THE NEW

PRETENDER
ON TEST
 BOAT TEST

With four double cabins, sprawling deck spaces and a stunning Kelly Hoppen
interior, the Pearl 62 is looking to shake up the 60ft flybridge market

PEARL
62 WORDS Jack Haines PHOTOS Paul Wyeth

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 BOAT TEST
T here are some manufacturers that effortlessly
imbue their boats with a sense of occasion.
Sunseeker, Riva, and Pershing have long had
it mastered and in recent times it’s Galeon
that has been dropping jaws for fun in the
boat show aisles. The new Pearl 62, the
smallest model of the current range, is a
worthy new addition to this club. It’s a boat
that has real presence, even from the pontoon
where its height, style and impressively hefty
mouldings and deck gear make it appear
larger than its LOA of 61ft would suggest.
It just so happened that the boat berthed behind the Pearl was a
Princess F62, which it dwarfed in comparison.
Head to the flybridge and you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d
stepped aboard a boat of more than 70ft. The hardtop isn’t
standard but every boat ordered thus far has had it and it’s easy
to see why. It’s subtly integrated and features a retracting canvas
section that opens the helm, dinette and extended wet-bar to the
sky when the weather suits. Our test boat – hull number one –
had the option of two L-shaped seating pods with free-standing
stools at the aft end of the deck but there are variations. You can
have just a sun pad or the sun pad to port and keep an L-shaped
pod to starboard, the layout to go for in my eyes as it offers the
best mix of space to stretch out in the sun and some snug corner
seating to enjoy a sundowner with a fine view out over the water.
CABIN FEVER
One you’ve got used to the sheer size of the thing, your eye
begins to pick up on the more subtle details. The mirrored panel
with an engraving of a Pearl 62 set into the transom, the polished
three-way fairleads that sprout out from the boat’s haunches and
the marble tops peering out at you from the galley at the aft end
The 62 climbs effortlessly on to
the plane and cruises quietly
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Storage for a jet-ski in the
transom garage; a crew
cabin is an option
The breakfast table and sofa to
starboard can be replaced with
a larger dinette area
SEE MORE
mby.com/prl62
of the saloon.They all help pull you towards an interior that Bill Dixon explained to me, when this boat was soft-launched at double bed. The detailing is delightful, too, from the pop-out
appears to have been crafted with that “sense of occasion” in Cannes last year, that the aim was to create the aft cabin privacy reading lights that appear to float above the bedside tables to
mind. Since Kelly Hoppen created her first interior for the Pearl of the previous generation of Pearls without designing an out the marble finish in the ensuite.
75 in 2013 all Pearls have looked and felt so brilliantly different and out aft cabin boat. To create that effect, the master suite is It goes back to that balance of style and substance; it feels
from the competition. It hasn’t always been a resounding success, accessed via its own staircase that spirals down from the aft end special but there’s bags of storage, a two-person dinette as
on occasion some elements have proved a little impractical for a of the saloon opposite the galley. The stairs are open to the hull opposed to the ubiquitous yet useless chaise longue and, in
boat or veered towards a floating show home but that is window at water level making them a feature in their own right another nod to the owner-run theory, a washer/dryer and safe
absolutely not the case on the 62. To my eye, this is Hoppen’s but there’s also a recessed pole down the centre of the spiral, hidden behind a pop-out door in the entrance lobby.
finest Pearl interior to date, treading the line between invention perfectly placed to help guide you up and down. What a cabin it Pearl isn’t the first shipyard to include separate access to the
and practicality to perfection. The timbers have been toned is, too. Like the flybridge, it could easily be from a boat the next master cabin but it works so well on this scale where the owner
down to light oak but classy matt black detailing offers some size up with well over 6ft of headroom throughout and no is contained in their own peaceful and private quarters at the
welcome contrast and a resounding point of difference to the obstructions at floor level to hinder movement around the opposite end of the boat to their guests.
usual satin chrome and stainless steel. It’s clean, modern, and
masculine but the sharp corners of old have been replaced with
softer angles and there is a huge amount of storage from twin The extended windscreen
fires natural light into the
hanging wardrobes in the master and VIP suites to the bespoke
forward end of the saloon
