The Riva 58' Capri: When Performance Meets the Italian Riviera
Riva's 58' Capri pairs iconic Italian style with a structural hardtop housing integrated A/C—so you can run all summer—plus twin MAN V8s (up…
Read the articleThe Riva Open Series
Riva's day boats and open cruisers — the Aquariva Special at 33 feet and the 58' Capri at 56'8", 40.5 knots down to 33
You want a boat you drive yourself, that looks like nothing else in the marina, and that gets you somewhere before lunch rather than after it. That is the whole brief for Riva's Open range, and it is the part of the line the company has been building continuously since the Aquarama.
Open is the largest of Riva's three divisions — eight models, from the El-Iseo up to the 76' Bahamas Super — and it is defined by what it leaves out. No flybridge, no upper helm, no separate crew deck. What you get instead is a single driving position, a hull with the power to use it, and the low, unbroken profile that makes a Riva recognisable from further away than the badge.
We review two in depth: the Aquariva Special at 33 feet, the first "Special" Riva since the Aquarama itself, and the 58' Capri at 56'8", the newest open yacht in the range and the first with a fixed canopy built into the hull lines.
The Open Lineup, Smallest to Largest
Every Riva Open model we review in depth, in the order owners step up through the series.
Photo credit Riva.
The Aquariva Special is the first 'Special' Riva since the Aquarama — a 33-foot open runabout with twin Yanmar 8LV-370s, 40.5 knots flat out and a 36-knot cruise.
The 58' Capri is Riva's newest open yacht — a structural hardtop with integrated air conditioning over twin MAN V8s, 37 knots on the 1,200 hp option and two cabins below.
Don't see the Open model you're after — or a brand-new launch? Request specs through Yacht Specs Direct.
Moving Up the Open Series
The Aquariva Special is a day boat and does not pretend otherwise. It runs 33 feet on a 9'2" beam, weighs 11,464 lbs unladen and carries 127 gallons of fuel. There is one engine option — twin Yanmar 8LV-370s at 370 hp each — and Riva publishes one set of numbers for it: 40.5 knots flat out, 36 knots cruise, 155 nautical miles of range. That makes it the fastest boat Riva builds and the only one in the range you would genuinely take out alone for an afternoon. Eight people aboard, one cabin below, 34 gallons of water. The water capacity tells you the intended use more honestly than any brochure line.
The 58' Capri is a different proposition — an open yacht rather than a runabout, at 56'8" on a 15'7" beam and 61,509 lbs unladen. Two cabins and two bathrooms below, plus a crew cabin with its own bathroom, and fourteen people aboard. Riva offers two MAN V8 packages and publishes a full set for each: the V8-1000 gives 33 knots and a 27-knot cruise with 210 nautical miles of range, the V8-1200 gives 37 and 31 with 200. Four knots of cruise for ten miles of range is the trade, and it is a narrower one than it looks.
The step between them is not a step at all — it is a different kind of boat. You do not move up from an Aquariva Special to a 58' Capri because you outgrew the smaller one; you move because you started wanting to sleep aboard. Between the two sit four Riva Opens we do not review in depth — the Rivamare, Dolceriva, Iseo Super and El-Iseo — and above the Capri sit the 68' Diable and 76' Bahamas Super.
Our Take
The Aquariva Special is the boat people picture when they hear the name Riva, and for once the picture is accurate. It is also the only boat in this entire range I would call uncomplicated: one engine option, one set of published numbers, 40.5 knots, no configurator. If you have spent any time being talked around a spec sheet, that simplicity is worth something on its own.
What I would push back on is the assumption that the Open range means "small". The 58' Capri is 56'8" and 61,509 lbs before you load it, with a crew cabin. It is an open yacht in Riva's sense — no flybridge — not a day boat with a cabin bolted in. If you are coming off a 45-foot express and expecting a similar animal with better styling, go and stand in the engine room first.
On the engine choice for the Capri: Riva publishes both packages properly, which makes this an easy decision to get right. The V8-1200 buys four knots of cruise and costs ten nautical miles of range. If your run is Fort Lauderdale to Bimini you will never notice the range; if you are working the Keys in a hurry, the four knots is real. Nobody needs to guess here, and that is unusual enough in this business to be worth saying out loud.
Tony Smith, Founder — Minted Yachts
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many Open models does Riva build?
Eight: the El-Iseo, Iseo Super, Aquariva Special, Rivamare, Dolceriva, 58' Capri, 68' Diable and 76' Bahamas Super. It is the largest of Riva's three ranges. We review two of them in depth here — the Aquariva Special at 33 feet and the 58' Capri at 56 feet 8 inches — which bracket the range at either end of what an open Riva can be.
What makes a Riva an Open rather than a Sportfly or Flybridge?
No upper deck. Open boats have one driving position, no flybridge and no separate crew deck, which is what keeps the low unbroken profile that makes a Riva recognisable at distance. Sportfly adds a low upper helm and seating; Flybridge adds a full upper deck and dedicated crew accommodation, starting at two crew cabins on the 82' Diva.
Which is the fastest boat in Riva's Open range?
Of the two we review, the Aquariva Special at 40.5 knots — which also makes it the fastest boat Riva builds anywhere in its range. The 58' Capri runs 33 knots on the MAN V8-1000 or 37 knots on the V8-1200. Riva publishes max speed, cruise speed and range at cruise for every engine option on both boats, so nothing here is an estimate.
Which Open Fits Your Life?
Tell us how you plan to use the boat — guests, range, crew or no crew — and we'll give you the straight story on where in the Open series you belong, new or brokerage.
Explore All Riva ModelsOr reach Tony directly: TS@MintedYachts.com · +1 (404) 805-9819