Words, Photography (Video Screen Shots) by James Dumergue – Originally published in Trade A Boat Magazine October 14th 2021
The S55 from Maritimo is a boat that makes you think beyond the journey, beyond the destination and asks the question, “what do you want to do once you get there?”
A broad question is a tough one to answer with sweeping strokes in the design department. Still, if you break it down into the essential elements, Maritimo has found some clever solutions to paint both broad and detailed strokes.
Built on a bluewater hull evolved through decades of incremental enhancements, this low centre of gravity, supple riding single level cruiser takes the concept of adventure and applies it across all aspects of the boat, from ocean-going performance to at-anchor mothership activities.
Of the releases of 2021, the S55 is the one that takes some decent steps forward in the evolution of the single level cruiser. Adventure is in its DNA, but the strokes from the adventure brush didn’t stop at the running surface and propulsion. Instead, Maritimo dipped the brush back in the adventure pot and created two more broad strokes that separate it in its class, and experienced adventurers will appreciate them.
Although the adventure is subjective, one thing that ties adventurers together in the boating world is more toys and equipment to explore are required. Whether you are a diver, a keen angler, paddleboarder, kayaker or a land explorer that need’s electrified transport, what you will love is the first broad stroke from Maritimo on this model which is storage. Abundant capacity, the ability to carry your gear out of the way and a great deal of it out of sight is commendable.
You can carry two tenders (if you want to) without taking up space on the hydraulic platform or foredeck. One tender can go on the roof via an optional davit with a Safe Working Load up to 350kgs. The maximum recommended length of 3.8 metres gives you some options, and there’s still space to spare. You can store the second tender, a 2.8-metre jet for its lower profile in the lazarette below the outdoor entertainment station. If you don’t need two tenders, then you’ve got all this space to store whatever craft and toys you want to bring along and keep it all out of the way when not in use.
The impressive (optional) hydraulic platform creates a vast adventure deck by adding another 1.4 metres to the existing fixed platform. Entertain, bbq or relax over the water. It’s the instant beach club with no set-up required, but the teak-laid platform can submerge with the push of a button for the swim-up beach club or scuba platform.
The only boundary of the adventure deck is the entertainment module between the dual entry gates and the cockpit. Grilling oceanside couldn’t get much better; you’ve got outdoor cooking downwind from guests, a deep fridge, interaction with the cockpit and a direct line of sight with the galley and saloon. You can even watch the TV in the saloon while grilling out the back. This boat has a lot of personalities and caters to a lot of boat-owning characters with playful adaptability.
Maritimo’s most social cockpit is an equal part of the adventure deck and inside the main deck. The U-shaped seating arrangement is an excellent way to sit four and interact as four, instead of in a line leaning in front and behind one another. It also brings an engaging dynamic of being closer and more sociably connected to the additional seating forward. The extra seating is optional; it creates four-sided seating around the cockpit, and seeing it in action makes it a must-have.
Above the cockpit, the hardtop extends all the way aft past the seats. A recessed channel in the ceiling holds storage bags that look like a gasket for sealing and in a way they are, unzip the bags to reveal clears, very tidily and subtly stored away. Externally you don’t see the clears when not in use. The hiding in the recess maintains the crisp style lines often lost with aftermarket clears, so I expect we’ll see this simple solution more often in more boats that have extended hardtops. Drop the clears straight down on the vertical, and the sealed from the elements cockpit becomes a climate-controlled extension of the galley and saloon.
Connected to the cockpit and catering to both the entertainer and the long-range cruiser, the S55’s galley flows and stows nicely. Creating dual entry to the galley eases congestion; the island bench multitasker works well as a prep bench and a servery too. It offers convenient access from the cockpit to the lateral fridge and pantry placement, minimising the impact on the chief of food. Optional and interchangeable fridge and freezer drawers on the port side bolster the domestic sized vertical refrigerator/freezer to starboard. Below the bar top on the port side, the neighbouring icemaker and glass storage service the saloon easily.
The other major brush stroke from the design team is enhanced views and integrating the indoors with the outdoors. Successfully blended on this model and continued into the saloon, the improved outlook is noticeable whether you are underway or at anchor. The half-closed eyelids of some long-range cruisers windows are a far cry from these big bright, and real-life high definition vista windows. The sill heights are noticeably lower for improved sightlines to the water while seated, and the vertical divisions between windows are crisp and purposeful with minimal view impediment. Optional opening vista windows slide so far back that the saloon gets that indoor-outdoor feeling with sights, sounds and the feel of the breeze flowing. It’s pretty remarkable what these windows do to the saloon; seating on all four sides makes this a magnificent travelling lounge too.
