“I’ve been working on M/Y Sunrise Motoryacht from construction till today”, says the Turkish captain Deniz Yilmazer, talking about the new 43-metre M/Y Sunrise delivered by the Yildiz Shipyard in Istanbul, with exterior by Ginton Naval Architects and a custom interior by Hot Lab. “There is a saying that there are no good sailors, there are only experienced ones. This is my philosophy as a captain. I had so many rough weathers, sudden route changes and unexpected mechanical failures, working four seasons on the boat. Of course, all those responsibilities are not a reason not to have fun in this job. Balance is the key for me”.

43-metre M/Y Sunrise

You are an experienced captain at sea.
I’ve been working in the yacht industry since many years. Before M/Y Sunrise, I had the most important work experience at Caressa K yacht where I’ve been involved in the project starting from the building of the boat till becoming the captain of it, I’ve been working there for 12 years from 2003. The owner of the Caressa K loved the boat life so much, including sailing and diving. One of the most memorable experience that I have is sailing around a volcanic island all night long, the vessel was entirely made out of wood, and of course, we were on duty with high attention.

Which relationship do you build with shipowners and designers?
Captains of superyachts are having a very intimate relationship with the owners, you are becoming responsible for one their biggest investment and become a part of their private life too. I believe trust is the key in the relationship, having open communication is always important. I’ve been involved in the construction of two superyachts: compare to commercial yachts, private yachts are built to meet the specific needs of the owner and made up to his taste. Not only me as a captain, but the whole team needs to share their own experiences and needs with the designers.

43-metre M/Y Sunrise

To deliver owner’s needs with increasing boat’s operational capability is a complex process, there are so many unknowns at the beginning of the project, and to overcome it, you need to proceed step by step. I feel very lucky to work with Hot Lab designer team who are very experienced and professional.

43-metre M/Y Sunrise

Could you tell us more about M/Y Sunrise project?
Sunrise has a very classical and luxurious interior with high-end finishing. While we were designing Sunrise along with Hot Lab design studio, we wanted to get the benefit of the daylight as much as possible, with big side windows all over the haul. We focused on plenty of large living areas, we used wood, leather and marble in the interior, working with Ulutas, one of the best marine furniture company in the Turkish yacht industry. Sunrise is a great and trustworthy vessel in every weather condition and super stingy regarding fuel consumption: it consumes 43l with a cruising speed of 9.7, an outstanding parameters for the industry.

The Tuskish owner has already 23, 26 and 34-meter yachts. What were the owner’s requests for this 43 meters?
He has two dominant hobbies: diving and fishing, and he is very disciplined. We have a room just dedicated for those hobbies in the lazarette and beach club area. He located the owner’s cabin in the upper deck and created his own private space on the boat. I’ve been introduced to the owner by a common friend in 2017 when the project had just been started. I feel super lucky to be a part of this project and to work with him, he trusted me and gave me so much responsibility, he is always so kind to me and to the team, and I’ve learnt so many valuable things from him.

43-metre M/Y Sunrise
43-metre M/Y Sunrise

What kind of life at sea do the owners love?
His biggest enjoyments are diving, fishing and swimming, he is super chill and he prefers to be away from crowded bays. Thanks to our zero speed system, we are able to dock the boat where only few boats can spend the night. As Covid made it so difficult to go abroad for us, we mainly choose diving spots and stay close to our main marina in Göcekwe, and we are planning to sail all over the Mediterranean next summer. The owner loves to spend his time on the sundeck a lot: we normally serve lunch and dinner there. There is an amazing atmosphere on the top of Sunrise and I think he appreciates it so much.