10/22/2026
The story of Riva!
In 1842, a storm tore through the fishing fleet on Lake Iseo, and a young shipwright named Pietro Riva stepped in to rebuild it. That repair work in Sarnico, Italy became the foundation of the most recognizable name in Italian luxury boatbuilding. Pietro’s son Ernesto brought internal combustion engines into the yard, turning handcrafted wooden boats into early motorboats. After World War I, Serafino Riva reshaped the shipyard into a true brand, and through the late 1920s and 1930s Riva racing boats dominated national and international powerboat competitions. In the 1950s, Carlo Riva introduced classic mahogany runabouts like the Ariston, Tritone, and Sebino, moving the yard toward series production. Then in 1962 came the Aquarama, the twin-engine runabout that defined la dolce vita on the water. Today Riva is part of the Ferretti Group, and the Sarnico shipyard still builds Riva sport yachts and open yachts, while the Ancona yard handles steel and aluminum superyachts. Browse Riva yachts for sale on BoatTrader and own a piece of Italian boating history.
