Absolute 70 FLY Review (2025 Edition) by Aquaholic

On Deck

The hi-lo bathing platform carries the tender and gives easy access to the water. It’s also where you’ll find entry to the engine room via the crew area - a proper big-boat feature at this size. The cockpit itself is fitted with freestanding furniture, so you can shift the layout to suit the day - dining, lounging, or opening up for a crowd. The table folds and the chair arms can be swapped out to make it all a bit more modular. Over on the starboard side there’s a bar unit with a fridge and a sink, and tucked neatly beside it is a docking station with IPS and thruster controls. It’s a clever spot to nudge the boat in while still keeping a line of sight to the quayside.

Up the side deck you reach the bow, which really shows off how Absolute uses every part of this hull. The doors open right through from the saloon, so when you’re at anchor with a breeze running through, the whole boat feels open and connected. Up forward there’s a full-beam lounging area with a sofa, folding table and a backrest that flips to face either way. Drop it flat for sunbathing, or lift it up for dining - simple but effective. The folding section ahead of it clears headroom over the cabin, and those polished stainless sockets mark the mounting points for a bimini. The deck lockers take fenders and lines, and there’s an escape hatch from the forward cabin hidden between the cushions. Anchor gear is laid out cleanly on the bow, and everything’s get-at-able without having to clamber.

The flybridge is reached from the cockpit and it’s a fine space once you’re up there. The big hardtop covers the forward dining section and the helm, while the aft end is left open for whatever setup you want - sunbeds, beanbags, or loose furniture. There’s even an awning that rolls out from the trailing edge for shade. On the very top you’ll spot the TrackVision domes, radar, antennas, and all the usual fittings.

The main seating area includes a large dining table and a bar unit opposite with a grill, sink, fridge, freezer, and ice-maker all neatly fitted in. Storage is everywhere you look. Forward again, there’s a companion seat by the helm so guests can ride up front.  

The interior is all on one level right through, which looks spectacular when you open both sets of sliding doors and let the air flow straight through from cockpit to windscreen. The galley is aft, as Absolutes usually are (they were one of the first to go this way) which means it caters perfectly to the cockpit as well as to the dining area inside. It’s well-equipped too, with a full-height fridge and freezer, dishwasher, hob and sink, plenty of drawer storage, and branded crockery neatly stowed in its own dedicated spots.

There's a proper dining table with chairs rather than a wraparound sofa setup, which feels very grown-up, and the lighting throughout the main deck is beautifully done. Large, near floor-to-ceiling windows give a brilliant view out and make the whole saloon feel like a proper motor yacht. There’s a low cabinet to port that houses a rise-and-fall TV, and ahead, the helm is semi-partitioned off. The stainless-edged display panels are pure Star Trek, and they include the Garmin wrap-around camera system, which stitches together a live 360º view so it looks as though you’re watching from a helicopter.

You can see the top of the hardtop in that view, which is clever because the cameras sit lower down, looking out and downwards. The displays are configurable for navigation, radar, and boat systems, and there’s a dedicated touchscreen for systems control. Beside the helm, there’s a side door, joystick engine control, Scanstrut wireless charger, and the usual thruster setup – bow and stern on this boat, which is unusual with IPS. 

Owner's Cabin

The forward suite could easily be mistaken for the owner’s, and for many owners, it probably will be. The space is full beam at shoulder height and then tapers gently forward to the bow. Big picture windows flood it with light, while circular portholes provide ventilation. Air-conditioning is built in around the perimeter to avoid the need for visible grills, and there’s plenty of thoughtful storage with wardrobes and low-level drawers along each side.

The ensuite uses the bow volume cleverly, with twin sinks, louvred cabinetry, a heated towel rail and a large rainfall shower to starboard. The finish feels calm and balanced, and the layout makes the most of the hull’s shape.

Guest Accommodation

In total, there are four cabins, and as usual with Absolute, the lower deck layout is split into a half-deck forward and another section aft. That split keeps things private and gives each area its own feel.

Cabin three has twin single beds, a hanging locker and an ensuite that doubles as the dayhead – it’s accessed through a sliding pocket door and connects through to the passageway. The opposite cabin shares that bathroom, so the two midships cabins effectively share one dayhead between them. Each has opening portholes for airflow and neat touches like deep lockers and bedside shelves.

If you came down into the VIP cabin first, you’d probably assume this was the owner’s cabin, it’s that spacious. The ensuite is built slightly differently, with the WC and shower in separate compartments and the sink out in the cabin itself, which keeps the space open and generous. There’s a dressing table, hanging storage with a built-in safe, and wiring ready for a TV.

Crew Accommodation

Accessed by a door in the side deck, the crew space feels like something from a bigger yacht. Inside are twin bunks, a fridge, a separate head with shower, and an auxiliary systems screen so the skipper or stewardess can monitor power and tank levels directly.

This is the kind of area you’d use if you were away for a week and wanted a skipper or a stewardess, but it also makes a perfect overflow cabin for guests. There’s a secondary ladder that leads up to the cockpit hatch, and through here you also get internal access to the engine room, which is ideal when the boat’s full of people.

In the engine room, you’ll find the pair of Volvo Penta IPS 1350s, each producing 1,000 horsepower. They give the boat a top speed of around 28 knots, with cruising speeds in the mid-20s and an easy 20-knot long-run pace. At 19 knots, range is about 290 miles; bumping that to 26 knots only costs you about 23 miles of range, which shows how efficient these engines are at speed. Drop right back to displacement mode and you’re looking at roughly three times the range - around 750 to 900 nautical miles depending on conditions.

The installation is cleanly laid out, with the Seakeeper gyro stabiliser mounted low to reduce roll at anchor. You can see the twin saddle fuel tanks strapped either side, the generator, water tanks, and the fixed fire system. Cameras monitor the compartment, feeding the same Garmin displays used at the helms and in the crew cabin.

Typical annual running costs for a 70-footer will depend heavily on location and use but budget for mooring fees, IPS servicing, antifouling, insurance, and generator hours. Expect a broad ballpark of 8-12% of the purchase price (new) per year if you include crew and berthing in busy Mediterranean marinas. Go lighter on crew and keep the boat in home waters and that figure can drop substantially.

The Absolute 70 FLY is sold with a factory warranty handled through the brand’s authorised dealer network, which also manages servicing and aftersales support. In the UK and Ireland, that’s Approved Boats, offering full mechanical servicing for the Volvo Penta IPS 1350 drives, thrusters, and onboard systems, along with options for extended warranty packages. Absolute’s network also supports Seakeeper stabiliser servicing and electrical or interior repairs through approved partners. As with any yacht in the 70ft range, it’s worth clarifying warranty duration and transferability in writing at handover and checking which yards or service agents can carry out work when cruising abroad.

Two close rivals worth considering in this class are the Princess Y72 and the Pearl 72. Both target the same owner-driver niche and share the focus on big-boat volume with manageable running costs. The Princess leans toward a classic layout and very polished detailing, while the Pearl offers a slightly bolder interior concept with a strong design partnership under Kelly Hoppen.  

The new Absolute 70 Flybridge feels like a big step forward: a 70 that acts like something larger. It’s got side-deck crew access, a full-beam forward suite, an aft guest cabin that rivals the owner’s, and a main deck that flows as one continuous living space. The design is breezy, open and sociable, with huge windows and a galley that works equally well for family cruising or small-crew operation.