ETERNO is a Riva motor yacht that carries one of the most respected names in Italian yachting into a compact, fast and elegant package for six guests. At twenty one and a half metres she is a yacht for people who value design and pace over sheer size, finished in the dark gloss timber and clean lines that have made Riva a byword for taste on the water. Run by a crew of three, she is an easy yacht to step aboard and enjoy from the first evening.
Performance is part of the appeal. With a top speed around thirty knots she is genuinely quick, able to dart between bays and islands and turn a long passage into a short hop. That speed changes how a charter feels: lunch can be on one island and dinner on another, and a change in the weather is never a problem. When there is no rush she drops to an easy cruise and the yacht settles into the relaxed rhythm that suits a summer on the water.
Her outdoor spaces make the most of her size. A sun deck sits above the main deck with sun pads and a helm, a bright place to take the run or to stretch out at anchor, and the foredeck adds a second sunbathing area away from the main flow of the day. Aft, a dining table is set in the shade for long dinners as the light fades, opening off the salon so the inside and outside of the yacht work as one. There is more usable deck here than the length suggests.
Inside, the salon shows Riva at its best. Dark polished wood, pale upholstery and large windows give the room a confident, grown up feel, and a bar sits within the main deck for drinks before dinner. The space flows from a comfortable lounge to a dining area, intimate rather than cavernous, a room that suits a couple or two travelling together and wanting somewhere handsome to end the day. The detailing rewards a close look.
Accommodation is arranged across three cabins for six guests, with two doubles and a twin that cover the ways a small group travels. Each has its own bathroom and the same careful finish that runs through the yacht, warm timber and good light at the waterline. The twin makes her workable for a family or for friends who would rather have their own beds, while the doubles give couples a proper retreat.
She is a Mediterranean yacht through and through, happiest on the clear water of the western Mediterranean, moving between coves for a swim, harbours for the evening and the odd longer run when the itinerary calls for it. Her speed and shallow reach open up a coastline that a larger, slower yacht would have to admire from further out, and the crew of three keep the days flowing without ever crowding the guests.
ETERNO suits travellers who want a true Riva, who care about how a yacht looks and moves, and who would rather have style and pace in a small package than space they will not use. For a fast, good looking and distinctly Italian week on the Mediterranean, she is a pleasure to recommend.
