The most important annual event in the yachting industry, the Monaco Yacht Show, has just come to an end, gathering some of the world’s most elite super yachts in the Monaco Marine. This year’s edition had over 125 superyachts on display, with their average length around 50 metres and the largest vessel measuring 111 metres (TIS), not to mention the visiting superyachts seen at anchor in the bay.
Yacht Harbour lists some of the most celebrated yachts seen in Monaco during the 2019 edition of the show:
#1. Flying Fox
LOA: 136m
Builder: Lurssen (2019)
The impressive 130-metre Lürssen superyacht Flying Fox was delivered to her owner in March 2019, later sensationally listed for charter with Imperial. The superyacht boasts the most elegant and graceful exterior design by Espen Oeino, maintaining striking looks despite her massive volume of 9,100 GT.
This superyacht’s key features include two helipads, capable of hosting the largest helicopters and a generous swimming pool located aft of the main deck. Flying Fox also boasts vast sea terraces, swim platforms for watersports. She can accommodate up to 22 guests across 11 staterooms, along with a crew of 54.
Noteworthy, Flying Fox has recently caused vast social media buzz, rumouring the vessel belonged to the world’s richest person, Jeff Bezos. According to Business Insider, a representative of Amazon responded to the media, the Amazon CEO did not own the superyacht, and they had no information on who it belonged to.
#2. Kismet
LOA: 95.2m
Builder: Lurssen (2014)
Photo: Dutch Yachting
95-metre superyacht Kismet was built in 2014 by Lurssen and is owned by Shadid Khan, Pakistani-American billionaire and business tycoon, who is also the owner of the Fulham FC and Jacksonville Jaguars. The yacht's interior has been designed by Reymond Langton Design and her exterior styling is by Espen Oeino.
Kismet is stretching over five decks, designed with corporate entertainment and charter in mind, thus suitable for parties of up to 270 guests. As an innovative feature, Kismet boasts video walls, extending up to two decks high, able to show regular television but programmed to display high-definition moving artwork.
A large swimming pool and Jacuzzi area, spa zone, movie theatre, an outdoor fireplace and winter garden can be found among the yacht’s luxury amenities.
In general, Kismet’s entertainment and design characteristics have been attracting top artists and events. For example, Jay-Z and Beyonce were spotted on-board last year, while Netflix filmed Kismet in a party scene from its biggest production so far, "Six Underground", making Kismet one of the largest superyachts appearing on screen.
#3. DreAMBoat
LOA: 90m
Builder: Oceanco (2019)
According to the information from social media, DreAMBoat was built for US billionaire and owner of the Atlanta Falcons NFL team Arthur Blank, who is valued at $4.7 billion by Forbes. Meanwhile, Forbes values the team at $2.6 billion as of September, 2018.
Along with sleek exteriors by Espen Oeino, DreAMBoat's interior features bespoke surfaces and limestone floors, all decorated with sophisticated natural materials including wood, semi-precious stone, leather and mother-of-pearl all designed by Terence Disdale. Her impressive interior volume of 2,950 GT allows accommodation for 23 guests on-board, along with up to 33 crew members.
DreAMBoat is trademarked with generous overhangs from the superstructure and cut outs in the bulwarks lending her classic and strong appearance. The vessel’s exterior features numerous large windows offering panoramic views. Swimming pool aft at the main deck, a partially closed sundeck with Jacuzzi and plenty of seating and entertainment zones and a private Jacuzzi at the Owner’s deck
#4. Octopus
LOA: 126.2m
Builder: Lurssen (2003)
Photo: Dutch Yachting
Until the explorer superyacht REV launches in 2020, Octopus holds the title of the largest expedition yacht in the world, not surpassed in 16 years from her launch. She had belonged to Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, till he passed away in late 2018. Last month, she was finally listed for sale.
Octopus is capable to accommodate 26 guests in total, with up to 57 crew members. Amenities found on-board include a swimming pool and a music studio as well as a courtyard-like set up on the third deck of Octopus occupied by guest space.
She has two helicopter pads and an internal dock that extends through the hull, holding two submarines and a 18-metre tender. The yacht has been involved in multiple exploration discoveries, including a Japanese battleship and the bell from HMS Hood, a World War II battlecruiser.
