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Hanse - where do they sit on the quality scale?

• Thread starter BlueSkyNick
• Start date 9 Jun 2010

BlueSkyNick

Active member.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being excellent, where do Hanse sit? Assuming Oyster is 10 ish Swedish boats 8 - 9 Moody 6-7, all IMHO of course. (I wont offend owners of the boats I think are down in the 1-3 range)  

Hmm - 9/10 for styling but maybe we need to give them time to establish a reliabilty/quality rating. When I looked at their deck gear, I was worried by the mainsheet traveller being so far forward, away from the cockpit and control by a short-handed crew. But that's just a personal prejudice.  

Well-known member

Boreades said: Hmm - 9/10 for styling but maybe we need to give them time to establish a reliabilty/quality rating. When I looked at their deck gear, I was worried by the mainsheet traveller being so far forward, away from the cockpit and control by a short-handed crew. But that's just a personal prejudice. Click to expand...

4/5 against the other benchmarks you have given. If you give Oyster 10 then HR / Malo are 11.  

• 10 Jun 2010

Fr J Hackett

On your scale about 2 to 3  

MoodyNick said: On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being excellent, where do Hanse sit? Assuming Oyster is 10 ish Swedish boats 8 - 9 Moody 6-7, all IMHO of course. (I wont offend owners of the boats I think are down in the 1-3 range) Click to expand...

I looked and smaller Hanse - was not impressed with the internals or finish in general - would put it on par with current Bav finishing for 'attention to detail' but I understand they sail well....  

I know someone who own's a 400 did one Atlantic circuit with numerous troubles and on return the surveyor said it was unfit for sea. That was a brand new boat. furniture moving, bulkheads cracked, rusting stainless on arrival in the Canaries and a forestay attachment that was moving. Hanse refused to accept that there was a problem (allegedly)  

Kurrawong_Kid

fmoran said: 4/5 against the other benchmarks you have given. If you give Oyster 10 then HR / Malo are 11. Click to expand...

jhr said: Nick - you're not selling Fiddler's Elbow, are you? Click to expand...

Blueboatman

On the one hand......As it were. Maybe more. I did read that epoxy built Hanses are available for little more than the fibreglass ones. That does seem a significant step forward and a useful bit of 'future proofing'.  

Having owned a new 400 for just over a year I can say that although I have had a few teething problems I am more then satisfied with my Hanse, The few problems mentioned where quickly dealt with by the dealer. It is a production boat and that is reflected in the quality against the more bespoke models, however it is also reflected in the price  

Personally I think it is nice to see most Hanse with a coloured hull. Makes a change from the usual white. I too have third hand reports of problems with them falling apart after longish trips. Probably ok for normal use of a few weeks a year and half a dozen weekends. I was not impressed when I looked down below at the boat shows. Very much an MFI feel. I would rate Bavaria higher. In saying that I have sailed a number of brand new boats in recent years and have to say the interiors are getting worse and worse. The latest, Sun Odyssey 37 will not last one season before it starts to look very tired down below. Quick example: Doors, the edging around the doors is glued on. A fraction of an overlap results in the trim getting caught and broken off.  

Sans Bateau

I'd agree that Bav's are better built than Hanse, I have sailed both, however the Hanse (371) did sail very well, I did a non stop Portsmouth to Cork on one. That particular boat, having done a respectable few sea miles in mixed conditions was starting to show her age. The boat at 7 years old, the owner commented recently that my Etap was in far better condition, even being 10 years older. The Hanse has recently been sold as its condition was going to start to get expensive. The boat went abroad. Nick, dont buy one.  

Whilst I agree - it is difficult to pidgeon a brand within a single 1-10 criteria - it is quite clear what Nick is after ... he's after how we would overall rate a Hanse compared to other makes - quite a simple and straight forward question - and he has had some pretty comprehensive answers with little confusion!  

Lord High Commander of Upper Broughton and Gunthor

galadriel said: I'd agree that Bav's are better built than Hanse, I have sailed both, however the Hanse (371) did sail very well, I did a non stop Portsmouth to Cork on one. That particular boat, having done a respectable few sea miles in mixed conditions was starting to show her age. The boat at 7 years old, the owner commented recently that my Etap was in far better condition, even being 10 years older. The Hanse has recently been sold as its condition was going to start to get expensive. The boat went abroad. Nick, dont buy one. Click to expand...

