2019 Galeon 510 Skydeck review

Launched with fanfare at the 2019 Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show were the first two of the third-generation Galeon models – the 47 foot (14.3m) Galeon 460 Skydeck and the 53 foot (16.2m) Galeon 510 Skybridge – and they’ve already made a splash.

The model we’re focusing on for this review is the larger of the pair, the Galeon 510 Skydeck, the headline model for the range – for now.

What if you could be down at the jetty, jump on your motor yacht and be ready to bump out in a matter of minutes? Even better, when you get back to the marina, the bump-in is just as quick?

Sounds good already. But what about when you get to where you’re anchoring up, the boat transforms in minutes to provide wide, clutter-free living spaces with a bar (including stools) to one side, and a lounge area for drinking in those spectacular sunsets on the other?

That’s what Galeon has done with the 510 Skydeck, the first of two next-gen models to come to Australia under the wing of Alexander Marine with a refreshed look and feel.

Galeon, the Polish luxury motor yacht maker, prides itself on a reputation of providing value for money, and its ability to quickly adapt to the latest technological innovations sweeping the industry.

Nowhere is that more apparent than with the Galeon 510 Skydeck.

The all-fibreglass Galeon 510 Skydeck is priced from $1,999,000, which is a good price for this size of boat. The emphasis here is on the owner-operator, with the boat equipped with both bow and stern thrusters to help with maneuvering in tight spaces.

The Galeon 510 Skydeck has three cabins, including a full-beam amidships master stateroom and a VIP stateroom tucked into the bow. It also has two showers, as well as a freshwater shower built into the transom backing onto the teak-covered, electrically operated swim deck.

The hydraulic swim deck is rated to support 500kg, making it ideal for carrying a personal watercraft or small tender.

In the aft galley, appliances run to a Siemens convection microwave, a dishwasher, full-size 130-litre fridge and a two-burner ceramic cooktop with an extractor fan overhead. Stone-look Corian benchtops provide decent work space.

The Dometic air-conditioning system fitted to the Galeon 510 Skydeck is quite different, following European trends. Instead of using a gas refrigerant, the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s cooling system uses chilled water to temper the temperature throughout the interior.

Also included are a Fusion audio system, a 40-inch television with a BOSE soundbar in the saloon (it drops down out of sight when not in use), and a 32-inch in the master suite.

The Galeon 510 Skydeck’s genset is a Cummins-sourced Onan 17kW unit. Helping reduce overall power load are LED lights used throughout the boat, including six that add soft pools of illumination under the waterline.

The bridge is equipped with twin 12-inch Raymarine Axiom touchscreens that incorporate chartplotter, sounder and digital radar functions.

But the big attraction of this boat is the “Beach Mode” – a pair of fold-out cockpit 'balconies' that significantly expand the entertainment space both inside and out. More on that a bit later.

Galeon has been building boats for the last 35 years. Based in Poland, it also builds its growing third-generation line of motor yachts there.

The sides of the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s GRP variable deadrise vee hull, which it shares with the Galeon 500 Fly, are foam-cored, with the more heavy-duty hull bottoms made from resin-infused, hand-laid fibreglass to keep the boat’s centre of gravity low.

The 16-degree deadrise semi-displacement hull is built for comfort over outright speed. That said, it will still hunt along at more than 30 knots when asked. Topsides are also formed from fibreglass

The shaft-drive Volvo Penta D11-725 engines are housed full standing height engine room that can be accessed via the aft crew quarters. The machinery spaces provide plenty of access.

The saloon is decked out in warm walnut veneer. A sliding door on the glass bulkhead gives access to/from the cockpit, the living area houses a long lounge to starboard and a U-shaped aft galley that wraps around to port.

The deep windows on either side of this area slide back to bring the outdoors inside. The lounge’s seatback will flip inward to face the seating outwards, while on the other side a folding benchtop swings upwards and outwards to turn the kitchen bench with its mixer tap into an outside-facing bar, complete with two drop-in bar stools. Life doesn’t get much better than that.

A couple of steps lead up to the helm station with its single seat to starboard and a large L-shaped lounge to port.

Visibility from the helm station is excellent, helped by a single pane windscreen running the width of the cabin, and even side windows that dip down as they go forward, helping to judge closing distances when docking.

