High Speed in the Slow Lane
The sunseeker 116 yacht Lost Boys allows for fast-paced fun in the land of chill.
I’m an outdoor animal. To me, itineraries are more like suggestions. You’ll never find me just sitting on a beach sipping mai tais or by a pool binge-reading John Grisham novels. When I take a vacation, especially on a boat, my mission is to make the most of where I am. And that usually means I keep moving once my wheels hit the ground.
Just a few hundred miles off the coast of Florida lie the Exumas: the promised land for outdoor addicts like me. From exhilarating excursions and up-close interactions with wildlife to great beach bars and breathtaking underwater seascapes, this out-island archipelago is among the top charter destinations on the planet, for good reason.
My most recent taste of the venue was on Lost Boys, a Sunseeker 116 Yacht designed and outfitted for charter. Not everybody “vacations” the way I do, and aboard the Sunseeker 116 Yacht, that’s just fine. In fact, the beauty of Lost Boys is that she’s for more than one type of charter guest. Even among six guests with different ideas of how to relax and play, everyone aboard with me had space to spread out and enjoy, à la carte, their charter getaway.
It’s hard to experience the whole of the Exumas within the confines of a vacation, though most of us were keen to try. The crew whooshed us off on the 20-foot Williams jet tender on a morning mission to feed the famous pigs of Big Major Cay and the inquisitive iguanas of Guana Cay, and to do some snorkeling in the popular Thunderball Grotto. It was plenty of action to work up a hearty appetite, which Venezuelan chef Sergio Marichales satiated with tropical gazpacho, a crisp cucumber salad, sautéed shrimp and fresh-caught grilled snapper.
While some guests next opted for a sunpad siesta on the foredeck, the crystal-clear aquamarine water called me and a few others. It was toy time. Employing the quickest route to the water, I took an exhilarating plunge down the waterslide, which I can confirm is exactly 1.6 seconds of screaming-fast fun from sundeck to waterline. (I did it a hundred times to verify.) Then it was on to a sun-soaked afternoon playing with the paddleboards, Sea-Doos and Seabob, which is always a favorite for getting around underwater with speed. Lost Boys also stocks fishing rods, water skis and towables, plus bikes and electric scooters for adventures ashore.
Extracurricular activities aside, a large part of the charter experience happens on the boat, and Lost Boys has great social potential in her entertaining spaces. The 116 Yacht was based on Sunseeker’s Predator 115 hull, with a new superstructure and modifications that added 24 percent to the exterior entertaining space. Her beamy
CloCkwise from left: Designed for more than one type of charter guest, Lost Boys offers a wealth of onboard spaces for guests to spread out and enjoy. Note the foredeck entertaining space; The native pigs were quick to greet us at Big Major Cay; The on-deck master stateroom has a step-down bathroom with a double vanity; An evening private-beach setup, courtesy of the Lost Boys crew, featured Champagne and canapés as guests enjoyed the sunset.
flybridge has a full-width, retractable sunroof over the seating and dining areas, as well as a wet bar, sun loungers and a hot tub. Her foredeck, with a step-down design, was a beautiful setting for our Mediterranean-style lunch. At the after end of the yacht, the cockpit also allows for alfresco dining with a bar and two cocktail tables that transform into one large table for 10. Supporting the yacht’s service flow, crew have an electronic carbon fiber gull-wing door, providing inconspicuous access from the wheelhouse to the side deck.
Inside are full-height windows in the salon and master stateroom, with skylights adding pops of light to the salon, whose open and contemporary design is accentuated by the 24-foot beam. Including the main-deck master, Lost Boys sleeps 10 guests in five staterooms, with two double-bed setups and two twin-bed setups that can convert to doubles. Crew have quarters for six.
Only one thing slowed me down during my time aboard: the breathtaking view from my belowdecks stateroom’s hull-side window. Since we were in the Exumas, the water’s clarity allowed me to view the seafloor, which I studied, mesmerized, for a good 20 minutes. More great views were throughout the boat, a testament to the 116 Yacht’s glass-centric design. The gentle ripple effect of water reflections on the bulkheads and overhead were pleasantly hypnotizing, and I could have easily been lulled to sleep if it hadn’t been time to depart for an evening beach excursion.
A half hour later, ashore sipping Champagne and swallowing canapés on an uninhabited cay, I watched for the green flash as the sun disappeared below the horizon. I’ve seen it only once—here. And while Mother Nature held back on this day, there’s no such thing as a disappointing sunset in the Exumas.
No matter what we wanted to do on other days, we had the speed to get there. The 116 Yacht is comfortable cruising at 10 knots or at her top speed of 26 knots, which was nice to have for packing in as much fun as possible. There was a lot more to do, of course. (There always is.)
The Bahamas has a reputation for being the slowpaced mañana of winter destinations, but it doesn’t have to be. There are certainly plenty of places to chill aboard Lost Boys (which will charter in the Caribbean this winter starting at around $120,000 per week, plus expenses), but give me 26 knots in crystal-clear water with a double espresso any day. I’ll sleep when I’m dead.