Aquila Catamarans has chosen the 2026 Cannes Yachting Festival for the world debut of the new Aquila 35 Sport, a compact power catamaran designed to bring the styling and social emphasis of the larger 45 Sport into a 35-foot package. The new model joins a seven-boat Aquila display in Cannes and becomes the smallest member of the reworked Sport family.
The official specification lists an overall length of 10.81 metres and a beam of 4.49 metres, dimensions that give the boat considerably more usable width than a typical monohull of similar length. Aquila is positioning that extra platform area around entertaining, watersports and short coastal cruising rather than using it simply to increase cabin count.
A wide platform in a compact length
Aquila says the 35 Sport provides about 289 square feet of deck area across the bow, helm and aft cockpit, with further usable space on the hardtop. The bow carries a dedicated social area for four, while the stern centres on a large U-shaped seating module that can change position to improve circulation or convert for lounging.
The width also allows the builder to separate movement from seating more effectively than on many narrow day boats. Power-sliding cockpit furniture can open a walkway to port or starboard, which should be particularly useful during docking, boarding and watersports when people need to move fore and aft without dismantling the social setup.
Double-stepped hull and Mercury power
The 35 Sport uses a double-stepped catamaran hull and is offered with twin Mercury Verado V8 300 hp outboards as standard. Buyers can specify twin V10 400 hp engines instead, giving the model a higher-output option without changing the underlying deck and accommodation concept.
Aquila is emphasising acceleration, stable running and efficiency rather than publishing a single headline speed figure in the Cannes launch material. The hull form is intended to support the boat’s dual role as a fast day platform and a vessel capable of longer coastal use when the weather and itinerary demand more than a short harbour run.
A cabin turns the day boat into a weekender
Below the helm, a sliding console door gives access to a private cabin with a queen berth, storage and a separate head with shower. The published specification lists two berths, so the accommodation is deliberately aimed at a couple rather than trying to turn the 35-foot platform into a multi-cabin cruiser.
Optional climate control and the hardtop’s ability to carry equipment such as paddleboards broaden that weekender role. On deck, a wet bar with sink and storage, a Corian-topped galley module and an integrated audio system are designed to keep most daytime activity outside where the boat’s beam can be used most effectively.
Cannes opens Aquila’s next Sport chapter
The new model is appearing alongside the larger 45 Sport, which is making its European debut, and Aquila’s new sailing range. That gives visitors a direct comparison between the brand’s compact and flagship Sport concepts rather than presenting the 35 in isolation.
Aquila says production deliveries of the 35 Sport are scheduled to begin in early 2027 after the Cannes world premiere and an Americas debut at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. The timing gives the builder a full autumn show season to collect feedback and orders before regular customer deliveries begin.
A different use of the 35-foot footprint
The most important feature of the 35 Sport may be how aggressively it uses beam rather than length to create space. At 10.81 metres, it remains manageable for owners moving up from conventional day boats, yet the 4.49-metre platform allows separate bow, helm, cockpit and hardtop activity zones.
That makes the new Aquila less about miniaturising a conventional motor yacht and more about rethinking what owners can do within a sub-11-metre hull. Its market reception will show whether buyers value that social width enough to accept the different berthing and handling characteristics that come with a power catamaran.
Why the 35 Sport broadens Aquila ownership
The 35 Sport also gives Aquila a more accessible step into its power-catamaran range without abandoning the wide-deck advantages that define the larger models. Owners coming from monohull day boats gain separate bow and stern social areas, while the private cabin and enclosed head add enough overnight capability to make a weekend away realistic rather than an improvised extension of a day trip.
Its success will depend on whether buyers value that extra beam enough to accept the different marina footprint of a catamaran. At 10.81 metres the boat remains compact in length, but the 4.49-metre beam is the dimension that shapes berth choice, handling and onboard space. That trade-off is central to the Aquila proposition and is clearer on the 35 than on a much larger cruising multihull.
