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Meet Bellissima, a New 130-Foot Italian Superyacht That Lives Up to Its Name

The newly launched vessel is the flagship model in riva’s flybridge range., rachel cormack.

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This new 150-foot superyacht can cruise through shallow waters in florida and the bahamas with ease.

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Riva ’s new fleet member proves that big and beautiful are not mutually exclusive.

The elegant superyacht, which left the Italian builder’s La Spezia yard on Thursday, spans an imposing 130 feet and is the largest model in Riva’s flybridge range. Fittingly, it’s also the new flagship of the series.

Named after the Italian word for “very beautiful,” the Bellissima is a looker, too, showcasing expert craftsmanship, the latest technology and high design. The model was penned by Mauro Micheli of Officina Italiana Design. The Italian firm, which Micheli founded with Sergio Beratta in the late ‘90s, has designed all of Riva’s yachts for the past 27 years. The Ferretti Group (Riva’s parent company) also had a hand in the design, of course.

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The Bellissima is characterized by a sleek planing hull and three simple lines that run from tip to tail. Similar to a sports car, the yacht features air intake grills, carbon fiber detailing and a dynamic hard top. It also sports extensive glazed surfaces that ensure the interiors get plenty of natural light.

With a wide body and a beam of roughly 26 feet, the Bellissima affords a generous amount of space onboard. In fact, Riva says it’s the first yacht in the range to have three “real decks” while also remaining under 300 GT. At the heart of the vessel, the main saloon offers sweeping 270-degree views, ceilings of over six feet and handsome rosewood accents. The lavish owner’s suite is located on the main deck, while four guest cabins with en suites sit on the lower deck.

Outside, the flagship’s redesigned stern area is lower and closer to the water. Spanning 645 square feet, it houses a large beach club and a cockpit. On the upper deck, meanwhile, there’s a dining area for 10 and two private balconies. Above this, the sundeck is the perfect place for cocktails. Elsewhere, there is a lounge and sun pad in the bow, along with a garage in the port-side hull for a Jet Ski, tender and seabob.

At 130 feet, Bellissima is the largest model in Riva’s flybridge range.  Riva

As for grunt, the Bellissima is powered by twin MTU engines that give her an estimated top speed of 22.5 knots and a cruising speed of 20 knots.

“When you see a Riva cruising on the water, a Riva Bellissima, everything stops and you can pause the world to enjoy a tailor-made miracle, an aesthetic experience that words can’t describe,” Ferretti Group CEO Alberto Galassi said in a statement .

Following sea trials, the Italian beauty will be delivered to her American owner.

Rachel Cormack is a digital editor at Robb Report. She cut her teeth writing for HuffPost, Concrete Playground, and several other online publications in Australia, before moving to New York at the…

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Riva’s New Flagship Launches

• By Yachting Staff
• September 6, 2022

Riva Yachts in Italy has launched its new flybridge-range flagship: the Riva 130’ Bellissima.

Hull No. 1, being built for an American owner, has a planing hull, a widebody design and a gross tonnage under 300.

Design is by Mauro Micheli of Officina Italiana Design, the firm that has designed all of Riva’s yachts for the past 27 years, in partnership with the Strategic Product Committee led by Piero Ferrari and the Ferretti Group Engineering Department.

Exterior styling on the Riva 130’ includes elements of carbon fiber, steel and glass. The stern has a new look for Riva, with the space being lower, open to the water, and divided into a beach club and cockpit. (The tender and water toys are stowed in the port side of the hull.)

Additional guest spaces are at the bow and on the upper deck, which has dining for 10 people. There’s a sundeck one level up from there, with a layout intended for cocktails.

Inside, the master stateroom is on the main deck, with four guest staterooms belowdecks. All are en suite.

What’s the power package on the Riva 130’ Bellissima? The yacht has twin 2,638-horsepower MTU engines and a reported top speed of 22.5 knots. Cruising speed, according to Riva, is about 20 knots.