fiddled drawers for the Pearl-branded cutlery and tableware. It
feels like an interior designed from the outset for a boat, not a
house interior that has been modified for life at sea.
Hoppen deserves huge credit for getting the tone right but it’s
the wizardry of Bill Dixon and his team that gives the 62 the
upper hand over the majority of its rivals. It’s not just that they
have managed to fit four double cabins and three bathrooms on
a boat of this length; it’s the fact that they’ve succeeded in doing
so without any obvious compromises. There’s the option to have
a crew cabin, too, which has standing headroom and a separate
heads but we suspect most owners will opt for the transom
garage. This stows a jet-ski or small tender on track-mounted
chocks that slide out to be lowered on the hydraulic bathing
platform. Of course, you could also stow the tender on the The flybridge is huge for a
platform and have a jet ski or selection of waterports toys 60-footer and offers
tucked away in the garage instead. various layout options aft
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 BOAT TEST
Sharp lines and mirrored glass lend the
62 an unmistakable profile at sea
As the rev counters wheel towards their limiters the 62 rises
majestically on to the plane and settles into a steady romp
Those sleeping in the forward end of the boat will be happy with
their lot, too. The VIP suite is particularly plush and feels huge
with good space to change at the end of the bed, excellent
headroom and a beautifully appointed bathroom of its own.
Maybe the biggest surprise in the accommodation is how
spacious the identical third and fourth cabins are. The Pearl is
nearly a foot wider in the beam than the Princess F62 and that
makes a big difference in these cabins. Both are set up as twins
but pull-out sections slot in between the berths with an infill
cushion to make a sizeable double bed. Only the portside cabin
is ensuite to the day heads but it’s a quick dart across the hallway
to get to it from the starboard side – a hallway that feels more
The engineroom has standing
headroom in the entrance
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The separate access master is
spacious and dripping with style
like an atrium thanks to the exceptional light and headroom it The twins in both guest cabins The tastefully finished
convert to double beds master ensuite
enjoys by being left open to the windscreen above. This too is
larger than normal, extending all the way back to the base of the
flybridge. It’s something Pearl has been doing for a while but
the effect is particularly impressive on the 62 where the forward
end of the saloon and helm draw in views of the sky along with
plenty of natural light.
STRONG BUT SILENT
It is thanks to IPS that Dixon and his team were able to achieve
the lower deck configuration of the 62. There are three options
on offer with either 725hp, 800hp or the 900hp IPS1200s we
had on test. The boat’s light displacement is 32 tonnes; add fuel,
water, cruising gear, Seakeeper stabilizer, a tender and jet-ski,
and you’re looking at a cruising weight of around 35-tonnes,
so despite the £120,000 premium for the most powerful engines,
it’s worth opting for them to give you the widest possibe range
of cruising speeds.
From the lower helm, the experience is church-quiet, refined,
and smooth if a little detached. Surge the throttles forward and
there is no immediate sense of action but as the digital rev
counters wheel towards their limiters, the 62 rises majestically on
to the plane and settles into a steady romp. The lightness of the
fly-by-wire steering does little to encourage driver engagement
but it’s not a sportsboat we’re dealing with here.
The hefty 62 is happy to sit between 22 and 25 knots, where
the range is in the region of 250nm and noise levels pegged at a
hushed 70dB(A). Given how it behaved in the mix of chop and
rolling swell we had during the sea trial, the hull will deal
manfully with whatever is thrown at it. There is a tendency for
spray to be thrown up at displacement speeds, which in the high
winds we experienced on test, sent the odd sheet of water over The spacious VIP cabin
the flybridge but easing her on to the plane in a short head sea features a small dressing Eye catching detail
soon saw the worst of it dispersed down the sides of the hull. bureau to starboard throughout
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The 62 is a triumph of packaging

with a show-stopping interior
and effortless cruising legs

P L AT F O R M
The bathing platform
extends out before it
drops down to create a
mini beach club
FOREDECK
MASTER ACCESS
MASTER BED A table folds out from under
The staircase down to the
The bed doesn’t back on to the the foredeck bench to
master cabin is just inside
engineroom, avoiding create the perfect
the cockpit doors
machinery noise at night sundowner spot

