A superyacht owner is sailing through the beautiful Pacific waters of Fiji and has a craving for courgettes. What is he to do? Arrange for a refrigerated box of the vegetable to be flown over by private jet and sent to him on his yacht, of course.
While many teenagers will be focusing on opening presents and eating turkey, this Christmas Day Jessica Watson will be poring over weather maps.
Cruising a luxurious superyacht with your own custom-built limousine onboard, ready for offshore jaunts, sounds like an experience fit only for royalty.
Want to make the ultimate superyacht entrance? Why not go by submarine through "James Bond-style" doors? Or if you'd prefer, take a helicopter ride then keep it stowed securely away in your very own on-board hangar.
Every year, thousands of yachts owners head to warmer waters to escape the bitter cold of winter. But it seems that for some adventurous owners and charter guests, the balmy air of the Mediterranean and Caribbean no longer hold the same allure, and they are swapping palm trees for penguins in a quest for the ultimate sailing experience -- ice cruising.
At 44 meters long (145 ft), Hemisphere is the largest sailing catamaran in the world. The makers of Hemisphere believe this is first catamaran superyacht to hit the water and could revolutionize the way people think about sailing.
A pair of giant trimarans are battling for line honors in the Rolex Fastnet Race, one of yachting's classic offshore races.
As China's super rich grow ever richer they need new toys to play with. Now, some are betting that superyachts will be the next big thing for those Chinese millionaires wanting to show off their bling.
It's not often that a superyacht is inspired by the work of an obscure 19th-century Ukrainian mathematician. But the astonishingly shaped "Voronoi" is exactly that.
Before luxury yachting was the preserve of Russian tycoons and Silicon Valley moguls, it was only the world's wealthiest royals who built palaces on the sea.
A yacht to match your holiday? Sounds absurd, but if the coral-themed "Tofi" yacht becomes a reality, you could be exploring the reefs of the world in your own tropical fish-inspired luxury vessel.
updated: Fri Mar 25 2011 15:17:00
Shirley Robertson looks at ice yachting vessels blast over freezing lakes at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour.
The worst storm in the history of modern yacht racing was the monster gale that struck the Fastnet race in the summer of 1979. The Fastnet (named after its turnaround point, Ireland's southernmost spot) is one of racing's most prestigious events, and it had attracted more than 300 competitors, including several of the world's most famous and successful boats. Conditions were fine at the starting gun, and while a storm was predicted, not even the best forecasters had imagined how ferocious it would be. At its worst, waves were 50 feet high and winds were 70 mph, devastating many of the boats and terrifying many skippers. Of the 306 yachts in the race, 69 didn't finish, including some of the most exalted competitors; 23 sank or were abandoned. The winner was the brashest of yachting's young disrupters, 40-year-old Ted Turner. His strategy? "We kept going at full speed during the height of the storm," he told an interviewer. But wasn't he afraid? After all, 15 people died. Yes, he said,
What happens when an owner with bold ideas commissions a 45-meter yacht to venture where few have gone before? The result is "Big Fish," a new yacht that's bringing fresh meaning to go-anywhere yachting.
Australian maxi Wild Thing survived a collision with a spectator boat as the Rolex Sydney-Hobart yacht race got off to a spectacular start on Boxing Day.
Wild Oats XI crossed the line first in the 66th Rolex Sydney to Hobart yacht race on Tuesday, but the Australian super maxi's fifth victory in the annual event is in doubt due to an official protest.
Every few years, a radically designed superyacht splashes into the water, grabbing the world's attention.
If you think that luxury sailing holidays in the Caribbean, Mediterranean or South Pacific are only for the mega-rich, then think again.
It draws more from fantasy than function: a luxury concept yacht inspired by one of the ocean's most mythologized creatures -- the great whale.
Can life get any more effortless for the yachting set?
Need to get your superyacht from the crystal-blue waters of the Caribbean to the glamorous Mediterranean in a hurry? Not a problem when your luxury vessel transforms into a sleek jetplane at the click of a button.
"Buy a superyacht get one supercar free!"
The world of luxury yachts is not typically regarded as the most eco-friendly. Vast, gas-guzzling diesel engines, noisy jet-skis and lavish on-board entertainment systems are often at odds with the delicate marine environments they inhabit.
