Are Swan Yachts Still Worth The High Price?

Swan Yachts, also known as Nautor’s Swan, is a Finnish manufacturer of high-end, luxury sailing yachts that can trace its boat-building roots back to 1966. The company is recognized worldwide for producing exquisitely crafted yachts that offer style and performance.

With over 50 years in business, Swan Yachts has worked with four prominent marine architects to design their boats and offers custom one-off builds and a production line of semi-custom yachts.

Here’s Why Swan Yachts Are Worth Their High Price:

Swan Yachts are known to construct their boats with almost obsessive attention to detail and quality. With the factory based in Finland, where winter temperatures reach -30°C, the team of expert craftsmen have all winter to build and refine each boat indoors before launch time in spring.

In addition, Swan Yachts have been at the forefront of using the latest technology and have even developed their own advanced Boatbuilding Technology Center, known as the BTC, where they build all their boats.

They only use the best and latest materials, including carbon composites and the finest wood laminates, to build their hulls and superb high-quality interiors.

While the company has a reputation as one of the best yacht manufacturers in the world, it continued to succeed when many of its competitors succumbed to market forces or lost fans due to changes in fashion.

In addition to Swan Yachts having been built with the best materials available, most Swan owners are meticulous in the maintenance of their vessels. As a result, even the oldest models retain their high prices and tend to be in excellent condition.

A Brief History Of Swan Yachts:

Finland has a long tradition of boat-building history, and the small town of Pietarsaari, where the factory is based, is no exception.

This remote Finnish town, where winter temperatures can drop to -30°C and the seas can freeze for up to 5 months a year, may seem an unlikely place to start building luxury yachts. However, this is where Pekka Koskenkyla, the founder of Swan Yachts, had the vision to start producing high-quality and high-performance sailing yachts.

The company was founded in 1966, and the first yacht, the Swan 36, was launched in 1967. The Swan 36 was designed by world-renowned marine architects Sparkman & Stephens and was a huge success, selling around 90 boats in the first three years.

Sparkman & Stephens went on to design other Swan Yachts ranging in size from 36 – 76 feet – these larger yachts could be considered super yachts at the time as even a 36-foot yacht was quite an impressive size.

Swan Yachts have only worked with four yacht designers over 50 years in business. Besides Sparkman & Stephens, the other designers of Swan Yachts include Ron Holland, Juan Kouyoumdjian, and the well-known Argentinian marine architect, German Frers.

German Frers was appointed as a designer in 1981, and his first design, the Swan 51, was the start of a new era of Swan Yachts. He became the sole yacht designer for Swan Yachts and (except for the four latest ClubSwan models) has designed every Swan since 1988.

German Frers’ success as a designer comes from his ability to design yachts that maintain that vital balance of competitive racers, with comfort and beautiful lines in their design.

Over the years, Swan Yachts has produced luxury sailing yachts ranging in size from 36 feet up to their new ClubSwan 125, a 42-meter high-performance super yacht. In addition to their luxury performance sailing yachts, Nautor Swan finally entered the motor yacht sector of the market with the Swan Shadow, a 42′ power yacht launched in January 2021.

Today, Nautor Swan has moved away from its production performance cruiser/racer background and into luxury, high-end larger cruising yachts.

However, they have recently re-launched the ultra-modern ClubSwan 36, and there are rumors they will introduce some smaller size sailing yachts, including a Swan 42.

How Much Exactly Do Nautor Swan Yachts Cost?

New Swan yacht prices are not widely advertised and are difficult to come by.

New boat prices for custom or semi-custom built yachts are difficult to establish as these new boats are built to order. The price will depend on the new owners’ specifications for cabin layouts, choices of finishing, propulsion, navigation packages, and even the choice of sails.

However, the rumor is that the main shareholder of Swan Yachts, Leonardo Ferragamo’s latest Swan 115 superyacht ‘Solleone’ cost the region $20 million.

But if you are in the market for a second-hand Swan, the good news is that more than 2,000 Swan Yachts have been built over the years, so you can find second-hand Swan Yachts available.

