Taiwan-based, Horizon celebrates this year its 30th anniversary. The yacht builder has delivered over 780 luxury yachts so far, with more than 190 of these over 80 feet in length. E98, Hull #1 of Horizon Yachts’ new E98 motoryacht series, is the new built just launched and ready to debut at the Palm Beach Boat Show, from March 23-26, 2017.
Built for an American client, who previously owned a Horizon 76 motoryacht, the new E98 “Do It Now” is the result of a close collaboration between an experienced owner and Horizon’s design teams. With sleek exterior lines reminiscent of the Horizon E88 motoryacht – the E98’s popular, smaller sister – “Do It Now” sports an efficient high-performance hull designed for stability and seakeeping. An impressive draft just under 6’ enables this 98-footer to explore shallower waters, expanding the cruising destinations beyond the capability of many 100’ yachts.
While the Horizon E98 is offered in both skylounge and open bridge versions, “Do It Now” was built with an open bridge layout incorporating a fixed front glass windshield and EZ2CY side panels that allow the area to be easily transformed from open-air to enclosed and air-conditioned. On this deck, which features a custom bar with seating for five as well as a large dinette, the owner has also incorporated a commercial ice box, hi/low BBQ and storage for lounge chairs. An expansive aft deck and a bow seating area with a dinette and sunpads round out the variety of entertaining spaces.
Designed to suit the owner’s lifestyle and tastes, “Do It Now” features an elegant custom interior that extends the main salon forward through the space normally occupied by a formal dining room to a pass-through opening into the country kitchen. Each guest space boasts luxurious fabrics, neutral stones and custom furnishings. Within a voluminous 23’ beam, the living areas and large country kitchen forward are highlighted by hi-gloss Walnut finishes while Walnut in a satin finish sets the tone for the lower deck housing four spacious en suite guest staterooms. Situated aft on the lower deck, the crew quarters are highlighted in a White Oak satin finish.
“Do It Now” is equipped with twin CAT C32s of 1900hp each, affording a top speed of 22.5 knots and a 19-knot cruise. At 10 knots she’ll enjoy a 1250nm range. “Do It Now” is also fitted with zero-speed stabilizers, bow and stern thrusters and custom AV and navigation equipment, making her an enviable vessel for entertaining or simply enjoying the voyage.
“The new Horizon E98 motoryacht, with her extensive indoor and outdoor spaces, flexible interior configurations and numerous amenities, truly fits a market that we have seen arise in the last few years…clients who are not yet ready to make the leap to 110-foot plus yachts but are searching for something larger than 90 feet,” said Horizon Group CEO John Lu. “The fact that hull one was so efficiently customized for a second-time Horizon owner is testament to the durability of this model’s design. We are looking forward to her making her U.S. debut at Palm Beach in March.”
“Simply stated, the Horizon team is a pleasure to work with,” says the owner of “Do It Now.” “Every effort is made to deliver a high performance yacht that reflects the owners’ individual design features and boating requirements. Building a yacht doesn’t get any better than this!”
