Sanlorenzo built twelve SL118s. MORNING STAR is the one that stayed in Turkey, and after seven seasons working the Gulf of Gokova she has become something more useful than a new boat: a known quantity, run by a crew of seven who have learned every anchorage between Gocek and Bodrum.
She is 36.5 metres of composite hull and superstructure, which is what allows an SL118 to reach 27 knots and still cruise comfortably at 18. That combination changes how a week works. Guests who want to see four bays in a day can see four bays in a day; guests who want one long passage to a distant island get it in an afternoon rather than a morning and an afternoon. On a coastline as densely packed with good anchorages as this one, speed buys options rather than showing off.
Her main deck is a single open volume and she makes no apology for it. A white sectional sofa runs most of the port side, a round ottoman anchors the middle, orange and navy accents pick up the artwork, and the dining table sits forward in the same space rather than behind a bulkhead. Full-height glazing runs both sides. The effect is a room that feels far larger than 36 metres should allow, and it is lit for most of the day without a lamp switched on.
The master is on the main deck forward, full beam, with a green abstract canvas over the bed and windows on both sides at eye level from the pillow. A fold-down terrace on the starboard side of the main deck opens the hull to the water, which on a yacht of this length is a genuine luxury rather than a gimmick. Four further cabins sit on the lower deck: two doubles distinguished only by the black-and-white photographs above their beds, a third double, and a convertible twin. All are ensuite, all are finished in pale oak with cream lacquer, and all carry the same embroidered linen.
The sundeck is where she spends her evenings. A spa tub sits forward under the radar arch, with a bar, a dining table for eight and sunpads spread across the teak behind it. Bean bags, blue cushions and a hardtop over the seating make it usable from breakfast until well after dark, and the deck lighting at night turns it into the best room on the boat. Forward, a separate sun terrace on the foredeck gives anyone who wants distance from the group somewhere private to take it.
Below the waterline she carries the toys a Turkish coast charter needs: tenders, inflatables, a fold-down and extendable swim platform and a docking pontoon that turns the stern into a swimming pool. Her crew of seven includes a chef who works the local markets, which on this coast is not a small advantage.
MORNING STAR is not the newest SL118 in the fleet and does not pretend to be. What she offers is a Sanlorenzo hull that has been kept properly, a crew with genuine local knowledge, and a base at Gocek that puts the best of the Turkish coast within reach of a single week.
