Barely cracking the first half of the world's 100 largest yachts, Aviva became the first yacht to have an indoor padel tennis court. Built for a UK billionaire, the 98-meter Aviva is also the largest yacht ever built by Abeking & Rasmussen.
The yacht is currently anchored by the Ross Dock picnic area near the New Jersey side of the George Washington Bridge. Abeking & Rasmussen’s superyacht Aviva is a winner at this year´s World Superyacht Awards which took place on May 19, in Florence.
Photo by Adam Jeffery
Launched in January 2017, Aviva was designed by British design studio, Reymond Langton, morphing into their largest creation to date. Boasting large interior volumes throughout its hull, Aviva also manages to feature some exterior space to take in the sun. Its sheer scale required Abeking & Rasmussen to create a special system to launch the yacht with a special pontoon.
Delivered within 33 months of signing the contract, Aviva was commissioned by UK billionaire Joe Lewis, currently valued by Forbes at $5 billion. His fourth superyacht named Aviva, Lewis' former yacht was a 68-meter version of his current flagship also built by Abeking & Rasmussen. Extensively used as a floating home and office by the investment mogul, Aviva's volume would be impressive for any yacht.
Photo by Adam Jeffery
The powerful looking hull is the result of new research and testing which ensures superior seakeeping abilities combined with a 20% decrease in drag. Less engine output is required, fuel consumption is reduced and the maximum speed is a full 20 knots. A very special feature is the hybrid drive system: it allows Aviva to run at up to 11 knots without the use of the main engines, using electric motors only.
Aviva's main feature, however, became an indoor, full-sized padel tennis court. Stretching across a length of 20 meters and a width of 10 meters, the court area goes up 6.65 meters high, a space that would be difficult to fit into any type of yacht. Aviva's 5,000GT of interior volume, however, allowed to blend in this space without compromises as to the size of the court.
Photo by Adam Jeffery
"It is not only a lifestyle change for the owner but also for the crew as this is also the largest gym of any yacht." the yacht's designers' commented. "The crew is encouraged to play with the owner and guests and when the court is not in use for padel, the net can be removed and the crew plays football and use other exercise equipment in the space. It is after all a sports hall."
Perfectly lit through lights on the ceiling, this indoor court sits amidst the yacht's hull and stretches down to the bottom of its draft. In addition to the padel tennis court is a small lounging and viewing area up a series of stairs. Hidden away behind a net to protect the ball from flying away, the viewing area can also be used for gym equipment whilst a game is being played. "The owner is adamant that this is the best padel tennis court in the world, period!" the studio continued.
Photo by Adam Jeffery
In terms of exterior relaxation areas, Aviva features a circular set of lounging pads up on her sun deck as well as small, hidden away lounging pads towards the yacht's bridge. Powered by an eco-friendly system, the 98-meter can reach a top speed of 20 knots and cruise at 11 knots by using only electric power. This is achieved, in part, thanks to her innovative hull design couple with an electric propulsion system.
Photo by Adam Jeffery
Apart from her sundeck, most of the areas on the 98-meter superyacht are found inside, which gives it tremendous volume required for a live onboard owner. An exterior lounging area can, however, still be found aft of the main, upper and third decks with a series of lounging chairs and sun pads. A swimming platform also opens up onto the sea, creating a beach club area, her tenders being launched through side doors.
"Featuring a fresh and dynamic contemporary exterior design, unique, highly personalized layout for the interior and a cutting edge technical platform, Aviva is intended as a home away from home, and as a result the layout moves away from current trends to maximise the spaces that will be used the most, and create a welcome, inviting atmosphere, with a combination of spacious, open social lounges alongside more intimate and discreet areas for dining, working and relaxation." commented Andrew Langton.
"The interior design features a number of avant-garde architectural elements and details, and uses a rich combination of fabric and leathers in light, warm tones."
Throughout the yacht, Aviva features a modern design with sleek shapes couple with an extensive use of glass and stainless steel. Opting for a clear colour scheme with sprinkles of vivd soft furnishings, Aviva's exterior and interior look follows that of Lewis' former 68m Aviva.
"Communication and information are critical to me." Lewis said in an interview with regards to his requirements for his floating office. "To be effective, I need reliable phones and internet, these have improved much over the past few years, but, it is too expensive, too slow and not consistently reliable. Aviva is more than an office; it is also my home for much of the year. So for me, it is relaxing working from home, wherever Aviva may be in the world."