At the time of this article, used boats from Nautor’s Swan on TheYachtMarket.com website range in price from $49,500 for a Swan 36 from 1969, all the way up to $14 million for a Swan 115 built in 2015.

Please note that a wide range of factors can affect the price of used boats from any brand, including Nautor’s Swan. For example, the boat model, year of manufacture, and overall condition.

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Do Swan Boats Cost More Than Similar Brands?

Nautor’s Swan yachts are renowned for being one of the world’s most recognized manufacturers of high-tech, high-performance cruising, and racing yachts – and they don’t come cheap!

Similar luxury brands include Baltic Yachts, Hallberg Rassy, Jeanneau, Southern Wind, and X-Yachts. However, Swan has positioned itself as a premium brand, which is reflected in the price.

Let’s take a look at a price comparison from information gathered from the nominees and the winner of the luxury yachts category in the 2022 European Yacht of the Year Awards:

Yacht Models	Year	Price
Nautor Swan 58	2022	$1.98 million
Jeanneau 60	2022	$650,000
X-Yachts X.56	2022	$970,000
Hallberg Rassy 50 (winner)	2022	$1.28 million
Lagoon 55 catamaran	2022	$1,139,300

[Info courtesy of yachtingworld.com]

Please note that the pricing shown will be for the basic model, and most of these models are built to order, so that the prices can fluctuate depending on the semi-custom options chosen by the new owner.

In addition, the pricing of luxury yachts is very wide: for the same length of the boat, one yacht can cost three times the amount of another (for example, Swan vs. Jeanneau).

Why Do People Choose Swan Over The Competition?

Swan Yacht is the best, along with other top-tier luxury brands like Rolls-Royce, Rolex, and Chanel. People choose Swan Yachts because they expect perfection, and that’s what they get.

Swan Yachts are known to be a cut above the competition. While every boat-builder will have a certain eye for detail, the team of dedicated craftsmen at Swan Yachts takes things to another level.

Each yacht is built with pride and precision – Swan Yachts are not turned out as production boats, but each one is an individual masterpiece, with the factory only producing between 10 – 15 boats a year.

In addition, if you are a past, present, or future Swan owner, you can join the Swan Club. This exclusive members-only club hosts various Swan events throughout the year.

These events include the prestigious Rolex Swan Cup, The Nations Trophy, The Swan American Regatta, and The Swan European Regatta, amongst others. These events are very well supported, with the number of yachts and crews participating very high.

In addition to these events, the Swan Club membership offers Swan owners the benefits of having access to exclusive services plus more opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with other Swan owners.

Do Swan Boats Keep Their Value Better?

As Swan is not a cheap brand, to begin with, Swan owners tend to look after their yachts extremely well with meticulous routine maintenance and regular upgrades. A well-looked-after boat will always keep its value better than a neglected boat or one that sailed or raced hard.

In addition, Swan Yachts are very sought after, even older models. This is because the Swan factory is known for the quality of how they build their boats, and they are built to last.

There are several older Swan Yachts available on the various second-hand boating websites that still command high prices.

What Are Typical Alternatives To Swan Boats?

It’s difficult to compare Swan Yachts to other brands and probably a bit unfair. However, typical alternatives to Swan Boats include the following quality brands:

• Hallberg Rassy
• Amel
• Island Packet
• Jeanneau
• X-Yachts

Do You Pay Full Price, Or Do Dealers Offer Discounts?

As each Swan Yacht is built to order, and there is a limited amount of Swan Yachts built each year, you will pay the full price for a Swan Yacht.

In addition, Swan personally deals with all their customers through Nautor’s Swan Global Service department. This means there are no dealers or intermediaries and the whole experience of dealing with Swan is a uniquely personal experience.

Final Thoughts

Undoubtedly, if you have the money and want a Swan Yacht, they are worth the high price.

However, buying a yacht is only part of the experience and the expense. Making sure you can maintain your purchase is also part of responsible yacht ownership and the key to maintaining your yacht’s value.

References:

Nautor Swan Yachts

Nautor Swan Brokerage

The Story Of Swan Yachts In Finland: Will There Be Cygnets?