Monaco is famed for its glamorous Grand Prix, exclusive Casino's and mega-wealthy occupants.
The world's most fashionable women may finally have the perfect place to show off their designer dresses: A haute couture superyacht.
Monaco and Abu Dhabi are both exclusive tax havens known for high-profile monarchs and ostentatious displays of wealth.
Superyacht captains will never be ultra-wealthy like the yacht owners they work for but the lifestyle certainly makes up for it.
The mega yacht business has been slow since the economy soured, but at least one luxury shipbuilder appears to be betting on a rebound.
"There's nothing less sexy than data," says yachtsman Michael Moore.
The race for line honors in the annual Sydney-Hobart yacht race is developing into a thrilling battle between three giant maxi yachts.
updated: Wed Dec 02 2009 21:30:00
Released UK yachtsmen speak after being detained in Iran last week.
From catamarans made out of plastic bottles hoping to cross the Pacific Ocean to the recession-busting extravagance of billion-dollar superyachts, 2009 has been the year of crazy boats.
A military-grade laser that blinds temporarily is the latest security technology available to wealthy superyacht owners afraid of pirate attacks.
Demand for the world's largest, most expensive yachts is on the rise ahead of the Monaco Yacht Show this week.
It is still remembered as one of the worst days in the history of modern sailing.
"Ocean Emerald" is a superyacht with added wow-factor. Her startling appearance has made sure of that and in real life she is every bit as dramatic as she appears in these photographs.
A 23-year-old British student has designed a "super-green superyacht" built using only sustainable materials and which produces virtually no carbon emissions.
The world's richest people are spending millions arming their super-yachts with military-style technology and trained personnel to fight off potential attackers.
A U.S. company is offering a rare chance to holiday on a mega-yacht once used by a Hollywood star and her husband -- and thanks to the recession it's actually affordable.
A U.S. company is offering a rare chance to holiday on a mega-yacht once used by a Hollywood star and her husband -- and thanks to the recession it's actually affordable.
From ancient Phoenician galleys to 21st century super yachts, a lot has changed about the way people travel the high seas over the centuries.
America's Cup holders Alinghi and challenger of record Oracle have been told to get over their differences in an open letter from some of sailing's most influential figures.
A series of major international sporting events, a weak currency and its perennially sunny perch on the tip of South Africa are making Cape Town one of the hottest sailing destinations of 2009.
Marie Antoinette was no mistress of the high seas, but she'd probably feel quite welcome this weekend in the blue waters of the eastern Caribbean.
As many of the world's industries struggle in the face of global economic hardship, the inaugural Abu Dhabi Yacht Show went ahead earlier this month.
I had just launched my dream business: With a fellow entrepreneur I'd founded the SeaDream Yacht Club, a small private cruise line with twin mega-yachts. The company was an immediate success. But it was a terrible time, really. I'd left my job after 10 years as president of Cunard Line and moved from California to Florida to start our new business. Quite suddenly, in August 2000, my beloved wife of 21 years died of a rare lung disease.
The slayings of two super-yacht staff within two weeks have shaken the luxury yacht industry and sparked calls for crews to exercise extreme caution.
It may be named after the high-octane James Bond thriller, but does the latest offering from enthusiastic owner John Staluppi hit the jackpot?
"Right now, there has never been a better time to buy a super-yacht."
Few people get the chance to stroll the berths at super-yacht shows, so we've put together an exclusive photo gallery to show you behind the scenes at two of these ritzy events.
Australian maxi Wild Oats XI and arch rival Skandia were heading the fleet in the 64th Sydney-Hobart yacht race.
The swanky and exclusive super-yacht market is bracing itself for a storm -- off the water.
updated: Mon Nov 03 2008 01:26:00
CNN's Jim Bittermann tours one of Saddam Hussein's yachts that could be up for sale soon.
At 160 meters long, there is nothing quite as luxurious as the world's largest and most expensive super-yacht -- Dubai.
It doesn't have the brutality of rugby or the physical intimidation of a boxing match, yet sailing is still one of the most dangerous sports in the world.
There are few things in the world shrouded with as much secrecy as the super-yacht industry.
Team New Zealand is suing defending champion Alinghi in two U.S. courts to seek compensation for the delay in staging the next America's Cup.
Judge Herman Cahn has promised an early decision on the Americas Cup dispute between syndicates Oracle and Alinghi but he also urged them to continue their negotiations.
