The event, which celebrated its 54th edition with six headquarters and more than 3 million square feet of exhibition space, offered a variety of yachts for all tastes and interests: runabouts, high performance fishing boats, center console vessels, pleasure sail and motor yachts, flat-bottomed boats, skiffs, front cover crafts, catamarans, boats for water skiers, recreational trackers, inflatable boats, canoes and of course, luxury super-yachts.

The luxury yachts attracted the most visitors and brought amazing surprises. But there were also other interesting developments in a smaller scale. These are some of the vessels that can be considered the real stars at the 2013 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show:

Cakewalk

This giant, 218 feet long and 2,950 tons in weight, built by Derecktor Shipyards made her debut during this show. It is the largest yacht built in the U.S. since the 1930s, and some consider it the largest ever built in the country, taking into account its volume. The ship, created by internationally acclaimed yacht designer Tim Heywood stands out not only for its size, but also for its elegant and modern line that manages to maintain a very classic style.

Salute

The Salute was presented at the fair as a representative of a more traditional way of navigation. The company Perini Navi Group chose the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show for the debut of this stunning sailboat, the first of its 180-foot series. The vessel has an aluminum mast 246 feet high, a 31,215 square-foot sail area and a hull also made of aluminum. French decorator Remi Tessier, who wanted to bring to every corner of the boat a warm and welcoming tone with Japanese design details, created the interiors of the yacht.

Pleasure boats

For many visitors and critics, this year´s boat fair will be remembered for the distinguished presence of a different kind of “big boat”. These vessels are known for their luxurious finish, center console, powerful outboard engines, their size that exceeds 40 feet in length, and because they are aimed at experienced anglers and passionate offshore fishermen. These “big boats” are capable of hosting large fishing equipment and are well prepared to provide long enjoyable hours on board, or even spend the night.

Mainly yacht owners purchase many of these vessels with prices reaching six figures as a second boat, more agile and fast, which doesn’t need a captain. Some of the new boats in this category are Jupiter 41, SeaVee 430, Invincible 42 Walkaround and Seahunter Tournament 45. ■