BENETEAU GRAND TRAWLER 62
The scheduling at the Cannes Boat Show was so insanely tight that I was an untied deck shoe away from missing my appointment to sea trial the Grand Trawler 62 at the show. In fact, if a harbour master hadn’t taken pity on me and chased the big Beneteau down with me perched on the bow of his little RIB the test may never have happened.
Approaching the GT62 from the stern at water level is quite a way to be introduced to it, as it is a huge boat. It is the largest boat that Beneteau (the brand, not the group) has ever built and it certainly has a presence. It’s more than 60ft long and nearly 18ft wide, towering above me from my vantage point on the waterline. Having clambered onto the bathing platform to join the Beneteau crew and 10 or so other journalists on board for the trial, it’s striking how different this flagship feels to the Swift Trawler range. The GT shares many of the same design principles as the smaller trawlers that Beneteau produces but it has an eye on finesse a cut above its more
