None of the boat’s stylistic flourishes come at the expense of cruising practicalities
alk around any big Mediterranean marina and the chances are you’ll see at least half a dozen Azimuts lining the pontoons. Thanks to a range of craft that encompasses everything from a 42ft outboard-powered day boat (Verve 42) to a 125ft superyacht (Grande Trideck) via all the usual sportscruisers, flybridges and even the Magellano range of trawler yachts, this Italian boat building giant has penetrated every corner of the European market. And yet for some reason the UK market remains stubbornly resistant to its charms. You see the occasional one or two propping up South Coast pontoons but nothing like the number you’d expect from a company of its size and stature. Some of that can be explained by the home market dominance of Sunseeker, Princess and Fairline but we suspect that an outdated notion of Italian builders caring more about style than substance plays a part too. Twenty years ago there might have been a grain of truth in that, even if Azimut rarely fell into that trap,