MoodyNick said: On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being excellent, where do Hanse sit? Click to expand...

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Does anyone have any experience with Hanse Yachts? Specifically the 315 but I would also like general input about the manufacturer. There seems to be a limited number here in the States.  

Hanse is a German boat manufacturer that has been growing in the last years. That growing is based on the quality of their boats that are a very good compromise between quality, price, performance and cruising amenities. Comparing with Beneteau (in general) they are a bit more expensive, a bit more fast (and less fat) and with better deck material, they can be made of epoxy (better and strong material, but then you should have a colored hull) and the interiors have a similar quality (even if the style is different). Of course, Beneteau has two lines, the one that is called Oceanis in Europe (and that in the States is called simply Benetau) and the one that is called First. The second one is faster than the Hanse, a bit more expensive and with better deck material and smaller accommodation. The Hanse, that has only one line, kind of stands in between the Oceanis and the First line. Owners are very proud and enthusiastic about their boats and they have a very good forum. If you have any doubt ask them and I am sure they will be happy to reply. myHanse - Hanse Yachts Owners Forum: 311 / 312 / 315 Hanse Yachts Regards Paulo  

PCP said: Hanse is a German boat manufacturer..."they can be made of epoxy (better and strong material, but then you should have a colored hull)" Thanks for the info Paulo, Just curious why an epoxy hull construction would need another color besides white. Would like to know the drawback of a Hanse epoxy hull with white hull color. Thanks in advance for any input from the forum. Click to expand...

I looked at some Hanse boats at two recent boat shows and really liked their boats (but not necessarily their interior styling). Hanse not only owns Dehler yachts but also owns Moody Yachts, they have become a major boatbuilder and are popular and common not only in Germany but throughout Europe.  

Try and send a PM to Arglebargle. he is in Vancouver BC and has a 37'ish foot hanse. He's had it about 2 yrs or so. Marty  

My wife and I looked at what they had on display of the Hanse line at the Annapolis boat show. I believe we were somehow (mis)taken by the broker as serious potential buyers, which was nice because we were able to poke around on the boats quite a bit and have a lot of questions answered. We were both fairly impressed and saw the Hanse 355 and 375 as being a lot more “us” than offerings from a lot of the other production builders.  

Hi Paolo I just discovered this thread and thought that I would add my two cents worth. I have a 2009 Hanse 470e yacht which is the epoxy version. She will turn five years old in March 2014 and she has a white hull, which is still beautifully white. She gets a good hull polish each year and a wash down when I can manage the fresh water required. It is important to understand that when laid up the Hanse epoxy boats have an exterior gelcoat layer and the epoxy layers are subsequently laid on top of the gelcoat when in the mould. This is a normal layup and the only difference as far as I can see is that epoxy is used over the gelcoat when in the mould instead of using Polyester or Vinylester resins. The point that I am making is that from external appearances, Hanse epoxy yachts look like any other yacht because the outer shell is Gelcoat and a white Beneteau, Oyster or Swan for example should weather in a similar manner. There are lots of benefits of using epoxy since there is no osmosis issues and epoxy is tougher and stronger than the other more commonly used (and cheaper) resins. This allows epoxy yachts to either be much stronger for a given hull thickness or just as strong with a thinner application and much lighter than a similar non epoxy hull. Cheers George  

You are lucky if you have an epoxy hull. Hanse does not made anymore hulls in epoxy. I really don't understand what you are saying. When we talk about an epoxy hull that means that is a fibreglass hull, with epoxy in place of the more widely used and less expensive polyester resins. When you use epoxy over the gelcoat is a different thing. It is called a coat and almost all manufacturers will propose that to you as an extra. That means that is a fiberglass hull made with poliester resins and on top of that you "paint" several coats of epoxy on the hull to make it really waterproof. I don't know if you have an epoxy hull or if you have a normal poliester hull with epoxy coating. Hanse used to do as an option epoxy hulls but not anymore. If you have a 470 e than you have an epoxy hull. Regards Paulo  

Hi Paolo What I am saying is that when laying up the hull the boat is constructed from the outside inwards with the first step being the gelcoat being sprayed into the mould and the epoxy layers are added after, which then becomes the interior of the hull. The point being that all fibreglass boats, epoxy or otherwise have a gelcoat layer as the external skin and the colour requirements should be identical I would have thought. Cheers George.  

