FLIBS: the 7 largest yachts going to Fort Lauderdale

Superyachts are fascinating creations destined to the world's highest net worth individuals, and for that reason alone the space has always drawn interest from the mainstream public. Yet, many surprising events in yachting are often overlooked even by most knowledgeable experts. Yacht Harbour looks at yacht trivia you should really know.#1 Donald Trump used to own AmelsBack before he became US President, Donald Trump was a prolific billionaire most known in yachting for his 86-meter Trump Princess, which he bought from Adnan Khashoggi in 1988 for $28 million."Khashoggi probably spent $200 million building this yacht, probably the best yacht ever built." Trump then commented in the media. "I purchased it for a business. I use it for my hotels. I use it for a lot of different charities."Following the purchase, Trump spent near $10 million at Amels to refit the yacht according to the LA Times. In June 1989, he announced he would build the world's largest yacht, 'something in excess of 400 feet long', for which he was accepting bids from shipyards. Amels, then owned by a group of 4 British investors, won that bid to build a 128-meter Trump Princess II.This project, in part, led to financial problems for Amels, a significantly smaller shipyard then. A year later, Trump then acquired Amels, shortly after canceling the construction of Trump Princess II, as was announced in 1990. In September of that year, he sold Amels to American businessman, Peter Kutell due to financial problems according to Dessert News. For nearly half a year, however, Trump essentially Amels.#2 Business Insider thought a $4.8 billion yacht was sold in AsiaIn the summer of 2011, Stuart Hughes, a UK-based designer, claimed he had been commissioned for the world's most expensive yacht, the 100ft History Supreme. Hughes claimed on his website that the yacht was bought by a Malaysian businessman for £3 billion. 100,000 kilograms of solid gold and platinum were supposed to be used for this project in addition to railings and anchor made of precious metals.With such a reported price, the story spread like wildfire across national media based on Hughes' statement. Italy-based, Baia Yachts however later came forward with a statement saying that the story was fake and that Hughes had taken pictures from their website, which he then tried to pass off as his own concept.#3 A Broker Pretended He Sold A 222-meter yachtIn October 2014, the yachting community was baffled to read in mainstream media about 222m Triple Deuce, a project supposedly sold by 4Yacht. Not only was the length of the superyacht baffling but the wording of the press release was also off-putting. The project, for which the designers were never announced, was supposed to have an "agressive" delivery schedule and to supposedly be handed over to the client in 2018.With us now in 2019, it is clear no signs of such a project were never real, as Yacht Harbour first reported in 2016. CNN and many other mainstream media were, however, quick to publish that the world's largest yacht was now Triple Deuce.#4 An owner's captain asked for a €3 million commission to help broker a dealIn early 2004, the late Boris Berezovsky set out to build a 110-meter yacht at Lurssen to be called Darius, at a price of €148,540,000 plus interior fitting costs. As the economic crisis hit, he was unable to pay the seventh tranche in May 2008 and decided to put the yacht up for sale for €300 million as it was a few months away from delivery.Eventually, the listing agent, through a second broker found a pathway to a serious potential client via his captain. To bring the deal forward to his employer, the captain asked for a €3 million commission as was later shown in court fillings. Eventually a deal closed directly between the buyer and the seller for €240 million.#5 The world's largest yacht will be used to carry scientistsBrain child of Norwegian Billionaire Kjell Inge Rokke, the 182.9-meter REV will become the world's largest superyacht. Instead of being simply a luxurious vessel, however, its owner intends to let WWF operate it as a base for scientists to help research and protect the oceans. "The REV will be a platform for gathering knowledge." Rokke explained."There may not be any economic rationale for the private construction of such a ship, but the case is compelling from the ocean's point of view." Rokke detailed.When not used for research, REV will also engage in traditional charter activity for ultra high net worth individuals on a weekly basis, with the ability to carry up to 36 guests and a crew of 54 under that configuration.#6 All of the top yacht shows are owned by the same conglomerateInitially founded in the 1990s by Maurice Cohen, the Monaco Yacht Show used to be a much smaller event than it is today. In 1994, the rights to it were acquired by show management company IRR, which organised at the time the much larger Superyacht de Nice show. Ultimately, IRR itself was acquired by Informa, along with the MYS.With a market cap of near $5 billion, Informa now often highlights the Monaco Yacht Show as one of its most well known events. In 2017, it tightened its grasp on the yacht show market by acquiring the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, the Palm Beach Boat Show and 3 others in the US for $133 million. Now all major yachting shows are owned by Informa.#7 A Broker Pretended to have sold a 405ft yacht on Ebay4Yacht, the same brokerage company that claimed years later it had sold a 222-meter yacht, draws its publicity stunt roots much deeper. In 2005, as research by Yacht Harbour, found the company had already announced it had listed a 405ft yacht on Ebay, a novel approach at the time.A year later, however, the broker claimed the yacht was sold on eBay via the "Buy Now" button with the buyer paying a 50% deposit for $85 million, yielding a total sales price of $170 million. When Forbes looked into whether the sale was real, no information was found. More than a decade later, this yacht still doesn't exist.

