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Encyclopedia > Luxury yachts

The term luxury yacht refers to a very expensive privately owned yacht which is professionally crewed. Also known as a super-yacht, a luxury yacht may be either a sailing or motor yacht. A modern yacht A yacht (From Dutch Jacht meaning hunt(er)) was originally defined as a light, fast sailing vessel used to convey important persons. ... Sailing at sunset Wooden sailing boat Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or smaller boat, across a body of water. ... A yacht A yacht was originally defined as a light, fast sailing vessel used to convey important persons. ...


This term began to appear at the beginning of the 20th century when wealthy individuals constructed large private yachts for personal pleasure. Examples of early luxury motor yachts include M/Y (motor yacht) Christina O and M/Y Savarona. Early luxury sailing yachts include Americas Cup classic J class racers like S/Y (sailing yacht) Endeavour and Sir Thomas Lipton’s S/Y Shamrock. The New York Yacht Club hosted many early luxury sailing yacht events at Newport, Rhode Island, during the Gilded Age. Christina O is one of the worlds longest private yachts at 325 feet 3 inches (99 metres). ... The Americas Cup is the most famous trophy in the sport of yachting, and the oldest active trophy in sports. ... During the 1930s J-class yachts were built to race in the Americas Cup. ... Sir Thomas Johnstone Lipton (born May 10, 1850 in Glasgow; died October 2, 1931 in London), Scottish self-made man, merchant and yachtsman who created the famous Lipton tea brand and was the most persistent challenger in the history of the Americas Cup. ... The New York Yacht Club is a private yacht club based in New York City and Newport, R.I. The New York Yacht Club is one of the worlds most distinguished and influential yachting institutions. ... Newport as seen from the International Space Station. ... The Gilded Age (c. ...


More recently, over the last decade or two, there has been an increase in the number and popularity of large private luxury yachts. Luxury yachts are particularly bountiful in the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas, although increasingly luxury yachts are cruising in more remote areas of the world. With the increase in demand for luxury yachts there has been an increase custom boat building companies and yacht charter brokers. Luxury boat building and yacht charter companies are predominantly based in the United States and Western Europe but are also increasingly found in Australasia, Asia and Eastern Europe. European manufacturers such as Azimut-Benetti and Lurssen dominate the very top end of the yacht building market. Some yachts are used exclusively by their private owners, others are operated all year round as charter businesses, and a large number are privately owned but available for charter part time. Weekly charter fees range from a few tens of thousands of dollars a week to nearly a million dollars a week. This covers the wages of the crew, but not fuel, food and drink, or other incidental expenses. The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... West Indian also redirects here. ... A yacht charter broker is a specialist travel agent which acts as a representative for the chartering of a yacht or boat. ... A common understanding of Western Europe in modern times. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Oceania. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ... Current division of Europe into five (or more) regions: one definition of Eastern Europe is marked in orange Eastern Europe is an eastern region of Europe variably defined. ... Lürssen (or Lürssen Werft) is German shipbuilding company. ...


Yachts from 23 metres (75 feet) and up qualify for design awards from the Superyacht Society, but at the bottom end of that scale yachts will not necessarily be crewed and many set the minimum length for a superyacht considerably higher. From around 30 metres (98 feet) and up yachts are almost always crewed. A 45 to 50 metres (148 to 164 feet) yacht, the smallest with a generally accepted claim to superyacht status, will usually be a three decker with cabins for 12 guests (that is a preferred number, more common than either 10 or 14, and is found on yachts across quite a wide size range), and for a crew of a similar size. The accommodation on this type of yacht is typically as follows:

  • Lower deck: exterior swimming platform at the stern; four (sometimes five) guest cabins with en-suite bath or shower rooms aft; engine room amidships; crew quarters forward.
  • Main deck: sheltered exterior deck aft leading into the salon; dining room and galley; entrance amidships; owner's suite forward, usually includes either a study or a second twin stateroom.
  • Upper deck: exterior deck aft, often used for outdoor dining; second salon (often called the sky lounge); staffed bar inside or outside or both; sixth stateroom will be amidships if it is not on the lower deck or part of the owner's suite; gym (may also be on the lower deck or part of the owner's suite); captain's cabin; bridge.
  • Sun deck: on the roof of the upper deck, often features a jacuzzi.

A 50 metre yacht will have one or more luxury yacht tenders for reaching shore and other "toys" which may include a speed boat or sailing boat, jet-skis, windsurfing and diving equipment and a Banana boat. Up to date yachts have multiple flat screen televisions and satellite communications. A French galley and Dutch men-of-war off a port by Abraham Willaerts, painted 17th century. ... A luxury yacht tender is used to service and to provide support and entertainment to a private or charter luxury yacht. ... A 1962 Rebel. A wooden speedboat with an outboard engine. ... Jet Ski is the brand name of Kawasaki Heavy Industries personal water craft. ... Windsurfing (also called boardsailing) is a sport involving travel over water on a small 2-4. ... Diving refers to the sport of acrobatically jumping or falling into water. ... A banana boat (or water sled), often referred to simply as a banana, is an unpowered recreational boat designed to be pulled by a larger boat. ...


The number of really large yachts has increased rapidly since the 1990s and increasingly only yachts above around 65 metres (213 feet) stand out among other luxury yachts. Yachts of this size are almost always built to individual commissions and cost tens of millions of dollars (most super-yachts cost far more than their owners' homes on land, even though those homes are likely to be among the most largest and most desirable). A yacht of this size usually has four decks above the water line and one or two below. It is likely to have a helicopter landing platform. Apart from additional guest cabins, which are likely to include one of more "VIP suites" besides the owner's suite, extra facilities compared to a 50 metre yacht will include some or all of indoor jacuzzis, sauna and steam rooms, a beauty salon, massage and other treatment rooms, a medical centre, a discotheque, a cinema with a film library, plunge pool (possibly with a wave-maker), a playroom, and additional living areas such as a separate bar, secondary dining room, private sitting rooms or a library. There will be more boats and "toys" than there are on a 50 metre yacht.


As of 2006 yachts above 100 metres (328 feet) are still sufficiently rare that many yacht enthusiasts can name them all. They typically have five decks above the water line and two below. The very largest yachts have begun to incorporate such features as helicopter hangers, indoor swimming pools and miniature submarines. The burgeoning number of "small" super yachts has led to the introduction of the hyperbolic terms mega-yacht and giga-yacht to demarcate the elite among luxury yachts.


See also

A luxury yacht tender is used to service and to provide support and entertainment to a private or charter luxury yacht. ... This is a list of the worlds longest motor yachts in order of their length. ...

External links


 

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