Pricing ultra-chic ships

Alex Coolman

NEWPORT BEACH -- The 22nd annual Lido Yacht Expo opened Thursday,

bringing its brand of large-scale boating to the waters off Lido Marina

Village.

The show, which features more than 200 boats and more than 100 new

models, is dedicated to boats 26 feet and longer. It’s an emphasis, event

organizers note, that means “catering to the most affluent segment of the

population.”

Christophe Converte, a salesman for Newport Boats, which was showing

off its line of Sea Ray yachts, took visitors on strolls through the

boats, demonstrating just what “the affluent segment” likes.

“Sea Ray is now known for going for the extra mile,” Converte said,

stroking the tan hide of a swiveling chair. “This is ultra leather.”

The counter tops in the boat’s kitchen, he pointed out, were Corian.

The cabinets were done in cherry wood.

Newport Boats’ most massive vessel at the show is a 58-foot beast

called an Azimut.

“It’s a luxury Italian line that’s extremely popular in the

Mediterranean and Europe,” Converte noted. Price tag: $1.4 million.

A close second was a slightly shorter Sun Dancer Sea Ray.

“It’s a little bit less money. But not much,” Converte said.

For the customers musing about boat-buying possibilities, these kinds

of gradations of price, size and quality were at the heart of the show.

Newport Beach resident David Weisman, strolling around the makeshift

docks Thursday, said he was in the market for a boat in the 36- to

40-foot range.

“You can fit a couple of partners and have plenty of room” in a boat

that size, he said.

The vessel that had captured Weisman’s imagination was a 43-foot Targa

Fairline, but he noted that the price tag was “a couple hundred thousand”

more than he was interested in paying.

“I like the Trojans, price-wise,” he said.

A still better deal looked like it could be had near the entrance to

the show, where a gleaming white 1999 Silverton 352, neatly equipped with

a global positioning system and a fish finder, was being sold for only

$1,300 a month.

But the boat owner quickly dispelled any notion that the boat could be

had cheaply.

“Those are the payments,” he said. “For 20 years.”

The Yacht Expo runs through Sunday at Lido Marina Village, at the

corner of Lido Way and Newport Boulevard, Newport Beach. Admission is $8

for adults, free for children 12 and under. For more information, call

(949) 757-5959.