BMT Nigel Gee and Yacht Island Design created a luxury masterpiece yacht concept that serves as a whole island when setting on the water. The Utopia Yacht is one hundred meters broad and long, it has eleven decks and affords 360 degrees panoramic view from the 13th-floor observatory.Yacht Island Design like to base their designs upon innovative floating platforms. It allows exploring daring ideas which challenge the accepted norms within the yachting industry. They aren't bound by the restrictions of conventional hull shape and like to ensure that a common theme runs throughout the yacht, from the overall exterior shape down to the smallest interior detail.Such a vision of a future concept breaks away from the current idea of what luxury at sea should be. “Visions of the future are often constrained by familiarity with the present or reflection on the past,” explains yacht design director at BMT Nigel Gee, James Roy. “Much is made in today’s design community of starting with a blank sheet of paper yet many, if not all yacht concepts revert back to the traditional form - the perception that a yacht should be a form of transport becomes an immediate constraint.”This concept breaks the mind. Designed as a floating island platform, the 11-deck, the four-legged vessel has about the same volume as a modern-day cruise liner. A 360-degree viewing platform is offered at 65 metres above sea level on the '13th floor’. Accommodation and service spaces are situated across all decks. Access to the structure is achieved through multiple helipads also she has a wet dock. Folding beach decks Utopia is able to adapt to various environments while maintaining guest comfort. Here are a lot of space to create a bewildering amount of interior design options, such as a retail district, theatre, culinary zone containing an eclectic mix of restaurants and an entertainment zone featuring bars, nightclubs and a casino.But as designers say “Utopia is not an object to travel in, it is a place to be, an island established for anyone who has the vision to create such a place".Yacht Island Design has two more extravagant concepts: 'Tropical Island Paradise' and 'The streets of Monaco'. The streets of Monaco was ‘ their first design proposal. The theme is based around the Mediterranean principality with the primary focus being the famous Grand Prix circuit. The brief for the Tropical Island concept was to create an idyllic, floating tropical island which follows a better idea of the open-face swimming pool peering out to sea, and the form of the foliage and waterfall against the superstructure.More interesting yacht concepts here.@Photos by Yacht Island Design