In 2004, Peter Munk and a handful of Montenegrin government officials took off in a rickety old army helicopter for a flight along the country's coast. There were no seats - just ammunition crates screwed to the floor. When Munk inquired about safety straps, the captain pointed to the iron handles on the sides of the crates and hollered, "Hold on tight!" The flight took them over lush, green hills and jagged outcroppings that tumbled down toward azure seas, till they finally reached their destination: a rusting naval base in a town called Tivat on the Bay of Kotor.
The next America's Cup scheduled for Valencia in 2009 could be postponed because of the ongoing legal dispute over the rules to be adopted for the competition, the Spanish organizers warned on Wednesday.
Defending champions Alinghi have made concessions over future rules changes for the next America's Cup in 2009 in an attempt to fend off criticism by challenging syndicates.
British skipper Mike Slade and his crew have completed this year's Fastnet Race in record time.
In the world of 150-foot yachts, private helicopters and lightening fast speedboats, there is a new toy so exclusive that buyers are actually invoking non-disclosure agreements.
If it's your idea of fun to admire the fabulously wealthy, brilliant, and charismatic person you will never be, you'll want to read "Mine's Bigger: Tom Perkins and the Making of the Greatest Sailing Machine Ever Built," by Newsweek senior editor David A. Kaplan. But if holding up the ludicrously self-involved for public examination makes you whimper with delight, you'll like it just as much.
We're crossing the Gulf of Argolis: 37°8' N, 22°50' E. The water is placid, without a breath of wind, which is a bit of a disappointment - we've come to Greece to sail, but today we're under diesel...
Bill Joy is wearing bright-red sneakers and a boyish grin that belies his 52 years. Although dusk has settled over the Netherlands' Royal Huisman shipyard and hunger pangs are surely gripping the l...
Even if you can't afford to build your own superyacht - Bill Joy's boat could end up costing $50 million, depending on how many more man-hours he racks up at the Huisman yard in his quest for the best, plus $3 million a year to operate - there's a way to get onboard: Charter.
What more is there to say about megayachts? They are status symbols, objects of luxury that would make Marie Antoinette blush, perfect for hiding from prying paparazzi or niggling underlings for months at a time.
Some people love a cruise. Some people would rather get a root canal. If you're in the latter group, it may be because the word cruise brings to mind images of thousands of people lining up for the...
Oracle Corp. CEO Larry Ellison, one of the world's richest men, has managed to run up more than $1 billion in debt, sparking concern from his financial advisor, according to a published report.
Alfa Romeo overtook Wild Oats as the super maxis headed south at record pace in the 61st Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
TWO TRUTHS ARE UNIVERSALLY acknowledged about yachts nowadays: There are more and more of them, and they are getting bigger and bigger. A few decades ago a 50-foot boat was considered large. Today,...
There are yachts, there are luxury yachts, there are super-luxury yachts, and then there is the Al Salamah, a vessel beside which most similar boats look like little more than glorified pedalos.
Imagine yourself cruising the high seas in a lavish, super-secret ocean-faring vessel complete with a remote controlled undersea rover, a 12-man submersible and a personal crew of 60, including several former Navy Seals and a recording studio.
Germany have entered their first ever challenger for yachting's most prestigious prize.
Two of the Sydney-to-Hobart frontrunners have been forced to quit the race Tuesday, leaving the way clear for the 27-meter (90 foot) Nicorette to take line honors.
South Africa will become the first African country to contest the America's Cup in 2007 following the submission of its challenge on Wednesday.
As you begin to consider what sort of yacht you'll require, it's necessary to know the various categories into which luxury pleasure craft fall. There is the "day yacht." There are "express cruiser...
Nothing shouts "new money" quite as loud as a large, expensive power yacht. At least that's what the blue-blood sailors in New England's snootiest harbors often used to say. But six years ago Hinck...
Floating pierside on the Hudson River, PlayStation shimmers on the edge of plausibility. A $5 million, 105-foot-long, dual-hulled vision of gleaming yellow carbon fiber and Kevlar, the boat embodie...
Splice the main brace! The seeds of capitalism are barely sprouting, and already the Leningrad Yacht Club is pursuing the world's most sought-after sailing trophy. Their vessel: Red Star, which has...
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