First Impression: Troyanda

Date toured: December 2011

Troyanda is a 164-foot Feadship motoryacht that launched in 2004 as High Chaparral. She was originally built for an owner whose charter programs have long been top-notch (he now owns Hurricane Run). She sold to her current owner in summer 2010, and he retained longtime first mate John Colvin as the new captain. The owner also invested in a smart interior refit, which Colvin showed me as he explained that he is maintaining the same standards of service aboard Troyanda for which the previous crew and owner were known.

“I think the biggest difference, besides the refit itself, is that we are now actively for charter all throughout the year,” Colvin told me. “When she was High Chaparral, the owner used her all summer long and nobody could ever book in the Mediterranean. Now as Troyanda, that is no longer a problem. We are eager to book charters during every season.”

The interior refit, in my opinion, makes Troyanda look much more contemporary while retaining all of her great original qualities. The original theme of thoroughbred racehorses is gone, but the lovely woodwork remains. It’s now surrounded by rugs, furniture, window treatments, and other soft goods that are a bit more colorful but still neutral enough to appeal to most charter clients. There’s also an entirely new audiovisual system including high-definition and 3-D televisions.

Outdoors, the current owner added all-new deck furniture along with a 38-foot Novurania tender for Mediterranean charters. In all locations, there are also now Seabobs and a new Jet Ski, plus new gym equipment up on the sundeck.

There are six guest cabins aboard Troyanda. The previous owner used the sixth one as a gym; now it’s a spa and massage room. The yacht is marketed for 10 or 11 guests, with the 11th person able to sleep in a bed that pulls out of the wall in the massage room. It’s not a bunk-style Pullman berth. It’s more like a proper Murphy bed that folds out of the wall. Ideally, Colvin told me, it’s for a child.

Troyanda is marketed for charter through Hyde Yachts in London, which was involved in her sale to the current owner. Her lowest weekly base rate is €235,000. Any reputable charter broker can tell you more or help you book a week onboard.—Kim Kavin