The helm also benefits from a huge electrically deployed side window that again comes to the fore when the owner-operator comes back into the marina

Above the space is an almost full-width sunroof that slides back to bathe the whole forward saloon in sunlight.

The helm’s layout is very car-like, and fitted with a sports steering wheel. Instruments surround it on a blacked-out surface that reduces glare, and the throttle controls for the Volvo Pentas humming quietly below fall easily to hand.

Directly in line with the helm chair, which can swing around to face the saloon, are a pair of 12-inch Raymarine touchscreens that allow different functions – chartplotter, sounder or radar – to display at once. To their left are the engine status displays for the pair of Volvo Penta powerplants that provide the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s drive.

Switches are arranged logically along the leading edge of the staggered dash.

The Galeon 510 Skydeck has enough space onboard to sleep six people via two queen-size double beds, and a twin-share bunk. There is the option for a crew’s sleeping quarter tucked in behind the lazarette, which doubles as a wet head and a freshwater shower for the swimming deck, but on our test boat the area is converted to provide more refrigeration space.

The forward VIP stateroom contains a feature skylight that floods the area in natural light. A Venetian-style blind gives privacy from the foredeck while Roman blinds drop down from the tops of the hull-mounted windows.

The bed is cut into the bow behind the collision bulkhead, and framed in a classy looking designer headboard – Galeon calls this its “enlightened” bedhead.

Air-conditioning controls are close to hand. The suite also contains a standing room wardrobe, a full-length mirror, and a set of drawers. A separate door provides private access to the bathroom shared with the bunk room.

The shared bathroom has plenty of mirrors. It contains a wet head with opening portholes, and a single glass bowl that serves as the sink. The standing-room shower is lined on one wall in mosaic — a Gallon signature.

To starboard are the under-over bunk beds of the guest accommodation. The bunks are a good length, and there’s an opening porthole in the picture window fitted into the hull.

A skylight lets more natural light flood in from the salon above via a frosted glass skylight.

The master stateroom is located amidships and runs the full beam of the Galeon 510 Skydeck.

The island double bed is highlighted by an unusual feature; a meticulously crafted, backlit bedhead that casts diffused light around the room.

To one side is a lounge, to the other makeup station complete with flip-up mirror built into the tabletop.

A 32-inch television is fitted to the forward bulkhead. There’s a large walk-in wardrobe, while letterbox slot-like picture windows that appear to stretch the length of the stateroom provide an impressive view to either side, giving an open, airy feel.

A pair of French doors open up to reveal a combination washer and dryer; an option that owners who want to maximise time on the Galeon 510 Skydeck are likely to tick.

The his-and-hers basins in the attached private bathroom are square-edged and formed from glass. A Galeon signature is the full standing height shower, again decked out in mosaic tile.

Hanging off the back of the Galeon 510 Skydeck is a large hydraulic swim deck which, as it drops, reveals a set of steps that appear out of the portside corner.

Steps to either side of the hydraulic swim platform, topped with gates, lead up to the cockpit which is a huge space, lined aft by a lounge that curls around and doubles as a pair of short sunbeds. In the centre is a wide, shallow table. There’s enough space either side of the lounge area to flick a lure if the desire arises.

The flybridge overhead will provide some shade over this area either early or late in the day.

The Galeon 510 Skydeck also has its neat Beach Mode party trick that will make you the envy of the anchorage.

Release two latches, hold down a switch, and within minutes the cockpit area transforms into a 6.0-metre wide space as the coamings drop out and down to yield significantly more real estate. Chrome bollards drop into special recesses, and black rope forms an outer lifeline framing off the area to either side.

It gets better. To port, two bar stools drop into the deck behind the saloon’s bar, with a flip-up tabletop turning the attention outdoors. On the other side, the saloon lounge’s setback flips back to shift the focus outwards, making it a perfect end-of-day spot to take in a sunset.

Forward, the bow is dedicated to a pair of large, adjustable-back sunbeds split by the large skylight that filters light into the forward stateroom.

The bow is accessed via walkways with side decks deep enough to provide a sense of security when going forward, and either side of the cabin’s roof has a stainless steel handrail.

