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Displaying items by tag: JeanPhilippe Nuel

#MEGA-YACHTCRUISESHIP – Nearly a year ago to her Irish debut the Le Boréal a mega-yacht cruiseship called to Dublin Port today, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The sleek sweeping lines of the 132 berth and 264 maximum capacity vessel is designed with French flair by Jean-Philippe Nuel and built with Italian expertise by Fincantieri. She is scheduled to depart from the capital tonight. For more information and photographs of the ship, click HERE.

When she entered service for Compagnie du Ponant, the only French cruiseship operator won for the Best New Ship of the Year 2010. The prize was rewarded by the European Cruiser Association for more visit www.eucras.com

Published in Cruise Liners
The French mega-yacht cruiseship Le Boréal docked at Dublin Port this morning on for her first visit to an Irish port, having sailed from Caen, writes Jehan Ashmore.
Le Boréal (see photo) is only a year in service and the 10,700 tonnes vessel which is operated by France's only cruise operator, Compagnie du Ponant won the 'Best New ship of the Year 2010' by the European Cruiser Association. For a nightime photo taken of the vessel click here.

At 142m long she was built by the Italian Fincantieri shipyard and can take 264 guests in 132 luxury cabins and in public spaces the interior has a distinctly French flair from the hand of designer Jean-Philippe Nuel. She is flagged in the Wallis Futuna Islands in the Polynesian French island territory in the South Pacific.

The vessel has a cruising speed of 16 knots and a crew of 139 look after her guests throughout six decks. On the top deck named Le Paris Deck an open-air bar is located aft and forward is a sun deck area. Below on Le France Deck there is a swimming pool, grill restaurant, internet station, library panoramic lounge and an adjoining open-decked forward facing terrace sited above the bridge.

On the Le Normandie DecK there is a fitness beauty corner, a massage, hair salon, leisure area and an image & photo desk in partnership with Philippe Plisson, synonymous for his dramatic scenes of Breton lighthouses. The photographer is based in La Trinité sur Mer for more click here.

The next deck is the Le Lafayette Deck which is predominately occupied by 35 Prestige staterooms each featuring private balconies and located aft is the theatre. Going down another deck is the Le Champollian Deck where there is the main lounge, shop, reception desk, excursion desk and a medical center. Finally we reach Le Liberté Deck where guests can dine at the gastronomic restaurant, the Marina.

Twenty three years ago Compagnie du Ponant was founded by her owners the CMA CGM Group, the world's third largest container shipping group. The cruise company is an integral part of French maritime heritage and owes its origins to the renowned Compagnie Générale Transatlantique French Line.

Published in Cruise Liners

The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 boats built.

The class is active in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and parts of north-eastern USA, and the GP14 can be used for both racing and cruising. 

Designed by Jack Holt in 1949, with the assistance of the Dovey Yacht Club in Aberdyfi. The idea behind the design was to build a General Purpose (GP) 14-foot dinghy which could be sailed or rowed, capable of also being powered effectively by a small outboard motor, able to be towed behind a small family car and able to be launched and recovered reasonably easily, and stable enough to be able to lie to moorings or anchor when required. Racing soon followed, initially with some degree of opposition from Yachting World, who had commissioned the design, and the boat soon turned out to be an outstanding racing design also.

The boat was initially designed with a main and small jib as a comfortable family dinghy. In a design philosophy that is both practical and highly redolent of social attitudes of the day the intention was that she should accommodate a family comprising parents plus two children, and specifically that the jib should be modest enough for "Mum" or older children to handle, while she should perform well enough to give "Dad" some excitement when not taking the family out. While this rig is still available, and can be useful when using the boat to teach sailing, or for family sailing, and has some popularity for cruising, the boat is more commonly seen with the full modern rig of a mainsail, genoa and spinnaker. Australian boats also routinely use trapezes.

GP14 Ireland Event Dates 2023

  • O'Tiarnaigh (Apr 22-23) Blessington Sailing Club
  • Ulsters (May 20-21) East Antrim Boat Club
  • Munsters (Jun 17-18) Tralee Bay Sailing Club
  • Leinsters (Jul 7-9) Dun Laoghaire Regatta
  • SOYC (Aug 19-20) Rush Sailing Club
  • Nationals (Sep 1-3) Sutton Dinghy Club
  • Hot Toddy (Sep 30-Oct 1) Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club

 

At A Glance – GP14 Dinghy Specifications

Crew 2
Draft 1,200 mm (47 in)
Hull weight 132.9 kg
LOA 4.27 m (14 ft)
Beam 1.54 m
Spinnaker area 8.4 m2
Upwind sail area 12.85 m2

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