Currently valued at $5 billion by Forbes, Joe Lewis sits as the 5th richest man in the United Kingdom. Chairman of the Tavistock Group with investments in over 200 companies, the 81 year-old started his career in the catering business in London, joining his father's company at the age of 15 in 1958.
Initially making his wealth by selling that business in 1979, Lewis moved into currency trading, switching his residence to the Bahamas. Teaming up with George Soros in 1992, the pair bet against the pound and earned exponential returns with Lewis reportedly pocketing even more than Soros.
Lewis' portfolio now includes Premier League club, Tottenham Hotspur as well as Lake Nona, a fast growing development in Orlando, Florida. In December 2016, he paid $165 million to acquire the Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six hotel in Fort Lauderdale through Tavistock. In addition to this, Lewis owns stakes in UK's largest pub operator, Mitchell's and Butlers as well as luxury club resort Albany.
In a deal profiled by the Guardian, Lewis was able to back a Christie's art auction for the Ganz collection, guaranteeing a minimum sales price of $168 million and, eventually, splitting the $38 million net profit with the auction house when the sale fetched $206 million weeks later. "Being a trader means that you are wrong at the very least three times out of 10, and that is very hard." Lewis once told Fortune magazine.
Prior to taking deliver of the 98-meter flagship, Lewis' largest yacht was the 68-meter Aviva delivered by Abeking & Rasmussen in 2007. A smaller version of his current yacht, the 68-meter featured a similar focus towards interior volume and acted as Lewis' floating office with a Bloomberg terminal and several trading screens onboard.
In 1998, Lewis had taken delivery of 62-meter Feadship, Lady Aviva, which later caught fire in the Red Sea. The yacht was eventually salvaged by serial yacht owner, Dennis Washington, who transformed the yacht into Attessa III. Lewis' second Aviva became the 60-meter Oceanco built in 2004 as Alfa Four and now known as Sea Pearl.
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Rodriguez Design Studio in collaboration with Spanish shipyard Atollvic has presented a new 55-metre aluminium superyacht concept named Project Saona.The exterior design of Project Saona has been described as sporty yet elegant, featuring a sharp and aggressive bow. The vessel is fitted with an oversized swim platform, beach club and foldable balconies for maximised access to the sea. Dedicated tender storage spacious enough to house a Williams Dieseljet 625 tender and jet skis sits forward of the beach club. The latter is also equipped with a day head and storage for diving equipment.Other features on-board comprise a private owner’s terrace on the upper deck, large sunpads on the main deck and a large saloon flooded with natural light. A Jacuzzi with a sunpad would sit on the foredeck, shaded by carbon fibre awnings.Project Saona would offer accommodation to up to 10 guests across five cabins, including a 60-square-metre master suite. Other cabins lay on the lower deck, with two full-beam VIPs and two doubles.Propelled by two MTU 20V 4000 M93L, the yacht will be capable of a top speed of 22 knots and a range of 4,500 nautical miles at 12 knots. The studio’s founder Josh Rodriguez believes, that with her draught of only 2.1 metres, Project Soana would come out as an ideal yacht for Bahamas.
June 26, 2019
The first Venice Boat Show took place from June 18 to June 23, proving to be a reference for the world of recreational boating, strong of its dual commercial and cultural nature. The show reportedly received over 27,000 visitors.The objectives of the premises, summarised as “The Naval Art Back to Home”, were achieved. According to the organisers, the atmosphere amazed visitors, with multiple dedicated activities. During the Salone, 43 meetings were held to discuss all aspects of navigation: from the environment to sustainability and yacht design, accompanied by 8 exhibitions on the themes of boating, sea and transport.The Mayor of the city Luigi Brugnaro declared: Venice has returned as the queen of the seas in the widest cultural sense. <…> As a municipal administration, we have already financed the Salone for two more years. The goal we have set, is that the event becomes a fixed appointment and we have already started to collect registrations for the next edition. We want to have the whole supply chain, from small boats to big ones. During the show, the Ferretti Group deployed the Arsenal for the inaugural party of the 50-metre Riva flagship “Race” and for the world premiere of the motoryacht Custom Line 106.In future, the venue aims to respond to the needs of the shipyards that have their production units in the Adriatic and to those who sail along the tourist corridor that leads from Venice to Istanbul via Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, Greece.
