Heesen's 57m Setteesettanta gives the owner a 200sqm private foredeck
A whole deck kept for one family
Setteesettanta is a 57-metre full-custom, all-aluminium yacht, yard number 20857, now afloat at Heesen and due for delivery at the end of 2026. She measures 920 GT and carries six guest cabins, with exterior lines by Omega Architects and an interior by Cristiano Gatto. The name is the owner's own, and the yard has built the boat around a plain brief: room for family and close friends rather than a charter-style guest count.
The number that matters to an owner is the foredeck. Around 200 square metres of it is set aside as private owner's space, reached by its own route and wrapped in 180-degree views over the bow. That is a full deck's worth of area that never has to be shared with guests, on a boat with only six cabins.
What the aluminium hull is doing
The platform is Heesen's Fast Displacement Hull Form in aluminium, paired with a shallow draft. Two MTU diesels give a top speed of 18 knots, and the yacht is quoted at 3,900 nautical miles at 12 knots, enough to cross the Atlantic. CEO Niels Vaessen framed the repeat order as a sign of trust, calling the boat a reflection of 'Heesen's core values, with its aluminium hull, shallow draft, and precise engineering.'
For a buyer the trade is the familiar one. Aluminium keeps weight down, which is how a 57-metre boat frees up a 200-square-metre private deck and still holds a transatlantic range. Steel would have added displacement and, with it, fuel and berthing costs. The shallow draft is the other half of the pitch, opening anchorages and marina slots that a deeper full-displacement hull cannot reach.
Why a second Heesen matters here
Setteesettanta is a repeat commission. The owners already have a Heesen and came back for a larger, fully custom boat, and returning clients are the metric yards watch most closely: a second order is a paid vote on the first one and on the yard's ability to deliver a one-off rather than a series boat.
The interior was drawn from a blank sheet. 'Every element of her interior was conceived from scratch and refined down to the finest detail,' said designer Cristiano Gatto. For an owner comparing a full-custom build with a faster production route, the boat is a live example of what the custom road costs in time, a multi-year build, and what it returns: a deck plan shaped entirely around one family's use.
What owners and crew report
The yard calls the owners experienced repeat clients
Heesen describes them as returning clients and experienced yacht connoisseurs, commissioning their second Heesen and specifying a boat for time at sea with family and friends. The owners have not been named and have not spoken publicly.
Heesen Yachts (launch release, 22 July 2026)The designer on seeing her afloat
Cristiano Gatto said that to see the project finally afloat was deeply moving, and that every element was conceived from scratch and refined to the finest detail, with nothing left to chance.
Cristiano Gatto, Cristiano Gatto Design (Heesen launch release, 22 July 2026)The designer on the limits of the drawings
At the 2024 joining Gatto made the more useful observation that although 3D visualisation gives a good idea of how a yacht will look, seeing the design come to life makes a significant difference. On a full custom the owner is buying from those visualisations.
Cristiano Gatto, Cristiano Gatto Design (Heesen release, 7 October 2024)The yard on why a repeat order matters
Jeroen van der Meer said a returning client is the highest compliment a shipyard can receive, and that experienced owners arrive with real ambition and set genuine challenges for the yard.
Jeroen van der Meer, chief executive, Heesen Yachts (launch release, 22 July 2026)The yard on what she represents
Niels Vaessen, chief executive at the time of the 2024 joining, said the boat reflected Heesen's core values in her aluminium hull, shallow draught and precise engineering.
Niels Vaessen, then chief executive, Heesen Yachts (release, 7 October 2024)No independent report exists yet
She has not been delivered, had not run sea trials at the time of writing and has never been chartered. There is no captain, crew, owner or tester outside the yard and its designers who has reported on how she behaves. Every figure and every judgement about her performance is the builder's until trials are run.
Yotters desk, 4 August 2026
What is good, and what to watch
Strong points
- A fourth deck that is genuinely privateMoving the bridge up a level gives the owners an observation deck above the guest accommodation that no crew route crosses. On a 57 metre that is very hard to buy any other way, and no other Heesen has it.
- 920 GT is a lot of boat for the lengthShe carries roughly 140 GT more volume than Heesen's own 56.7 metre series boat, which is the practical difference between a big 57 and an ordinary one.