Yes, that's like that. Even so some say that on epoxy hulls a colored hull is better for added protection to uv. Maybe the gel-coat will give it enough protection but probably it is also an epoxy gelcoat. I would not worry much, they are supposed to be UV resistant even if the epoxy has some problems with UV. Regards Paulo  

Hi Paulo I believe the Gelcoat on my Hanse 470e is polyester as I have repaired chips with normal polyester gelcoat, which works fine. If the Gelcoat were epoxy the polyester repairs wouldn't adhere, since you can epoxy over polyester but not the other way around. Anyway... four and a half years after launching and the white gelcoat still looks like new in the harsh Australian sun! Cheers George  

yes, it is quite as George is saying. Epoxy-based gelcoat wouldn't be sufficient UV resistant. There is no real issus with "normal" polyester gelcoat, on which epoxy + glass is used. Then there has been a rumor on Hanse epoxy delivered only in none-white. Probably a marketing thing from Hanse - most epoxy Hanse I see are colored in some pale way. /J  

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Yachting Monthly

• Digital edition

Hanse 460: first test of this luxurious cruiser

• David Harding
• October 3, 2022

First of a new range from new designers, the Hanse 460 is very much a Hanse but also very different. David Harding sees whether the new formula works

Product Overview

• Easy handling
• Roomy and versatile cockpit
• Spacious and stylish accommodation
• Limited handholds on deck
• No mainsheet traveller
• High freeboard when boarding

Manufacturer:

Price as reviewed:.

When you have spent sizeable chunks of your life crossing oceans, racing dinghies and crashing around the cans or across the Channel on racing yachts, it can take a while to appreciate fully the extent to which the market for cruising yachts has changed in recent years.

I say this even though I have been testing boats of all types since the mid 1990s.

Before that I spent some time in the sales office of a yacht builder and, as a child, cruised with my parents back in the days when you pushed your tender across the mud and rowed out to your drying mooring.

When you got on board you had no marine fridge , no heater , no pressurised water, no self-tailing winches, no roller-reefing headsail, no GPS or chartplotter and an engine that might start if you asked it nicely.

A self-tacking jib is standard but tracks for a 105% headsail can be fitted too. Credit: David Harding

For some of us, sailing has always been about the functional and fundamental. We sail because we’re sailors and we enjoy sailing for sailing’s sake.

Then there are the other simple, elemental pleasures: the sea, the peace of a quiet anchorage and a swim before breakfast.

Fast forward several decades and things are different. People want so much more from a boat and, in many respects, today’s boats undoubtedly offer a lot more.

Priorities have changed, so those of us who test boats have to look at them from a different perspective.

The coachroof-mounted mainsheet is led aft, German style, to the helms each side. Credit: David Harding

We still think about upwind capability in 30 knots of wind against tide, and whether we can brace ourselves at the foot of the companionway to don our waterproofs at 30° of heel, but we acknowledge that these factors will matter to fewer people than they once did.

Of relevance to more prospective owners will be how the boat sails in the moderate conditions, the forward stateroom, and whether you can still see the pop-up TV in the saloon from the galley.

This is not meant to sound disparaging. It’s what people want and what builders are offering. It’s luxury on the water, and few old-school sailors would dispute that some aspects of it can be very welcome.

Twin helm stations in the uncluttered cockpit, here with the second table to port and the extra seat/stowage pod forward of the starboard helm. Credit: David Harding

What you might loosely call the mainstream European builders of family cruising yachts – the Beneteau s, Jeanneaus, Dufour s, Bavaria s and Hanses of this world – have been following this path for some time, making each generation of designs bigger and plusher than the last.

For Hanse in particular, it has been a rapid evolution from the small, basic and functional to the large and luxurious, because the company has only been around for little over 25 years.

I tested the very first Hanse – the 291 – back in 1995.

Then, this summer, I was back at Hamble Point (having sailed many other Hanses in the intervening years) to test the newest offering from Germany’s biggest boatbuilder.

Hanse 460: Time for a change

This latest Hanse is the first to be designed by Berret-Racoupeau.

After the earliest models, which used the moulds of discontinued, slim-hulled Scandinavian designs, every Hanse has been designed by Judel/Vrolijk in what became one of boatbuilding’s most enduring and successful partnerships.

