It seems that yachting today is more popular and successful than ever. But what lies behind this success? Interparus is trying to figure out the issue.
State of the industry today and forecasts for tomorrow
In 2024, the yachting industry is not only alive and well, but continues its strong growth. Yachting has become more accessible than ever before, thanks in large part to the possibility of charter flights for relatively little money.

If we look at the figures of dry statistics, then, for example, in the crisis year of 2022 alone, the yacht market was valued at 11.04 billion US dollars. According to forecasts by the analytical agency GMI, by 2032 this figure will increase to $20.62 billion with an annual growth rate of 6.7%.
This increase in demand for yachts is due to the fact that the industry does not stand still. Every year boats, catamarans and trimarans become more comfortable and technologically advanced. The latest navigation systems, the increasing popularity of environmentally friendly power plants, on-board automation - all this together attracts more and more customers around the world.
Superyachts
Already in 2024, the volume of the superyacht segment will reach a fantastic 13.66 billion US dollars. This segment of the industry is fueled more than ever by the interest of wealthy individuals who want to discover tourism and yachting.
Interestingly, the luxury yacht market, according to a Mordor Intelligence report, is much more actively developing in the field of environmentally friendly yachting. Latest developments including Seawolf X, are attracting more and more clients to the superyacht industry. The popularity of this type of yacht is growing all over the world.
European and Asian markets
The European yacht market traditionally gives preference to yachts of more modest sizes. However, there are more and more luxury yachts here too. This is due to the presence in Europe of a large number of tourist and cultural places that attract yachtsmen from all over the world.

Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market in the coming years. Most likely, we will soon see the emergence of several new yacht brands that will focus exclusively on the Asian consumer. At the same time, brands will cover the needs of both ordinary yachtsmen - small motor and sailing boats, and millionaires who prefer superyachts.
Small yachts and superyachts
In 2024, the market for superyachts and sailing yachts up to 20 meters will show different dynamics of growth and popularity among yachtsmen. According to Grand View Research, a lot depends on the personal preferences of yachting enthusiasts.
Development of the superyacht market
The superyacht market, unlike sailing and motorboats, is developing unevenly. Despite the overall growth of the segment, superyachts are available to a small circle of people, whose interest or lack thereof significantly influences the growth charts of the destination.

Today's trend is the pursuit of environmentally friendly yachting and the use of environmentally friendly power sources. Superyachts have become a bastion of innovation, which is being tested on the basis of these yachts. As practice shows, if any approach or technology takes root on a superyacht, then soon an analogue will appear among smaller yachts.
What will be tomorrow? What will be the trend? How will this affect superyachts? Unknown.
Development of the market for sailing and motor yachts up to 20 meters
The boating industry on all continents has shown interesting results over the past couple of years - the sector is experiencing what is called “sustainable growth”. Small sailing and motor yachts do not have the same amount of innovation as superyachts, and new technologies are only accepted by shipyards after extensive testing and inspection.

These conditions helped make the development of this industry more sustainable and predictable. Moreover, small boats are much friendlier to their potential owners, and their maintenance costs less. According to statistics from Maximize Market Research, the most popular yacht dimensions today are 6-15 meters.
Due to their availability, small boats are becoming increasingly popular in all corners of the globe. This trend should continue until at least 2032. However, this does not mean that after 2032 everything will decline - it’s just that longer-term forecasts are inaccurate.
Technological aspect of the yachting industry
However, not everything is so rosy. The technological landscape in the yachting industry has been described by some experts as “somewhat outdated,” a term used “in a very diplomatic context.” The industry literally cannot keep up with the development of technology.
As a result, a funny situation arises: a boat is announced with modern technologies at the time of announcement, but by the time it is launched, some devices may be considered obsolete. Such cases are becoming less common, but still occur.

Things are especially difficult in international projects where the consolidation of several large companies is required. Due to bureaucracy and the technical ignorance of some department heads, projects may take too long to complete.
An expert from Onboard Online notes that many shipyards choose popular technological solutions based not on the convenience of the end user, but on the fact that the technology is popular. Ultimately, the industry in 2024 is better than pre-COVID, but still requires attention from manufacturers and dealers.
Yacht delivery times
A large number of dissatisfaction among yachtsmen was caused by delays in the delivery of already ordered yachts. Some shipyards simply do not have time to process orders and, instead of reducing the number of orders, try to meet the deadline with a concomitant decrease in the quality of the final product.
The main problem faced by such shipyards is the unoptimized production process. Optimizing costs and reducing delivery times is a key task for shipyards in the coming years. Among the labor shock workers who are successfully passing this exam now is Fountaine Pajot.

