From owners’ personal priorities to unexpected engineering choices, many yachts offer compelling reasons to take a closer look. What did the owners want to do differently? What problem did the designer or shipyard solve? What does this superyacht enable that buyers might not expect? Each of the yachts below, all exhibiting at the 2026 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show starting October 28, answer these questions in their own ways.
Draak, by Oceanco: Reinvention via Refit
The yacht Draak is more than a support yacht to a fellow megayacht. She’s further far more than the largest yacht in the show, at 304’6” (92.8 meters). Draak is a sweeping redesign and re-engineer of a now-12-year-old custom yacht, Oceanco’s famed Equanimity. She looks and operates utterly nothing like the original launch, which is the whole idea. Gabe Newell, the American gaming entrepreneur and yachting enthusiast who also owns the superyacht Leviathan, primarily wanted her to be a dive-support platform and home for extra guests and crew. Retractable swim steps, hefty dive-tender launch and retrieval systems, and an immersive dining area with a chef’s “lab” are among the amenities. Oceanco will have Draak in its own display.
Northland, by Burger: The Globetrotter That Kept Going
The cockpit aboard this 103’6” (31.5-meter) is one hint that Northland’s owner does things differently. Since she saw delivery nine years ago, this yacht Northland has put more blue water under her hull than most other megayachts. In fact, in her first year and a half alone, she covered nearly 10,000 miles. Her maiden voyage was remarkable, too, from Burger Boat Company’s Great Lakes yard to the Bahamas. Nova Scotia, Norway, Tahiti, and more countries have followed since then. Fittingly, the art throughout her warm interior tells the tales of what she was intended to do. Gilman Yachts will have Northland in its exhibit space.
Pearl 100 Hybrid: Electric Propulsion in a Small Superyacht
This is the flagship of the Pearl Yachts fleet, and its first hybrid, too. The Pearl 100 Hybrid’s electric motors are for full cruising or repositioning. Design-wise, she has some unprecedented features for her 97-foot (29.4-meter) LOA. Notably, the main-deck master suite leads out to a private alfresco area. Yet another surprise, steps take the owners directly up to the primary alfresco lounge, on the flying bridge. There’s also a choice of three interior packages, each of which strives for a level of luxury not usually seen in this size. Pearl Yachts chose the Fort Lauderdale show for the project’s international debut.
Norma Jean, by Palmer Johnson: A Superyacht for Good
If you pass by the IYC display, you won’t be able to miss the yacht Norma Jean. Super sleek and super modern, she drove a bidding war for a week’s charter that benefitted the ocean-conservation non-profit Oceana. Norma Jean is unquestionably a superyacht for good, further attending fundraisers for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County regularly. As much as her owner enjoys cruising aboard for family trips, his charitable tendencies take a high priority.
Scintilla Maris, by Damen: An Adventure Yacht With a Soul
We’ve written extensively about Scintilla Maris, which started life as a North Sea trawler. A two-year transformation turned her into a super-rugged, super-capable yacht that has visited remote areas of Scotland. Her owner, Erik Vonk, would rather spend his days seeing white water come up over the decks than sit in a posh marina. He’s ready to part with her, though. So, if challenging weather and true oceangoing capability get your pulse racing, Scintilla Maris will be in the Burgess display. She’s also set for auction via Boathouse Auctions in November, with no reserve.
PHOTO: Tom van Oossanen
Scout, by Royal Hakvoort: Jules Verne Meets Fritz Lang
Extraordinarily, the owners of Scout drew inspiration from disparate things. Specifically, they’re Jules Verne’s fictional submarine Nautilus, Fritz Lang’s movie Metropolis, Ian Fleming’s various villains’ lairs, and Warner Brothers’ Looney Tunes. Off the wall? Yes—but the owners and their designers at H2 Yacht Design say it works, playfully. From the four guest staterooms on the main deck to the owners’ deck above, each area has its own personality. So does the styling, mimicking a repurposed commercial vessel. The owners built the 209-foot (63.72-meter), ice-classed megayacht to cruise anywhere and everywhere with their dogs. Visit her at Fraser Yachts’ display.
ViviRae II, by Nordhavn: 24,000+ Nautical Miles in 9 Years
“I’ve always loved to go to places where most people won’t go,” says VivieRae II’s owner, Bob Giles. He’s not exaggerating, either. He was aboard for this Nordhavn 96’s maiden voyage, a 3,000-nautical-mile journey from China to Bali. Name a country, and chances are high he and his yacht have been to it. The United States, Costa Rica, Panama, Australia, Fiji, Thailand, and Indonesia are just starters. With accommodations for 10, she clearly wasn’t intended to stay at the dock. She’s for sale, with Autograph Yacht Group.
Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show flibs.com