The variable height hand-stitched leather helm chairs are an integral part of the saloon too, the co-pilot’s seat even turns to join the dining and socialising. Height adjustments allowed it to be at the same level as the saloon seating and raised for optimal vision passage-making. Seated at the helm with expansive opening side windows feels like you are in a pillarless car from the ’50s and ’60s, hanging the arm out the window without a care in the world cruising along.
Vision from the helm is excellent, interrupted only by two crisp lines that descend as the mullions. The layout is clean and clear, the controls for engines and thrusters are outboard for better ergonomics and reachability when you stick your neck out the window. It’s also a social helm with the forward lounge on the port side, perfect for the family underway.
The sleek rake of the windscreen continues the bright and airy feel down to the accommodation deck, with natural light filling the atrium below. Leading out from the atrium are two cabins and the day head. The master cabin is unmistakably down another couple of steps aft, positioned close to gravity’s lateral and longitudinal centre. Near the entrance opposite the hanging lockers, the position of the master bathroom allows the cabin to use the full-beam available. As low set as this cabin is, it still maximises the flat floor space across the entire room.
Interesting is the approach to the cabin’s hull side windows. They run the entire length, both sides at a height that enables some privacy without having to lower the blinds, an ideal height for seated viewing from the day bed too. Governing the height decision of the windows is the international ratings for the integrity of a hull. Maritimo remains true to their adventure orientated heritage and chooses a height window that allows them to boast the authentic bluewater certification of CE class A.
The offset berth benefits of the cabin in the X Series is continued on the S55 too. Enjoying the same flat floors around the berth right up to the head and a bed height at an average altitude makes it a more accessible cabin. Storage is plentiful below the bed to stow bags and extra gear, and day-to-day storage is in the way of hanging lockers and drawer space. On the starboard side, the third cabin has twin singles berths of decent adult proportions with the option to slide them together for more sleeping options. The overhead hatch and hull window brings in lots of natural light that further enhances the feeling of generous space throughout the boat.
True to form, Maritimo has kept pushing forward, optimising the physics of an ocean-going boat. There are many great stabilisations options on the market today, but his boat doesn’t feel like it needs it, and when you break it down to why it doesn’t need it, several components form the sum of the balanced equation. Designer Tom Barry-Cotter has found a balance with his designs that work with the principles of seaworthiness and comfort. By working on buoyancy both laterally and horizontally, combined with optimising the vertical centre of gravity, the S55 rides a delicate balance between suppleness and stiffness. The S55 is a successful translation that meets a balanced intersection of form and function without reliance on technology for stability, ride and efficiency.
For such a big volume boat, you can see how they achieved it has a lot to do with weight distribution. Externally it looks balanced; it’s not too far off the water. There are baby steps between level changes, so the highest floor, the saloon, is not too high off the water. Keeping weight low is enhanced by their advanced lamination techniques to ensure the superstructure is not excessively heavy.
Engines on this model have some flexibility both in engine choices and transmissions. Installed on this one are Volvo D13 800 mhp running Maritimos signature shallow angle shaft drives, enabling easy access and simple serviceability of the reliable propulsion configuration. Other engine options include Scania and Caterpillar engines up to 1000 Mhp.
Wrap up
Intelligently considered, the adventures-based approach to both the getting places aspect and the all-important one you get there have resulted in good translations. The S55 from Maritimo is pushing boundaries in all the right places, and it remains true to its founder’s mantra of a physics-based approach to seaworthiness. It does an exceptional job of catering to the varied ambitions of adventurous owners. It separates itself from the explorer crowd with high performance, superior livability and incredible visibility.
The crisp style lines like a smart tuxedo conceal off-road trail running shoes ready for anything from sophisticated dining and entertaining to far-flung blue water adventures.
This boat is for people who want the flair and function of a luxury European SUV built upon a land cruiser’s dependable power, ride, and serviceability laid on top of a foundation of certified bluewater capability.
Welcome to the next generation of sports-inspired luxury adventure platforms.
