The €450,000 Former Research Ship Turned Explorer Yacht That Can Launch a Submarine
She spent 24 years finding out what lives at the bottom of the Baltic and North Sea before entering the explorer yacht market
Most of what pops up on my radar, as I search for explorer yachts to write about, was built to look the part of a long-range explorer yacht. But this vessel, called ‘ALK ‘, excels beyond what you would typically find on an explorer yacht. This is because ‘ALK’ was originally launched as an oceanography vessel.
Built in 1966 by Hitzler Werft in Germany as the research cutter ‘Alkor’, she spent the next 24 years supporting German oceanographic science, logging a whopping 326,000 nautical miles and carrying an estimated 30,000 scientists out into the Baltic and North Sea. GEOMAR, the Kiel-based research institute, operated her for most of her working life.
With her steel hull at just over 30 metres LOA and her unmistakable working vessel lines, she has lived at least two private lives since leaving research service.
According to the broker’s website (detailed below), she was first converted into a pleasure yacht and then later into a submarine-support platform (hence her huge A-frame on her stern).
In fact, that A-frame is certified up to 8 tonnes, which, when combined with her integrated dive centre, gives you just some idea of how unique a proposition this boat represents for a buyer who does not just want to explore above the water, but below it too.
In reality, she has the form and function of what you might call a true mothership. You can just imagine disappearing beneath the waves as you explore a world that very few people get to see.
At the time of writing, this incredible explorer is listed for sale for €450,000 and is currently lying in Ireland.
She is powered by a single 425hp Deutz diesel driving a variable-pitch propeller, giving her a top speed of around 12 knots. Her cruising speed is cited at 9.5 knots, with a range of around 4,000 nautical miles, so she sits at the upper end of displacement speeds. She burns around 60 litres per hour at cruising speed.
It follows a similar philosophy to the one behind [another steel Dutch cruiser I featured recently](https://newsletter.yacht-buoy.com/p/the-235000-noorderlicht-50-spiegelkotter), where range mattered more than speed.
In 2023, she underwent a substantial yard period, with keel, hull, and propulsion work. For a hull that was launched in 1966, this is very much meaningful work, rather than just routine ‘bare bones’ maintenance.
As for her accommodation, she can accommodate 13 people on board, including crew. The exact crew/guest configuration isn’t noted, which suggests the crew and guest accommodation may be similar. Remember, although this boat is now offered as a private explorer yacht, she has not been refitted out as a luxury explorer.
If you are thinking about acquiring this boat and want my input regarding where best to get any work done on her, then feel free to reach out. I have fantastic contacts at some of the best yards in Europe and North America.
As it stands, anyone picturing her as a 13-berth luxury explorer yacht should hold that thought loosely until they visit her in person. Since she is only in Ireland, about a 60-minute flight from where I live, I might even head out and film a yacht tour video for my channel.
If the owner, or their representative, reads this article, please feel free to reach out if you would like me to head over to Ireland to film her.
For me, ALK offers real capability and genuine all-weather pedigree. The style and comfort are something you would still need to build in, assuming, of course, that you wanted to upgrade the accommodation and living areas.
I have got to know explorer yacht owners who are quite happy “roughing it” so long as the boat can take them where they want to go without having to worry about avoiding bad weather fronts (usually, it’s their wife who ends up demanding an ‘upgrade’ when it comes to living on board).
This article continues below, in “The Wardroom”. My paying subscribers not only make this publication possible, but also cover the travel costs I incur when I feature boats on my YouTube channel. For less than the price of your average light lunch, you can become a premium subscriber.
In the premium section, I cover:
- The submarine on offer: what a submarine of this type actually lets you do at 300 metres, and why it is not included in the asking price
- Why the market prices her the way it does: a sourced comparison against two similar ex-research conversions, one lower-priced, one considerably dearer
- What “up to 13 aboard” really means: what would need to change for a liveaboard-ready layout
- My honest assessment of the €450,000 asking price: what you are paying for, and what you would still need to spend
The submarine on offer…[article continues below]
