By Neil Russell

Nordhavn Europe’s first “Open House” proved to be huge success with over 60 groups of prospects enjoying the fantastic line-up of Nordhavns never seen before in Europe, and as luck would have it, the weather was tremendous for the entire 10 days of the Open House which ran March 25-April 2. Prospects travelled far and wide from all over Europe including Norway and Turkey, and some even from as far as the U.S.

Attendees were informed that commissioning would continue on some of the display boats during the Open House, and so this gave them the rare opportunity to see “beneath the surface” while work was being done, which is something that they would not normally see.

The line-up of Nordhavns enabled all interested to begin their tour by first viewing the Nordhavn 43, which was out-of-the-water, allowing attendees to really appreciate and understand the underwater profile, the quality of engineering and design of the 43 which is echoed throughout the range.

Two Nordhavn 47s were available again, one on land and the other on the pontoon. Interestingly, the in-water 47, although six years old, had been looked after extremely well by both her first and current owners, and showed as a much newer boat.
Also drawing big crowds were the Nordhavn 55 and 60. It was unusual to see both brand new boats side-by-side, but an ideal opportunity to compare and contrast. Both boats had very different layouts; mainly, the 55 had the forward island berth which was beautiful. With this layout we were often asked which is the “Master” as this forward cabin option is so appealing. The 60 had more customisation than the 55 with a new layout in the forward cabin area: the owner chose a bunk cabin on the starboard side and double berth to port with a shared head arrangement forward. Again, beautifully designed and built. Other modifications included the Captain’s cabin behind the pilothouse that was converted to a full office, an enlarged salon table, and galley counters that were raised by 4 cm. with custom galley equipment.

Next up was the magnificent 76. As with all Nordhavns, attendees were hugely impressed with her presence, size, internal volume and space. Individually designed for the owner and his family, she sat head and shoulders above all the other boats in her class.

The only stock boat that was on display was the Nordhavn 56 Motorsailer. PAE heads Jim Leishman and Dan Streech knew that it would be a perfect opportunity to introduce the Motorsailer to the European market at the Open House. So, my sales colleague Philip Roach and I sat down and designed what we perceived to be the best layout and design for Europe, and the Ta Shing factory (PAE’s builders) built the European office a 50 HZ N56 just in time for the event. The prospects that came in anticipation of seeing her for the first time were very impressed, and this design really gives customers another cruising option.

Nordhavn Europe’s offices are located in the hub of the U.K.’s marine industry and is based at Hamble Point Marina at the mouth of the Hamble River as it enters Southampton Water. Hamble River has a large number of boats moored up and down the river in numerous marinas, on swinging moorings and on mid river pontoons. All the Nordhavns were berthed on the last pontoon of the Hamble River, so they are the last line of boats that people see on the way out of the river and the first line of boats they see on the way in. This exposure gives current boat owners plenty to look at and discuss as they head out for a day’s sail, especially with the current abundance of Nordhavns in this location.

Some attendees had the unexpected pleasure and opportunity to meet a gentleman called Callum McCormick, self-named “Dreamer-In-Chief” and proprietor of the Nordhavn Dreamer’s site (www.nordhavn dreamers.com). Callum spent two days walking the Nordhavn pontoon taking numerous photos. With his great sense of humour and big personality, he was a pleasure to have around. The site has been running for the last two years and Callum informed us that there are over 1,200 Nordhavn dreamer subscribers.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our very generous and obliging owners who allowed Nordhavn Europe to display their boats during the Open House and make it such a great success.

Neil Russell is the sales manager of Nordhavn Europe Ltd in Southampton, UK. He can be contacted at neil.russell@nordhavn.com or in the office at +44 (0) 23 8045 6342.