Setting Sail with the Maritimo S75: A Yacht Review
Distances are not only vast around the shoreline of Australia, but unlike the U.S., they are often unpopulated. So, self-sufficiency and resilience are perquisites for motor cruising. The inability to find a safe haven often means staying offshore and to do that you need a sturdy hull and decent range. From its inception, by industry legend Bill Barry-Cotter, this ethos was embedded in the shaft-driven hulls of Maritimo, and the latest is not only the largest at 75 feet but also the most advanced. Let’s dive into this Maritimo S75 luxury yacht review.
Australian builder Maritimo’s S75 is its latest, largest, and most advanced offering.
I saw this during its launch at the May 2023 Sanctuary Cove Boat Show in Australia. “The global launch of the S75 heralds the start of Maritimo’s twentieth anniversary celebrations and what could be more fitting in our twentieth year than releasing this grand vessel, the epitome of everything that is Maritimo,” said Managing Director Tom Barry-Cotter, who has successfully stepped into his father’s shoes at the helm of this Gold Coast-based yard. Also, as we go to press, a flybridge version has just splashed (the M75).
My first impression of the S75 is its striking and sleek profile, thanks to nearly 75 feet of waterline, including the vast 194-square-foot Adventure Deck. Some reverse shear along the topsides also enhances the look, while the tall hull is stylishly punctuated with elongated dark windows that match the targa bar, housing radar and satellite domes, clearly making a sporty statement even at rest. Of course, style without substance is not much good offshore, so there’s a solid glass hull underwater and an elongated keel, both for stiffness and linear stability.
Adventure
Reviewing Maritimo’s S75 Hull No. 1 allows a great understanding of what this vessel is capable of. Hull No. 1 is a general-purpose vessel with large cockpits to suit Australia’s mild outdoor climate. The S75’s signature feature is the Adventure Deck, a huge teak-clad swim platform with a hydraulic aft section to float a heavy tender. It includes a wet bar with electric barbecue in the forward bulkhead that also has an access hatch to the crew cabin.
A step above this area, with transom doors on each side, is the aft cockpit. Completely shaded by the flybridge overhang, it’s ideal for diners around the transom couch and inner dinette table with bench.
Yet more lounging space is found by walking along the deep side decks, their tall guardrails guiding me safely to the bow where a double sunbed dominates. Also installed is an oversized Australian-made horizontal Muir windlass/capstan combined with an equally large Ultra anchor, which should give peace of mind at rest.
The S75 salon roof has been designed for storage, enabling the sedan hardtop to be accessed from the upper cockpit deck via a wide stairway and hatch with davit.
Vast Salon
The low-slung S75 conceals its bulk well, but the salon reveals it in all its glory when entered via the sliding door that opens into the rear galley, adjoining the cockpit dinette. Ahead of the galley is the amidships lounge and offset to starboard is the steering console, with all parts seamlessly blending into this vast space. The U-shaped galley takes up the entire aft section which allows several people to work here. It’s extensively equipped with two large freezer drawers, microwave, and a separate oven with four-plate electric hob, all by Miele.
A step up on the paneled vinyl floor to the carpeted lounge gives the ambience of a much larger vessel, thanks to that generous beam and tall windows placed at eye height when resting on the couches that surround the area. The dark wood gloss finish is understated and contrasts with the cream leather furnishings. Forward is the staircase down to the three cabins, naturally lit by the overhead front salon window.
The console is a well-equipped with Twin Disc EJS joystick and throttles. The EJS controls the fore and aft thrusters. Given the windage, controlling the shaft drives and thrusters with a simply operated joystick system is ideal for most owners.
On Hull No. 1, the essentials including tabs, the hydraulic wheel, and Garmin smarts (twin 24-inch glass screens, radar, and autopilot) were all ergonomically laid out in front of the two bucket seats.
Reviewing Maritimo’s S75 Accommodations
The central stairway leading below benefits from the atrium-style layout of the salon windows which gave natural light as I stepped down. Here, a lounge has been optioned instead of a fourth cabin, which created an airy, convivial area.
Located deep in the hull, using the almost 20-foot beam, the owner’s suite is outstanding with several furniture options including a vanity table and benches with cedar-lined cabinetry. The cabin is a large space with more than six feet of headroom and without any impinging bulkheads around the king-size berth. Elongated hull windows let in light with two opening portholes to increase natural airflow.
The ensuite bathroom behind the berth uses the entire beam to create a vast ablutions area with twin sinks, freshwater flush electric head, and a generous shower at the far end to starboard.
Also impressive is the bow cabin because instead of the usual location in the middle, the queen berth is offset to starboard, creating a walking space around it. Finally, the third cabin with its two bunks and rather small portlight finishes off this practical accommodation layout.
Hull and Systems
The hull build is completely solid GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic) below the waterline. Rigidity comes from a monolithic GRP liner that is molded longitudinally all the way to the forward cabin—a Maritimo patented technique to enhance hull integrity. Similarly, the decks also have a liner as well as the superstructure, which enhances both rigidity and insulation while creating a monocoque structure intended to last. Deep bilges are another plus to manage any water incursion without losing stability.
Scania 1,150-hp engines were fitted to the review boat, running straight shafts to five-bladed Nimbral Veem propellers. Options include Rolls-Royce Power Systems MTU, which is available in the 2000 Series V10 1,625-mhp per side. Electrical power comes from twin Onan 22.5kW generators. When at rest, twin ARG 250 T gyros can be deployed, with one in the engine room and the second behind on the Adventure Deck.
At Sea
Reviewing the Maritimo S75 had a perk; taking it to its natural element—offshore. Behind the wheel, I felt the long southerly Pacific swells beneath the stiff hull as I accelerated toward the eastern horizon, and with 10,000 liters (approximately 2,640 U.S. gallons) fully loaded, the S75 can reach those far horizons.
The motion was heavily dampened and the natural trim—thanks to shaft drives putting engine weight inboard—negated the need for tabs (at least without a full cruising load).
Turning was predictable, as the S75 hull didn’t heel into turns but neither did it slide; it tracked flat and predictably. I then sought out my wake to test the joinery and other bulkheads, which didn’t complain when the swell crashed into the hull before running obediently off the flared bows as we reached a top speed of 28 knots. All done with aplomb on this most impressive 75-footer.
-by Kevin Green
