The Perth Boat Show puts more than 80 exhibitors under one roof for three days — 4 to 6 September 2026 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, 21 Mounts Bay Road, Pavilions 1 to 6. For anyone seriously shopping for a boat, that concentration is the entire point. Questions that would otherwise take a month of phone calls and site visits can be asked face to face in a single weekend, and the answers can be compared while they are fresh. Used well, the show can move a purchase forward by months. Used badly, it is a pleasant walk past a lot of polished hulls.

The short version first. The buyers who get the most from a boat show do three things. Before the doors open, they work out what boating they actually do, set a budget that includes running costs, and shortlist the exhibitors worth their time. On the floor, they ask every dealer the same handful of questions — about appointments, servicing, warranty and lifting — and compare boats like for like. Afterwards, they turn the best conversation into a proper viewing rather than a decision made standing on carpet.

This article works through each stage. It uses Motoryachts Australasia’s own display — led by the Sunseeker Superhawk 55 and the first Saxdor 400 GTS in Western Australia — as the worked example, because the fairest way to recommend a set of questions is to answer them ourselves.

Before the show: decide the boating you actually do

Boat shows reward buyers who arrive with a brief, and the first part of that brief is honest self-assessment. Day trips with friends aboard are a different brief from overnighting down the coast, which is different again from fishing wide or towing the kids around the river. A boat that suits one poorly suits the others, and every pavilion will contain something persuasive that answers a question you are not asking. Write down the boating you did last summer — not the boating you imagine — and shortlist against that.

The second part is a budget that covers running the boat, not just buying it. Purchase price is the headline number; storage, insurance, fuel, servicing and antifouling decide what the boat costs in each year you own it. We have set out the real numbers for this coast in our guide to boat ownership costs in Perth — read it before you set a ceiling, because a ceiling that ignores running costs is set too high.

The third part is a shortlist. The exhibitor list is published at perthboatshow.com.au, and with more than 80 exhibitors across six pavilions you will not give proper attention to all of them. Pick the stands whose boats fit your brief, note their locations, and plan a route. Our Perth Boat Show 2026 guide covers dates, tickets, opening hours and what to see if you want the full picture of the event itself.

On the floor: four questions that separate dealers

A boat show compresses more than 80 exhibitors into one building, which makes it the cheapest due diligence you will ever do. The boats are uniformly polished; the differences live in the answers to a few direct questions. Ask the same four at every stand on your shortlist.

  • Who holds the manufacturer appointment? An appointed dealer connects you to the builder: specification, build progress, handover and factory support all run through that appointment. Ask who holds it, for which territory, and since when.
  • Who services the boat, and where? An in-house service department is a different proposition from a dealer who subcontracts the work. Ask who touches the engines, where scheduled work is done, and what happens when something fails on a Friday afternoon.
  • What does the warranty cover, and who honours it locally? A warranty is only as useful as the workshop that performs the work. Ask whether warranty repairs are carried out here in WA, to what standard, and with whose parts.
  • What lifting infrastructure stands behind it? Every boat comes out of the water eventually — for antifouling at minimum. Ask where the boat gets lifted, the rated capacity of the lifters, and whether the yard can take the beam.

Since we are recommending the questions, here are our answers. Motoryachts Australasia holds the official Western Australian dealerships for Sunseeker and Saxdor and is the appointed WA dealer for Sealegs. Servicing runs through our own after-sales operation at North Fremantle, including a Mercury service department staffed by Mercury-specialist technicians. Warranty repairs on boats and engines we supply are carried out locally, to factory standard, with genuine parts, backed by a 24/7 technical support line. And our marina office at Rous Head is attached to SFM Marina, whose recreational facility runs two lifters rated to 200 tonnes and takes vessels to 10 metres of beam. The longer version is in our guide to yacht brokerage and servicing in Perth.

Compare like for like — and read the spec sheets carefully

Specification sheets are written by marketing departments, and different builders measure differently. The classic trap is draft: one builder publishes draft excluding the engines, another publishes draft to the propellers, and the two figures can differ by half a metre on boats of similar size. Length has the same problem, because some builders quote length excluding the engine, which flatters a boat against one measured overall. Put two spec sheets side by side without checking the measurement basis and you can reach exactly the wrong conclusion.

We wrote up a worked example in our Saxdor vs Axopar comparison. Saxdor publishes draft excluding engines — 0.49 metres on the 320 GTC — while Axopar publishes draft to the props, 1.05 metres on the 29; the cells are not comparable. The same page shows why pairing matters: the like-for-like partner for the Saxdor 400 GTC, with its 3.55-metre beam, is the Axopar 38 XC at 3.53 metres, not the narrower 37. At the show, ask each salesperson how their published figures are measured, and compare boats in the same category rather than the two that happen to be parked nearest each other.

Apply the same discipline to price. Ask what engine option the displayed boat carries, what electronics and equipment the quoted figure includes, and what the boat you would actually order costs once specified to match its rival. Two boats at the same headline number can sit thousands apart once the inclusions are lined up.

