State of the Yacht
Sunshine gleamed like tiny diamonds where it reflected from her carefully polished teak deck. Intricately carved oak and rosewood inlay created exotic designs on her front panelling near the bow. A fine spray of spume suddenly blew causing the light to fragment into the colours of the rainbow. Her beauty was only surpassed by her effortless speed – and she was merely the yacht’s subsidiary tender!
No simple definition of the term super yacht can accurately capture the meaning, let alone the elusive spirit. A superyacht exudes mystery and hints at the pleasures only known to the very wealthy. It appears like that notoriously famous starlet, Bridgitte Bardot, the respectable married man’s unattainable dream. It inhabits a fringe, an enchanted space frequented by the jet set yet only imagined by the masses. It somehow triggers hypnotic daydreams and encourages an abundance of excesses.
A superyacht is a private castle that is moated by the vast expanse of the ocean. It is an oasis with five star accommodation. It can be a floating office complex with the latest in high-tech gadgetry or a mobile manor house where 20th century kings of business hold court and entertain friends, while dazzling the competition.
In a sense, a superyacht has absolutely nothing to do with boats, except
for the mere fact that it is one. Superyachts are skippered by new and old money; by wealthy industrialist, rock and film stars, heads of state and sheikhs, new blood and blue blood, entrepreneurs and big-time dealers – or the unassuming Walter Mitty who has quietly amassed his millions and dreams of being James Bond.
Displacement motor yachts tend to be slower, with maximum speeds of between 10 and 14 knots, but are more comfortable and fairly sedate for cruising in rough seas. Fast planing jet yachts are more expensive to run but give that added thrill of incredibly high speeds. But to best escape the noise of the maddening crowds – just the wind – and the billowing sails of a sailing yacht.
The superyacht owner is completely spoiled for choice. Money aside, he is only limited by his dreams. Sailing yacht owners are generally yachting enthusiasts and know how to sail. Then again, some don’t. Superyachts with mighty engines are for the tycoon who yearns to be able to pick up and go. Speed is everything with meetings in Manila and the marlin biting off Penang. Finally there is the motor-sailer, with more emphasis on spacious interiors than on performance sailing.
Whichever style you choose, with palatial staterooms, cinemas, operating theatres and advanced
communications systems, big boats lend themselves to big business. Few other indulgences give such freedom and flexibility to the restless tycoon, who can decide when and where to board ship, how long to cruise, which secluded bay to explore, or which epicurean delights are needed to beguile the palates of even the most jaded of dinner guests. The context of the superyacht is intrinsically decadent. How much it has to do with seafaring as a really keen sailor might know it is another matter.
The market for superyachts is currently estimated at over 3,000 boats world-wide and increases by about 100 per year. The combined yearly price tag approximately one billion euros but millions more are spent on used superyachts – not to mention refits and renovation. In some ways it is only a small market, but one clearly defined and controlled by the richest, most powerful and most successful people in the world.
Standard fittings on a superyacht include all one could hope for in the best hotels – air conditioning in
all rooms, king-sized beds, a gymnasium and pool, round-the-clock room service and entertainment – plus a few extras useful only at sea, such as automatically launched high-speed tenders, jet skis, water-bikes or maybe a mini-submarine.
Then of course there are those quirky little individual requirements that might slip the mind of the off-the-peg boat owner like the armour-plating in the aft tanks of a Hong Kong based vessel to protect it against pirates. Or the immense speed required by a Japanese owner to assure fast passage between his favourite golf courses.
A superyacht is said to represent the ultimate in ocean-going design, advanced technology and craftsmanship. But until recently yacht design merely refined previous work and the owner would have to accept that. Now design is showing signs of breaking those old molds. Clients in this elite market won’t settle for a bog standard boat but want something that reflects their own individual personality.
As with evolving social changes in society, the design briefs for superyachts have thrown off earlier constraints of technological and styling conventions, and clients are now demanding a wider range of solutions to their ideas about how superyachts will be used.
Following commercial and social competitiveness, designers are stretching their design work to try and fulfil the client’s every wish. Balancing practical and safety issues with what are often unconventional design requirements is the new challenge. Also, there are aesthetic rules that need to be addressed, a point that is often lost on new superyacht owners, and violating these principles can negatively influence the ongoing value of what is today that most fashionable new launching.
The thing is with a super yacht that it doesn’t really matter where in the world you happen to be – life can still be pretty super. With life on the ocean wave proving to be ever more attractive to the sybarite rather than the mere sailor this year promises to be the biggest in history for these giant water toys. Jacuzzis, saunas and massive sun decks mark them out rather than rigging, blisters and the lonely night-watch. Just carefully select your level of decadence and the location is merely the backdrop for your indulgence.