Inevitably, in line with modern trends, each new wave of Hanses has been higher, wider and more voluminous than the last.

The moulded bowsprit keeps the anchor clear of the stern and provides an attachment point for the optional outer forestay. Credit: David Harding

Hanse’s founder, Michael Schmidt, never lost sight of the performance side, however. Once upon a time he did do rather well in the Admiral’s Cup.

For all their growing girths and towering topsides, Hanses have always been boats that sail. They also reached a stage a while ago when I for one – and I wasn’t alone – reckoned I had a pretty good idea of what to expect when a new model was announced.

Hanse went through a rattan and gloss-varnish-interior phase, then a shorter phase when the accommodation seemed to be littered with cubes in garish colours.

The company had, it seemed, settled down to produce boats that didn’t attract quite so many headlines and that did what Hanses were known for.

Shallow recesses next to the hatches at the aft end of the coachroof make useful bins for day stowage. Credit: David Harding

These were competitively priced, high volume cruisers that were easy to sail (self-tacking jibs were used from the early days) and that performed better than many of the alternatives.

So when I heard about the Hanse 460, I pictured something along the lines of a remodelled 458. As it turned out, it was different. Very different.

The fact that it had won the Family Cruiser category in the 2022 European Yacht of the Year awards meant something.

Perhaps more significant was a new alliance with the French design team that has been responsible for many Beneteaus, Fountaine-Pajots, Garcias and others, not to mention a host of superyachts and, back in the day, IOR racers too.

If it looks fast

The big question was whether Hanse had managed to do something different while retaining its core qualities.

At a glance, the 460 looks sleeker and sportier than earlier models. More angular too, with a reverse rake to the bow and a pronounced knuckle running to about halfway aft.

In Hanse tradition there are no hard-angled chines but the 460 has a pronounced soft chine towards the stern.

Full bow sections create a wide foredeck with space for a lot of hatches. Credit: David Harding

In plan view you see full forward sections which, combined with the broad stern, generous freeboard and ample beam, hold the promise of enormous interior volume.

Below the waterline you have a single deep rudder – Hanses have never had twin rudders – and a choice of deep (2.25m/7ft 5in) or shallow (1.75m/5ft 9in) fin keels in cast iron.

Stepped on deck is a rig of high-fractional configuration, the mast having two sets of swept spreaders and a permanent backstay.

Lines from the mast disappear under separate mouldings along the outsides of the coachroof…..Credit: David Harding

All told, the appearance is pretty rakish for a voluminous cruiser. ‘She looks like Comanche (the 100ft maxi racer) from astern,’ someone told me.

I doubted the Hanse would be quite as fast, but I could see what he meant. At the other end, a moulded bowsprit projects the anchor clear of the stem and provides an attachment point for an outer forestay on which you can carry a reaching headsail.

…to emerge through a bank of clutches and a winch forward of the wheels. Credit: David Harding

Large windows in the topsides help to break up the high freeboard. Scale those topsides and you’re faced with an expanse of wide flat deck and coachroof.

Moulded bulwarks edge the side decks to help keep feet where they belong should you venture forward when the boat’s heeled.

Otherwise what stands out is the uncluttered appearance – lines are led aft beneath separate mouldings – and the plethora of deck hatches hinged every which way, including one that opens to reveal a large bow locker.

A creative cockpit

Today’s cockpits are no longer just places from where you control the boat.

Controlling the boat in itself is so much easier anyway, especially if – as most owners of the 460 will – you upgrade to electric winches , electric in-mast reefing and electric furling for the genoa on the outer forestay.

The most energetic part will be unloading and loading up any winches – having first put down your glass of Prosecco – and then pressing a switch at one of the twin helm stations.

The Hanse 460 offers good performance in the settled conditions of our test. The single rudder made the helm feel light and responsive. Credit: David Harding

On boats of this size now it’s all pretty normal. Other push-button options are for the hinge-down bathing platform and the cockpit tables (either side or both), which can be lowered to create large lounging areas.

Alternatively there are fixed tables, as we had on the port side. A wet bar can be added between the helm seats.

It makes the cockpit a multi-function space in which every part can serve a variety of purposes.

That theme is continued below decks.

A plethora of ports and windows make the saloon particularly bright. Here the finish is in teak, but plenty of options are on offer. Credit: David Harding

From the sailing perspective, at least in the flat water and modest breeze we encountered, the cockpit worked well.

