Page 18 - OBW Spring Ed 2019

FROM THE CHAIRMAN

ESCAPE TO THE SEAS

MEGA YACHTS

t is a prevalent notion that wealthy boys never grow
up - their toys just get bigger and more expensive.
Mega yachts seems to bear this out. You will be hard-
I pressed to find a toy more super-sized – in physical
size as well as the price tag – than a mega yacht. Technically
speaking, anything over 78 feet can call itself a super yacht but
the world’s top 100 mega yachts are over 279 feet.

Renowned shipyards including Lürssen, Feadship, Oceanco and
Benetti have custom-built super and mega yachts - from classic
sailing vessels to high-powered motor yachts - for billionaires
and royalty who can afford them. With interiors by renowned
designers such as Reymond Langton and Terence Disdale, some
are so exclusive that their bespoke décor is only revealed to
owners and their guests.

Apart from a few classic vessels, mega yachts seldom promise a
good return on investment (ROI). Expenses comprising of fuel,
crew, dockage, insurance, maintenance, and repairs are ongoing in
the essential requirement of upholding seaworthiness. However,
for those who share a love of the open sea, mega yachts are a great
way to dispose of a few hundred million dollars in mega style.

Beyond the custom-built, a popular option for owning your
own private, floating island, is to buy a pre-owned mega yacht
and remodel. Pre-owned purchases garner instant gratification
without the planning and building phases. Prince Mohammed
Bin Salman’s recent purchase of Serene from Yuri Scheffler is
one of many examples.

In this mostly male-dominated playground, there are also a
growing number of women billionaires buying, commissioning,
and creating mega yachts. Among these are global superstars,
shipbuilder and engineer, Laura Pomponi, and designer Tina
Green, as well as power-players: Wendy Schmidt with Elfje,
Heidi Horten with Carinthia VII, J.K. Rowling with Arriva,
which was pre-owned by Johnny Depp and named Amphitrite;
and Elena Ambrosiadou’s Maltese Falcon, notably the world’s
largest sailing yacht extending to a lengthy 289 feet.

18 | www.OceanBlueWorld.com