One of the design goals for the Horizon Power Catamarans line is for each model to look as much like a monohull as possible when viewed in profile. Boarding the PC74 Open Flybridge from the transom, it was clear this was no monohull. High, wide and handsome, the four-stateroom vessel spanned a 28-plus-foot beam. It was a catamaran, all right, and very well outfitted.
Take the flybridge, sheltered by a large hardtop attached to the three-piece windshield. There is a teak dining table for eight plus a sunpad (or watch berth) to port, and a U-shaped bar with swing-out stainless steel stools to starboard. Appliances behind the bar include a sink, fridge, icemaker, drink box/freezer and even a dryer for bar towels. The boat deck aft includes an E51500 Steelhead Marine Davit to launch a tender, custom life raft mounting bracket, another fridge, BBQ grill and storage. Oh, and there’s an enclosed head on the flybridge as well.
Despite this major payload, as we traveled south down Florida’s Atlantic coast to Ft. Lauderdale, we recorded a top speed over 22 knots. Cruise speed was around 18 knots at 2000 rpm. Sitting in a comfortable Stidd chair at the helm, I enjoyed good visibility around the boat, plus an easy view of the charts and data displayed on the three 27-inch Garmin monitors.
2019 Horizon PC74
Running in 2- to 3-foot seas, the boat provided us with the smooth ride that has attracted many offshore yachtsmen and women (especially those with bad knees and aching joints) to power cats over the years. The tunnel lets the boat ride on a cushion of air.
The extra width afforded by the power cat configuration gives the PC74 a huge aft deck that’s accessed from the flybridge by a wide, curving staircase. There is room here for a long settee and a separate dining table that seats up to 10 people. A wet bar is forward, along with a storage locker in the bulkhead that’s big enough to be plumbed as a day head.
Open the sliding glass doors to the salon and galley to create a huge indoor/outdoor space for lounging and entertaining. Yacht designer JC Espinosa, who developed the PC74’s contemporary interior plan, kept the salon open and the loose, beach-house-style furnishings low in order to draw the eye to the large windows on each side. The headroom is around 9 feet. The galley lies to starboard as you enter from the aft deck.
But the big salon/galley is not the full extent of the main deck’s accommodations. Forward lies a master suite with a king berth that has a commanding view through wraparound windows. Our test boat had three lower-deck staterooms, reached by a short flight of stairs from either side of the salon. Each hull has an identical VIP stateroom forward with a king berth angled to face the side hull window, along with an en suite head. There is also a guest stateroom with twin berths in the port hull that can be converted to a queen, again with its own head.
The aft section of the starboard hull houses a separate crew’s quarters that includes a captain’s cabin, crew cabin and small lounge with microwave. The crew’s quarters add the option of full luxury charter operations, if desired. —Louisa Beckett
Horizon Yachts, 888-839-3071; horizonpowercatamarans.com
LOA: 73’9”
Beam: 28’4”
Draft: 5’11”
Displ.: 163,142 lbs.
Fuel: 2,000 gal.
Water: 400 gal.
STD. Power: 2/1,150-hp Caterpillar C18 ACERT
Cruise Speed: 19 knots
Top Speed: 23 knots
Price: $6.6 million