Those whose enthusiasm for boats does not end at the limit of the overdraft facility on their current account can now read on unmolested. For those who consider superyachts to be blasphemy, here is a first and final warning: this text, and even more so the picture gallery, is likely to provoke severe forms of social envy. Unfortunately, the price list for the CNB 78 starts at 3.44 million euros.
And without VAT, without sails, without carbon fibre rigging, without a performance keel, without a hydraulically extendable gangway and also without a tender.
In the league of luxurious long-distance yachts, the snobbish, but here quite apt saying applies that whoever asks about the price first will almost certainly not be able to afford the fun.
Even the dinghy - which sounds a little disrespectful in view of the jet propulsion and the hull colour specially matched to the mother ship - is not far off the equivalent value of the author's second-hand eleven-metre boat, which in turn corresponds roughly to the average value of the yachts of all YACHT readers who have bought second-hand. However, the dinghy is also suitable for water skiing.
The CNB 78 is built in series
So let's get rid of the feelings of deficit that can nowadays, strictly speaking, already set in with a Bavaria C46 or a Hanse 460, for which you can easily get a small house outside the metropolitan regions. If you can manage that, the CNB 78 is easy to love - even if you look closely, even in the furthest corners.
More from the world of superyachts:
Unlike under the aegis of the Beneteau Group, which had made the luxury brand big but sold it to Solaris two years ago, the successor to the highly successful 76 is no longer built in a semi-industrialised way, but "traditionally". This means that large modules with their own floor seats are not prefabricated and glued in. Instead, the CNB 78 is built in series: first the body, floor assembly and bulkheads, then the interior is completed.
This change is better suited to semi-custom models, where the owners want their individual wishes to be taken into account within predefined layouts. And it goes hand in hand with even greater solidity and strength.
The great art of superyachts: Sweeping design can convince
Despite the wide saloon, the new CNB 78 sails with remarkable torsional rigidity and virtually no creaking or quiet crackling. When you move from the cockpit to below deck on the open sea, you feel like you are in a different, acoustically isolated world.
The highlight is that you never lose touch with the sea. On the contrary: the CNB 78 offers an almost unrestricted all-round view from its raised "living room". The interior created by designer Jean-Marc Viaton is particularly successful: the side windows are flush with the running decks at the bottom. This extends the space outwards, so to speak. Equally impressive is the generously glazed companionway, which offers a wide visual axis to the aft.
Rounded edges are a visual element that runs through the entire boat. They can be found in the glass sliding door that closes off the companionway, as well as in the helmsman's seats, the work surface in the galley or the solid wood bar screen in front of which the owner's berth is located. Even in the longitudinal bulkhead to the starboard guest cabin, the kink is softly rounded, and the veneer follows the curve without any recognisable bumps. Great art!
How does the new CNB 78 sail?
The gallery gives an idea of what else the CNB 78 has to offer. The wow factor of the Briand design is of course even more stunning in the flesh. Especially as the boat can also inspire under sail.
For its almost 50 tonnes, it has a fine feel for the rudder and can be guided precisely along the wind edge. From eight knots true wind speed you no longer need the almost inaudible diesel, from ten knots the CNB really starts to be fun. And from 15 knots, you never want to be anywhere else.
Click here to go to Further information and technical data , here to CNB Germany, Austria and Switzerland. A detailed portrait will follow in a few weeks' time in YACHT.
