CANNES YACHTING FESTIVAL 2024
SUCCESS OF THE POWER BOAT MARINA
AND INNOVATION IN THE SPOTLIGHT
The Cannes Yachting Festival closed its doors this Sunday, September 15th after 6 exceptional days. In the incomparable setting of the Bay of Cannes, more than 700 boats, from 5 to 45 meters, motor, sailing, monohulls or multihulls, were exhibited by the largest international shipyards at the Vieux Port and Port Canto, including 120 world premieres. On land, equipment manufacturers and service companies (electronics, designers, interior design, institutions, marinas, etc.) were set up on the outer quays and within the Palais des Festivals to unveil their latest innovations. And 55,000 visitors of more than 130 nationalities were able to walk the quays of the Old Port and Port Canto to discover the many innovations presented, including those of the Innovation Route, dedicated to the development of the maritime economy and the preservation of the marine space.
"The 47th edition of the Cannes Yachting Festival has just ended, and we are extremely proud of it.
The offer proposed this year, both on land and afloat, kept its promises. Our 640 exhibitors appreciated the facilities offered and the quality of the visitors lived up to expectations. This is the most important for us. Many eco-responsible innovations were also highlighted in all areas of the show, and the "Innovation Route" was particularly followed by our visitors and demonstrated the sector's ability to innovate. The new afloat space at Port Canto, the "Power Boat Marina", was a real success that allowed many visitors to discover the quality of the exhibition of these units, some of which they tested at sea. The "power" atmosphere appealed to both exhibitors and visitors. After so much effort to achieve this, we are pleased with these results. », says Sylvie Ernoult, Director of the Cannes Yachting Festival
A NEW CONFIGURATION TO HIGHLIGHT THE 700 BOATS PRESENTED AND OFFER A CLEARER AND SIMPLIFIED TOUR
This year, the show has been redesigned on its two ports, with 360 boats on the Vieux Port and 340 on the Port Canto, thus offering a smoother route and a better distribution and segmentation of the boats to, ultimately, offer a better experience to visitors. The Vieux Port remains the home port for new motor boats from 10 to 45 meters and the equipment manufacturers and service companies dedicated to them. This year, it welcomed more than 70 super yachts (length >24m) on the Jetty and the Super Yachts Extension. In 2024, the Vieux Port nevertheless underwent several improvements, with the new main entrance at the bottom of the steps of the Palais des Festivals, the presentation of the tender area in the form of a “village”, the new tents of the motor manufacturers specializing in large yachts along the beach and the creation of an entrance on the Pantiero. Italy was in the spotlight at the heart of the Palais with the presence of four regional stands, A-MYC - ATIM – Marche Region, Azienda speciale Riviera di Liguria, Regione Piemonte – Piemonte Agency, Regione Puglia - Dipartimento Sviluppo Economico, bringing together more than 25 companies. At the other end of the Croisette, the sailboats were moored at Port Canto in the space dedicated to them since 2019. 120 new units from 10 to 28 meters and with an average length of 16 meters, quay sails in the wind, were offered to the amazed eyes of visitors. More than 20 of these large sailing ships were presented as a world premiere. On land, visitors also discovered a selection of equipment manufacturers and service companies entirely dedicated to the sailing world. On the other side of Port Canto, visitors admired the 45 large second-hand yachts available for sale or rental. The spaces on land were occupied by the "toys", nautical toys, which are constantly evolving towards more stylish, more sporty, more technical and more eco-responsible products.
PORT CANTO HAS DOUBLED IN SIZE WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW SPACE DEDICATED TO POWER BOATS
The 2024 vintage of the show saw the creation of the "Power Boat Marina", reserved for new motorboats up to 12/13 meters long. This new space, set up on nearly 3000 m² on land and nearly 450m of quayside, brought together 175 boats (including around thirty on land). Whether they are rigid or semi-rigid hulls, the "Power Boat Marina" allowed visitors interested in this size of unit to find most of the motorboats offered on the world market. From the Scandinavian-style model to the dayboat ideal for diving, including technological gems, visitors were able to discover the best in terms of design, innovation and performance and appreciated the "power" atmosphere created by this new space. On land, a selection of outboard motors completed the exhibition. The Power Boat Marina was overlooked by the terrace of the VIP Club, located on the roof of the Harbor Master's Office and offering a 180-degree view of all the boats exhibited at Port Canto. The Power Boat Marina, located between the Sailing and Yacht Brokerage & Toys areas, offers the possibility of making a loop of +/- 2.5km and moving from one quay to another and from one theme to another easily.
