Le Boat, which offers river and canal cruise vacations, has inked a deal with Groupe Beneteau that will see more than $125 million of investment into the international fleet during the next 10 years.
Of the 400 Delphia-brand boats that Groupe Beneteau is scheduled to build for Le Boat in the coming decade, 100 will be completed in the next three years, including at least 25 in the year 2025. These boats will include the current Horizon range as well as 34 hulls of a premium new one- to two-stateroom boat called Liberty that is scheduled to launch in 2025.
In addition, Le Boat and Groupe Beneteau intend to develop an industry-leading three- to four-stateroom model for launch in 2027. It is expected to have private and charter versions, with the charter version exclusive to customers who book vacations with Le Boat. These models will have air conditioning and an upgraded flybridge.
“We’re delighted to be building upon our long-standing relationship with Groupe Beneteau to support the next stage of Le Boat’s growth journey,” Cheryl Brown, Le Boat’s managing director, stated in a press release. “It will allow us to continue developing high-quality river cruisers which our customer will love, and enable us both to expand into North America.”
Brown added: “With these innovative new boats and stunning potential cruising grounds, this offers us a fantastic opportunity to grow both the charter and boat sales sides of our business.”
In addition to the new boats and models, the agreement between the two companies will allow customers to invest in the new boats. This program promises owners guaranteed income from charters, along with an average of 14 weeks’ worth of vacation time on board each year—either on their own boat or on a sister boat at one of Le Boat’s 17 cruising regions in Europe and Canada.
Since 2016 and the launch of the Horizon fleet, Le Boat has seen a threefold increase in its boat ownership program in Europe. The Le Boat Ownership Program was also recently rolled out to the North American market as well. The Liberty boats are for sale now and will be available to cruise from some Le Boat bases in France, Germany, England and the Netherlands in 2025.
“Le Boat has been a key partner for many years with the premier fleet of Horizon models,” Erik Stromberg, vice president of power and motoryachts for Groupe Beneteau, stated in the press release. “This next step continues the supply of Horizon models, as well as a new co-developed boat to support Le Boat’s charter business and boat ownership program.”
Also look for new bases in North America. The companies say they are working to expand in that regard, too.
Where to learn more: Visit www.leboat.com.