In any wind and seaway you would be pleased to have the optional second table to port as a bracing point. At the helms you have a comfortable perch outboard of the wheel or, for energetic downwind sailing when you might need both hands, behind it.

The Jefa linkage is light and direct, giving a good feel from the rudder.

A chart table can be fitted to starboard if you don’t have the longer galley, bunk cabin or extra shower. Credit: David Harding

On the starboard side you can wind down the bifurcated backstay when extra headstay tension is needed.

Whether the inner or outer stay was taking the load was hard to tell. Cockpit stowage consists of a half-depth locker each side and – a first for Hanse – a dedicated liferaft locker right aft to starboard.

A stateroom forecabin includes an island berth and generous stowage above and below. Credit: David Harding

With the electric-lowering option for the starboard table comes an extra moulded seat pod, which provides easy-access shallow stowage forward of the starboard helm and would be good to have for that reason alone.

Small oddments can otherwise be thrown into shallow recesses at the aft end of the coachroof.

Hanse 460: Enjoyable sail

Moving about the deck and cockpit, and from one to the other, is easy in good weather . The wide open spaces let you simply stroll around – or lie around if you’re so inclined.

Then again, they tend to present more of a challenge when a boat’s bouncing and heeling. You can’t have it both ways.

Talking of bouncing and heeling, Hanse’s literature stresses the performance aspects of the 460.

In-mast reefing and the upgraded tri-radial sails are proving to be popular options. Credit: David Harding

The waterline is narrower than on some high volume cruisers (at 80% of maximum beam), and this one certainly slipped along very nicely on a flat sea in 12-14 knots of wind – conditions that could hardly have been less demanding.

With a flood tide in the Solent and a log that was clearly under-reading by a considerable margin, some calculation was needed to work out our speed through the water.

It looked as though we clocked around 7.5 knots with the apparent wind at just under 30°, and we tacked through around 80° by the compass.

Weather helm was slight and the load on the wheels increased relatively little if I tried bearing away with the sheets pinned in, the rudder providing plenty of grip.

The angle clearly shows the full forward sections, the knuckle above the waterline and the rounded chine towards the stern. Credit: David Harding

Provoked in the opposite direction, she coped well when pinched mercilessly and also when thrown into tight spins, only stalling briefly before laminar flow was restored over the foils.

There was certainly nothing to complain about in the performance and handling department, and much to enjoy.

We even had an opportunity to sail upwind alongside a Hanse 458 – a model based on a hull that goes back to 2012 and that’s still in production alongside the Hanse 460.

Although we were trying to stay close together rather than to have a race, there were no obvious differences in performance in those conditions.

Ours was a newer boat and more lightly laden, but giving away some efficiency with an in-mast-reefing mainsail.

Lifestyle choices

Externally, the hull lines clearly differentiate the 460 from her earlier stablemates. On deck the differences are more subtle, while the cockpit is typical Hanse.

Down below it’s a world apart.

Part of Hanse’s mission with the new-generation designs is to move upmarket and fill a perceived gap between boats from the other large-scale production builders, with which it has commonly been grouped in the minds of the boat-buying public, and the more bespoke, hand-crafted offerings from the Scandinavian yards.

Easy access to the front of the 57hp Yanmar diesel. Panels remove each side too. Credit: David Harding

It’s certainly a more classy finish than we’ve seen before from Hanse.

Not loud, brash, futuristic or radical, but restrained in tone and a level above what we have become used to.

Berret-Racoupeau is one of relatively few yacht design studios to have its own interior-design division, and this must make it easier to integrate the inside and outside worlds.

A host of interior layouts is available.

About the only constant is the presence of twin double cabins in the stern. Otherwise you can have different arrangements in the bow (cabins and heads) and amidships with a long or short linear galley and a bunk cabin or utility room to starboard where our boat had a chart table and heads compartment.

The Hanse 460 is the first boat of a new range from Berret-Racoupeau. Credit: David Harding

Details include backrests that hinge down in the saloon to provide trays and drinks-holders.

Then you can press a button to lower the table to bunk-level, press another to pop up the TV from its central pod, and settle down for the evening.

Down here it’s all about sight-lines, integrating all the different areas so no one feels left out, and ensuring that, as in the cockpit, every part of the layout performs multiple functions.

