht Awards.

It is a useful illustration of where Benetti sits today: the efficiencies of platform engineering, but with enough flexibility for the finished yacht to feel genuinely personal.

Source: Benetti — b now 67m oasis deck.

Oasis 42M: the next chapter

At the smaller end of the superyacht spectrum, Benetti is already developing the next generation of the Oasis concept.

The new Oasis 42M was first presented during Cannes Yachting Festival 2025, with the first yacht scheduled for launch in 2027. Exterior design is again by RWD, with interiors by Bonetti/Kozerski Architecture.

The proportions are interesting.

At 42.5 metres, the yacht offers an Oasis Deck of approximately 100 square metres and an 8.3-square-metre pool, while the main saloon has been designed around a 270-degree panorama. The upper deck can accommodate a private owner’s apartment with its own terrace.

There is also something noticeably residential about the interior approach.

Rather than relying on the traditional language of glossy yacht interiors, Bonetti/Kozerski uses natural materials, softer textures and architectural continuity to create spaces that feel closer to a contemporary waterfront home.

Source: Benetti — oasis 42m. Includes official design renders.

A portfolio with more than one direction

What is particularly interesting about Benetti today is that the yard is not relying on a single successful concept.

Its current portfolio moves in several directions.

The B.Now family brings contemporary, open-air living to larger steel yachts. Oasis concentrates on informal living and immediate access to the water. Motopanfilo reinterprets the classic Benetti navetta. The Class series takes a more timeless approach, while newer projects such as B.Neos 40M explore quieter hybrid cruising.

Above all of these sits Benetti’s Custom activity, where the yard’s enormous production capability becomes particularly relevant.

This is, after all, a builder that has already delivered five gigayachts and more than 420 yachts since 1985.

The heritage and the industrial scale coexist.

That combination is rare.

Sources: Benetti — motopanfilo 37m, Benetti — class 44m, Benetti — heritage archive.

B.Neos 40M: a quieter interpretation of luxury

One of the more interesting indications of where Benetti is heading is B.Neos 40M, introduced in early 2026.

The yacht takes inspiration from sailing-yacht proportions and places considerable emphasis on reducing noise, vibration and environmental impact. Benetti positions the project around hybrid technology and a more restrained interpretation of luxury.

It reflects an important change taking place throughout the upper end of yachting.

Owners are still asking for space and comfort, but increasingly they are also asking how quietly a yacht can operate, how efficiently it can cruise and how intrusive the machinery needs to be on the experience aboard.

For a builder with Benetti’s production volume, those questions matter.

Source: Benetti — b neos 40m. Includes official design renders.

Benetti in the 2026 show season

This September provides a particularly good opportunity to see where the yard stands today.

Benetti has officially confirmed its presence at the Cannes Yachting Festival, 8–13 September 2026, at Cannes Vieux Port, with its yacht display at Jetée 027.

Just two weeks later, the shipyard moves to Monaco Yacht Show, 23–26 September 2026, where Benetti will exhibit at Quai des États-Unis.

The official Monaco Yacht Show fleet list currently includes a 2026 Benetti B.Now 67M, making the 67-metre platform particularly relevant to this year’s show season.

Source: Benetti — b now 67m oasis deck. B.Now 67M model imagery.

What Benetti represents today

It would be easy to describe Benetti simply as one of Italy’s great historic shipyards.

That would also undersell it.

Its significance today lies in the way it has translated traditional Italian yacht building into something considerably more contemporary.

The yachts are still unmistakably about beauty, materials and craftsmanship. But increasingly, the architecture is about light, openness, informality and proximity to the water.

That may ultimately be Benetti’s most important contribution to the current generation of superyachts.

The shipyard that once helped define what a megayacht could be with Nabila is now asking a rather different question:

not simply how much yacht an owner can have, but how naturally they can live within it.

More than 150 years after Lorenzo Benetti opened his shipyard in Viareggio, the answer continues to evolve.

Sources: Benetti — heritage archive, Benetti — motopanfilo 37m, Benetti — b now 67m oasis deck.