Royal Huisman unveil PHI, the world longest superyacht under 500 GT

Until now, PHI’s length was a mysterious “55m+”. With her launch coming up in 2021 it is time to reveal her actual overall length: 58.5m / 192ft, which makes her – based on today’s Classification rules – by far the longest motoryacht in the sub-500GT category.

PHI’s sleek, low hull and superstructure profile are considered by outsiders to be a great challenge to engineer and build. But Royal Huisman has delivered over thirty low-profile and unique, award winning sailing superyachts, and is not intimidated by the prospect of fitting complex motoryacht systems and technology into sleek, low hulls. 

The team has all the knowledge and experience at hand to explore, develop and optimize the ideas of the Owner, designers and architect into tailormade solutions – using proven expertise for a brand new creation without any shipyard requirement of adapting an existing basis of previously delivered yachts. 

Cor D. Rover, responsible for PHI’s general concept, exterior design & interior layout, explains the design philosophy: “Rather than just building a large yacht on a so-called shipyard ‘platform’ to enjoy the pleasures of being at sea, the Owner of Royal Huisman PHI wanted to build a yacht with a profound underlying story, a deep-rooted knowledge that runs through all aspects of the yacht, from her exterior appearance all the way to internal experience. After a lot of internal deliberations at our studio, exploring numerous concepts, we discovered the rich and detailed story behind the symbol PHI. 

Evidence of this is all around us. The more you study, for example, growth sequences in nature, the more amazed you become. The perfect mathematical way that a Nautilus shell or a Sunflower grows is truly amazing. Some call it coincidence, others call it natural evolution, I, being a spiritual person, will definitely call it “Divine”.

“Although a motoryacht of this size looks pretty large in a building hall or marina, it seems less so when you are in the middle of the ocean. With the endless galaxy above you, the vast water surface – sometimes calm and friendly, sometimes brutal and violent – around you, and beneath your feet, the little explored and mysterious sub-aquatic world, the overwhelming magnitude of nature and natural forces can make any sailor feel pretty small and humble. 

This formed the basis for our design philosophy. We wanted the upper deck, where the Owner has his penthouse apartment, to be closest to the skies, to follow the Royal Huisman PHI philosophy with a focus on the galaxy. The main deck, where most daytime guest activities happen, has a more horizontal focal connection with the ocean surface, whereas the lower deck, physically rooted in the water, is strongly ‘connected’ with the underwater-world.”

“The resulting overall design speaks a very organic visual message, and will all around the deck show a range of subtle hints to the natural world that surrounds the yacht. If you should have an opportunity to visit PHI you will find that, no matter where the Owner will take you, he will have a story for you: why details look like they do, and what has been the thinking behind them. Apart from the fact that PHI has an aesthetic story to tell, she also fulfils the Owner’s wish for a technically highly advanced vessel that sets new standards. First of all, when PHI “hits the water” in 2021, she will be the longest sub-500 GT motoryacht in the world.

The Owner wanted to achieve this without compromising on the highest quality standards. As a natural and logic result, the project ended up with Royal Huisman, the best sailboat builder in the world. The more we see PHI come alive, the more I am convinced that only a sailboat builder has the know-how and ambition to execute miracles on a square inch, and Royal Huisman is the epitome of this watchmakers skill.”

“By using Van Oossanen’s XL Fast Displacement Hull Form, PHI will be extremely fuel efficient. Given the fact that there are no electric chargers between the Azores and the Caribbean, this is the best thing we can reasonably do at this moment, trying to burn as little fossil fuel as possible until the day renewables will be the reliable mainstream.”

PHI offers significantly more exterior and semi-interior entertainment area on the aft deck than conventional designs, and instead of a typical “wedding cake” silhouette, she will have a very sleek and appealing low profile.

Another “first” can be found on the pool deck with Cor D. Rover’s patented DEPP swimming pool. This pool uses a minimum volume of fresh water since the body of water can stay in the pool, heated and treated overnight, when not in use. The pool itself turns into a sealed tank and visa-versa at the touch of a button, avoiding lengthy pumping of water in and out of a separate, dedicated dump tank, which means, guests can first play a game on top of the flush pool cover and swim within 5 minutes in the pool that’s underneath.

“…the lower deck, physically rooted in the water, is heavily ‘connected’ with the underwater-world” Cor D. Rover continues: “A cool gimmick can be found in the lower deck lobby where we created an infinite wine-cellar.” What this means? You will have to exercise patience for a couple of months to see it with your own eyes…!”

Guy Booth, Owner’s representative and project management comments: “From the early days, it was fairly clear that this Owners vision would take a unique combination of some extraordinary skills. The Owner knew that he wanted a deep, intelligent and thought provoking core concept, that reflects elements of several great personal interests. We initially met with six or seven of the most pedigree yacht designers in the world. 

There was something about Cor [D. Rover]’s approach that resonated with the Owner, asking thousands of questions, and proposing thousands of crazy ideas. In the early days, no one had any answers for the Owner. It took Cor and his team almost a year of deliberation before they eventually proposed the idea of ‘PHI’, how it related to the Owner, and Cor’s vision of how it would translate into design. From this moment, she has always been ‘PHI’. 

With such a powerful vision, a demand for the absolute highest level of quality available anywhere and such difficult engineering challenges, Royal Huisman were clearly the best partner to build the boat.”

Complementing motoryacht PHI will be a 36m / 118ft shadow vessel, currently under construction in Asia. Carrying the same DNA as her bigger “beauty queen” sister, the shadow vessel is the hard working sibling. 

Both she and the onboard Owner’s limousine tender will have Cor D. Rover styling and a patented Van Oossanen Fast Displacement Hull, but her “make-up” will be a no-fillermatt- finish (albeit in the same color scheme as her big show-off sister). 

PHI will, upon launch in 2021, surely leave an impression…

Royal Huisman MY Phi technical specs

Builder: Royal Huisman

Length overall: 58.5m / 192ft

Accommodation: 2 Owners, 10 guests and 11 crew

Speed: Approximately 22 knots

Construction: Aluminium

Classification: American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) – MCA

Gross tonnage: Below 500 GT

Year of delivery: 2021