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First Flagship Riva 130’ Bellissima Superyacht Hits the Water

By Emily Dawkins

The first flagship superyacht from the Riva 130’ Bellissima series has been launched in La Spezia, Italy. At 40m in length, the superyacht has become the largest model in the Italian shipyard’s entire flybridge range, built for an American owner.

As an esteemed brand of Ferretti Group, Riva has once again showcased its magnificent build abilities through its latest flybridge superyacht. Celebrating 180 years of yacht building, it seems only fitting for the largest flybridge superyacht and first 130’ Bellissima model to be launched: a true symbol of the yard’s clever fusion of exquisite design, naval engineering, craftsmanship and innovative technology. 

The 130’ Bellissima is the first planing flybridge superyacht from the yard to stretch over three spacious decks, whilst remaining under 300 GT. The 40m vessel is a result of a remarkable and long-standing collaboration between Mauro Micheli, co-founder of Officina Italiana Design, the Strategic Product Committee, led by Mr. Piero Ferrari, and the Ferretti Group Engineering Department.

Ferretti Group CEO, Alberto Galassi, commented on the new launch: ‘Riva Bellissima is a superlative boat, in both name and fact. As the new flagship in the flybridge range, she has all my admiration and enthusiasm. This is a magical year for Riva, our yards are all in a state of grace and the results are there for everyone to see: beautiful boats, ecstatic owners.’

A notable feature of the new vessel is the harmonious combination of carbon fibre, steel and glass on her exterior, characterised by simple yet eye-catching stretching lines to create a sleek and sporty appearance. An extensive use of glass welcomes an abundance of natural light onto the main and upper decks, whilst offering breathtaking panoramic views and bright interior spaces. 

A new concept for the stern area has been introduced to the 130’ Bellissima; a lower, open-to-the-water area that has been divided into a large beach club and cockpit, offering 60sqm of versatile living space. 

In the main deck bow, a generous owner’s suite is situated, alongside a lounge, sun pad and other private spaces. The upper deck offers a dining area for ten, alongside two closed, private balconies and the sun deck above sees a welcoming atmosphere for entertaining friends. Four other cabins are located on the lower deck, all with ensuite bathrooms, making the total accomodation capacity onboard ten guests.  

Inside, 130’ Bellissima’s main saloon is surrounded by glass and boasts ceilings over 2m high. Her full beam of 8m creates a feeling of spaciousness onboard. 

‘When you see a Riva cruising on the water, a Riva Bellissima, everything stops and you can pause the world to enjoy a tailor-made miracle, an aesthetic experience that words can't describe,’ added CEO, Galassi. 

Riva 130’ Bellissima has a preliminary top speed of 22.5 knots and a cruising speed of 20 knots. We can’t wait to see her put these impressive speeds to the test on the water.

"Riva Bellissima is a superlative boat, in both name and fact. As the new flagship in the flybridge range, she has all my admiration and enthusiasm." Alberto Galassi, CEO, Ferretti Group

"Riva Bellissima is a superlative boat, in both name and fact. As the new flagship in the flybridge range, she has all my admiration and enthusiasm."

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Majestic like the work of art she is, as scintillating as the most magical epoch in modern history, 110' Dolcevita is Riva’s new fibreglass flagship, the latest masterpiece to grace the revamped flybridge fleet. The fruit of a collaboration between Officina Italiana Design and the Ferretti Group Engineering department, this nautical marvel is a flybridge of boundless beauty. She is a great creation in every sense – for her breathtaking visual impact, for her peerless blend of aesthetics, amenity and high technology, and for the elite cruising experience she bestows.

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How Nizhny Novgorod became the trade center of the Russian Empire 

“St. Petersburg is Russia’s head, Moscow is its heart and Nizhny Novgorod is its pocket.” This old Russian saying is probably the most succinct way of explaining the meaning and importance of the trading that took place in Nizhny Novgorod.

