How does one define outstanding luxury on a motoryacht?
After all, you’d be hard-pressed to find a modern motoryacht that didn’t have a gorgeous interior, comfortable seating, climate-control zones and plush fabrics. Naturally, you’ll find all these things aboard the Summit Motoryachts 54.
But the true nature of luxury aboard this yacht stays hidden until—and even after—you start the engines. I know this because my ears suddenly awakened to the fact that 1,084 rumbling diesel horses in the engine room were barely audible at the helm station. Or, for that matter, anywhere on the boat.
I found this absence of racket both pleasing and curious, so I slid open the aft salon door and discovered that the engine room was so well-insulated via the 32 mm Pyrotek Sorberflex soundproofing and aluminum shielding that it made little difference in cabin sound levels whether the door was open or closed. That means owners can enjoy the fresh sea breeze along with peace and quiet either on the hook or underway.
As much as I loved the serene nature of the quiet cabin, opening and closing that double sliding door also left me staring at the frame that surrounds it and the opening window between the cockpit and salon. The frame is a single 500-pound piece of glimmering polished stainless steel. In fact, there’s more stainless steel in this one frame than aboard some other motoryachts in total. It’s so strong, it eliminates the need for a separate structural support for the flybridge. Overall, the door-and-window frame is as much a work of metallic art as it is a functional structure.
The rest of the Summit 54 is built with a similarly stout nature, as anyone who has ever been aboard a Kadey-Krogen trawler would expect. The motoryacht’s hull is solid fiberglass from the waterline down, while major components above the waterline are cored and reinforced with E-glass. Skin coats are the more-expensive vinylester resin to act as a barrier against water intrusion and blistering. Countertops are Silestone, faucets and fixtures are Grohe and Kohler, and the carpet is Stainmaster Luxerell.
Virtually every component belowdecks is also top-shelf—although I found it tougher to stay focused on construction when I walked down the companionway, where I was met with a rather unusual arrangement. For starters, the companionway itself isn’t on centerline; it’s to port. This made for plenty of elbow room when I looked to starboard, where there was a guest stateroom, or when I turned aft to enter the full-beam master stateroom.
That master is unusual too. Rather than having the queen berth extend from the after bulkhead, the designers placed it athwartships to starboard. The head is located along the port side of the yacht. The layout allows for easy access to both sides of the berth along most of its length and provides headroom running the length of the stateroom. The space includes a stall shower larger than some you’ll find in Manhattan apartments, a vanity and sink, and a separate compartment for the head itself.
Forward, the VIP stateroom is arranged in a more-traditional fashion with a centerline queen berth, a pair of hanging lockers aft and private access to the day-head. On this particular Summit 54, the smaller guest stateroom was set up with a single berth, a workstation and a washer/dryer. This room, however, can be fitted with over/under berths or turned into an office.
More about that washer/dryer: It’s a great indication that the Summit 54 was built by people who know the ins and outs of spending extended time aboard a boat. These are full-size units, not mini appliances that can handle all of two T-shirts and a pair of shorts.
Similarly, the galley has not one but two sets of undercounter refrigerator and freezer drawers, and the convection/microwave oven is a full-size Samsung. This is a motoryacht built for cruising.
It’s easy to step aboard any modern motoryacht and find examples of luxury. It is not easy, however, to find examples of luxury that are missing on countless other motoryachts. But don’t listen to me; stand at the helm, start the engines and listen to the sound of near silence. You just might hear the Summit Motoryachts 54 calling you.
Take the next step: summitmotoryachts.com
