Xplorer 60 "After You"

From SeaXplorer 60 to Hull One

The Xplorer 60 was conceived as a smaller, more accessible entry point into a range that started at 58m and 62m. It inherits the SeaXplorer program's core promise: a hull built to actual ice-class and Polar Code standards, not a superyacht dressed in expedition styling. Damen built After You on speculation, the same approach that worked for larger Xplorer hulls once La Datcha proved there was charter and resale demand for the concept.

That speculative build meant Damen carried the risk of a 60m steel hull with no signed buyer through most of construction, a decision only a shipbuilder with Damen's balance sheet and existing production line could make comfortably. It paid off: After You found her owner well before delivery, and Damen Yachting announced a second Xplorer 60 sale, for 2028 delivery, within weeks of handing over hull one, which the builder and broker both framed as proof the model, not just the first buyer, had struck a chord.

An Ice-Classed Hull Built to a Standard, Not a Whim

After You's hull is steel, built to Ice Class 1D, with an aluminium superstructure, and the vessel is compliant with the IMO Polar Code for operation in ice-affected waters. Naval architecture is Damen Yachting in-house, drawing on the parent group's commercial and naval shipbuilding experience rather than a yacht-only design studio, which is the structural argument Damen makes for the whole Xplorer range: the hull form and scantlings are closer to those of a working polar-capable vessel than to a conventional motor yacht hull stretched to look tough.

Exterior styling is by Azure Yacht Design, which gave the boat strong, unbroken lines, a raised crow's nest observation deck, and bridge wings extended roughly 400mm beyond the hull for better sightlines when maneuvering or launching tenders, a practical detail that matters more on an expedition boat working in tight anchorages than on a marina-hopping cruiser.

This double delivery is a landmark moment for Damen Yachting.

Diesel-Electric Hybrid and 5,000 Miles of Autonomy

Propulsion is a diesel-electric hybrid arrangement built around twin MTU main engines paired with battery banks and electric motors, giving a top speed reported at 14.5 knots and a cruising speed around 12 knots. Reported output figures vary slightly between sources: Boat International's technical breakdown lists 2 x 1,492kW MTU units plus 2 x 150kW PTO/PTI motors, while YachtBuyer's spec sheet lists twin MTU 12V 4000 M65R diesels rated lower in horsepower terms alongside separate electric motors; the discrepancy looks like different measurement points in the drivetrain rather than two different engine sets, but it has not been reconciled publicly.

What both sources agree on is the headline number that matters for an expedition yacht: roughly 5,000 nautical miles of range at economical speed (reported as 11.5 to 12 knots depending on source), with enough fuel and stores capacity for around 30 days of self-sufficiency away from any port. Stabilization is by Quantum XT semi-retractable fins, and hybrid battery running is offered for quiet, lower-emission operation at anchor or in sensitive wildlife areas, a feature increasingly expected on this class of boat rather than a novelty.

Twelve Guests, a Large Crew, and a Second Ship to Carry the Rest

After You accommodates 12 guests across 6 staterooms, with a crew reported at 16 by Boat International and 17 by YachtBuyer; both figures are plausible for a 1,160GT expedition yacht running submersibles, dive gear, a helideck and a genuine long-range program, and the gap likely reflects whether the captain is counted separately. The tender and toy inventory includes a 10.5m Pascoe limo tender and a 6.2m Solas rescue tender, plus PWC storage, modest for a boat this size, which is the point: the heavy equipment lives elsewhere.

That elsewhere is Emotional, a 53.25m Yacht Support 53 (YS53), the third hull in Damen's dedicated support-vessel series, delivered to the same owner in the same month. Emotional carries roughly 497 to 500GT of additional volume, a 15 tonne crane, capacity for a helicopter and large tenders or submersibles, 8 guests and around 10 crew plus captain, a top speed of 19 knots, and a range matched to After You's 5,000nm so the two vessels can cross oceans together rather than After You waiting on a slower support ship. Pairing a dedicated support yacht with an explorer hull, instead of overloading the main yacht's garage and deck space, is the same logic that led the owner away from his previous 55m Heesen-and-tender setup.

Built on Spec, Sold to a Circumnavigator

After You and Emotional were both laid down in Antalya, launched consecutively in March 2025, and delivered together in August 2025, a genuinely unusual choice for a buyer to take two large custom-adjacent vessels from the same yard on the same timeline rather than staggering them. Damen Yachting's Product and Design Manager Enrique Tintore called the double handover a landmark moment for the company, and TWW Yachts CEO David Westwood, who brokered the deal, described the result as an exceptional explorer yacht paired with a powerful support vessel.

The owner previously ran a 55m Heesen mothership with a towed tender across multi-year cruising programs from the Azores to Panama and the Dominican Republic, and reportedly changed almost nothing in the delivered specification beyond a few televisions, which suggests the Xplorer 60 platform arrived close to finished rather than needing heavy customization. Both vessels are available for charter during the owner's planned circumnavigation, and Damen has since sold a second Xplorer 60 for 2028 delivery, with the Xplorer 80 and 105 continuing to anchor the top of the range.

What an Xplorer 60 Costs, and What Nobody Will Say

Neither Damen Yachting nor TWW Yachts has published a price for After You, and no brokerage listing exists since she was built to a private order and delivered directly. That is standard practice at this end of the explorer-yacht market: builders of comparable ice-classed 55 to 65 metre expedition yachts rarely disclose contract values, and secondhand comparables are too scarce to triangulate a reliable figure from public data.

What is publicly confirmed is that Damen built hull one on speculation before securing a buyer, and sold hull two for a 2028 delivery within weeks of handing over After You, both signals of demand rather than of price. Buyers researching this segment should expect to negotiate directly with Damen Yachting or a broker such as TWW Yachts rather than find a published new-build price anywhere in the trade press.

Design

Para quién es: Owners who want genuine polar-capable range and a real expedition program without sacrificing guest space or a proper tender and toy inventory, solved here by simply building a second ship to carry it all.

Precio orientativo: Not published. Neither Damen Yachting nor broker TWW Yachts has disclosed a contract price for After You; comparable 55 to 65 metre ice-classed explorer yachts rarely have public pricing, so no reliable figure exists to report.