Why did Nizhny Novgorod become a center of commerce?

The city is very conveniently located at the confluence of two major rivers, the Volga and Oka, which run across the whole of Russia and flow into the Caspian Sea. In addition, the Volga was the only arterial waterway linking the West with the East. Nizhny Novgorod, moreover, was on the railway network, so one could travel to the Caucasus, Persia, Turkey, Central Asia and even India and China from there. Thanks to its geographical position, the city had always been a thriving trade hub and archeologists have found Arabic and Byzantine artifacts proving that it had trading links with the East as early as the 13th-14th centuries. The first documented fairs and gatherings of merchants go back to the 16th century.

Nizhny Novgorod at the end of the 19th century

Initially, fairs were held not in the city itself, but by the walls of the Makaryev Monastery lower down the Volga. They were temporary affairs and lasted one or two days. In the 17th century, however, Tsar Aleksey Mikhaylovich established a five-day duty-free period for trade, thus attracting even more merchants. These often stayed for longer periods, paying tax to the treasury outside the period of exemption.

In the early 19th century, it became clear that the space near the monastery was not big enough to accommodate all comers and, furthermore, the makeshift rows of wooden shopping booths burned down at one point. By that time, the Nizhny Novgorod Fair had already become incredibly important, bringing an enormous amount of money to the state treasury. 

View of the fair at the end of the 19th century

The fair was moved to Nizhny Novgorod proper - to the point of land where the Volga and Oka converge. Emperor Alexander I postponed repairs in his own palace to allocate six million rubles for the construction of a new building for the fair. And he didn’t lose out - merchants brought merchandise worth 24 million rubles to the first fair, which opened on the new site in 1817, with the figure increasing to 57 million rubles by 1846.

One of the buildings of the Gostiny Dvor (indoor market) in Nizhny Novgorod

Contemporaries called the Nizhny Novgorod Fair the “trading court of Europe and Asia”. Foreigners sold their wares wholesale to local merchants and manufacturers and 90 percent of all goods from the East passed through the Nizhny Novgorod Fair, from where they were distributed throughout Russia. In turn, foreign merchants bought goods from Europeans and Russians.

What was bought and sold at the Nizhny Novgorod Fair?

General view of the fair, chromolithograph, 1896

By the 1850s, up to 700 foreign merchants would attend the Nizhny Novgorod Fair. At the same time, the volume of trade with Asia in the middle of the 19th century exceeded turnover with Western Europe by one-and-a-half to three times.

One of the main items of trade was tea from China. In the 1880s, between 800 and 900 poods (a Russian unit of weight equal to about 16.38 kilograms) of tea worth 42 million rubles were brought to Russia every year. There were even separate Asian trading pavilions in the style of Chinese pagodas at the fair.

Chinese pavilions at the fair, late 19th century

In return, the Chinese bought the furs and skins of all kinds of animals; from foxes, squirrels and muskrats to sheep and cow hide.

From Iran, handmade rugs, silks, cotton fabrics, as well as a wide range of dry foodstuffs - walnuts, pistachios, dried pitted and unpitted apricots, almonds, prunes, millet and rice - were brought to Russia. And the Persians themselves took back wool, metal and leather goods, porcelain, writing paper and many other things.

Pyotr Vereshchagin. Lower Bazaar in Nizhny Novgorod, 1860s

Russia also exported sugar, linen, hemp, cotton and leather goods, wool, wood, metals and much more to the East. The variety of merchandise was astounding. In the 1820s, Russian official Yegor Meyendorff gave a list of the goods purchased by Bukhara merchants: “The goods exported from Russia include cochineal [a red dye - ed.], cloves, sugar, tin, red and blue sandalwood, cloths, red Kungur, Kazan and Arzamas leather, wax, some honey, iron, copper, steel, gold thread, small mirrors, otter skin, pearls, Russian nankeen [cotton fabric - Russia Beyond], cast-iron cauldrons, needles, coral, plush, cotton headscarves, brocade, small glassware and a small quantity of Russian canvas…”  

Fishing also became a very important article of trade. “Fishing for beluga, sturgeon, stellate sturgeon, catfish and some other fish species was almost completely monopolized by Russian merchants throughout the Southern Caspian,” according to historians A.A. Ivanova and A.V. Ivanov.