Neither helm lends itself to hand steering given the distance VERDICT
between the seats and the dashboard so it’s best to set a course To this high specification our test boat came in at a whisker TOP SPEED CONSUMPTION RANGE NOISE PRICE
and sink back in your chair to allow the boat – or more likely under £2 million, which is impressive value in this sector, yet
the autopilot – to do the work. shows no sign of corner-cutting; one look inside the engineroom
When mooring, it’s not possible to see the boat’s extremities and it’s clear this is a boat that has been put together properly.
from either helm but the suite of cameras dotted around the Pearl has a lot riding on its so-called entry-level model but this
decks help to spot the landing as you come alongside. The Volvo hasn’t cowed its efforts to create something different. Some of its 31.5 KNOTS 243 LPH 210 MILES 71DB(A) £1.99M
with test engine at 23 knots at 23 knots at 23 knots
45 15 450 150 300 100 85 65
Dynamic Positioning System is a pricey extra (£28,200) but for shaftdrive rivals are sharper from the helm but that’s more the as tested
an owner-run boat of this size it takes the sting out of waiting for nature of IPS pods than a particular characteristic of this boat.
a lock or fuel dock to become available and allows the skipper to The four-cabin 62 is a triumph of packaging with a show-
help another crew member out with lines and fenders safe in the stopping interior and effortless cruising legs. Most of all, though,
30 300 200 75
knowledge that the boat won’t budge an inch. it is a boat that will greet you every time with a sense of occasion.
Milling around off the Needles highlighted just how valuable CONTACT Berthon. +44 (0)1590 679222; www.pearlyachts.com
the Seakeeper 9 stabiliser is given
the boat’s height-to-length ratio, S P E C I F I C AT I O N PERFORMANCE
deftly dampening roll even when LOA 61ft 0in (18.61m) Test engines Volvo Penta IPS1200. 900hp @ 2,700rpm. 12.8-litre, 6-cylinder diesel.
beam on to a steep swell. It’s an Beam 17ft 4in (5.3m)
expensive addition (£100,000 all Draught 3ft 3in (1.59m)
in) but will transform life on Displacement 32 tonnes (light) ECO FAST MAX
anchor and help take the edge off Fuel capacity 2,750 litres
RPM 1,000 1,200 1,400 1,600 1,800 2,000 2,200 2,370
cruising at single figure speeds. Water capacity 800 litres
RCD B for 15 people Knots 9.6 11.2 13.1 14.5 17.8 23.2 26.4 31.5
Designer Dixon Yacht Design & Kelly Hoppen Litres per hour 44 68 112 153 205 243 298 332
SIDE DOOR Litres per mile 4.6 6.1 8.5 10.6 11.5 10.5 11.3 10.5
It seems stingy for COSTS & OPTIONS
Price from £1.64m inc VAT (IPS950) Range (nm) 480 362 257 208 191 210 195 208
the helm door to
be an option for Upgraded 18kW generator £7,050 Noise (db) 65 70 73 74 74 75 75 77
H&B hydraulic bathing platform £35,880
this money
Opacmare passarelle £23,400
Med-spec air-conditioning £34,620
Tender garage £13,080
SWITCHGEAR K E Y PA D Flybridge hard top £56,1670
Speed in knots. Calculated figures based on real-time readings, yours may vary considerably.
This bank of rocker S e p a r a t e key Seakeeper 9 stabiliser £101,880
Figures allow for 20% reserve. All prices include VAT.
switches are awkwardly pad for MFDs is
placed behind the useful at sea
throttles

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