Sirena 48

The Turkish builder’s new entry-level model, the Sirena 48, is big on volume.

By Jeff Moser

December 11, 2023

The Sirena 48 is the smallest vessel in a four-model line that runs to 88 feet from the Turkish shipyard. Like her sisterships, the 48 is drawn by the Argentinian yacht designer Germán Frers. Her profile is defined by an elegant plumb bow, copious hullside glass and a tall pilothouse with oversized windows that echo her straight bow. It is a fetching look that translates well up and down Sirena’s model line.

During the Sirena 48’s premiere at the recent Cannes Yachting Festival, the optional passerelle brought me over her hydraulic swim platform and into the cockpit, where buyers have a choice of layouts. These can include fixed or loose furniture, plus a deep lazarette and a transom door that opens to the swim step. An owner could opt for a crew cabin here as well, but the builder is confident that a good number of buyers will be owner-operators.

On previous builds, Sirena’s interiors were spacious and filled with natural light. Like those sisterships, the 48 nails the brief. A large door opens the galley aft to the cockpit. Forward of the galley, it is two steps up to the salon, where a portside, C-shaped settee is the ideal height for watching the world go by at sea. At the helm, which is to starboard, a double companion seat allows for a navigator to keep the captain company.

Her three belowdecks staterooms also take advantage of the hull shape, with headroom close to 7 feet. The forward VIP felt like a master stateroom to me, until I saw the amidships master, which was full-beam and replete with a king-sized, walkaround berth flanked by a settee, vanity and dresser. I also liked that it was a step down from the master’s private companionway and head to the sleeping quarters, which grants the space even more headroom. The guest stateroom has twin berths that convert to a double, and shared access to the VIP’s head.

As we prepared to leave the dock and head into the Bay of Cannes, I ascended the molded, teak-clad stairs to the flybridge. About eight people were seated aft on the C-shaped settee, and one person was lounging on the sunpad forward of the portside helm. This is a space sized for spreading out and relaxing. I ducked out of the sun under the hardtop and noted the elegant design of its support beam, which is neatly incorporated into the cabinet that houses an electric barbecue, fridge and ice maker.

Once on the bay, I found better sightlines and more elbow room at the lower helm. This 48 had the standard power package of two 550-hp Cummins QSBs (owners can opt for 670-hp Volvo Pentas) mated to V-drives that reportedly push the 48 to a 16-knot cruise and a top speed around 24 knots. With full fuel and water, optional equipment and more than a dozen people on board, she made 20.7 knots at 3200 rpm. She cruised comfortably and with confidence at 7.6 knots, returning a range of 760 nautical miles at this speed. At 10 knots, her range is 477 nm.

According to Sirena, the company has orders for 20 hulls of the 48. This model is expected to remain the smallest in the fiberglass flybridge line, as the builder sets its sights on expanding into steel-hull superyachts.