Fishing boat of the Murmansk fishery industry

Over time, products from new developing industries, including metallurgy and textile   manufacturing, were added to the exports. They included inexpensive chintz manufactured at the famous Shuya factories in Ivanovo Region. And, in the 1880s-1890s, trading in oil and oil products even began here.

The machinery section at the fair in 1896

With the passage of time, bank branches were opened at the fair, the services of lawyers became available and exchange dealings were transacted. The fair was a very important event for major Russian merchants and manufacturers. But self-employed artisans and representatives of the arts and crafts industry also took a very active part. Spinning-wheels, wooden spoons, folk costumes, painted trays, crockery, lace - the work of the best artisans from all over Russia was represented. They, in turn, would spend the whole year preparing for the fair and would try to bring their best wares.

The handicrafts section in 1896

How the fair was organized

Jules Verne's ‘Michael Strogoff’ describes the Nizhny Novgorod Fair as follows: “This plain was now covered with booths symmetrically arranged in such a manner as to leave avenues broad enough to allow the crowd to pass without a crush. Each group of these booths of all sizes and shapes formed a separate quarter particularly dedicated to some special branch of commerce. There was the iron quarter, the furriers’ quarter, the woolen quarter, the wood merchants quarter, the weavers’ quarter, the dried fish quarter, etc… In the avenues and long alleys there was already a large assemblage of people… An extraordinary mixture of Europeans and Asiatics, talking, wrangling, haranguing and bargaining… On one of the open spaces between the quarters of this temporary city were numbers of mountebanks of every description; harlequins and acrobats deafening the visitors with the noise of their instruments and their vociferous cries… In the long avenues, the bear showmen accompanied their four-footed dancers, menageries resounded with the hoarse cries of animals…”

General view of the fair during spring high water on the River Oka, 1890

From the mid-19th century onwards, the official duration of the fair was a little over a month, but, in practice, trading continued from July to September. The fair was an occasion for general festivity in the city - more than 200,000 people would arrive in Nizhny Novgorod during the period of trading and there would be a circus and a theater and performing musicians. Electricity and water supply were brought to the site of the fair in the 1870s-1880s. The fair had a positive impact on the whole of the city - Nizhny Novgorod had convenient infrastructure facilities, and hotels and inns were extensively built. One of the first tram lines in Russia was inaugurated there in 1896.

Eastern traders at the fair

There were also two cathedrals at the site of the fair - the ‘Staroyarmarochny’ (“Old Fair”) Transfiguration Cathedral, which opened in 1822. The architect was Auguste de Montferrand (who later built St. Isaac’s Cathedral in St. Petersburg with a very similar colonnaded drum under the main dome). 

The ‘Staroyarmarochny’ (“Old Fair”) Transfiguration Cathedral

In 1881, Emperor Alexander III himself, along with his spouse and son, the future Nicholas II, were present at the inauguration of the Alexander Nevsky ‘Novoyarmarochny’ (“New Fair”) Cathedral. Construction of a new main fair building, in the Russian style, was completed in the same year (the similar GUM department store on the Red Square appeared later). All three buildings survive to this day. 

The fair’s principal building

In 1896, the All-Russia Industrial and Art Exhibition was held in the grounds of the Nizhny Novgorod Fair - the biggest such exhibition in the history of the Russian Empire. More than 100 temporary pavilions were built for it. The first Russian motor car, as well as engineer Vladimir Shukhov’s steel lattice structures, were on display at the exhibition.

