Cannes Yachting Festival 2026 Show Preview: what can you expect to see?

Cannes Yachting Festival returns to the Vieux Port and Port Canto from 8 to 13 September 2026, marking the 49th edition of Europe’s largest in-water boat show. Organisers are expecting around 700 boats from 5 to 50 metres across 680 international exhibitors, with more than 150 world premieres taking to the water and around 56,000 visitors walking the pontoons over the six days. This year’s programme brings a strong run of new powerboats, RIBs and power catamarans, from compact tenders to 70-knot hyperyachts, alongside the usual procession of true superyachts along the Croisette. Here are the highlights of what’s new to see on the water, plus the practical details for planning a visit.

The festival runs across two harbours in Cannes: the Vieux Port, entered via the Palais des Festivals or the Pantiero, and Port Canto, home to the Powerboat Marina and the Brokers and Toys area.

Show opens 10am each morning from Tuesday 8th through to Sunday 13th September. Show closes 7pm each day, with late closing at 10pm on Friday 11th.

Beyond the new arrivals in the powerboat class, this year’s festival carries a design theme running through its world premieres, a returning Innovation Route showcasing sustainable marine technology, and complimentary sea shuttles that make the two-harbour format easy to cover in a single visit. With six days of new launches, waterside dining across both ports and one of the most photogenic backdrops in boating, Cannes Yachting Festival 2026 is shaping up to be a strong show well worth attending.

General public e-tickets start from €40 for a single day, with family, comfort and VIP options also available online, VIP packages run up to €1,640 for a two-visitor, six-day Platinum ticket. Professional tickets, valid Tuesday to Friday only, start from €60, and children up to and including age 10 go free. Tickets are online-only, by Visa or Mastercard, as there is no ticket office at the entrances.

The nearest airport is Nice Côte d’Azur, linked to Cannes by bus, taxi or helicopter transfer, while Cannes SNCF station is a short walk from the Vieux Port entrance. By car, the venue sits just off the A8 motorway at the Cannes/Mougins exit. There is no dedicated show car park, so the show’s FAQ page points visitors to the nearest car parks in central Cannes, and complimentary sea shuttles run between the Vieux Port and Port Canto every 15 minutes once you’re on site.

Both harbours offer a good spread of dining, from bistronomic restaurants with waterside views to a food truck village and quick takeaway stands, so there's no need to leave the show for lunch. VIP Clubs at both harbours offer concierge service and refreshments for ticket holders, and a new beachside Solarium gives visitors somewhere to relax with sun loungers and parasols between viewings.

From world premieres by established Mediterranean yards to first showings from newer power catamaran brands, here is a selection of the strongest new launches this year under 60m.

World Premiere: Girbau Boats brings the G31 to the Power Boat Marina at Port Canto, a 9.42m boat built on Spain’s Costa Brava that the yard describes as the antithesis of mass production, built using an infused hull construction process.

World Premiere: Anvera unveils its technological flagship, the Anvera 200, a full-carbon ‘Hyperyacht’ reaching 70-plus knots in its Racing guise on twin 2,200hp MAN V12 engines. Even the entry-level version, on twin MAN V8s, tops 50 knots.

Aquila Catamarans brings two new power catamarans to Cannes: the compact 35 Sport, on twin Mercury Verado V8 300hp engines as standard, and the European debut of the 45 Sport, which uses hydraulic drop-down hull-side terraces to widen its beam from 15ft to over 19ft and reaches speeds over 50mph on twin 600hp Mercury Verado V12 outboards.

Axopar launches the 38 Sun Top, the second model in its 38 range, built around a sliding canvas roof and a modular cockpit that seats up to ten, priced from €190,425 with the standard twin Mercury V8 300hp engines.

World Debut: Bering Yachts shows the first hull of its aluminium explorer catamaran, the BC60, built for transoceanic range with over 13,500 litres of fuel capacity and more than 3,000 nautical miles of range.

All-New: Brabus Marine’s new Shadow 38 range, developed with Finnish builder Axopar, launches with two models: the 1,000hp Shadow 1000 XC Cross Cabin, good for almost 60 knots and priced from €479,000, and the 850hp Shadow 850 XC Cross Cabin, reaching up to 55 knots from €429,000.

