MYBA Super Yacht Charter Show in Genoa

Next week from the 4th to 8th May it is the 21st MYBA Charter Show in Genoa and what a stunning list of yachts!  We are really looking forward to visiting the show.  

Unlike the Monaco Yacht Show in September this is an event for the industry only and members of the public are not allowed in.  This means the docks are relatively quiet and the yachts can be visited easily without appointments made weeks ahead of the show.  Of course there are not as many yachts to see and all of them are there because they are for charter but it is an impressive fleet.

The crew work up is just as hard as for a larger show as they have to impress the charter brokers who will sell their yacht to potential charterers for the summer season in the Mediterranean.

This year the Organisers are telling us the show will be bursting at the seams, with a number of yachts waiting outside at anchor, just in case any yacht should drop out and a space open up.  

The yachts to see range in size from the diminutive, at least relatively, 22 metre motor yacht Samakanda to the huge 70 metre megayacht Boadicea built by Amels, with 63 other yachts in between. 

So what yachts are on our must visit list?  Well there are a number of brand new motoryachts we must see  including two from Benetti, Giorgia, the latest Benetti Classsic 120' and the 59 metre Meamina; the 54 metre Proteskan Turquiose Leo Fun; Slipstream a 60 metre from CMN and 42 metre Natori from Baglietto.  On the sailing yacht side there are fewer choices but Mondango the new 52 metre Dubois ketch from Alloy Yachts is a must and it will be interesting to see if anything has changed on Felicita West, the 60 metre Perinin Navi and she has recently been sold.

If you want to see what other yachts will be at the show visit www.mybashow.com

Part Own a Super Yacht?

In our last blog we wrote about Ocean Emerald, designed and launch by Norman Foster for YachtPlus a new superyacht fractional ownership program.  But what exactly is “Fractional Ownership”?   Many call it time share without the sleaze – at least in theory.  And it does differ in so much as the owner actually own something, by way of an asset, in this case a 41 metre super yacht.  

But is it worth it?  Here you are, buying a one eighth share of a brand new Italian built yacht designed by Norman Foster and his team.  It will cost initially €1,875,000 plus a further €200,000 a year for each of the 8 owners to enjoy one month aboard their yacht.  This is equivalent to €101,354 per week, assuming 8 years ownership and no increase in the service charge.  And you should get some money back when the yacht is sold at the end of eight years.

So how does this compare with chartering a similar sized yacht?  A week aboard Nantori a brand new 42 metre yacht from Baglietto and offered for charter by Camper & Nicholsons would before you haggle a bit, cost €135,000.  So yes there is a saving but will it be enough to persuade more owners to buy into the scheme?  32 owners for 4 yachts are planned and with 20 owners said to have or nearly have completed that means the programme is already well over half way subscribed.

With just one full day between Owners’ visits our worries would be crew burn out and a high turnover of staff.  Having a great looking boat is all well and good but if the staff are not happy you can bet the guests wont be either. 

If being able to say “I own a superyacht” is unimportant it might be worth considering paying the extra to “rent” a superyacht.  Amongst the top European charter brokers we rate highly are Burgess, Camper & Nicholsons International, Edmiston, Frasers, Ocean Independence and YPI.  Find a broker you feel comfortable with and you can charter where you want and when you want.  If the crew or yacht don’t come up to expectation you can simply select a different boat next time.  Which would you prefer?

Lord Foster launches Fractional Ownership YachtPlus

On April 25^th, Lord Foster the eminent architect famed for his designs of office blocks such as London’s Gerkin and the wobbly bridge across the Thames launched the 41 metre Ocean Emerald.  She is the first Fractional Ownership super yacht from YachtPlus and we were invited to be one of a select few to watch the event.  We were there at Porto Lotti in Italy near La Spezia together with select members of the media, the design team along with owners and prospective owners of this and future yachts in the timeshare scheme.

Norman Foster is not best known as a yacht designer yet this is not the first yacht he has been responsible for.  Previously in 1991 he had designed the 55 metre Izanami now called Ronin another radical but very different design.  

We were one of the lucky few journalists to be granted a five minute interview with the great man after the press conference.  Lord Foster is not only the designer but he is also one of the fractional owners and we hope to get a chance to ask him what he thinks of the yacht after he has used her for the first time which is expected to be in June next year.

Although ready to be unveiled to world’s press the yacht is not yet completed with the most obvious sign of this being the lack of a name or port of registry affixed anywhere yet.  She will be returning to the yard for the final touches and the granting of her MCA certificates.  It is hoped she will be ready in time for Monaco Grand Prix, when one of her 8 owners has booked a berth – something that at that time of year is almost as difficult to find as hen’s teeth and a lot more expensive.

So what is the yacht like?  Well everyone agreed it is both radical and different and will definitely be a head turner whether she is in Monaco or Mexico, Corsica or the Caribbean.  Some said the design is fabulous and fantastic but others were less complimentary and one wag even suggested Foster may have been influenced by the lines of an electric iron! Someone else suggested it looked like the Gherkin laid on its side.  What do you think?

Whilst the yachts exterior and ample external guest areas are unusual especially for a yacht her size, her interior follows a fairly standard layout.  The large main salon benefits from huge windows and a clever spiral staircase providing ample light but the rest of the yacht’s interior was inevitably more tightly packed as a result of the huge areas devoted to outside living on deck.

Blogging Baby Steps

Last night we learned about blogging.  Today I am going to give it a go. I have downloaded set up this blog, I have downloaded ecto.  Now I have no excuse for not actually writing something!

But how do I begin?  Should I tell you who we are?  Should I tell you what we do? Or should I just let you work it out as we write?  I think I will make this a short introduction to us.

We are travel journalists who specialise in yachts and yachting.  We have been yachties, we have been superyacht crew and now we write about it and photograph it.  We are freelance and have worked or are working for most of the top yachting magazines in the world.

Yes we get to travel, yes we go to wonderful places and yes we even get to sample what it is like to be a guest on yachts that cost more to charter for a week than most people pay for a house.