Despite her expedition nature, the yacht has been much favoured by the world’s top-rate celebrities, with Mick Jagger recording an album in on-board studio in 2011 and Usher, U2 and Johnny Cash listed among other performers.
#5. TIS
Builder: Lurssen (2019)
LOA: 111m
One of the rear vessels of over 100 metres publicly listed for charter, the 111.5-metre Lurssen TIS was made available in July 2019 from € 2,200,000 per week, just a month after delivery.
TIS was commissioned for a long-time charter client of Moran Yacht & Ship. The vessel boasts exterior and interior styling by Andrew Winch Design and features 2 helicopter pads, a 12-metre swimming pool on the main deck aft, a resort inspired spa at beach club level, and opulent palatial staircases.
Photo: Dutch Yachting
TIS comes with the tender storage able to house two 13-metre tenders, two additional 10-metre tenders, a submarine and diverse watersports toys.
With her impressive interior volume within a beam of 18.4 metres, TIS will accommodate up to 16 guests across a massive private owner’s deck and eight guests staterooms, served by the crew of 38. The featured top speed of the vessel makes 18 knots.
#6. Maltese Falcon
LOA: 88m
Builder: Perini Navi (2006)
Iconic Maltese Falcon had held the title of the world’s largest sailing yacht until Oceanco launched the Black Pearl in 2017.
Commissioned in 2000 by Tom Perkins, the late venture capitalist, the Maltese Falcon took nearly six years to complete. Sold to hedge fund manager Elena Ambrosiadou at an asking price of €70 million in 2009, the 88-meter is now one of the largest yachts available for charter with a rate starting from € 480,000 per week.
Maltese Falcon’ most innovative attribute became her sails that could rotate based on the direction of the wind. This was a first for the yachting industry. This innovative system allows the yacht to even sail against the wind.
Maltese Falcon features a cruising speed of 16 knots. Meanwhile, in a storm in the Gulf of Lion, France she demonstrated a speed of 26 knots under sail alone.
Designed by Ken Freivokh, the Maltese Falcon was extensively refurbished in 2015/2016 during a refit. She can accommodate up to 12 guests on-board.
#7. Amadea
LOA: 106.5m
Builder: Lurssen (2006)
Photo: Dutch Yachting
One of the most mysterious super yachts on the market, Amadea was delivered in 2006 by Lurssen. The German shipyard reported that the vessel had been commissioned by Middle East client with a fleet of other yachts. The yacht is officially registered in the Caymans, with her owner still not known.
With an interior design by Francois Zuretti and an exterior design by Espen Oeino, the key feature of Amadea is her ten-metre aft pool. The boat also has a spa, beach club and movie theatre. She offers accommodation to up to 16 guests across 8 cabins.
She is powered by MTU engines of 5766 hp each giving her a maximum speed of 20 knots and a cruising speed of 13 knots. Amadea's maximum range is estimated at 8000 nautical miles.
Recently, the vessel has been listed for sale through Imperial, traditionally working with Russian businessmen.
#8. Phoenix 2
LOA: 90.02m
Builder: Lurssen (2010)
Launched in 2010 by German shipbuilder Lurssen and last refitted in 2011, the 90-metre Phoenix2 boasts design by Andrew Winch and offers elegant exterior lines, complemented by beautiful interiors and spacious socialising areas throughout. The most notable feature is definitely the giant sculpted phoenix figurehead that sits proudly on the prow of the vessel.
Built for the late Polish billionaire, Jan Kulczyk as a replacement for his previous 61-meter Lurssen, Phoenix was delivered by the German shipyard in 2010. Designed by Andrew Winch, Phoenix boasts over 100 metres of steel handrails built specially to follow the shape of the hull.
The owner's stateroom located forward of the yacht is styled like a New York duplex from the 1930s with a private staircase linking the two areas together and leading to a private jacuzzi and owner's deck on the yacht's bow. Other features include a spa pool, Jacuzzi and cinema on the sundeck.
#9. Bold
LOA: 85m
Builder: Silver Yachts (2019)
Photo: Dutch Yachting
The largest Australia-built superyacht, Bold has outdone her predecessor Silver Fast by 8 metres. First known under the name Silver Loft, the yacht features exteriors by Silver in-house team in collaboration with Espen Oeino, who also worked on the successful Silver Series of high speed motor yachts.
