Bering 77 Review, the Steel Explorer Yacht Built to Stay Under 24 Meters

What Bering Yachts builds, and why the 77 matters to the lineup

Searches for Bering Yachts usually start with the big boats, the 145 and the 165 superyacht concepts, but the Bering 77 is the model that explains the brand. It is a steel, full-displacement explorer that stays under the 24-meter line, which keeps it in the large-yacht category where an owner can still run the boat with a couple or a small crew instead of a full professional team.

Bering was founded in 2007 by Alexei Mikhailov, a Russian-born former fishing-fleet owner from Magadan who named the company after the sea he learned to respect. Power & Motoryacht's visit to the yard described how Mikhailov built six boats in China before moving production to the Antalya Free Zone in southern Turkey, where low taxes, an established workforce and access to European suppliers made semi-custom steel construction viable. At the time of that visit there were 14 hulls in build, from 65 feet up to a 145.

The 77 was announced in 2015, with Bering saying two hulls had already been ordered by existing Bering owners. It was conceived as the big sister to the Bering 65, and Bering's own construction updates describe a boat that adds tens of thousands of pounds of displacement, roughly 2,500 more gallons of fuel and nearly triple the fresh water of the 65. In February 2026 the yard announced a renewed Bering 77 with a reworked four-cabin plan and larger outdoor decks.

Bulbous bow, hard chines and twin gondola skegs

Underneath, the 77 follows the same recipe as its smaller siblings. Bering describes a bulbous bow, hard-chined hull sides and a twin gondola skeg underbody, which means each engine sits low in its own skeg and each propeller runs in protected water behind it. That arrangement keeps weight low, shields the running gear if the boat touches bottom in an uncharted anchorage, and gives a long-range cruiser the redundancy of two independent shaft lines.

The hull is steel and the superstructure aluminum, a pairing Bering uses across the range to keep the center of gravity down without giving up the impact resistance and fire resistance owners expect in an expedition yacht. The bow is notably tall, with two large pocket anchors set into a stainless backing grill. Bering says that height translates into a dry ride and lets the interior carry over 7 feet 2 inches of headroom throughout.

This is a heavy boat by any yardstick. The current builder specification lists a full-load displacement of 163 metric tons, about 359,349 pounds, on a 78-foot-2-inch hull. That is the kind of mass that makes an explorer stable and comfortable in a seaway, and also the reason top speed is a modest 11 knots.

The renewed 2026 layout, four cabins and a much bigger boat deck

The renewed Bering 77 is built around a four-cabin plan with a full-beam master stateroom of 252 square feet (23.4 square meters) and three guest cabins. Bering pitches it for private ownership, either owner-operated or configured for two crew, with accommodation for eight guests and two crew.

Outdoor space is where the update is most visible. The flybridge has grown to 273 square feet, with a solid hardtop, bar and al fresco dining, and the boat deck behind it now measures 453 square feet, enough for a substantial tender. Bering's spec lists a 4.8-meter tender, about 15 feet 9 inches. Few yachts under 24 meters can carry a tender that size and still leave room for a table and loungers on the same level.

On the main deck, earlier B77 descriptions show the traditional raised-pilothouse sequence: a salon aft with built-in seating and a large dining table, a few steps up to the galley, then the pilothouse forward. Side decks run full length on both sides, and the raised cockpit aft has its own seating. One detail carried over from the 2015 design is the Portuguese bridge merged into the foredeck, creating a forward-facing seating area that is pleasant in calm water and keeps crew protected in rough water.

Earlier hulls show how flexible the interior is. Bering's 2018 build report on the hull called Arina described six guests in lower-deck staterooms, a full-beam master forward, two VIP cabins amidships and two crew cabins, all with en suite heads. The 2021 launch Veronika was set up for six guests and up to four crew. Buyers should treat any published layout as a starting point.

Eight knots, 4,000 miles and the fuel to back it up

The renewed 77 carries about 8,162 gallons (30,900 liters) of diesel and 1,162 gallons of fresh water. Bering quotes a cruise speed of 8 knots, a top speed of 11 knots at half load, and a range of more than 4,000 nautical miles at cruise. That is enough to cross the Atlantic with a large reserve, which is the whole point of the boat.

Bering's earlier B77 page listed twin Cummins QSM11 diesels rated at 355 hp each. The renewed spec sheet does not name engines, and Bering builds semi-custom, so buyers should expect the propulsion package to be confirmed during contract negotiation. Bering has also talked publicly about hybrid and battery-heavy systems on newer models; on the related B72, Mikhailov told Power & Motoryacht the generator would run only an hour or two a day. Ask what a current B77 can do on batteries at anchor.

No independent magazine has published a sea trial with fuel-flow figures for the 77, so we do not quote a gallons-per-hour number. As a planning tool, assume displacement-speed burn that is small relative to the tankage, and budget generator hours separately, because on an explorer that is often the bigger fuel line on a long cruise.

• Fuel 8,162 US gal (30,900 L) on the renewed model; Veronika (2021) was listed at 7,040 gal (26,620 L)
• Fresh water 1,162 US gal (4,400 L)
• Cruise 8 knots, top 11 knots at half load (builder figures)
• Range 4,000-plus nm at 8 knots (builder figure)
• CE Category A, classification society available on request

Buying from Antalya, the semi-custom process and surveyors

Every Bering is built in the Antalya Free Zone. When Bering launched Veronika in April 2021 it used the free zone's new 560-ton travel lift, and the yard has continued to grow, with superyacht keel layings for the 165 in recent years. For a US buyer this means a European-style build process and a long delivery passage or ship transport home.

Mikhailov's attitude to oversight is unusual and worth taking advantage of. He told Power & Motoryacht that Bering insists on owners hiring independent surveyors, and that the yard learns from them. Hire a surveyor with steel-yacht experience before contract, keep them through build, and specify the classification society early, because Bering lists classification as available on request rather than standard.

What it costs to keep a 160 GT steel yacht in commission

Plan on yacht-level running costs. A realistic annual budget for a Bering 77 in US waters runs roughly $300,000 to $650,000, depending on whether you use paid crew, where you keep the boat and how far you cruise. Insurance for a steel explorer is generally reasonable relative to value, but marinas will charge for 78 feet of length and 24-plus feet of beam.

Steel needs disciplined coating maintenance. Budget for regular haul-outs, anode replacement, touch-ups in the bilges and tank spaces, and a full paint program every several years. Aluminum superstructures need attention at steel-to-aluminum joints and around fittings where dissimilar metals meet.

The reward is self-sufficiency: big pantries and freezers, watermakers and serious satellite communications. Veronika, for example, carried two satellite internet antennas.

The used market for a boat built a few at a time

Very few Bering 77s have been built, and Bering lists Veronika (2021) in its delivered fleet. That makes the brokerage market thin and pricing negotiable in both directions. A good used 77 can save a buyer two or more years of build time, which is worth real money to someone who wants to cruise now.

Values depend on equipment far more than model year: stabilization, generator hours, battery systems, electronics, class status and documented maintenance. A boat lying in the Mediterranean may also carry VAT, flag and import questions a US buyer must solve before closing.