EXIBITION OF DÜSSELDORF – BACKSTAGE

The Boot, the Nautical Exhibition of Düsseldorf is characterised by the presence of out of the water exhibition areas. We suppose that transportation of the biggest boats might be a nightmare for organisers… And this year, they have dealt with a difficult challenge, achieved with teutonic timing and organisation: bringing a 24×6 m yacht of 175 tons to the exhibition, first through the Rhine and then by land.

We are talking of the luxurious Explorer Yacht 24, produced by Drettmann Shipyards from Bremen, about 300 km far from Düsseldorf. The travel of the yacht has started early – a month before the beginning of the exhibition – and it has had many important moments. First of all, shipyards have been obliged to enlarge the entrance of their contruction area. Then, the boat has travelled a little off the road before reaching the barge : only this took 24 hours… After a long travel on the Rhine, the arrival point was not far but there was a last obstacle: the crane of the Boot (called Willi by organisers) was not sufficient for the 175 tons of the  Drettmann Explorer Yacht.

Why so much strain? Because Explorer yacht 24 is one of the latest boats presented at Düsseldorf, that we have already started to see, and it is a completely German product by Drettmann, active since 1970 and still run by the founding family. The shipyard is specialised in mega yachts and it launches its new DEY by appealing to its technical innovations: the use of a POD electric propulsion system, already spread and tested but unusual in this category of boats. This system reduces costs and consumption and it creates a wide space for all you can have on a luxurious yacht: sauna, swimming pool, tender garage and so on.