Boats to see at the 2023 Melbourne Boat Show

The show returns to its Docklands location for the second time, featuring a mix of boats on the water and on the Victoria Docks foreshore.

This year’s event boats even more display space than before, with the show now spilling along Harbour Esplanade as well as taking up the space along Newquay Promenade.

Once again, a wide range of new boats will be on display on the water as well as on land. If you’re seeking inspiration for your own boat, a special section will include a display of 10 hand-picked rides featuring brands including Veitch, Haines Hunter, Edencraft and Tidal Flare that their owners have kitted out to make them stand out from the crowd.

But what else will be on show? Let us give you a small taste of what you can expect to see – and buy if you’re keen to pick up a boat show special.

Aussie Boat Sales will bet this year's show with something new to the US sports boat specialist's showroom, the circa $235,000 Chaparral 250 OSX OB bowrider.

This is the first time that the 8.1-metre family-focussed crossover boat will go on display at an Australian boat show. Adept at waterskiing or wake boarding, the outboard engine-powred Chaparral 250 OSX also makes for a great dayboat or fishing platform.

Importantly, the new model includes a toilet locker and can take up to 300hp of performance. The Chaparral's soft-riding deeper-vee hulls are also well-suited to Victoria's waters.

Whittley’s largest trailerable outboard-engined cruiser has arrived, and our first chance to see it up close will be at this year’s Melbourne show.

The new model will sell alongside the sterndrive version featuring a 350hp Volvo Penta V8 inboard engine. Powertrain choices for the outboard version range from a 300hp Mercury V8 through twin 225s featuring Mercury’s joystick control system for easy low-speed control, and right up to Mercury’s new 400hp V10 Verado.

One new Whittley we’re not going to see at the show is the new XS2000 bowrider. Whittley plans to launch this new model later in the year.

US sports boat specialist Monterey will have a large presence at the 2023 Melbourne Boat Show via distributor D’Albora Marine Boat Sales.

The display will include one of Monterey’s best-selling Super Sport models, the 278SS, a family-friendly 8.1-metre bowrider featuring up to 430hp of performance on tap. 

Also on show will be a circa $430,000 Monterey 298SS featuring an 8.8-metre length overall design, and a range-topping 11.3-metre Monetrey 385SS – one of only two in Australia and priced from around $1.2 million.

One of the larger motor yachts on display at the 2023 Melbourne Boat Show will be the Cetera 60, part of the display from Premier Yachting.

The circa $4.0 million Cetera 60 flybridge cruiser, from Italian boatyard Fiart, features a unique design that maximises the onboard space, especially the amount of enclosed living space – important when you live in a city with a changeable climate such as Melbourne. 

Victorian dealer Riviera Nautic will have the Whisper 300 on show in Melbourne. Built by UK-based Swallow Yachts, the Whisper 300 features classic styling wrapped in a modern package.

Of note, this boat is built from what Swallow claims is the original carbonfibre: wood. Its lightweight design means the 300 only needs 140hp of outboard engines hidden below a soundproof box to produce a top speed of 26 knots.

For those who prefer to enjoy the water at a much slower pace, Premier Yachting will have two Jeanneau Sun Odyssey sailboats on display.

The first will be the circa $200,000 11.3-metre Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349 featuring up to three double cabins and solid sea voyage potential. Alongside it will be the circa $690,000 13.4-metre Sun Odyssey 440 extended offshore cruiser.

After a number of years in the wilderness, Geelong-based fibreglass boat specialist Edencraft is returning to the Melbourne Boat Show with a strong display of its line-up.

The show will also be a chance to catch up with the brand and have a look at its upcoming 255 Formula, a new model that will tap up to 800hp in performance. While we won’t see the 255 Formula in real life, Edencraft will have a scale model on display that will give you an idea of what the new boat will look like.

Other boats on display will include the 6.0-metre Offshore that has become something of an ambassador boat for the brand.

The Melbourne show will be followed up with a family day in Geelong on Sunday, November 26 where people interested in owning an Edencraft can come and jump onboard one of the brand’s boats.

Alongside the Edencradft display will be a number of boats from NSW-based newcomer to the Australian market, Oceanworx.

Oceanworx is a range of cold-formed and high-tensile alloy trailer boats with an emphasis on high performance in a range of conditions.

The display at Docklands will include hulls from the Scorpion range of tiller steer, side and centre console Oceanworx boats.

Melbourne-based manufacturer Dunbier has reinvented its most popular line of trailers, introducing a much simpler design that accounts for the fact that the boats that sit on top of them are becoming much heavier.

The new trailer range suits models ranging from as small as tinnies right up to 6.2-metre fibreglass and alloy boats. 

According to Dunbier, the ground-up redesign launched at the 2023 Sydney International Boat Show includes single- and tandem-axle trailers in standard and wide configurations.

It is the biggest change to Dunbier’s trailer range in 20 years.

RM Marine has been appointed the official Victorian and Tasmanian dealer for fibreglass side and centre console specialist Sportsman Boats Australia.

The distributor will have a number of Sportsman models on display including the 19 Reef, a 5.8-metre model fitted with a 115hp Yamaha outboard engine.

A number of Arvor boats will feature Phillip Island Marine's boat show display, including the 755 Weekender and the 805 Sportsfish.

The roughly $120,000 7.8-metre Arvor 755 Weekender is built around a design that makes the most of the boat's interior space, making it extremely comfortable for a family out on an extended trip.

Meanwhile, the circa $180,000 7.1-metre Arvor 805 Sportsfish, the flagship of the line-up, is built for bluewater fishing expeditions. It includes features such as a plumbed live bait tank, a cockpit helm station and an option for up to two outboard engines to power it.

Warragul Marine Centre has added New Zealand-made Senator Boats to its product showroom that already includes fellow Kiwi brand McLay.

It is preparing a Senator RH690 HT, a 7.1-metre length overall semi-enclosed alloy plate boat with a full-size cabin forward, for its stand at the show. The circa-2000kg show package – that's on the trailer – will be fitted with a maximum-rated Suzuki DF250AP outboard engine.

The Docklands-based 2023 Melbourne Boat Show runs from Thursday, October 26 to Sunday, October 29. Displays are open from 3pm to 7pm on Thursday, 10am to 7pm on Friday and Saturday, and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday.
Entry is free, and you can book your ticket online.