The handrail ringing the 510 Skydeck is the only visible sign of compromise on the Galeon that we can spot; the lower part of it uses a stainless steel wire rather than a solid stainless steel tube.

What sets the Galeon 510 Skydeck apart from most other 50-foot motor yachts out there is the Skydeck — Galeon’s name for its set-and-forget flybridge.

The emphasis here is on being able to quickly get in or out of the marina and on your way to enjoying the boat. The key is a weatherproof cover spanning the entire flybridge that retracts or deploys in less than a minute – all you need to do in preparation is shift some seatbacks.

With the flybridge covered, the Galeon 510 Skydeck takes on a sweeping, coupe-like profile without the traditional visual clutter of a flybridge cruiser. It’s sort of a Clayton’s fly – the one you have when you don’t want all the trouble of a flybridge.

The disappearing flybridge also is a much easier solution to fitting and removing myriad covers, and even makes berthing much more stress-free as everything is well protected. You still have to go downstairs and cover the windows, though.

Accessed via the cockpit ladder, the flybridge is a huge entertaining space lined in lounges that wrap around almost all the available space. The lounge seatbacks to either side of the central helm position flip aft to provide an extra couple of forward-facing seats for when the Galeon 510 Skydeck is on the hustle.

The flybridge’s helm station is equipped with a comfortable captain’s chair, and has a flip-up windscreen in front of the console to provide protection from the elements while underway.

Powering the Galeon 510 Skydeck is a pair of 725hp Volvo Penta D11-725 shaft drive turbo-diesel engines. These are the updated version of ths D11 series engines, with more power than the versions they replace. Performance is delivered over a 1750rpm rev band.

Powerful and responsive, the Volvos are a good match for the stately Galeon. The engines are hugely responsive to throttle inputs, thrumming away quietly at cruising speeds, with the trim tabs helping to the big displacement hull up onto a plane.

The engine and hull are set up more for comfort than outright speed, with the Galeon 510 Skydeck hitting a top speed of 33 knots at 2250rpm when pushed hard.

At a more sedate 20.5 knots and 2000rpm, and with the trim tabs set to get the transom sitting higher, the boat has a range of 200 nautical miles on a 10 per cent fuel reserve.

Performance*

* Both engines

Underway, the 16-plus-metre Galeon 510 Skydeck is equally responsive to the helm, with small inputs to the leather-wrapped stainless steel-spoked wheel flowing through to the rear of the boat via the hydraulic steering system.

At higher speeds, the Galeon 510 Skydeck leans into turns comfortably, carving out the radius predictably.

Visibility is excellent all around thanks to an almost 360-degree wall of glass around the saloon, and the unbroken field of vision through the single-pane windscreen. Deep sheets of glass to either side of the helm station offer great visibility while docking or at high speeds while underway.

One of the joys of being out on the water is maximising the amount of time you can spend on it. This is the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s forte, with an almost set-and-forget flybridge that stows neatly away under a weather shade at the press of a button.

If you decide to head out and conditions don’t suit, the boat is already stowed in coupe mode, meaning you don’t even have to think about upstairs before casting the lines.

Not only that, but once the anchor drops at your destination the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s cockpit transforms into a much bigger boat, again at the flip of a couple of latches and the press of a button.

In this regard, it’s not just the Galeon 510 Skydeck’s price tag that represents extremely good value for money.

Specifications
Model: Galeon 510 Skydeck
Length: 16.21m
Beam: 4.46m (balconies up); 6.0m (balconies down)
Draft: 1.4m
Weight: 22,750kg (dry, est)
Fuel capacity: 1800L
Engines: Twin Volvo Penta D11-725 725hp
Genset: Onan 17kW
Water: 650L
Holding tank: 240L
Accommodation: 6 and 1 crew
Maximum passengers: 12

Priced from: $1,999,000 including Raymarine Axiom 12-inch touchscreen including chart plotter, under and radar; fold-out balconies; electric flybridge cover; hydraulic swim platform; Fusion audio system; 40-inch saloon TV with Bose sound bar; 24-volt LED lighting; six underwater lights; cockpit, side and front window covers; 35kg anchor with 100m of chain rode.

Price as tested: $1,999,000