16th All-Russia Industrial and Art Exhibition in Nizhny Novgorod, 1896

After the 1917 Revolution, the fair continued to function for a time, but it was not as popular as before - and there was no longer any freedom of trade, the latter having been fully placed in the hands of the state. In 1929, the Bolsheviks finally closed down “this capitalist, socially hostile phenomenon”. Many of the fair’s buildings were demolished - or converted into residential housing. 

One of the last Nizhny Novgorod fairs in the Soviet time, 1924

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Districts [ edit ]

The city is divided by the River Oka into two major parts: the Upper city ( Verkhnyaya or Nagornaya chast ) on the hilly right side and the Lower city ( Nizhnyaya or Zarechnaya chast — what literally means "the part over the river") on the left bank of the river. The Upper city is the old historical part of Nizhny Novgorod, whereas the Lower city is larger, newer and consists of more industrial districts.

Understand [ edit ]

History [ edit ]

The city was founded by Grand Duke George II of Russia in 1221 at the confluence of two most important rivers of his principality, the Volga and the Oka. Its name literally means Newtown the Lower , to distinguish it from the older Novgorod . A major stronghold for border protection, Nizhny Novgorod fortress took advantage of a natural moat formed by the two rivers.

Along with Moscow and Tver, Nizhny Novgorod was among several newly founded towns that escaped Mongol devastation on account of its insignificance and grew up into important centers of Russian political life during the period of Tatar yoke. For a short period of time it was the capital of the Suzdal Principality and competed with Moscow for the power in the region. However the competition with Moscow was lost and in 1392 the city was incorporated into Muscovy. Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin was built in 1508-1511 (under supervision of the Italian fortress engineers) and became one of the strongest Russian citadels. There is a legend saying that the project was initially developed with participation of Leonardo da Vinci. However there is no documented proof of Leonardo's work for that project, the only thing the legend is based on is the striking resemblance of Leonardo's sketches and the actual Kremlin schemes. The fortress was strong enough to withstand Tatar sieges in 1520 and 1536.

In 1612, the so-called national militia , gathered by a local merchant Kuzma Minin and commanded by Knyaz Dmitry Pozharsky expelled the Polish troops from Moscow, thus putting an end to the Time of Troubles and establishing the rule of the Romanov dynasty.

In 1817, the Makaryev Monastery Fair, one of the liveliest in the world the 16th-18th centuries, was transferred to Nizhny Novgorod, which thereupon started to attract numerous visitors and by the mid-19th century it turned Nizhny Novgorod into trade capital of the Russian Empire.

Under the Soviet period, the trade connections of the city were abandoned and Nizhny Novgorod became an important industrial centre instead. During the communist time the city was closed to foreigners to safeguard the security of Soviet military research. The physicist and the Nobel laureate Andrei Sakharov was exiled there during 1980-1986 to limit his contacts with foreigners.

Climate [ edit ]

The climate in the region is humid continental and it is similar to the climate in Moscow , although colder in winter, which lasts from late November until late March with a permanent snow cover.

By car [ edit ]

Nizhny Novgorod is situated on the M7/E30 road. The road is in decent condition, although with traffic it can take anywhere from 4 to 8 hours to drive to/from Moscow .

By boat [ edit ]

Turflot [dead link] , Infoflot , and many other companies operate multi-day river cruises down the Volga from early May to the end of September.

Many companies operate passenger boat service between Moscow and Astrakhan , with stops at most cities along the Volga River.

Get around [ edit ]

By foot [ edit ].

The city centre is compact and walkable. However, there are many inclines or steps from the river banks. The bridges are not pedestrian friendly since the sidewalk is very narrow and cars drive extremely fast close to the pedestrians.

By city rail [ edit ]

The City Rail connects areas where there are no metro lines. Connects with the subway at the Moscow railway station. It has 2 lines: Sormovskaya and Priokskaya. The fare by train costs 28 rubles. According to the Citicard Transport Card, the fare is 26 rubles. Also by train you can get to the nearest suburb, or transfer to suburban trains to Dzerzhinsk, Bor, Semenov or Arzamas.

