The São Paulo Boat Show 2025 closed on September 23 at São Paulo Expo with more than 750 boats sold, up 7.1% in closed deals over the prior edition. It is Latin America's largest indoor nautical show, and the result confirms the demand recovery Brazil's boating industry has been reporting throughout the year.
Table of Contents
- The 2025 edition's results
- Why São Paulo is Latin America's largest indoor show
- What the numbers say about Brazil's boating consumer
- Buy or rent: the other side of the market
- Where the boats sold at the show end up
- September: the same month as the European calendar
- FAQ
The 2025 edition's results
The São Paulo Boat Show 2025 ran September 18-23 at São Paulo Expo and closed with more than 750 boats sold — a 7.1% increase in closed deals compared with the previous edition. Organizers describe the event as Latin America's largest indoor nautical show, a format that sets it apart from September's major European festivals, most of which run in the water.
Why São Paulo is Latin America's largest indoor show
While the Cannes Yachting Festival and the Monaco Yacht Show put their fleets in the water, the São Paulo Boat Show operates inside the closed pavilions of São Paulo Expo — a format suited to speedboats, motor yachts and shallower-draft boats that can be displayed on trailers and dry docks without direct sea access. It fits São Paulo's geography: the city sits more than 60 kilometres from the nearest coastline, yet concentrates most of Brazil's buying power for recreational boats.
What the numbers say about Brazil's boating consumer
A 7.1% rise in closed deals, in the same year Brazil logged record first-half exports — 559 recreational boats shipped abroad in H1 2025, about half the total exported in all of 2024 — describes a Brazilian nautical market expanding on both fronts: production for export and domestic consumption. For a first-time buyer, more closed deals typically means more financing options and more entry-level models on the floor from dealers exhibiting at the show.
Buy or rent: the other side of the market
Not every São Paulo Boat Show visitor leaves intending — or able — to buy a boat. For those who want to try before committing, or who would rather skip maintenance, marina fees and depreciation, day rental remains the more common entry point along the Brazilian coast. Figures are quoted in Brazilian reais (R$); the ranges below are market references for a private day charter, dated Oct/2025:
| Region | Typical range (private day charter) |
|---|---|
| Guarujá / Santos / Bertioga | Short trips (up to 4h) from R$ 799-1,200; typical full days R$ 2,500-6,250; flybridge R$ 6,000-14,400 |
| Rio de Janeiro | From R$ 2,300 (5h, up to 15 people, weekday); weekends from R$ 4,500 |
| Ilhabela | Small boats (up to 26ft) R$ 1,400/day; mid-size (27-36ft) R$ 1,800-3,000; large (37ft+) R$ 3,500-7,000 |
| Florianópolis | Mid-size boats from R$ 2,400-4,300 |
| Angra dos Reis | R$ 1,400-2,500 (small); R$ 2,500-5,000 (mid-size, full day) |
For anyone based in São Paulo, the nearest coastline — Guarujá, Santos and Bertioga — carries most of the boat rental supply on the São Paulo state coast, under two hours by car from the capital.
Where the boats sold at the show end up
Proximity to the São Paulo coastline explains part of the flow of boats sold in the capital: Guarujá, Santos, Bertioga, Ilhabela and Ubatuba concentrate the marinas and dry-storage facilities serving buyers who purchase in São Paulo but keep their boat elsewhere. It is the same stretch of coast that dominates day-rental supply for anyone who has not yet decided to buy — two markets that grow together, each feeding demand for the other.
September: the same month as the European calendar
The São Paulo Boat Show ran almost in parallel with the Salone Nautico di Genova in Italy, and closed the week after the Monaco Yacht Show 2025 opened — a show that later closed with 29,956 visitors and $2.9 billion in superyachts for sale. The calendar overlap is no accident: September marks both the tail end of the European summer and the start of the Brazilian spring, a window builders and show organizers on both sides of the equator use to launch products and close deals.
| São Paulo Boat Show 2025 — key figures | Value |
|---|---|
| Venue | São Paulo Expo |
| Dates | September 18-23 |
| Boats sold | More than 750 |
| Growth in closed deals | 7.1% over the prior edition |
| Scale | Latin America's largest indoor nautical show |
FAQ
How many boats were sold at the São Paulo Boat Show 2025? More than 750 boats, according to the official report organizers released at closing on September 23, 2025 — a 7.1% increase in closed deals over the prior edition.
Where and when did the São Paulo Boat Show 2025 take place? At São Paulo Expo, September 18-23, 2025. Organizers describe it as Latin America's largest indoor nautical show, bringing together speedboats, yachts and marine equipment inside closed pavilions.
Why is the São Paulo show indoors while European shows run in the water? Because São Paulo sits more than 60 kilometres from the nearest coastline. The indoor format lets boats be displayed on trailers and dry docks inside pavilions, bringing the show to where the buying power is, even without direct sea access.
Does the show's sales growth reflect the wider Brazilian boating market? It is a strong indicator. The 7.1% rise in closed deals came the same year Brazil exported 559 recreational boats in the first half — about half of everything exported in all of 2024 — pointing to growth on both the production and domestic-consumption sides.
Is it better to buy a boat or rent one by the day? It depends on how often you'll use it. Anyone boating just a few times a year usually comes out ahead renting by the day — rates starting around R$ 799 for short trips on the São Paulo coast — avoiding the fixed costs of maintenance, marina fees and depreciation that come with ownership.
Which beaches receive the boats bought in São Paulo? Guarujá, Santos, Bertioga, Ilhabela and Ubatuba hold most of the marinas serving buyers from the São Paulo capital, being the closest destinations with developed nautical infrastructure.
Does the São Paulo Boat Show compete with September's European shows? Not directly — the audiences differ — but the calendars overlap. The Brazilian show ran almost simultaneously with the Salone Nautico di Genova and the Monaco Yacht Show, all clustered in the second half of September.
When is the next São Paulo Boat Show? This article covers only the 2025 edition's results; the date for the next edition had not been announced by organizers as of publication.
Related reading
See the rest of the September 2025 show calendar, the Monaco Yacht Show 2025 results, and the Cannes Yachting Festival 2025 recap. To rent a boat on the coast nearest São Paulo, see boat rental in Guarujá via Voguer, or explore Mediterranean superyacht charter through Voguer Yachts.