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Aquijo is designed for long distance bluewater exploration, hence limiting the air draught to fit through the Panama Canal (46m) was no longer a consideration. That freed up the design team to create one of the largest true sailing yachts ever conceived. more
Materials are luxurious; as the mast runs through two interior decks it is clad in flawless high shine stainless steel complete with integrated LED lighting – the single biggest technical challenge of the interior build according to Voges. [links]
Asked what inspires people to build a yacht of Aquijo’s stature, designer Bill Tripp comments: “They’re not looking for the sure thing, they’re really looking for the unknown. They don’t know what it’ll be like sailing in South Georgia, or diving on a reef with hammerhead sharks at night. These are experiences they will remember all their life.
He adds: “Aquijo is also a sophisticated machine and brings most aspects of a 1600GT motoryacht with her. But she is for getting out there, and for going sailing. In Greece [last] summer, she would go out for an afternoon of sailing in a 35 knot Meltemi because it is so much fun to sail at 20 knots as if on rails.” more
“It was such clear skies and a pleasant 10 knot breeze. The sun was shining, it was warm: It was Mediterranean sailing on the south coast of Ireland.” [links]
Despite being literally half the waterline length of the giant Swan, Charlie Dalin and Paul Meilhat made a bold navigational call on Apivia, the first boat to cross the Vendée Globe finish line, by heading as far south of Guernsey on the outbound leg. more
Among the 27-man crew on Skorpios was Rybolovlev’s daughter Anna Rybolovleva, also experiencing her first ever offshore race.
“It was pretty fruity [on the first] night, but we are all good,” Larsen reported. “Obviously, we have a bit more of an asset to manage in those rough conditions, but we chose the right side of the course. We had everything stacked in the main saloon, all the sails and all the crew which made it easier, pitching over the waves.” [links]
It’s a tactic that was successfully adopted by multihull line honours winner Maxi Edmond de Rothschild and also many of the French IMOCAs, but Dalin and Meilhat took the most extreme southerly line, which saw them take a huge lead over the rest of the IMOCA class when the fleet reconvened off Lands End. here
4. ATHENA – 79.25m – Royal Huisman, Holland [links]
At 67.20m, VERTIGO by Alloy Yachts of New Zealand is the largest yacht ever built in the southern hemisphere. The yacht was voted sailing superyacht of the year at the World Superyacht Awards in 2012. Another very popular charter yacht with an exceptional track-record of successful charters. more
SPIRIT OF THE C’s was previously known as FELICITA WEST. She is the second largest yacht ever built by Italy’s Perini Navi, the largest of course being MALTESE FALCON. Designed by Ron Holland, the yacht was delivered in 2003. With a huge beam of nearly 13m, SPIRIT OF THE C’s has huge internal volume with an owner’s cabin occupying the entire beam of the yacht. The yacht’s hull is aluminium and she is capable of speeds in excess of 17 knots, a formidable achievement for a yacht of this size. Following an extensive refit in 2014, this yacht is available to charter in the Caribbean from $165,000 per week.
Very little is known about this yacht. She was built by the Lurssen shipyard in Germany and delivered in 2006. The yacht’s owner is believed to be Barry Diller, an American businessman. [links]
6. PHOCEA – 75.12m – Toulon Naval Dockyard, France here
The 450-foot-long Lurssen-built OPUS is launched in Germany.
This photo shows the 'Sailing Yacht A', the largest sailing yacht in the world, belonging to Russian . [+] billionaire Andrei Melnichenko on the French riviera city of Antibes on July 3, 2020. (Photo by VALERY HACHE / AFP) (Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images)
the 414-foot-long explorer yacht Octopus that was once owned by Microsoft Cofounder Paul Allen (below), more