It sounds convincing when you read about it, and in practice it is – at least in terms of creating a pleasant and light environment.

It also seemed fine when we were under sail, albeit in benign conditions.

Hanse 460: Test Verdict

Sometimes you come across a boat that makes you realise not only that boat design has changed irrevocably, but also why it has changed and why it’s not going back.

The Hanse 460 is unquestionably such a boat.

How the crew lives aboard and moves around, both above and below decks, has clearly been thought about in the context of modern lifestyles.

The port aft heads includes a shower as standard. Credit: David Harding

And this boat exudes style with a capital S.

While she will undoubtedly attract newcomers to boat-ownership, I see no reason why a few crusty old salts shouldn’t be wooed by her as well.

A boat like this is unlikely to slice to windward in heavy weather as comfortably as, say, a first-generation Swan 46 or even something more recent like a Starlight 46, but most people aren’t really interested in that these days.

I suspect the new Hanse will prove to be a pretty quick and competent all-rounder nonetheless.

Would the Hanse 460 suit you and your crew?

If you like the fundamental design, you will certainly be able to tailor many of the details to suit your tastes.

There’s a vast array of options, from cabin layouts (three to five cabins, up to four showers and from six to 10 berths) to multitudinous choices of woodwork, upholstery and sail arrangement.

Hanse’s website allows you to configure your boat and to see what it looks like if you change the hull colour, add a cabin or two or switch from the deep to the shallow keel.

Backrests hinge forward in the saloon to create trays and drink-holders. Credit: David Harding

The technology doesn’t end there. When you place your order, you can also add MyHanse Safety Cloud so you can monitor onboard systems via your phone.

Simple sailing? The technology is not remotely simple these days.

But with the Hanse 460, the sailing itself is simple and can still be a lot of fun.

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Yachting World

• Digital Edition

Hanse 460 review: First in a new range

• David Harding
• January 26, 2023

The Hanse 460 is the first in a new range of Hanses. From new designers, she is already a big hit, with over 200 sold and a European Yacht of the Year win to its name. David Harding reports

Product Overview

Price as reviewed:.

For some of us, sailing has always been about the functional and fundamental. We enjoy sailing for sailing’s sake. But today people want so much more from a boat and, in many respects, today’s yachts undoubtedly offer a lot more and the Hanse 460 attempts to do just that.

What you might loosely call the mainstream European builders of family cruising yachts have been following this path for some time, making each generation of designs bigger and plusher than the last. For Hanse in particular, it has been a rapid evolution from the small, basic and functional to the large and luxurious.

This latest Hanse is the first to be designed by Berret-Racoupeau. After the earliest models, which used the moulds of discontinued, slim-hulled Scandinavian designs, every Hanse has been designed by Judel/Vrolijk in what became one of boatbuilding’s most enduring and successful partnerships.

In line with modern trends, each new wave of Hanses has been higher, wider and more voluminous than the last. Founder Michael Schmidt never lost sight of the performance side, however. For all their growing girths and towering topsides, Hanse has always made boats that sail – competitively-priced, high-volume cruisers but with easy handling (self-tacking jibs were used from the early days) and better performance than many of the alternatives.

The single rudder is light and responsive on the helm. Photo: HanseYachts/Nico Krauss

The Hanse 460 is different. Very different. The first model from a new alliance with the French designers, it promptly won the European Yacht of the Year as the best Family Cruiser for 2022. A Hanse 510 version now follows.

The big question was whether Hanse had managed to do something different while retaining the qualities that its owners had traditionally sought.

At a glance, the Hanse 460 looks sleeker and sportier than earlier models; more angular, with a reverse rake to the bow and a pronounced knuckle running to about half-way aft. In Hanse tradition there are no hard-angled chines but, in this case, a pronounced soft chine towards the stern. In plan view you see full forward sections which, combined with the broad stern, generous freeboard and ample beam, hold the promise of enormous interior volume.

The 460’s generous and uncluttered cockpit. Photo: HanseYachts/Nico Krauss

At the other end, a moulded bowsprit projects the anchor clear of the stem and provides an attachment point for an outer forestay which can carry a reaching headsail. Large windows in the topsides help to break up the high freeboard.

Scale those topsides and you’re faced with an expanse of wide, flat deck and coachroof. Moulded bulwarks edge the side decks to help keep feet where they belong should you venture forward when the boat’s heeled. Otherwise what stands out is the uncluttered appearance – lines are led aft beneath separate mouldings – and the plethora of deck hatches hinged every which way, including one that opens to reveal a large bow locker.

