Galeon 640 Fly Review, Price and Guide to Galeon Yachts for Sale

Why the 640 Fly anchors many Galeon yachts for sale searches

Anyone browsing Galeon yachts for sale in the US quickly runs into the 640 Fly. It is the boat that showed American buyers what the Polish builder could do above 60 feet: a 68-foot 3-inch flybridge with fold-out balconies, a windshield that opens to the bow, and a price that Power and Motoryacht called aggressive at $2,995,000 when it arrived. Galeon, based in Gdansk and founded in 1982, was building about 100 boats a year in the 40 to 70 foot range at the time, according to Yachting.

The 640 Fly debuted at the Miami Yacht Show in February 2018, one of six new US launches Galeon made in about three months. PMY reported that a shopper who saw it at the dock bought it on the spot. Eight years later the boat is still listed in Galeon's flybridge range, now sitting between the newer 620 Fly and the 680 Fly, which makes it one of the longer-running models in the lineup.

In the US the boat is sold and serviced through MarineMax, Galeon's exclusive dealer since 2016. PMY pointed out that this gives owners access to a national service network and a large parts inventory, and that the boat was Americanized with brands US owners know, such as Raymarine electronics and an Onan generator.

Balconies, a vanishing windshield and a beach club

The 640's party trick is what Galeon calls Beach Mode. Hinged sections of the cockpit bulwarks fold down on each side, extending the beam from 16 feet 5 inches to about 23 feet 3 inches according to BoatTEST and Yachting. PMY measured each balcony at 54 square feet, 108 square feet in total. Plug in stanchions and stools and the port side becomes an outdoor bar next to the galley; the starboard side carries lounge seating.

Forward, the center section of the windshield lifts on a motor and slides back into a watertight compartment, opening a walkway from the salon straight to the bow. A child-safety switch and a gate protect the opening. The bow itself has lounges and two teak tables that lower electrically, collapse and slide aft so covers turn the area into a pair of large sunpads. PMY called it one of the largest and most versatile foredecks in its size range.

At the stern, a nearly full-beam hydraulic teak swim platform lowers into the water with stairs that deploy automatically, doubling as a tender lift and a small beach club. BoatTEST noted that features like the fold-out gunwales and the extended flybridge are options, but that US boats are ordered with the Comfort and Luxury packs, so most American hulls have them.

A flybridge for twenty and a galley that serves both ways

With the Comfort Package's extended flybridge, BoatTEST counted lounge seating for about 20 people around a fiberglass table with fold-out leaves, plus a big sunpad beside and ahead of the upper helm under a hardtop with an opening soft sunroof. A starboard wet bar has a Corian counter, sink, refrigerator and two stools, and the Luxury Package adds an icemaker and Kenyon grill. The upper helm carries twin 12-inch Raymarine displays, Volvo Penta EVC, Humphree tab controls and Side-Power thruster joysticks.

On the main deck, the galley sits aft to port behind a double-wide sliding door and a window that folds up, so it serves the cockpit and salon equally well. A 40-inch TV can rise from the aft counter to face the cockpit table, which seats eight under the flybridge overhang. Forward, a horseshoe lounge surrounds a table that lowers to form an extra berth, and headroom rises to 6 feet 10 inches.

The lower helm has two power-adjustable bucket seats, twin 16-inch Raymarine displays, Seakeeper controls and a side pantograph door for docking. BoatTEST praised the four air conditioning outlets in the dash, needed under that much glass.

Choosing the three cabin or four cabin accommodation plan

Below, buyers choose three or four staterooms, and the choice moves the master. In the three-cabin plan the master is full beam amidships; BoatTEST measured 6 feet 7 inches of headroom, a 78 by 63 inch centerline berth, a dinette-style lounge and an en suite with a mosaic-tiled walk-in shower. The VIP forward has an island berth, skylights and its own en suite, and BoatTEST said it could pass for the master on many boats this size. A guest cabin with two singles shares access to the day head.

In the four-cabin plan the master moves to the forepeak, freeing space amidships for another guest cabin. Galeon's current site also mentions a Supermaster variant with an expanded owner's suite. For an owner-operator family the three-cabin layout is the better boat; the four-cabin version makes more sense for charter or for families with several teenagers.

Crew quarters are reached through a full-size door from the swim platform rather than a crawl hatch. Inside are over-under berths, a small galley with microwave and refrigerator, a fiberglass wet head and, on BoatTEST's boat, an optional washer and dryer. A watertight door leads from there into the engine room.

Volvo D13 shafts on the water, before and after the hull change

Standard power is a pair of 1,000 hp Volvo Penta D13 diesels on conventional straight shafts, with twin 1,200 hp MAN diesels as the upgrade. Yachting's 2018 sea trial with the Volvos recorded a 27-knot top speed and a 23-knot cruise with about 230 nautical miles of range. After that trial Galeon added rocker to the hull, and the builder then quoted a 25-knot cruise and 30-knot top end with the same engines.

BoatTEST's later test with the D13s backs up the revised figures. With 729 gallons aboard and five people, it recorded 30.3 knots at 2,350 rpm on 99.3 gph. At 2,000 rpm the boat ran 24 knots on 65.5 gph, and best economy on plane came at 1,750 rpm, 19.9 knots on 49.5 gph, for roughly 325 nautical miles with a 10 percent reserve from a 900-gallon tank. The boat crossed wakes with agility, flattened 10-knot chop, and the optional stern thruster made docking easy.

Tankage figures vary by source and year. Yachting's spec table listed 686 gallons, BoatTEST 900 gallons, and Galeon's current spec sheet gives 2 x 1,875 liters, about 990 gallons. Confirm the actual capacity on the boat you are buying.

Engine room access and the real cost of a 68-footer

BoatTEST found the engine room unusually roomy, with 6 feet of headroom and 2 feet between the D13s. Electrical panels and chargers sit on the forward bulkhead, filters and sea strainers are on dedicated pedestals with double-clamped hoses, and a 29 kW Cummins Onan generator sits aft with the air conditioning plant. The one complaint was battery access, which could make replacement awkward.

A 68-foot diesel yacht is a serious commitment. Budget roughly $180,000 to $320,000 a year for a part-time or full-time captain, insurance, a 70-foot slip, engine, generator and stabilizer service, bottom work, and fuel for 150 to 250 hours. Many owners run this boat themselves with a mate for longer trips, which keeps the number toward the low end.

The MarineMax network matters here. Galeon is a European builder with a modest US fleet, so having a national dealer with service yards and parts stock reduces downtime and supports resale.

Buying a used 640 Fly

Most US 640s were ordered heavily optioned, so compare boats feature by feature: balconies, extended flybridge, Seakeeper, stern thruster, crew cabin layout and engine choice all move the value. Early 2018 hulls predate the rocker modification Yachting described, so ask the seller and MarineMax which version you are looking at and sea trial at full load.

Because the 640 remains in production, a used boat competes with new orders and with the newer 620 Fly in Galeon's range. That keeps used values reasonably firm, but a buyer with patience can often find a three to five year old boat at a large discount to a new build.