HopYacht in the news

Extract from IBI article 1 September 2021, by Bobby Jordan A new South African company has entered the boatbuilding market with a 30ft compact catamaran concept aimed at the European charter market.

HopYacht (Pty)Ltd is brainchild of Cape Town sailing stalwart Paul Tomes, who teamed up with DuToit Yacht Design to create the HopYacht 30. The design is billed as a slimline cat that will fit into the same marina berth as a typical 36’-38’ monohull, the company said in a launch statement issued this month.

The design brief was to combine simplicity, comfort and eco-sensitivity. HopYacht spotted a gap in the market for a charter yacht designed specifically for couples and families with young children, where a smaller more manageable catamaran design would make short-handed sailing a lot easier and more manageable in busy marinas,” the company said.

“HopYacht commissioned the team at Dutoit Yacht Design to bridge this gap, with a compact catamaran that will be exceptionally easy to handle and despite being smaller, still provide much of the luxury and comfort found in a larger yacht. The brief also included electric motors, solar power and self contained waste water.” ”The cockpit, saloon and cabin are all on the same level, and the layout and single furling sail rig are specifically designed to aid shorthand sailing.

Tomes said the idea was to offer a boat premised on the idea of holiday sailing, rather than a sailing holiday: “Traditional monohulls are great for thoroughbred sailors, where a sailing holiday is simply an extension of a lifetime passion. Holiday sailing requires a very different design approach to ensure that sailors and non sailors will happily co-exist onboard”, Tomes said. “You often hear people talk about sixty being the new forty! Our research confirmed that a significant number of European holidaymakers in their 60s, 70s and 80s, have both the time and disposable income to embrace holiday sailing. One level makes life on board so much easier for everyone at all ages,” Tomes said.

The first HopYachts are scheduled to be launched in the Mediterranean mid 2022. Tomes is currently finalising negotiations with a Cape Town builder partner to set up a new yard from scratch. Once production ramps up the facility is expected to create 15-20 new full time jobs along with the spin off peripheral employment for the marine sector in South Africa.

Link to original IBI article

HopYachts driven by E-Propulsion

From the outset, HopYacht was designed to be equipped with electric sail drives. Following extensive research and direct conversations with manufacturers, we are delighted to announce that we have appointed E-Propulsion to supply their Pod Drive 6.0 Evo.

With twin 6.0 Evo motors fitted, this equates to 6kW of power for each motor, the equivalent of having two 9.9hp petrol engines. The Evo series pod drives are equipped with hydro-generation, meaning batteries are topped up continuously whilst under sail. This further supplements recharging from HopYacht's solar power.

Each motor will be powered by E-Propulsion's E175 9kWh battery, providing a range of 1.5 hours at full throttle and 4-6 hours at cruising speeds

E-Propulsion now have dealer and service network throughout Europe, USA and Australia.

HopYacht - where the idea started.

Paul Tomes (founder of HopYacht) began sailing in his early teens in Northern Ireland, racing dinghies and keelboats in the Irish Sea. Paul is a past Commodore of Hout Bay Yacht Club, in Cape Town, South Africa and still actively races Hunter 19s at the club.

Over the years Paul and his wife Mary-Clare have chartered yachts in Greece, Croatia, Turkey and Australia. It was after a trip in 2019, chartering in Southern Turkey, they decided to host a presentation at HBYC, to introduce other club members to bareboat yacht charter.

The presentation was well attended and during the Q&A session afterwards, what emerged was how many couples would love to charter a yacht, but didn't feel confidence especially if only one of the couple was a proficient sailor. Even if both were reasonably proficient sailors, they were still anxious about sailing short-handed.

Reflecting back on many of their trips, Paul also realised that for many people chartering is much more about the quality of the holiday experience, than it is about pure sailing. Comfort and value for money were features hard to find in typical small charter yachts, especially if sailing just as a couple. Charter yachts are by nature designed to pack people in. So you end up having to charter a 4-6 berth yacht for just two people, and even then it is still cramped! It was against this backdrop, that Paul sketched the first ideas for the HopYacht. Paul claims he started by drawing a full size double bed and then drew the boat around it! Throughout all the subsequent design meetings, he would make the point that just because Hopyacht is a small catamaran, doesn't mean it can't have the same comfort as a hotel room!