By bus and trolleybus [ edit ]

As of May 2017 in each district of the city there are several city bus routes. The number of trolleybus routes is much less. In one district of the city there are 1-2 trolleybus routes. Trolleybus routes are completely absent in the Leninsky city district. It is worth noting that trolleybuses do not connect the Lower City to the Upper. This is because the trolleybuses do not have enough power to climb the mountain.

The trolleybus network is divided into 3 parts:

• The upper trolleybus network (it unites all three districts - Nizhegorodsky, Sovetsky and Prioksky) with a turning circle on the Minin Square, near the Kremlin.
• The lower trolleybus network (connects Kanavinsky, Moskovsky and Sormovsky districts)
• The Avtozavod trolleybus network (connects all the distant sleeping microdistricts among themselves)

By tram [ edit ]

Throughout the city, land trams run. The longest route of all is 417. It connects the outskirts of Avtozavodsky district with the Moskovsky Rail Terminal. The journey takes about 1 hour and 20 minutes. The route passes through the sleeping areas (approximately 75% of the way). Also in remote neighborhoods there are routes of several more trams, but in most cases, they are in the Upper City. By the way, you can reach there by tram 27 or 10 directly from the Moscow railway station.

By marshrutka [ edit ]

Marshrutkas do not stop at every stop. To indicate your intention to exit a marshrutka, press a button and to indicate your intention to enter a marshrutka en-route, you need to wave your hand.

By bicycle [ edit ]

Nizhny Novgorod has not very developed bicycle infrastructure. Special bike paths exist only on the Upper-Volga and Lower-Volga embankments and on Rozhdestvenskaya Street.

The upper city is very hilly and full of steep inclines and even many locals will get off their bicycles and push their bikes up the hill by foot. Drivers can be reckless and pose a danger to cyclists. The roads can also be icy during the winter. City cyclists solve this problem by replacing summer tires with winter tires.

Also, in 2017 the implementation of a new integrated transport scheme of the city began. It provides for a large number of bicycle paths in the Upper City (including on Bolshaya Pokrovskaya Street) and in the Lower City.

See [ edit ]

Monuments [ edit ]

• Monument to Valery Chkalov, the famous test pilot of the 1930s, known for his ultra long flight from Moscow to Washington State via the North Pole.
• Maxim Gorky, at the square named after him
• Alexander Pushkin (at the entrance to the Theatre of Opera and Ballet)
• 56.327974 44.001982 26 Prince George and Saint Simon of Suzdal , The Kremlin, St. Michael the Archangel Cathedral . Monument to the founders of the city of Prince Yuri II of Vladimir (also George Vsevolodovich) and Simeon of Suzdal ( updated Jun 2017 )

Religious [ edit ]

• Pechersky Ascencion Monastery , near Sennaya Square a couple miles east of downtown, halfway down the slope to Volga. With a cathedral and several churches surrounded by a restored stone wall, the monastery is the seat of the archbishops of Nizhny Novgorod.
• A big variety of other churches and convents.

Buy [ edit ]

Sleep [ edit ]

All hotels and hostels offer free Wi-Fi and many have computer terminals. Almost all accept credit cards. Hotels and hostels will usually provide a visa invitation and registration for an additional fee.

Connect [ edit ]

Phone [ edit ].

For information on purchasing a SIM card in Russia, see Russia#Connect .

Note that Nizhny Novgorod is in the Volga region zone, and SIM cards purchased elsewhere, such as in Moscow or Saint Petersburg , may be subject to roaming charges.

There are payphones in the streets; however, you can only buy phone-cards in the post offices and in a few newspaper kiosks.

Internet [ edit ]

Free WiFi is available in most hotels, shopping malls, university buildings, restaurants and cafes, the airport as well as several metro stations. There is also free public WiFi on B. Pokrovskaya street.

Cope [ edit ]

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