Oyster Yachts

British blue-water sailing yachts ranging from approximately 50 to 90 feet.

Oyster Yachts is a British yard founded in 1973 by Richard Matthews, who began with the cruiser-racer UFO 34. The first yacht to bear the company’s own name, the Oyster 35, was launched in 1978. Since then, the company has focused on blue-water yachts built to cruise around the world, citing more than a hundred round-the-world voyages undertaken by its own boats. Richard Hadida has been the owner since 2018. Design and construction take place in England, with sites in Hythe near Southampton, in Wroxham in Norfolk and at Fox’s Marina in Ipswich.

The current range extends from the Oyster 515 to the 885 Series II, roughly from 50 to 90 feet, with the 565 and 595 Series II, the 675, the 745 and the 805 in between. The hulls were designed by Humphreys Yacht Design, in collaboration with the yard’s in-house design studio. With the Oyster C60, the company also launched its first sailing catamaran. The boats are intended for owners who live on board for months or even years and undertake their own crossings, and to this end the yard has been organising the Oyster World Rally since 2013.

Facts & figures

• Founded in 1973 by Richard Matthews
• The first model of its own design was the Oyster 35 from 1978
• Built in England, with sites in Hythe near Southampton, Wroxham and Ipswich
• Owned by Richard Hadida since 2018
• Builds blue-water sailing yachts ranging from approximately 50 to 90 feet
• Has been organising the Oyster World Rally around the world since 2013