This page contains affiliate and referral links. If you charter, book, or buy through them we earn a referral fee, paid by the broker or platform, at no cost to you. We have not adjusted our rankings for the referral rate. Full breakdown on our how-we-make-money page.
Cloudbreak was delivered by Abeking & Rasmussen in 2016 at 73.2m LOA with ice-strengthened hull plating, a certified helideck, and a fuel range of 6,000 nautical miles. She is one of fewer than 12 yachts in the 70m+ class that genuinely operate winter ski-charter weeks in Norway and the Lyngen Alps, and she is the most refined of the group. Her winter charter rate runs €620K to €720K per week as of November 2025, plus 35% APA, and her summer Mediterranean rate runs higher at €750K to €820K. The ski programme is what most clients find her through, and it is the part of her record worth understanding before you book.
Specifications
| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| LOA | 73.2m (240.2 ft) |
| Beam | 13.4m |
| Draft | 4.3m |
| GT | 2,170 |
| Year built | 2016 |
| Major refit | None major to date (2025-2026 expected) |
| Builder | Abeking & Rasmussen, Lemwerder, Germany |
| Naval architect | Espen Øino International |
| Interior design | Christian Liaigre |
| Class | Lloyd's Register, ice-strengthened to 1A category, MCA Large Yacht Code |
| Flag | Cayman Islands |
| Guests | 12 in 6 cabins |
| Crew | 18 |
| Main engines | 2 x MTU 12V 4000 M63 diesel |
| Top speed | 16 knots |
| Cruising speed | 12 knots |
| Range at 12 knots | 6,000 nm |
| Stabilizers | At-rest and underway (Quantum) |
| Helideck | Certified, not touch-and-go |
Why Cloudbreak is the ski-charter yacht
Four reasons, in order.
The hull and ice classification. Cloudbreak is built to Lloyd's Ice Class 1A, which means she is designed for operation in light first-year ice up to 0.5m thick. That classification is not Antarctica-grade (you want Polar Code Category B for that, which is the Legend and Ragnar tier), but it is more than sufficient for Norway, Iceland, Greenland's coastal waters, and shoulder-season Antarctic peninsula work. The classification also affects insurance and charter routes in a way that a non-ice-classed yacht of comparable size simply cannot offer.
The helideck. Cloudbreak's helideck is certified, not touch-and-go. The distinction matters because a touch-and-go pad means the helicopter cannot remain on board, which makes heli-skiing operationally awkward: you need to coordinate every flight from a shore base. A certified deck lets you keep the helicopter aboard for the duration of the charter, with refuelling from yacht fuel and engineering support from the yacht's deck team. The helicopter itself is chartered separately, typically at €3,500 to €4,500 per flight hour in Norway, but the yacht-based coordination shortens every day's operation by 45 to 90 minutes.
The crew. Cloudbreak's captain and senior crew have repeated Norway and Greenland seasons over the last seven years. The mountain-side operational knowledge (which fjord arms hold the right snow conditions, which heli-operators are reliable, which shore-base mechanics can fix a Eurocopter at 9pm on a Sunday) is in the crew, and the crew is the reason most clients book her over the (slightly larger) Legend or Ragnar.
The interior. Christian Liaigre's interior was the second yacht commission of his career, after Vertigo (67m S/Y, 2011). It is the warmest interior in the ski-charter class. Legend is purposeful and slightly industrial. Ragnar is the converted icebreaker with a Scandinavian apartment interior. Cloudbreak is the only yacht in the class that feels like a Liaigre apartment in the snow, and after eight days of skiing that matters.
What works on Cloudbreak
The wellness deck. Cloudbreak has a hammam, a sauna, a snow room (yes, a snow room), a massage room, and a gym. For a Norway charter where you are coming aboard wet at 4pm every day for eight days, the wellness layout is the part of the yacht that does the most operational work.
The dining. The galley team has built a Nordic winter dining brief that handles braised meats, seafood pulled from the daily catch, and a strong cellar selection optimised for cold-weather drinking. The chef's brief is not Italian-Mediterranean rebadged for Norway. It is its own thing.
The garage. The tender garage carries a 9m Wajer 38 (the standard tender), a smaller chase boat, two snowmobiles for shore-based operations, and the usual watertoy fleet. For a winter charter the snowmobiles are the point. They are launched from the garage onto a beach landing wherever the captain finds suitable terrain.
The fuel range. 6,000 nm at 12 knots means Cloudbreak can run a full season in Norway, repositioning between Tromsø, Bodø, the Lofoten archipelago, and the Lyngen fjord without bunkering. For a remote-area charter that flexibility is valuable.