- Shallow draught for the size2.3 metres lets a 57 metre use anchorages and marina approaches that a deeper hull of the same length has to give up, which matters in the Bahamas and across much of the eastern Mediterranean.
- A repeat owner and a twelfth time designerThe owners are on their second Heesen and Cristiano Gatto is on his twelfth project with the yard. Neither party was learning on this boat.
- Modest power for the volumeShe makes 18 knots on about 1,932 hp a side, where the faster series boat needs 3,433 hp a side. Less installed power under a bigger interior points to lower fuel burn in normal use.
What to watch
- She is slow against her own stablemate18 knots top and 12 cruising, against 22 knots for the 5700 Aluminium series boat. If the top end matters to you, this layout is the wrong end of the trade.
- The launch slipped about six monthsBoat International reported in October 2024 that she was due to launch in January 2026. She launched on 22 July 2026 while the December delivery date stayed put, which compresses commissioning to roughly five months.
- Almost nothing is independently verifiedNo beam, no tank capacities, no stability summary and no third party sea trial. Every number on this page comes from the yard, or from trade press repeating the yard.
- A fourth deck adds weight and windage high upStacking another level on an aluminium hull has a cost in motion and in handling on the beam. The yard has published nothing that would let a buyer or his surveyor judge it.
- No price, and no resale record for the layoutShe has never been openly offered, and the fourth deck bridge is a one-off in the fleet. A feature with no comparable has no established effect on resale, which cuts both ways.
Practical detail
| Length overall | 57 metres, hull number YN 20857 |
|---|---|
| Volume | 920 GT |
| Beam | Not published by the yard |
| Draught | 2.3 metres |
| Hull and superstructure | Aluminium throughout |
| Engines | Two MTU 16V 2000 M72 diesels, 1,440 kW (about 1,932 hp) each |
| Speed | 18 knots top, 12 knots cruise |
| Range | 3,900 nautical miles at 12 knots |
| Accommodation | 12 guests in six staterooms, up to 13 crew |
| Exterior design | Frank Laupman, Omega Architects |
| Interior design | Cristiano Gatto Design, its twelfth Heesen |
| Build and delivery | Started 2023, launched 22 July 2026, delivery scheduled end of December 2026 |
| Price | Not published. She was contracted to her owners and has never been offered openly |
| Nearest comparable on the market | Project Evita, the 56.7m 5700 Aluminium series boat, listed by YachtBuyer at EUR 72.5m for 2027 delivery |
| What is not published | No beam, no fuel or fresh water capacity, no stability data, no price and no independent sea trial. Every performance figure here is the yard's own and none has been measured by a third party |
Questions this story answers
What happened?
Heesen has floated Project Setteesettanta, a 57-metre full-custom it is finishing for a returning owner by the end of 2026. The entire foredeck, about 200 square metres, is fenced off as private owner's space with its own access and 180-degree views. For a buyer weighing a custom build against a production boat, it is a clear read on what an aluminium hull buys the owner in private volume.
What is good about it?
A fourth deck that is genuinely private. Moving the bridge up a level gives the owners an observation deck above the guest accommodation that no crew route crosses. On a 57 metre that is very hard to buy any other way, and no other Heesen has it.
What should an owner or buyer watch?
She is slow against her own stablemate. 18 knots top and 12 cruising, against 22 knots for the 5700 Aluminium series boat. If the top end matters to you, this layout is the wrong end of the trade.
What do owners and crew report?
Heesen describes them as returning clients and experienced yacht connoisseurs, commissioning their second Heesen and specifying a boat for time at sea with family and friends. The owners have not been named and have not spoken publicly. (Heesen Yachts (launch release, 22 July 2026))
Who reported this?
Heesen Yachts, BOAT International, Megayacht News.
We do this for everyone who loves this world. The people who have spent their lives in it, and the people just discovering it. Yotters exists so that what we learn belongs to all of them.
Nobody pays us for this. No ads, no sponsors, nothing for sale. We just believe the world is a little better when knowledge is shared instead of kept.
If it gave you something today, tell us to keep going. Follow us, leave a like, or write a positive comment. We read every one, and they are what keeps us going.
