Our Story

A Legacy Redefined: The Story of Passage Yachts

For founder Hans Smals, the water has always been home. A competitive sailor from childhood, Hans’s career evolved from mastering the wind to mastering the destination.

When he couldn't find a yacht that balanced high-performance engineering with the practical soul of a family home, he decided to build it himself. The result is a vessel born from decades of maritime expertise and a simple, refined goal: to create the ultimate holiday destination on the water.

The Collaboration

To bring the Passage Tender '42 to life, Hans partnered with acclaimed yacht designer Pim Dijksman, formerly designer at Vripack Yacht Design and Hero Hettinga, naval achitect at centreline naval. Combining Pim’s precision-led design philosophy, Hero his naval project management expertise with Hans’s lifelong passion, they have created a range of yachts that are technically superior as they are soulfully designed.

The Building Process

When Hans Smals, Pim Dijksman and Hero Hettinga finalized the blueprints, they knew the build required a level of expertise that could only be found in one place: the historic shipyards of Friesland, in The Netherlands. A region world-famous for producing the finest superyachts

Here, the Passage Tender '42 took shape, rising from raw aluminum into a masterpiece of Dutch engineering. By choosing aluminum, we offer our owners a vessel that stands the test of time, combining the agility of a tender with the sea-keeping soul of a yacht. Because we believe the buying process should be as enjoyable as the sailing, every boat is built under HISWA conditions, providing you with the ultimate peace of mind from the first weld to the final launch.

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