Described by the yard as ‘a fast world explorer vessel with a genuine, fully-fledged superyacht finish’, Bold features all-aluminium design, along with interiors from the boards of Andreas Hölnburger of Vain Interiors.
The Bold’s low draft and highly optimised hull form provide her owner with remarkably low fuel consumption, fast repositioning and access to shallow cruising grounds unusual for yachts of her size.
The design team has opted for a straight bow, a feature that seems to gain popularity. Benefits of this particular bow shape include an increased interior volume due to the longer waterline length, as well as decreased resistance resulting in a higher speed. Thus, Bold reaches her top speed at 24 knots and cruises comfortably at 18 knots up to 5,000 nautical miles.
#10. Excellence
LOA: 80m
Builder: Abeking & Rasmussen (2019)
The vessel is believed to be owned by Herb Chambers, American billionaire and the owner of a network of six dozen dealerships in Massachusetts. He is also famous for his collection of exotic cars. The automotive dealership mogul estimated at $1.5 billion by Forbes.
The sixth largest vessel of Abeking & Rasmussen, Excellence features both exteriors and interiors developed by the UK-based design studio Winch Design. Her framework relies on the same technical platform as the 81-metre Grace (ex. Kibo), featuring a 12.6- metre beam and a maximum draught of 3.5 metres.
Photo: Dutch Yachting
Key exterior trademark of the vessel is her striking and angular reverse bow, offering a silhouette comparable to a spaceship. Her exterior lines draw the eye to the bridge and owner’s decks surrounded by curved floor-to-ceiling mirrored glass, blurring the distinction between the upper deck and the panoramic skylounge.
With accommodation capacity for 14 guests, Excellence offers a swimming pool and platform, as well as Jacuzzi and sprawling beach club and impressive limousine tenders.
Yesterday, at the Boot exhibition in Dusseldorf, Il Cantiere del Pardo
presented the new Grand Soleil 44 Performance. This is a project of Matteo
Polly, the best designer in the offshore sector, rated, which is designed to
become a reference boat in the racing sector ORC.
The new Cantiere del Pardo challenge is called Grand Soleil 44. To win
this bid, the shipyard turned to a designer who was best able to interpret the
concept of a sports building on racetracks around the world in recent years.
This new 44-foot kit complements the Grand Soleil Yachts Performance
range, designed for more sporty owners looking for a high-performance boat that
can deliver results even in a regatta, located between the GS 34, GS 48 and GS
58.
As already noted on board the Grand Soleil 48, the GS 44 will also be
available in two versions: the layout will be more suitable for cruising, with
a different layout of the sail and deck plan to simplify maneuvers, the other
will be more Race for the best on the regatta. Style and elegance complement
the DNA of this new 44-foot footer, which feels a family of other models in
this line.
Despite the very light and sporty body, the liveliness of the interior
is surprising in how much volume you can use and perceive. Following the trends
of the latest Grand Soleil Performance models, even on 44-foot deck places,
both for racing and for enjoying a boat on a cruise, they are truly remarkable,
the dimensions of the cabin are significantly increased compared to all
previous models.
Among the distinguishing characteristics of the boat is the location of
the mast in a rather opposite direction, which will increase the sail area for
bow sails in order to maximize the characteristics taking into account the
average Mediterranean conditions. A choice that also allowed the cabin layout
to be promoted and thus have a larger cabin than previous models.
The interior layout includes three cabins and two bathrooms. The spaces
below the deck have a generous beam that offers large and comfortable volumes:
the kitchen is located on the left, the dining room consists of a comfortable
sofa with a dining table in the center, which can accommodate up to 8 persons.
Master-suite, with a comfortable double bed, a sofa and a private
bathroom, is really large for a 44-foot case with a sporty character. To make
the interior even more comfortable, there is a wonderful natural brightness
that penetrates through the various windows of the hull and onto the deck.
January 23, 2020
Abeking & Rasmussen have confirmed the launch of their new 68-meter superyacht, Soaring. The yacht had emerged out of her shed earlier this week and has now been lowered into the water for the first time this morning.Designed by Focus Yacht Design and project managed by Superyacht Technical Services, the yacht, which is set to become available for charter in the summer 2020, comes in at a size of over 1,500 GT.Soaring's upper deck features its master suite with a private owner's aft deck and a library. The yacht's remaining 5 guest cabins will be located on the main deck and catered to by a crew of 17.