ENTERTAINMENT AT PORT CANTO
For the second consecutive year, the "toys" exhibitors offered demonstrations of their nautical toys. Visitors observed, from the pontoons, the handling of e-foils, electric surfboards and other technological gems guaranteeing good sensations at sea. After these demonstrations, exhibitors and visitors could go to the "Foodtruck Village" and enjoy the happy hours to end the day in a friendly and festive atmosphere with live music.
INNOVATION AT THE SERVICE OF MORE RESPONSIBLE BOATING
The boating industry is not immune to environmental challenges and the need to meet the sector's decarbonization needs. Shipyards and equipment manufacturers are slowly but surely setting their sights on ecology. Technological and eco-responsible innovations are increasingly common in boating. It is therefore quite natural that the Cannes Yachting Festival should make its contribution by highlighting the efforts and energies deployed - in terms of ship construction, propulsion, waste management, end-of-life management, eco-design, optimization, innovative materials, etc. - by the show's exhibitors to build the future of the boating industry.
By exploring the "Innovation Route", which identifies with dedicated signage the products and initiatives that are moving in this direction, visitors saw the evolution that is underway and discovered innovations and services that are part of this eco-responsible approach.
THE INAUGURATION WITH MS ANA-PAULA MARTIN DE OLIVEIRA, DEPUTY MAYOR OF CANNES and MR JEAN-PAUL CHAPELEAU, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERATION OF NAUTICAL INDUSTRIES
This year, the Cannes Yachting Festival was inaugurated in the presence of Mrs Ana-Paula Martins De Oliveira, Deputy Mayor of Cannes, Mr Jean-Paul Chapeleau, President of the Federation of Nautical Industries, Mrs Sylvie Ernoult, Director of the Cannes Yachting Festival, accompanied by Messrs Hugh Jones, Michel Filzi and Filippo Réan, respectively CEO of RX, President and Managing Director of RX France, as well as many Cannes officials and French nautical professionals. The delegation notably visited the new facilities of Port Canto and cut the ribbon at the VIP Club installed on the roof of the Harbor Master's Office.
THANKS TO PARTNERS
For the Cannes Yachting Festival 2024, the VIP Clubs of the Vieux Port and Port Canto were decorated by Roche Bobois, a French manufacturer of high-end furniture. The official car service was provided by Mercedes ByMyCar. The Champagne house Louis Roederer had the opportunity to showcase its “Collection 244” vintage. Alongside them, exceptional partners and technical suppliers brought their cutting-edge expertise and have been participating for many years in the smooth running of the show: Focus Yachts provided the boats used for the VIP maritime shuttle service between the two ports; Pantaenius provided the organizing team’s boats loaned by Yamaha; MG Energy exhibited its battery systems; Pixelight installed the LED screens positioned at the entrances to the show and Mercury equipped the crossings with motors to enable them to be opened and closed.
TOWARDS A REDUCED CARBON FOOTPRINT
The Cannes Yachting Festival, committed with the RX group to creating net zero carbon events by 2040, has taken several steps over the past three years: - digitalization of many documents, usually printed (visitor map included in the show catalog, show access ticket (ticket and badge), etc. - use of recycled and/or recyclable materials (carpets in the aisles and stands, recyclable, etc.) - raising awareness among its stakeholders of the importance of eco-responsibility. For the second year, the Green Bee Upcycling company met with exhibitors during the assembly and disassembly periods to raise their awareness of waste sorting, in addition to the communications made before the show. It was also responsible for finding companies interested in the materials used at the show and ready to collect them for recycling. Added to this are the commitments of the show's caterers, service providers and exhibitors. The Festival also works closely with the two ports in compliance with their “Clean Ports” certification and their “active biodiversity” commitments.
ROYAL ARTS VISIONS; CANNES YACHTING FESTIVAL 2024 :