Sydney to Hobart yacht race’s most luxurious entry Maritimo 100 has marble bathrooms

It’s not your average Sydney to Hobart racer but this extraordinary 100-footer will turn plenty of heads when she sets sail - or if the weather turns nasty in the race to Tasmania.

Maritimo 100 is the most luxurious supermaxi ever to do the Sydney to Hobart and will be on the startline with owner Bill Barry-Cotter aboard on Boxing Day. Pictures: Supplied,

It’s not your average Sydney to Hobart racer but this extraordinary yacht will turn plenty of heads when she sets sail - or if the weather turns nasty in the annual race to Tasmania.

Big, bold and glorious, Maritimo 100 is very little chance of claiming line honours in the 79th Sydney to Hobart unless the race is hit by horrible weather conditions.

The crew on the stunning 100-footer Maritimo - one of four supermaxis in the race - will enjoy one of the most comfortable rides south of anyone in the 100 plus fleet in 2024.

But the weight of the yacht owned by renown Australian boatbuilder Bill Barry-Cotter – an extraordinary 110 tonne and more than three time heavier than rivals – is her Achilles heel when it comes to pressing for victory.

Maritomo 100 on Sydney Harbour. Picture: Supplied,,

For Barry-Cotter that’s not an issue with the race more about the journey than the result although he and his team will still be pushing the boat in the 628 nautical mile race to Hobart.

With her high end interiors, including marble en suites and walnut furniture, and an owners stateroom that would not be out of place in a five-star hotel, this yacht is built more for comfort than surfing off waves at high speed.

Maritimo 100 is the most luxurious supermaxi to do the Sydney to Hobart. Picture: Supplied,

The Gold Coast based Barry-Cotter said the Sydney to Hobart was started as a “cruise to Hobart” back in 1945 when nine yachts set sail in the inaugural event and that suits him just fine.

“It’s a perfect cruising boat for that and for me, that’s what the race should be,” said the boating industry legend. “It was originally designed as a cruise to Hobart remember.”

The custom designed yacht has three aft state rooms with lavish features and marble on stone en suite, a professional chef’s gallery galley and two crew cabins forward.

The 80-year-old owner of the luxurious yacht Bill Barry-Cotter. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

The luxurious interior. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

Barry-Cotter said the yacht will be cruised through the Pacific and then moved to Europe after the Sydney to Hobart with the 2024 event potentially her first and only race.

Barry Cotter acquired the yacht in the US after it was struck by lighting and involved in an insurance wrangle.

“We patched it up, did a lot of work to it there, everything that was at risk, and then sailed it back here and then finished it off,” he said.

Bill Barry-Cotter and crew mates Picture: Justin Lloyd.

A marble en suite. Pictures: Supplied,

Not only does Maritime 100 look different from her rivals, it will be campaigned differently from the likes of favourites Master Lock Comanche and LawConnect.

For one thing there won’t be a packet of freeze dried food in sight.

A nice place to hang out, if you get the chance. Pictures: Supplied,,

“We’ve already said no freeze dried food aboard this boat,’’ Barry Cotter said. “We like real food.’’

He is also expecting the top speed of the yacht due to her luxurious fittings and weight, to be around 14 knots, which is roughly a third of the speed of the Sydney to Hobart favourites.

But on a handicap and in the right conditions – rough and tough – Maritimo 100 could surprise.

“In a Hobart race anything can happen,’’ Barry-Cotter said.

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Originally published as Sydney to Hobart yacht race’s most luxurious entry Maritimo 100 has marble bathrooms