Inside one of the covered drydocks at the Amels yard Project Waka launched for the first time. The major event, which took place on March 16, represented a further milestone for the Dutch builder. Amels prides itself on having the best superyacht facilities in Holland. With climate-controlled halls and covered dry docks, their facilities offer direct access to the North Sea for even the largest of private yachts. Final outfitting will be completed on the 67.1-metre superyacht, who is scheduled to be delivered this summer. Just in January Amels announced the sale of a new 55-metre Amels 180.The launch of superyacht was celebrated with the project team, owner’s team and Captain Paul Bickley and Antoine Larricq from Fraser Yachts, who also represented the owner during the build. “Everyone is really impressed how seamless this project has been. This is the result of all those hours of work and meetings, cutting materials, selecting marbles, and now we are right on schedule” commented Mr Antoine Larricq.What’s more, could be expected from the yacht of the highest quality construction? The design features seven suites for up to 14 guests, including two VIP Suites on Bridge Deck with full-height French balcony windows. The family-friendly Sun Deck has a 7-person jacuzzi and air-conditioned Sky Lounge.The Amels 220 exterior was designed by Tim Heywood. She gives the perfect balance for “al fresco” living with contemporary, light and large volume interiors and exterior space. The owner has been working also with another UK studio, Winch Design for the interior layout. Guest can enjoy the 65-square metre swim platform, beach club and two 8-metre tenders and variety of watersports. Overall, Project Waka has about 12,380 square feet. This ocean-going world traveller superyacht would provide unforgettable comfort and enjoyable moments for the owner and his guests.The Project Waka platform, for example, incorporates twin Caterpillar diesel, for an expected 17-knot top speed. In addition, she should achieve a range of 5,000 nautical miles at 12,5 knots.Estimated price is from € 87,500,000 @Photo by Amels

Italian shipyard CRN (part of the Ferretti Group) launched its 79-metre superyacht CRN 135 on March 16. At the moment, she is the second largest in the builder’s history, next to motor yacht Chopi Chopi launched in 2013.The project was first revealed in March 2014, originally conceived as a 77-metre vessel, later extended to 79.CRN 135 is a fully custom steel and aluminium megayacht with a beam of 13,5 metres. Her exterior concept was developed in collaboration between Zuccon International Project and CRN in-house design team, while her interiors were commissioned to Laura Sessa.The vessel carries the weight of 1,400 tons spread over five decks. She can accommodate up to 12 guests on-board within five VIP cabins and a master suite, not to mention up to 39 crew members. CRN 135 naturally features spacious interiors and expansive deck areas, offering numerous places for relax and socialisation.Alberto Galassi, Chairman and CEO of CRN and CEO of Ferretti Group spoke at the launch ceremony: “Turning to the new 79-metre yacht by CRN, I would say that both the exterior and the interiors – and in general the impeccable design of the whole ship – are a glowing testament to the supreme skill and construction excellence that are the hallmark of our historic yard in Ancona.The yacht is trademarked with an impressive beach club with panoramic trilateral sea views. What is more, it opens up from both sides of the yacht, offering easier access to water toys.Powered by Caterpillar diesel engines, CRN 135 can reach her top speed at 16 knots, with a comfortable cruising speed of 15 knots. With this launch, CRN slides into a new stage of building yachts of 70-metre plus. That course is to be continued with recently revealed projects of a 75-meter superyacht Begallta designed by Igor Lobanov and a 70-metre custom yacht project She.

Y.CO has announced the sale of the 77,4-meter expedition superyacht Legend. She was built in 1974 and called Giant I like an ice-breaking tug and firstly was used to clear passages for nuclear submarines into and out of Russia’s ports. She was built by IHC Verschure in Holland and extensively rebuilt in 2016 at Icon Yachts into a luxury expedition superyacht. In 2017, she was first listed asking €46.5 million.Since her re-launch, Legend has cruised from Antarctica to Greenland and beyond. After the completion of the technical and system upgrades, extensive modifications to her exterior were made. Her stern was extended by 3.6 meters and it was equipped with a swim platform. The project became the second led by her former owner, Jan Verkerk, following Sherakhan.She has a helicopter pad, on the forward deck there is the garage for a submarine and 4 tenders and many toys you can imagine from paddle boards to jet-skis to snow scooters and ice-diving equipment. So many features as a gym, a Balinese spa with sauna and massage room, Jacuzzi and beauty salon are available for guests. Also, a cinema room and entertainment system, a medical suite, and a swimming pool provide you with all the needed facilities. Legend can accommodate up to 26 guests in 13 luxurious guest cabins, consisting of a grand master suite, two VIP suites, five double cabins and five twin cabins. Also, she is capable of carrying up to 19 crew on board, plus an extra 10 expedition crew to include doctor, ice-pilot, expedition leaders and naturalists. All these features help to ensure the most relaxed luxury yacht experience combined with the unforgettable discovery adventure which is available for charter.