Absolute 52 FLY

The Absolute 52 FLY is 55' 0" overall on a 15' 3" beam, and it carries features that usually start a size class higher. The clearest is the pantry beside the saloon galley - Absolute calls it unusual for boats of this size, and it is the sort of thing that only matters once you have provisioned for a week.

The flybridge is a full deck. There is a helm station with ergonomic seats and large multifunction displays, settees beside it so the owner-captain has company at the controls, a dining table, a galley and a bar unit, and a stern terrace with modular furnishing behind all of it.

Below that, the cockpit terrace takes modular furniture and adjustable shades, with easy access to the stern platform and a wet bar and galley alongside. The glazed stern parapet and the open gunwale design are what keep the water in view from a seat rather than only from standing.

Absolute's published figures for the 52 FLY: 475 gallons of fuel, 172 gallons of fresh water, twin Volvo Penta D8-IPS800 pod drives, 14 people aboard and CE Category B.

Twin Volvo Penta D8-IPS800 pods are the 52 FLY's package - a larger, higher-rated installation than the D6-IPS650 that powers the smaller Absolutes, and the reason this boat sits a class above the 47 FLY in the way it carries weight.

Fuel is 475 gallons and fresh water 172 gallons. With three guest cabins and crew aboard it is usually water that ends a weekend rather than fuel, so plan that side first.

The main helm sits in direct contact with the saloon, with advanced infotronics and comprehensive on-screen monitoring of the onboard systems, and a door beside it opens onto the lateral walkway for harbor manoeuvres. There is a second, fully equipped helm station on the flybridge with its own large displays.

Speed and consumption on a pod installation move with load, propellers and specification. Get observed figures at your intended cruise rpm in writing on the exact hull and engine package you are ordering, and work your own range off 475 gallons. Confirm the draft and rigged weight of your build before you book a lift or a transport.

The master is forward and full beam, with a large double berth accessible from all three sides, extensive cupboards and storage units, and a marble bathroom. The VIP amidships is close enough to the master in space, headroom, en-suite and finish that Absolute puts them in the same sentence.

The third guest cabin is the clever one. It converts from twin berths to a double on an electrical system, and that system is fitted as standard rather than sold as an option. That is the cabin that has to work for children now and for guests later, and it does both without a rebuild.

There is a crew cabin as well, with practical access from the stern platform, so whoever is running or looking after the boat is not walking through the guest accommodation to reach it.

On the main deck the saloon is wrapped in glass for a 360-degree view, and the side windows slide down vertically under electric control, so the room ventilates naturally alongside the air conditioning. The galley is fully equipped and has a spacious pantry beside it. Fresh water is 172 gallons - the figure that decides the length of a weekend with three cabins occupied.

The 52 FLY sits second in Absolute's Flybridge line, above the 47 and below the 56, and the step up from the 47 is a large one. It brings D8-IPS800 power instead of D6-IPS650, a flybridge with its own galley, dining table and bar unit rather than a barbecue station, a pantry beside the main galley, and a crew cabin reached from the stern platform - so all three cabins below stay in the guest count.

Length overall is 55' 0" on a 15' 3" beam, against the 47's 48' 0" on 14' 10". Seven feet of length and five inches of beam is where the second galley, the pantry and the crew cabin come from.

Against the wider market, a 55-foot flybridge with three cabins plus crew puts a buyer in the same conversation as the Azimut Fly 53, the Galeon 520 FLY and the Princess F55. The 52 FLY argues on the upper deck: most of the segment gives a flybridge a wet bar, and Absolute gives this one a galley, a dining table, a bar unit and a stern terrace with modular furniture.

The Navetta 53 is almost the same length overall for a different weekend - amidships master, smaller engines, 528 gallons of fuel against this boat's 475. Walk both before you decide which side of that line you are on.

The 52 FLY fits the owner-captain who wants everybody upstairs. A helm with ergonomic seats and large displays, settees right beside it, a dining table, a galley and a bar unit mean the flybridge is where the day happens rather than a viewing platform you visit between anchorages.

It fits a family that needs a third cabin to change roles. The twin-to-double conversion is electrical and fitted as standard, so the cabin that holds two children this season holds a couple the next without an invoice.

It fits an owner who provisions properly. The pantry beside the main galley is the difference between a week aboard and three days plus a supermarket run, and 172 gallons of fresh water backs it up.

It fits someone who wants help aboard without giving up a guest cabin. The crew cabin has its own access from the stern platform, so a captain, a stewardess or a caretaker comes and goes without crossing the accommodation.

Before you commit, get the draft, the rigged weight and observed consumption at your intended cruise rpm confirmed in writing for your own hull and engine package.