There are also problems beyond the control of the shipyards themselves. For example, the timing of delivery of the necessary equipment, raw materials and supplies for the production of yachts. All these are global challenges from which manufacturers cannot hide or run away. Fortunately, today the industry has all the necessary tools to optimize production and supply. However, if a shipyard, even a renowned one, tries to play by the old rules, then very soon it will simply be forced out of the market by more active competitors.
Eco-friendly yachting
Today's trend, as written above, is preserving the environment. In light of new trends, yacht manufacturers are trying to make their products more environmentally friendly. Here are the main methods to reduce the harmful impact on nature:
- Eco-friendly or recyclable materials for yacht hulls – shipyards have begun to use more recyclable composites and natural resins to produce yachts. Currently, the development of degradable plastic for housings is underway, which will cause less harm to the environment.
- Alternative fuels – electric motors, liquefied gas and hydrogen units are gaining popularity, but the technologies are not advanced enough and have not stood the test of time. So far, only electric motors have earned relatively widespread use, but the dynamics of their use need to be monitored from a longer perspective.
- Reduced use of internal combustion engines - more and more shipyards, if not abandoning classic internal combustion engines, are at least creating hybrid models. The trend is noticeable and gaining mass popularity, but it also takes time to evaluate its effectiveness.
The industry is moving quickly towards eco-friendly yachting, but some consumers are frightened and put off by this approach. The topic of environmental friendliness today is extremely toxic and full of manipulations both from environmentalists and defenders of the use of internal combustion engines and non-recyclable composites.

Again, the trend is clearly visible and understandable. Influenced by this trend, serious technologies are being developed that will take time to prove their effectiveness. But what if in two years a new study comes out, refuting the previous ones and directly declaring that the current attempts to “green” the industry were in vain and the concept of “green electricity” needs to be reinvented? What to do with the already launched conveyor for the production of electric motors and all related products? The question remains open.
Using artificial intelligence
It would be difficult to imagine the year 2024 without ubiquitous neural networks, linguistic models and other variations of what is popularly called “artificial intelligence.” We will not go into detail about the term, but will focus on the use of AI in yachting.

As we've written before, superyachts are the bastion of innovation in the industry. So it would be strange if AI didn't appear there first. In the article about Seawolf X, we talked about what AI will be like on a yacht in the coming years. Artificial intelligence will become the skipper’s partner, who will monitor the yacht’s internal systems, alert about danger, and even control the power supply.
If the AI in the on-board computer has turned into Ultron or HAL9000, then the crew of the yacht will have the opportunity to turn it off and take control. If we draw analogies with what we already have, then the closest analogue of AI on a yacht is Siri in the iPhone. Let's see how Rossinavi implements AI in its Seawolf X. It is likely that smart assistants on sailing yachts will appear much sooner than expected.
Employment problems
In 2024, the yachting industry market is showing interesting employment trends. The main focus of the area is on high technology and its integration into yachts. The industry has discovered a shortage of highly specialized specialists in the field of computer science and marine technology, but this problem is gradually being solved. Shipyards are also actively investing in innovation.

The charter sector also shows a need for workers, but here we are talking about specialists in customer service, fleet management and technical staff. Some anonymous sources point to several problems in the employment sector:
- Nepotism - company leadership positions are often occupied by incompetent people who received their positions solely because of connections with other higher-level managers.
- Nationality Selection – The selection of candidates is often based on ethnicity or race, without regard to the actual skills of the employee. This leads to a decrease in work efficiency.
- Lack of understanding of the principles of work among the heads of HR departments - HR (aka the personnel department) often hire people without understanding the real role of the position in the company. Because of this, both employees and the company itself suffer.
Ultimately, if yacht and equipment manufacturers and charter companies want to achieve improved service and increased sales, then careful attention must be paid to labor and employment issues.
Instead of a conclusion
We live in an age of rapid change and it seems that these very changes will be radical. However, the current state of the yachting industry inspires cautious optimism. Many companies, if not experiencing a boom, then at least maintain production and financial turnover, and new brands and innovations are gradually appearing.
It will be hoped that the notorious “sustainable development” will help not only the yachting community to consolidate and get through these difficult times together.
New video on the Interparus channel 🎥
Fishermen, general gathering! The Interparus team has prepared an issue for you with recommendations for fishing on a yacht. Let's talk about the equipment and our experience. Enjoy watching!
Don't forget to rate the material. You can find other interesting articles using the links below or in the “News” section.
01.06.2024
News and articles

The last weeks delight everyone who is not indifferent with a large amount of news from the world of yachting. Today we decided to review several important events in the field of marinas and nautical tourism. It will be about the Croatian conference, the new marina in Saudi Arabia and the meeting of the heads of the French maritime tourism associations.
Read more…
The results of the boat show in Miami, the fate of the sailing yacht Eleonora E and the brand new hydrofoil catamaran are the main yachting news from Interparus!
Read more…
Limassol Located on the southern coast of the island, Limassol with its 140 thousand inhabitants is the second largest city in Cyprus, the largest tourist center and the main sea gateway of the country. The Greeks themselves call this city Lemesos.
Read more…