The friction
The galley exhaust. Cold-weather galley operation produces visible exhaust on the upper deck that the original 2016 design did not fully resolve. We are told the issue has been mitigated through hood-and-extraction upgrades, but it is still occasionally noticeable in flat-calm cold conditions.
The aft deck. The aft deck on Cloudbreak is sized for Mediterranean alfresco dining, not for Norway-winter use. In Norway you will use the interior dining saloon more than the aft deck. The aft deck is not wasted (it carries the tender deployment for warm-water work), but for a winter-only client the layout is suboptimal.
The owner's cabin position. The owner's cabin is on the bridge deck. For a Norway winter charter where you are heli-out at 8am every morning, the long internal route from the owner's cabin to the heli deck is workable but not ideal. Legend (with a main-deck master closer to the helideck) handles this better.
The price. Cloudbreak is not cheap. €720K per week for an eight-day Norway charter, plus 35% APA running €250K, plus helicopter charter at €4,500 per flight hour running typically €60K to €90K for a 14-15 flight-hour week, puts the all-in cost north of €1.1M for a week's heli-skiing. That number is the entry price for the format, and any charter client who has not booked this kind of yacht before should understand that the yacht is not the largest line item by the end of the trip.
Charter rate and availability
As of November 2025:
- Winter Norway / Iceland / Greenland: €620K to €720K per week + 35% APA + VAT where applicable
- Mediterranean summer (June to September): €750K to €820K per week + 30% APA + VAT
- Caribbean repositioning (limited weeks): €680K per week + 30% APA
She typically completes 18 to 22 charter weeks per year across the three regions, which is high utilisation for a 73m purpose-spec yacht. The Norway calendar typically opens for booking in March of the prior year, and the peak January / February ski weeks reportedly book 8 to 14 months out.
The central agent is. Retail brokers can book her at standard 15-20% retail commission.
Comparable yachts in the class
If Cloudbreak is unavailable or the brief is harder (full Antarctic, or harder ice work), the closer comparators are:
- M/Y Legend (77m, ice-class explorer, 1974 build with 2010-2015 conversion): the heavier alternative, with a less refined interior but stronger Polar Code rating. See our Legend charter analysis.
- M/Y Ragnar (68m, converted icebreaker, 2020 conversion): the gritty alternative, lower price point, less refined finish. See Ragnar profile.
- M/Y Planet Nine (73m Admiral, 2018): comparable LOA, certified helideck, less aggressive ice classification. See Planet Nine profile.
Frequently asked questions
Can Cloudbreak go to Antarctica? She has, in past seasons, run shoulder-season (November or March) charter weeks to the Antarctic peninsula. Her ice classification is sufficient for peninsula work but not for deep-ice operation. For a serious Antarctic brief the better answer is Legend or one of the ex-research-vessel conversions.
What is included with the helideck? Helideck operation, helicopter refuelling from yacht fuel, helicopter parking, basic engineering support. The helicopter itself, the pilot, and the flight hours are chartered separately. Cloudbreak does not own a helicopter.
Are guides included for ski-charter? The ski-guide and avalanche-safety team is typically arranged with the charter and is a separate line item, running roughly €4,000 to €6,000 per guide per week. Two guides for a six-skier guest party is the standard ratio. Read our heli-ski-from-yacht format guide for the broader logistics.
Does Cloudbreak run summer charter in the Caribbean? Limited weeks. Most years she repositions through the Caribbean rather than basing there, so summer Caribbean availability on Cloudbreak is intermittent. For Caribbean primary, Here Comes the Sun is the better answer.
What is the largest group she can handle? 12 guests in 6 cabins is the standard configuration. The cabin layout is genuinely flexible for couples and family groups but does not extend beyond 12.
Verdict
Cloudbreak is the right yacht for a 12-guest party that wants heli-skiing from the yacht in Norway or Greenland, with a Liaigre interior, a stable crew, and a charter operator who has done the routine many times before. She is not the right yacht for Antarctica proper, not the right yacht for an 18-guest party, and not the right yacht if you object to a €1M+ all-in week. Within her specific brief she is the cleanest choice in her class.
If you want to put a Norway ski week together for January or February 2027, the inquiry window is open now. The peak weeks (mid-January, late February) book 8 to 14 months out. If the dates are flexible, the shoulder weeks (early December, late March) run 15% to 25% lower in fuel cost and produce comparable snow conditions in most years.