- Founded
- 1973
- Headquarters
- Southampton, United Kingdom
- Shipyard location
- Hythe, United Kingdom
- Official website
- https://oysteryachts.com
Brand Overview
British builder of luxury bluewater deck-saloon sailing yachts, founded in 1973 and led since 2018 by owner Richard Hadida.
Overview written fromoysteryachts.com/our-story/read 9/7/2026
YachtCodex Analysis
AI-generatedAn independent reading of this builder written by AI. Unlike the specifications and descriptions elsewhere on this page, it is interpretation rather than a sourced fact — treat it as a starting point, not a citation.
What this builder is
Oyster Yachts is a long-established British builder specialising in luxury bluewater deck-saloon sailing yachts roughly 50-90 feet in length, positioned at the premium end of the offshore cruising market. It is known for hand-crafted construction, strong seaworthiness pedigree, and a close-knit ownership community supported by dedicated brokerage, charter and around-the-world rally programs, distinguishing it from mass-production cruiser builders.
Who sails them
Oyster owners are typically experienced or aspirational offshore sailors, often couples or small families, who use their yachts for long-distance bluewater cruising, extended liveaboard voyages, and organized events like the Oyster World Rally; boats are usually owner-operated or sailed shorthanded with occasional professional crew for larger models.
Signature models
Oyster 565 and Oyster 595 are the brand's best-selling, award-winning sixth-generation models; the Oyster 885 is the flagship; the original Oyster 35 (1978) pioneered the deck saloon design that defines the brand.
Strengths
Oyster is repeatedly credited with exceptional build quality and seaworthiness for long-distance ocean passages, strong after-sales support and owner community programs (such as the Oyster World Rally), and iconic deck-saloon design consistency across its range.
Considerations
Oyster's bluewater yachts sit at a high price point with long build/order lead times, and the range is relatively narrow (roughly 50-90 ft deck-saloon cruisers), so buyers seeking smaller boats, faster delivery, or budget cruising options may need to look elsewhere; the brand also went through a well-known 2018 ownership/financial restructuring.
Analysis generated 9/7/2026
Part of
Richard Hadida Yachting · since 2018
Where they build
The building sites this yard publishes, in its own order.
Landamores
Wroxham, United Kingdom
Built the founder's first cruiser-racer, the UFO 34
Hythe
Hythe, near Southampton, United Kingdom
State-of-the-art facility that produced the Oyster 495
Fleet at a Glance
Calculated from the models in the YachtCodex catalog, not from the builder's claims.
- Models in catalog
- 7
- Length range
- 16.48–27.08 m
- Hull forms
- Sailing Monohull 7
- Cabins
- 3–5
Models by this brand
7 models
History
Oyster's founder Richard Matthews launched his first cruiser-racer, the UFO 34, designed by Don Pye of Holman & Pye and built by Landamores in Wroxham, in 1973; the first Oyster-branded yacht, the Oyster 35 of 1978, pioneered the deck saloon that has marked every Oyster since, and the range grew through more than fifty models, including the Oyster 80. Early Oysters were racing cruisers whose seaworthiness turned them into bluewater cruisers, and a brokerage for pre-owned Oysters opened in 1984. Rob Humphreys was commissioned to design the Oyster 53 in 1999 and in 2012 drew the first of the sixth-generation G6 hulls -- sleeker, with a wider beam aft -- carried through seven models including the award-winning 565 and 595; Oyster Charter was set up in 2005, and the Oyster World Rally, launched for the fortieth anniversary in 2013 with 28 yachts, sailed again in 2017 and 2022. In 2018 Richard Hadida became the new owner, bringing investment, a new generation of yachts and record orders for the 565 and 595, a team of over 600, and the Oyster 495 built at the Hythe facility near Southampton.
History written fromoysteryachts.com/about/· Sharing adventures since 1973read 9/22/2026