Here is a yacht that looks like it means business, whether charging over open water at better than 30 knots, or sitting calmly at anchor in some sandy lagoon. Look at her aggressive posture, angular detailing, and streamlined shape—even if you knew little about express cruisers you’d probably guess this one is from Italy. And if the Atlantis brand is unfamiliar to you, look a little more closely: Underneath the badge on the side it also says, in polished stainless steel, “Azimut.”

And she really is. The Azimut Atlantis 50 is built at Azimut’s factory in Avigliana, the company’s home base, and receives, we are assured, exactly the same level of attention in terms of design, fit-out, and engineering as the parent marque. And that’s pretty clear when you step aboard—there are the big, chunky stainless steel handrails, several sizes larger than they really need to be; a signature of Azimut yachts. The saloon cabinetry is beautifully finished and not made of fiberglass, as you might expect, but of old-school, lacquered plywood. There is hidden quality, too, in the hull’s vinylester-resin outer skin and its vacuum-infused laminate.