June 26, 2019
Legendary heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko and his family were rescued by the coastguards after the superyacht they were on-board had caught fire. The incident took place in the early hours of Monday about 11km off the coast of Mallorca, Spain.The Ukrainian sportsmen who had retired in 2017, tweeted a video of the rescue operation. The video depicts firefighters aboard the yacht, covered with firefighting foam. Fortunately, no one got hurt, stated Klitchko.Klitschko could be heard saying in the video:It's 3 in the morning. We're in the sea getting rescued from the Mallorcan/Spanish fire department. The boat was on fire, we're hanging out outside."Be careful what you wish for: fate took my wish for “some #adrenalin” a bit too literally and our boat-trip Sunday night ended up in our boat #igniting and family & friends being evacuated by coast guard and fire rescue-team. No worries: we are all fine!" - he wrote.According to German media Spiegel, the damaged vessel could have been a 28.14-metre Sunseeker yacht UM7.Palma's Maritime Rescue spokesman Miguel Chicon told CNN, the yacht's crew asked for urgent assistance once the incident occured. A coastguard rescue boat was sent for help and, once the fire was gone, they towed the damaged vessel to Port Adriano. However, during the towing further smoke came out from the engine room, forcing the crew to evacuate the passengers.The Maritime Rescue Service confirmed they evacuated nine people following the fire in the boat's engine room. No medical assistance was needed for the yacht's occupants, Miguel Chicon said.Klitschko, aged 43, was the world's most dominant heavyweight for a decade, reeling off 20 straight title bout wins. He retained his heavyweight title for over nine years, winning 64 out of his 69 fights. His last match took place in April 2017, finished with a knockout defeat by his rival Anthony Joshua.
June 26, 2019
Cristiano Ronaldo, a living legend of the football world and one of the highest-paid athletes ever, has shared pictures of his family holidays aboard a 47-metre Benetti superyacht Africa in the French Riviera. The photos were posted on the social media accounts of an athlete, whose yearly earnings were estimated at $109 million (Forbes). Africa is Benetti's FB501 hull, launched in Italy in 2010 and christened Imagination by her original owner. Two years later, she was put on the market through Camper & Nicholsons asking € 22,000,000. After price reduction up to €16,500,000, the yacht was sold through Camper in 2014 and renamed Africa. In 2016, she was listed for sale once again, with the deal closed in January 2018 at the asking price of € 16,750,000. The ownership meanwhile has not been officially confirmed. With a beam of 8.5 metres and a draft of 2.8 metres, the yacht boasts interior volume of of 492 GT. Built to an aluminium hull and aluminium superstructure, Africa features exteriors by Stefano Natucci and interiors by Francois Zuretti.The motor yacht can accommodate up to 12 guests across 6 cabins, including a master suite, four doubles and a twin cabin. As to the amenities on-board, Africa is fitted with a spacious Jacuzzi on the sun deck and a fully-equipped gym.According to The Sun, the yacht comes equipped with multiple water toys including two Seadoo RXP-X RS 300 Waverunners jet skis, one Seadoo 260 HP Waverunner jet ski, two F5S Seabobs, paddle board, wake board, and snorkelling equipment.Two MTU engines propel the yacht to a maximum speed of 24 knots and a cruising speed of 20 knots. Africa's maximum range is estimated at 3,400 nautical miles.
June 25, 2019
Benetti has announced the sale of the first superyacht to fly under Chinese flag, with a certificate issued by the China Classification Society. The 65-metre custom yacht FB270 continues the group’s success in the Asia Pacific area, following the recent sales of a Mediterraneo 116, Fast 125 and 50M custom yachts.Mr. Fu Buming, Port Administration Chief at the Department of Commerce of Hainan province, explains:Hainan is striving to become an international tourist centre, in accordance with the state’s general guidelines and requirements, in order to further develop the city as a first-class port tourism destination with a window to display world-class yachts and innovation within the global yachting industry.FB270 is a custom yacht with a steel hull and an aluminium superstructure. She features exteriors by Giorgio M. Cassetta in collaboration with Benetti in-house design team and Pierluigi Ausonio. The interiors present colourways reminiscent of the sea, beaches and tropical islands, with a design developed entirely in-house by Maria Rosa Remedi of the Benetti Interior Style Department.Some distinctive features on-board FB270 include the service bathrooms on every deck and a wealth of technical spaces and storage areas. Special care has been taken to separate crew flows from the guest areas to ensure maximum guest privacy.Peter Mahony, General Manager Benetti Yachts Asia, commented:The sale of FB270 shows that an evolution is taking place and that a market will adapt to its new environment if an open mind, hard work and can do attitude is shared by all parties involved.FB270 has been scheduled for delivery in the first half of 2021. Meanwhile, the sale represents more of an uncommon trend among the Chinese rich, who are keen to avoid buying private yachts. The same cannot be said for American customers, with just a recent order of a 67-metre superyacht from Benetti.
June 25, 2019