The Cannes Yachting Festival 2025 closed on September 14 with more than 55,000 visitors across Vieux Port and Port Canto and 103 yachts making their world or show debut, organizers reported. The 48th edition drew over 600 exhibitors and 700-plus yachts from 5 to 50 metres. The 2026 dates are already confirmed: September 8-13.
Table of Contents
- The 48th edition's final numbers
- Vieux Port and Port Canto: the geography of the world's biggest in-water show
- What 103 debuts say about the state of the industry
- September: the busiest month on the European show calendar
- Why this matters for a Brazilian buyer or charterer
- Cannes 2026 already has a date
- FAQ
The 48th edition's final numbers
The Cannes Yachting Festival closed its doors on September 14, 2025 with a number that confirms its weight on the European calendar: more than 55,000 visitors moved through the show's two harbours over six days. Of the boats on display, 103 made their world or show debut — power and sail, from day boats to yachts well past 30 metres. That is the metric organizers use to gauge the festival's relevance to builders: how many brands choose Cannes to reveal a new model for the first time.
The 2025 edition drew more than 600 international exhibitors, keeping the festival as Europe's largest in-water show by boat count, ahead of venues built primarily around indoor stands.
Vieux Port and Port Canto: the geography of the world's biggest in-water show
The festival opened on September 9 occupying Vieux Port and Port Canto simultaneously, less than two kilometres apart on the Cannes waterfront. That geographic split is structural to the event: Vieux Port concentrates motor yachts and most builder stands, while Port Canto hosts the in-water sailing showcase — a format few other European shows still run at this scale.
More than 700 yachts from 5 to 50 metres were available to board across the six days, most with the builder's own sales team on hand to meet buyers and brokers directly. That combination — in-water volume plus direct access to the manufacturer — is what sets Cannes apart from largely indoor shows, including Brazil's São Paulo Boat Show, which closes a few days later that same month.
What 103 debuts say about the state of the industry
A hundred and three world or show debuts in a single week is a volume that only holds up when builders' order books are full. The figure landed days after Sanlorenzo published its first-half 2025 results: net revenue of €454.1 million, up 9.4%, with order intake up 29.9%, pushing the backlog to €985.2 million — nearly a full year of revenue already booked. The calendar coincidence describes an industry still running on demand built up since the pandemic recovery, which also helps explain why prime-season Mediterranean charter prices keep climbing even as the fleet grows.
September: the busiest month on the European show calendar
Cannes shares September with four other shows that together form the year's densest stretch of yacht launches in the Northern Hemisphere — and, in the case of São Paulo Boat Show, in the Southern Hemisphere too.
| Show | Location | 2025 dates | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannes Yachting Festival | Vieux Port and Port Canto (France) | Sept 9-14 | In-water, power and sail |
| Salone Nautico di Genova | Piazzale Kennedy (Italy) | Sept 18-23 | In-water and stands |
| São Paulo Boat Show | São Paulo Expo (Brazil) | Sept 18-23 | Indoor |
| Southampton International Boat Show | Mayflower Park (UK) | Sept 19-28 | In-water |
| Monaco Yacht Show | Port Hercule (Monaco) | Sept 24-27 | In-water, superyachts |
The sequence is no accident: builders cluster launches between the end of the Mediterranean summer and the start of the autumn show season to reach the same press cycle and the same wave of buyers travelling through Europe. The September 2025 show calendar lays out all five shows in full.
Why this matters for a Brazilian buyer or charterer
For a Brazilian buyer shopping a 12- to 20-metre motor yacht or sailboat, Cannes remains Europe's most efficient showroom: in a single trip, dozens of competing models can be compared side by side, in the water, with the builder's own team on site. For someone planning a Mediterranean superyacht charter next European summer, the record debut count is an indirect signal that the 2026 charter fleet should grow — without promising lower prices, since demand keeps climbing too.
This is the kind of event that fills out the picture painted in Brazil's Nautical Market in 2025: domestic production and exports both rising, alongside a wealthy Brazilian public showing up in growing numbers at international shows. The bridge between the two markets — boat rental in Brazil through Voguer and Mediterranean superyacht charter through Voguer Yachts — is often the same client at two different moments of the year.
Cannes 2026 already has a date
Alongside the closing numbers, organizers confirmed on September 15 the dates for the 49th edition: September 8-13, 2026, again split across Vieux Port and Port Canto — giving builders and buyers close to a full year to book travel and marina slots.
FAQ
How many visitors did the Cannes Yachting Festival 2025 draw? More than 55,000 visitors moved through the festival's two harbours — Vieux Port and Port Canto — over the six days of the show, September 9-14, 2025. The figure was released by organizers in their closing report for the 48th edition.
How many debuts did the 2025 edition have? There were 103 world or show debuts, spanning both power and sailing yachts. It is the metric organizers use to measure the festival's relevance to international builders, who choose Cannes to reveal new launches to the European market.
What is the difference between Vieux Port and Port Canto? Vieux Port concentrates most builder stands and motor yachts; Port Canto hosts the in-water sailing showcase. The two harbours sit less than two kilometres apart, both within the city of Cannes.
When is the Cannes Yachting Festival 2026? September 8-13, 2026, again at Vieux Port and Port Canto. Organizers confirmed the date on September 15, 2025, the day after the 2025 edition closed.
Is the Cannes Yachting Festival open to the public? Yes. Unlike largely B2B trade shows, the festival admits the general public alongside buyers and brokers, which explains the more than 55,000 visitors recorded across six days in 2025.
Why does September cluster so many European boat shows? Builders use the tail end of the Mediterranean summer — while prospective buyers are still in the region — to launch new models back to back: Cannes, Genoa, Southampton and Monaco all fall between mid- and late September, forming the densest stretch of launches on the European calendar.
Related reading
For the rest of September's calendar, see the full show calendar for the month, Sanlorenzo's H1 2025 results, and the broader picture in Brazil's Nautical Market in 2025. Readers following industry awards can find more context in our recap of the World Superyacht Awards 2025.