Use the three days well

The show runs Friday 4 to Sunday 6 September 2026. Friday trades 9.30am to 7pm; Saturday and Sunday run 9.30am to 5pm, and the Sunday is Father’s Day. A standard adult ticket is $22.50 online plus a booking fee, or $26 at the gate, with tickets sold through Humanitix.

Three days allow two passes, and two passes beat one. The discounted Friday evening session is built for a first pass: from 3.30pm, adult and concession entry drops to $12.50 online plus booking fee, or $15 at the gate, and the show trades until 7pm. Use that session to walk the shortlist, board the boats and ask the four questions. Then compare notes overnight and come back on Saturday or Sunday for the boats still standing, carrying the harder questions you thought of on the way home. A second visit also tells you something no spec sheet can: whether the stand gives you the same answers twice.

After the show: a conversation is not a decision

A show is where a purchase starts, not where it finishes. The environment is engineered for enthusiasm — crowds, lights, boats presented at their absolute best — and a 20-minute walkthrough in a queue is not the basis for a six-figure decision. What a good show conversation earns is a viewing: the same boat, unhurried, with time to open every hatch, sit in every cabin and ask what the spec sheet leaves out.

Arrange it while the comparison is fresh. Viewings at our North Fremantle base run seven days by appointment, so a Sunday conversation can become a Tuesday inspection. We have written a separate guide to arranging a viewing after the Perth Boat Show — what to bring, what to ask, and how an inspection differs from a show walkthrough. If time on the water matters to your decision, ask the team what can be arranged.

Test the questions on us at the show

Motoryachts Australasia is exhibiting at the Perth Boat Show 2026 with a display led by two boats covering two very different briefs. The Sunseeker Superhawk 55 is a 17.13-metre open sports yacht with twin Volvo Penta IPS 950s, two cabins and two en-suites, capable of up to 38 knots — at that length, it is expected to be the biggest boat in the halls. Beside it, the first Saxdor 400 GTS in Western Australia makes its WA public debut: a 12.4-metre open walkaround rated to 850 horsepower and up to 50 knots.

Come and put the four questions to us — appointment, servicing, warranty, lifting — and judge the answers against every other stand you visit. You will get the answers printed above, in more detail, from the people who do the work, and nobody will push you towards a decision the show floor cannot support. Check the exhibitor listing for the Motoryachts Australasia stand, call +61 499 770 180 to arrange a time to meet at the show or a viewing in North Fremantle afterwards, or reach the team through our contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do before buying a boat at the Perth Boat Show?

Three things. First, define the boating you actually do — day trips, overnighting, fishing, towing — because the right boat depends on the brief, not the other way round. Second, set a budget that includes running costs such as storage, insurance, fuel, servicing and antifouling, not just the purchase price. Third, shortlist exhibitors from the list at perthboatshow.com.au; with more than 80 exhibitors across six pavilions, you will not give proper attention to everyone. Arrive with a brief, a ceiling and a route, and the show becomes due diligence rather than a walk.

What questions should I ask a boat dealer at the Perth Boat Show?

Four questions separate the field. Who holds the manufacturer appointment, and for which territory — specification, build and factory support all run through it. Who services the boat and where — an in-house service department is a different proposition from subcontracted work. What does the warranty cover and who honours it locally, to what standard and with whose parts. And what lifting infrastructure stands behind the boat, since every hull needs to come out of the water for antifouling at minimum. Ask the same four at every stand and compare the answers, not the paintwork.

When is the Perth Boat Show 2026 and what do tickets cost?

Friday 4 to Sunday 6 September 2026 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, 21 Mounts Bay Road, Pavilions 1 to 6. Friday trades 9.30am to 7pm, Saturday and Sunday 9.30am to 5pm. Adult tickets are $22.50 online plus a booking fee, or $26 at the gate; concession and child prices are lower, and children under five enter free. From 3.30pm on Friday, adult and concession entry drops to $12.50 online plus booking fee, or $15 at the gate. Tickets are sold through Humanitix.

Should I buy a boat at the show or arrange a viewing afterwards?

Use the show for what it does best — comparing boats and dealers side by side — and make the decision at a proper viewing afterwards. A show environment is engineered for enthusiasm, and a 20-minute walkthrough in a crowd is not the basis for a major purchase. A good show conversation should earn an unhurried inspection of the same boat: time to open hatches, sit in the cabins and ask what the spec sheet leaves out. Motoryachts Australasia runs viewings at North Fremantle seven days by appointment, so a weekend conversation can become a weekday inspection.

What is Motoryachts Australasia bringing to the Perth Boat Show 2026?

A display led by two boats. The Sunseeker Superhawk 55 is a 17.13-metre open sports yacht with twin Volvo Penta IPS 950s, two cabins and two en-suites, capable of up to 38 knots — at that length it is expected to be the biggest boat at the show. Alongside it, the first Saxdor 400 GTS in Western Australia makes its WA public debut: a 12.4-metre open walkaround rated to 850 horsepower and up to 50 knots. No stand number was published at the time of writing; check the exhibitor listing at perthboatshow.com.au for the Motoryachts Australasia stand.