January 18, 2020
Jaime Botin, part of the Satander banking dynasty, had been caught transporting a Picasso painting on his 67-meter sailing yacht Adix back in 2015. Now Madrid courts have fined the Spanish billionaire for €52.4 million and sentenced him to 18 months in prison.Botin, an active art collector, purchased Picasso's "Head of a Young Woman" painting back in 1977 for his collection. In February 2013, he tried to sell the painting at a Christies' auction in London but the art work couldn't leave Spain at their culture ministry's decision.Spain has some of the strictest laws when it comes to national heritage. According to them, any work of art over 100 years old that is considered culturally important in the view of their culture ministry can be deemed a national treasure, requiring its owner to get a permit in order to transport it out of Spain. Botin's permit was denied back in 2012.In 2015, Botin, according to Bloomberg, had his driver transport the painting from his Madrid home to Valencia where his 67-meter sailing yacht Adix was docked. When setting sail in June 2015, her captain didn't include the artwork on the list of onboard items. Soon after it set sail for Corsica, from where Botin had chartered a jet to ferry it to Geneva where he intended to keep it according to the publication.Tipped off that Botin's permit for the export of the Picasso hadn't gone through earlier, they inspected the yacht and found the painting in the captain's cabin.Adix itself is currently in Australia, finishing up her refit programme at the yard Brisbane. The yacht is set to remain in the South Pacific up to the America's Cup in Auckland in 2021. The painting found onboard the yacht in 2015 had an estimated value of $27 million, with experts saying it could now be even more. It has since become the property of the Spanish State.With a net worth valued by Forbes at $1.7 billion, Jaime Botin is the largest shareholder of Spanish bank Bankinter and a member of Spain's most prominent banking families. His great grandfather had founded Spain's largest bank, Santander.
January 18, 2020
Richard Matthews, original founder of Oyster Yachts, has returned to its board as a non-executive director. This follows Richard Hadida buying the company in 2018. Matthews had founded the sailing yacht manufacturer back in 1973.Oyster Yachts built its first 32ft sailing boat in 1973. From there it gradually extended its range of sailing yachts finding its sweet spot in 56ft to 125ft units designed by Robert Humphreys. In 2008 the company was sold to private equity firm Balmoral Capital for £70 million, before the firm disposed of it to HTP Investments for £15 million in 2012.Following a failure of the internal hull structure on Polina Star III, an Oyster 825 model, which led to the yacht sinking in 2015. This led to a recall of 4 other units and a dent in the builder's cash flow despite a £83 million order book in 2017. The following year, the company went into administration, before being purchased by Richard Hadida.Hadida is mostly known for founding Evolution Gaming, a company that powers most online casino games and currently trades on the Swedish stock market with a market cap of near €5 billion. His fried, yacht owner and automotive mogul Eddie Jordan was formerly also involved in the takeover bid with Oyster but later backed out."It is hugely important to me personally that the founder of the brand [Richard Matthews] I hold so close to my heart has given it his seal of approval by joining our board." Hadida explained. "Having restored the company to its former glory with the support of a fantastic team – from talented craftsmen to dedicated management – this feels like confirmation that Oyster is once again synonymous with quality and excellence, just as it was when Richard founded it back in 1973".
January 18, 2020
Turkish shipyard Numarine has announced the sale of 5 yachts from its XP series, bringing the total in the series up to 10. Four of these will be 26-meters in length and one 32-meters."These achievements indicate the relevance and popularity of the series" commented Numarine founder Omer Malaz. "We are very pleased that five more international customers will be able to experience what high quality and impeccable Numarine style are."All built on the same platform with identical layouts, the four 26XP yachts will feature a spacious flybridge, a main salon on the main deck and 4 guest cabins on the lower deck. Interior designs and finishes will be customised to the owner's tastes.The only substantial difference between the units will be the hulls, with one of them being semi-displacement with MAN engines of 1,200hp each, whilst the remaining ones will be displacement units with engines of 560-800hp each also manufactured by MAN.The 26XP and 32XP series were both designed by Can Yalman with naval architecture by Umberto Tagliavini. The Numarine 32XP model was being marketed at just under €9.3 million whilst the 26XP was asking just over €3.8 million.
January 17, 2020