Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
5-day Boat Show opens
More than 1,400 vessels of varying sizes, prices on display
The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show — billed as the world’s largest in-water boat show — opened Wednesday, as seen through an Adler Yacht Suprema Hybrid. Find everything you need to know to make the most of the event with our coverage,
Plenty of boats, sun and positive vibes marked the opening of the 58th Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show Wednesday as visitors ogled and toured the miles of glistening yachts, boats and water toys.
There was plenty of security, too, which was more pronounced than in past years with the addition of walk-through screening detectors and ID checks at the show’s Bahia Mar Yachting Center main entrance.
The ramped up security was planned before this week’s deadly terror attack in New York that killed at least eight people, boat show officials said.
“Security is on everyone’s minds,” said Phil Purcell, president and CEO of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, the Fort Lauderdale trade group that owns the show. “You’re seeing some stepped up things [and] there are things you don’t see. The whole thing is not to change the experience when you come into the show; it’s just to make it a seamless event and keep the attendees safe.”
Security has always been a hallmark of the show given the roughly $4 billion worth of boats, yachts and marine merchandise on display and hundreds of highnet-worth individuals from around the world who visit.
The event, considered the largest boat show in the world in terms of gross exhibitor space and number of vessels, has more than 1,400 boats of varying sizes and prices on display.
“You’re going to see a great array of boats that are built in the U.S. [and] around the world and they all bring them here for their debuts and for the commerce that happens here,” Purcell told the Sun Sentinel.
The show’s massive footprint totaling 3 million square feet of exhibition space extends across seven city locations, including the Pier 66 Marina, Sails Marina, Las Olas Municipal Marina, Hilton Fort Lau-
derdale Marina and the Greater Fort Lauderdale/ Broward County Convention Center.
More than 100,000 visitors are expected from more than 30 countries.
“It’s probably going to be the best show ever,” said Purcell. “The weather is fantastic, our economy locally is tremendous, and whether it’s a public or private company, everyone is doing well across the country.”
The armada of shiny vessels dotting the docks and exhibition floors include 89 yachts that are more than 100 feet in length, 26 above 150 feet, and another six superyachts more than 200-feet in size, according to Informa Exhibitions, the boat show’s manager.
The largest, a 257-foot yacht called TV, offers accommodations for 12 guests and 25 crew members and is available for charter for $1 million a week.
In a media briefing Wednesday, Charlie McCurdy, CEO of Informa’s Global Exhibitions division, said the company has spent about $7 million on boat show enhancements, including improved signage and navigational aids and new docks and exhibition flooring.
As of Wednesday, everything seemed to be lining up for a “very healthy event,” with a strong exhibitor presence, increased ticket sales from last year and good weather, McCurdy said.
“Maybe it’s just me, but getting on a boat is just fun and you’ve got fun times thousands here,” McCurdy said.
Exhibitors canvassed this week were optimistic heading into the show, especially after strong results at the recent Monaco Yacht Show.
“[Monaco] was a very productive show with some very well-qualified buyers in attendance for both brokerage and new construction yachts,” said Crispin Baynes, sales broker at show exhibitor Burgess. “We are confident that this positive momentum will now carry through into the Fort Lauderdale show.”
This year, Burgess is showcasing its largest selection of yachts for sale in Fort Lauderdale, and it’s expecting many “well-qualified clients” from the U.S., Europe, Australia and South America.
“This is one of the biggest shows for us in the North American market,” said Justin Blue, chief sales and marketing officer at Allied Marine. “We typically sell boats here at the show but we also build a very big book business that we continue to sell throughout the year.”
The 70-year-old Fort Lauderdale brokerage announced a major rebranding and new positioning as the exclusive dealer along the U.S. East Coast for several new boat brands of Italian shipbuilding company Ferretti Group.