There was certainly nothing to complain about in the performance and handling department. We slipped along very nicely on a flat sea in 12-14 knots of wind, clocking around 7.5 knots with the apparent wind at just under 30°, and tacking through around 80° by the compass.

Moulded bowsprit keeps anchor clear of the stem and provides attachment for the optional outer forestay. Photo: Andreas Lindlahr/EYOTY

Enjoyable sailing

Weather helm was slight and the load on the wheels increased relatively little if I tried bearing away with the sheets pinned in, the single rudder providing plenty of grip. Provoked in the opposite direction, she coped well when pinched mercilessly and also when thrown into tight spins, only stalling briefly.

At least in the flat water and modest breeze we encountered, the cockpit worked well. In any wind and seaway you would be pleased to have the optional second table to port as a bracing point. At the helm stations you have a comfortable perch outboard of the wheel or, for energetic downwind sailing when you might need both hands, behind it. The Jefa linkage is light and direct, giving a good feel from the rudder. On the starboard side you can wind down the bifurcated backstay when extra headstay tension is needed.

Hanse 460 is from Berret-Racoupeau. Photo: Andreas Lindlahr/EYOTY

Today’s cockpits are no longer just places from where you control the boat. Controlling the boat in itself is so much easier anyway, especially if – as most owners of the Hanse 460 will – you upgrade to electric winches, electric in-mast reefing and electric furling for the genoa on the outer forestay.

Other push-button options are for the hinge-down bathing platform and the cockpit tables (either side or both), which can be lowered to create large lounging areas. Alternatively there are fixed tables, as we had on the port side. A wet-bar can be added between the helm seats. It’s all part of making the cockpit a multi-function space in which every part can serve a variety of purposes. Cockpit stowage is in the form of a half-depth locker each side and – a first for Hanse – a dedicated liferaft locker right aft to starboard. With the electric-lowering option for the starboard table comes an extra moulded seat pod, which provides readily-accessible shallow stowage forward of the starboard helm and would be good to have for that reason alone.

Portlights and windows flood the saloon with natural light. Photo: HanseYachts/Nico Krauss

Moving about the deck and cockpit, and from one to the other, is easy in good weather. The wide open spaces let you simply stroll around – or lounge if you’re so inclined. Then again, they tend to present more of a challenge when a boat’s bouncing and heeling.

Lifestyle choices

Externally, the hull lines clearly differentiate the 460 from her earlier stablemates, but down below it’s a world apart. It’s certainly a more classy finish than we’ve seen before from Hanse; restrained in tone and a level above what we have become used to. Berret-Racoupeau is one of relatively few yacht design studios to have its own interior-design division.

Stateroom forecabin has generous stowage above and below the bed. Photo: HanseYachts/Nico Krauss

A host of interior layouts is available, from three to five cabins, up to four showers and from six to 10 berths. About the only constant is the presence of twin double cabins in the stern. Otherwise you can have different arrangements in the bow (cabins and heads) and amidships with a long or short linear galley and a bunk cabin or utility room to starboard where our boat had a chart table and heads compartment.

Details include backrests that hinge down in the saloon to provide trays and drinks-holders. You can press a button to lower the table, press another to pop up the TV from its central pod, and settle in for the evening.

Down here it’s all about sight-lines, integrating the different areas so no one feels left out, and ensuring that, as in the cockpit, every part of the layout performs multiple functions. In practice it creates a thoroughly pleasant and remarkably light environment.

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Sometimes you come across a boat that makes you realise not only that yacht design has changed irrevocably, but also why it has changed and why it’s not going back. The Hanse 460 is unquestionably such a boat. How the crew lives aboard and moves around, both above and below decks, has clearly been thought about in the context of modern lifestyles. And this boat exudes style. If you like the fundamental design, you will be able to tailor many of the options and details to suit your tastes. A yacht like this is unlikely to slice to windward in heavy weather as comfortably as, say, a first-generation Swan 46, but most people aren’t really interested in that these days. I suspect the new Hanse will prove to be a pretty quick and competent all-rounder nonetheless. Simple sailing? The technology is not remotely simple any more. But with the Hanse 460, the sailing itself is simple and can still be a lot of fun.

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