World Premiere: Fairline‘s Targa 58 GTO pairs a hydraulic patio door system, opening the cockpit into the saloon in seconds, with fold-down balconies that expand the cockpit by 40 percent. The 58ft flagship sleeps six across three cabins and starts from £1,680,000 with twin Volvo Penta D13 900hp engines.

West Navaltech’s Forte 47 Gran Turismo is an aluminium-hulled 47-footer that reaches 47 knots on triple 600hp Mercury Verado V12 outboards, with drop-down side terraces adding more than 40 sq m of outdoor living space.

Greenline brings the 42 to Cannes for its show debut, a 13.66m model with a Marco Casali-designed interior, 4.5kW of solar panels and the option of Greenline’s H-Drive 6G hybrid system for silent cruising at up to 6.5 knots.

European Debut: Iliad Catamarans’ 53F Offgrid Hybrid pairs twin 480hp Volvo D6 diesels with a lithium-ion battery bank and 5kW of solar, cutting annual fuel consumption by up to 75 percent while still allowing engine recharging in under 30 minutes.

Leopard Catamarans unveils the next-generation Leopard 53 Powercat, with twin Yanmar 370hp engines for a 24-knot top speed and a redesigned aft cockpit with modular Alfresco furniture. More than 140 of the outgoing model have been delivered worldwide.

Newly launched builder Manari Yachts closes in on delivery of a custom 16m chase boat, the Manari 52, built on a Volvo Penta IPS platform and finished to match the livery of the megayacht it will support.

Brand Debut: new adventure yacht marque MarcoPolo makes its Cannes debut with the 12m MP12, running on up to three 450hp outboards, and the sub-10m MP10, both built in Sicily using recycled PET and carbon fibre composites.

Nimbus reveals the Sport Tender 35, the first model in its new Sport Cruiser 35 series, a 10.8m Scandinavian design with a twin-stepped, air-lubricated hull and a top speed over 40 knots on the standard Mercury V10 350hp engine.

Revolution Marine Group shows the Oceanwalker S60 Revolution Edition, a 60ft catamaran with a flybridge topping 500 sq ft and four guest cabins plus two crew cabins. The first example was delivered to the Exumas, Bahamas, at the end of 2025.

World Premiere: Cantiere del Pardo’s Pardo GT65 slots between the GT52 and GT75 in its crossover range, with a reverse bow, single-pane deckhouse glazing and a 35-knot top speed on twin Volvo Penta D13 IPS1350 engines. Naval architecture is by Zuccheri Yacht Design, with Nauta handling the interior.

World Debut: Pioneer Yachts brings its first solar-electric catamaran, the PY60, to Cannes. The 60-footer runs on a 48-volt electrical backbone with an integrated solar roof and diesel generator backup, cruising at 7.5 knots and topping out at 11 knots.

SACS, know for their maxi-RIBs, ushers in what it calls a new chapter for the yard with the Hyper 5S, a 14.6m sportscruiser offered with four engine options up to twin 850hp MAN surface drives, and a below-deck owner’s cabin with its own shower room.

Sarfnav presents Breathe Me, an Air 77 power catamaran rebuilt almost entirely since 2014 by the Couach shipyard, widened by 60cm a side and re-engined with Volvo 435hp units and Ultrajet propulsion. Designer Frédéric Sarfati, an aesthetic surgeon by trade, reimagined the interior in exotic wood and full-grain leather.

Technohull’s Alpha 45 headlines the Greek performance RIB builder’s line-up, sitting between the Alpha 40 and Alpha 50 in the range. Built on a Dynastream Deep-V hull with ventilated steps, the quad-outboard version tops 85 knots, while the Cannes display boat runs on triple Mercury 400R outboards.

World Premiere: Greek RIB builder Ribco unveils the Venom 45 SC on the Pantiero, the new flagship of the Venom range at 13.40m, built on a three-step hull.

World Premiere: new powercat brand Veya Yachts presents the Veya 53 in its first public showing.

French builder Whisper Yachts launches the Santa Elena, the first Whisper 52 Solar Electric catamaran, a 100 percent solar-electric model built to feed energy back into the marina. In partnership with Port Vauban Antibes, its solar array is designed to power the port’s night lighting, surveillance and parking barriers.

Zodiac Nautic introduces the new X9CC, an 8.6m rigid inflatable built on its X10CC platform, with a cabin, separate toilet and a top speed of 50 knots, priced from €149,167 with twin 200hp Mercury engines.