Apreamare is a local Italian boatbuilder that hit the big time. Purveyor of distinctive, round-sterned craft that echo the style of Sorrento barche da pesca, the yard acquired a taste for the international high life during the boom years, as part of the mighty Ferretti Group. Back under family management in 2010, and now, since last September, 60-percent owned by Italian private equity, the firm still has its sights set on overseas sales.
And its latest model has definite international appeal. Handsome, sporty and well made, the new Gozzo 48 launched at last fall’s Cannes show; a three-cabin, two-head family cruising machine with safe side decks, lounging areas fore and aft, and a bright and sociable deck salon.
A large master cabin occupies the bow, with two tiers of windows to maximize the sense of space, plenty of stowage in drawers, shelves, and two hanging lockers, and a well-organized head and shower compartment. The bed is full size at 6-feet, 4 inches by 5 feet, 5 inches, and headroom too is well over 6 feet. Paired twin-berth cabins amidships seem noticeably less spacious, their height reduced between the berths to just four feet four inches or so, but there is plenty of headroom in the doorways, and the hanging lockers would give your wardrobes at home a run for their money. These two cabins share a day head and shower compartment on the port side of the central lobby, which, although not as big as the master’s, is still perfectly roomy and usable. If you’d like one full-beam midships cabin instead of the two twins, just ask.
The exterior spaces have a pleasingly minimalist feel to them, with a sunbed, bench seat, and fitted cushions forward, and another sunbed aft, which offers a reversible backrest. This feature lends the cockpit a versatility that seems out of all proportion to the simplicity of the concept—one definition, I suppose, of good design. Carbon poles, stowed conveniently each side of the sliding doors, can be rigged to shade the cockpit, which has easy, step-free communication with the salon. The table, cleverly, stows in the sole, and engine access via the cockpit hatch is equally straightforward.
Inside, the galley takes up one side of the salon, while the double helm seat, with its sociable reversible backrest, can be lowered down to extend the sofa.
The old South Coast boatbuilders of my acquaintance might have described the 48’s hull shape as “hard-chine, warped bottom,” but naval architects charge more nowadays, and we are encouraged to think of it as a variable-geometry deep-V, with a midships deadrise of 25 degrees flattening out to 15 degrees aft. It’s not what you might expect—Apreamare’s signature style dictates that faux transom with the curve of a traditional gozzo from the Golfo di Napoli, but of course the hull’s actual running surface continues aft to a conventional square stern, which is largely concealed beneath the hydraulic swim platform.
Nevertheless, assertive chine flats and elegantly tapered spray rails make the 48’s hull a thing of beauty—particularly as displayed at Cannes, with its pristine white bottom paint, red boot stripe, and lustrous navy topsides. If the brand managers had the courage to do away with the curved stern and carry the topsides aft to marry the transom, they would have a vessel of rare, classic elegance on their hands. Not to mention a bigger cockpit. But then, it wouldn’t be a gozzo.
You can have straight-shaft 600-horsepower Volvo D8s on the 48, or one of two IPS options. Ours had the 550-horsepower IPS 700s, which powered her to 31 knots on our brief sea trial one morning before the show opened for the day. There was a slight breeze and a light chop on the water, and she handled these minor inconveniences with the contempt they deserved. We found she was quite sensitive to trim—with a little bow-down adjustment at about 2200 rpm, for example, 20 knots became 21—so your cruising fuel economy will probably improve with familiarity.
With tanks about half full and hosting a pretty numerous boat show crew—I counted 11 of us—she felt lively and responsive, and was a pleasure to drive. A pleasure to be aboard, in fact.
Apreamare Gozzo 48 Specifications:
LOA: 48’3”
Beam: 15’5”
Draft: 4’7”
Displ. : 39,683 lb.
Fuel: 423 gal.
Water: 106 gal.
Power: 2/550-hp Volvo IPS 700; 2/600-hp Volvo IPS 800; 2/600-hp Volvo D8-600
This article originally appeared in the April 2026 issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine.
