The 25th edition of the boat show, where visitors can find more than 20 exhibitors representing 50 brands, will take place from 11 to 19 June, between 11am and 9pm.

This event will liven up the Vilamoura Marina even more. Around 80,000 visitors are expected during this week, as it is a unique opportunity to see the boats, talk to the companies and get into some of the boats that the companies will have on show in Vilamoura Marina.

Boat show preview

On 8 June, The Portugal News was invited to Vilamoura Marina to attend the Boat Show Preview, where we had the chance to see some of the yachts and speak to a couple of the exhibitors who will be attending the event.

The Boat Show Preview took place on the Sunseeker’s deck with some welcome drinks, where we were invited on a lovely 40-minute boat trip on a fantastic Sunseeker’s yacht.

This company sells a wide range of yachts, new and brokered, but also works with charters. As a major exhibitor, they will have around six boats in the Marina that they will be able to show visitors and potential buyers.

Different concepts

In fact, the boat show brings together all kinds of luxury boats, such as boats that are powered by solar energy. This is the case of solarconcept.

Possible to charge in any marina in the country, these boats are 100% sustainable, not only environmentally but also in terms of economic savings. It is also a local business in the Algarve.

To understand how it works, we spoke to the Manager, João Batista, who told us that: "Just like a car, there are electric boats. They have batteries and motors and a set of solar panels that feed the batteries."

Then, depending on the speed, many need to be charged or not. As an example, "if we sail faster, we will use more batteries and the solar panels are not able to produce enough energy, if we sail slower, the solar panels give a huge support".

This small company that started with the dream of making sustainable boats for fishermen in 2015, has more than 30 boats already spread around the country and is exporting to other continents, both for private clients and maritime tour operators.

"We have 70-year-old customers who love it, know it's the future and opt for this and we have young companies that wouldn't even start without a sustainable boat. The private clients are people who are more sustainability conscious, people who have electric cars, who had a boat before but want to change to an electric one", he said.

Foreigners lead the demand

The foreign customer is also the one that purchases the most expensive boats. "Our clients are 90% foreigners, mostly British and French and it's a client who knows how to value quality and service," Rúben Fernandes, CEO of NeptunePirate told The Portugal News.

Rúben Fernandes started his business in Madeira, but recently opened new premises in Vilamoura, where he believes it is the perfect place for this type of market. His company is going to take part in the event as well.

Author

Paula Martins is a fully qualified journalist, who finds writing a means of self-expression. She studied Journalism and Communication at University of Coimbra and recently Law in the Algarve. Press card: 8252

Paula Martins