Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Turkish boatbuilder Numarine started by building planing motoryachts as boutique alternatives to bigger European brands. Those early designs were well-built and nicely engineered opens, hardtop expresses and flybridge yachts. Then, six or seven years ago, company founder Omer Malaz—who has always used his own boats extensively with his family—sensed that his boating tastes were changing. Some of his most valued clients felt the same way.
His first explorer, the all-composite Numarine 26XP, launched in 2018, followed by the steel-composite 32XP and 37XP. Now comes the all-composite range-opener, the Numarine 22XP, which is the smallest offering in the line at 74 feet length overall. Like all Numarines, it has exteriors and interiors by Can Yalman, and naval architecture from Umberto Tagliavini.
If tradition continues, the Numarine 22XP will have an eager audience. The builder has delivered some 160 motoryachts from 52 to 121 feet length overall, with the last 25 builds being XP trawler-explorers. Another 20 are on order into 2024.
The 22XP’s exterior has all the trawler-explorer essentials: a muscular bow, high bulwarks, generous side decks, a near-square transom, big upper-deck overhangs and forward-rake bridge windows. And there are the yacht accouterments of a 170-square-foot foredeck terrace and a 260-square-foot cockpit protected by the full-length, 550-square-foot flybridge. The upper helm area is shielded by an optional hardtop, and there’s a sunbathing area on the pilothouse roof.
Inside, the 22XP is light and bright. The salon is conventionally laid out with flanking sofas aft, and a galley and dining area forward. In all, the salon occupies around 400 square feet of real estate. Views to the sides are splendid, thanks to picture windows to port and starboard. The decor includes blackened-oak veneers, white-satin lacquer and planked soles. The dining table is a sequoia stone.
Up a couple of steps to port, the lower helm is set beneath a chunky-mullioned windshield to port and is addressed by a raised, L-shaped bench seat. This setup keeps driving duties separate from the main guest spaces. There’s an adjacent side-deck door to starboard, providing a quick connection to the outside.
Accommodations belowdecks consist of three or four en suite staterooms. There’s 6-foot-9-inch headroom in the master, which is a full-beam, 215-square-foot space amidships aft. Guest staterooms are a starboard-side double, a head-to-toe twin to port, and a 161-square-foot VIP in the bow with its own staircase from the bridge. In the three-stateroom option, there’s a slightly larger master, but it reduces the great views in the guest staterooms.
Quarters for two crew are accessed via a door in the transom and four steps. This space has a mini mess and utility area, as well as secondary access to the engine room, which, incidentally, is roomy and well engineered. A third crewmember could probably be accommodated with a tweaked layout.
There’s no garage aboard the 22XP; the tender lives on the hydraulic swim platform. The quoted net capacity is 2,200 pounds.
Like the 26XP, the 22XP is available in displacement and planing versions, with the displacement version historically proving most popular. Both versions of the hull are resin-infused and pop from the same split-mold tooling, but with different inserts to adjust bottom shapes. The displacement version includes small bow bulbs.
The first Numarine 22XP launched earlier this year with a planing-performance specification, and two more have since splashed with the displacement powertrains. During my recent factory visit, the fourth and fifth, also in displacement guise and with four-stateroom layouts, were under construction for delivery next year. The sixth ditto was soon to start.
I got aboard Hull No. 3, which has the standard twin 425 hp Cummins diesels whisking out via vee-boxes. The 22XP drives nicely and responds surprisingly quickly and smoothly for a yacht with substantial volume. The good weather gave us little use for the optional CMC Marine electric fin stabilizers. Top speed was around 12.5 knots at the maximum 3,000 rpm, at which the fuel burn was 21 to 22 gph. At 8 knots and 1,900 rpm, fuel burn fell to 5.75 gph. The ultimate range would be 2,000 nautical miles when allowing for a 10 percent reserve, good enough for a typical spring or fall crawl between, say, Newport, Rhode Island, and Miami.
In North America, prices begin at $4.3 million. Hull No. 3, which will cruise the Mediterranean, had an electrohydraulic passerelle, stern docking station, hardtop, extra generator, audiovisual upgrades, watermaker, foredeck Bimini, extra fridge-freezer and washer-dryer. Without question, this Numarine 22XP was ready to travel anywhere.
Faster Option
The planing version of the Numarine 22XP comes with a modified hull form and twin 1,200 hp MAN V-8 diesels, which push the yacht’s top speed up to 25 knots. At a 20-knot fast cruise, the working range is around 360 nautical miles, allowing for a 10 percent reserve. Expect to pay a 10 percent or so premium for this version.
Rich Waters
Just outside the port of Tuzla, on the eastern end of Turkey’s Sea of Marmara, lies a Bond-villain-grade private retreat: Incir Adasi. Also known as Fig Island, it is 10 acres of prime yachting real estate that belongs to one of Turkey’s wealthiest families. Beyond various residences and a pool buried in the trees, it has its own harbor, helipad, quays and pontoons.
Take the next step: numarine.com
