This year’s annual listing shows that yachts are getting bigger and bigger, and this actually poses a problem, for marinas across the world simply do not have the space to accommodate such vessels. Therefore if we, in the region, are serious about megayachts then we should start to consider the construction of megamarinas. Such projects will delight the owners of these boats by providing convenient berths for their treasured possessions and in return local economies will benefit from associated revenues. Why? Because the cost of maintaining such yachts is estimated to be around 10 per cent per annum, and if you take the likely cost of Al Said to be around 500 million USD then that equates to 50 million USD a year.
Nevertheless, back to the point at hand, yacht owners evidently adhere to the philosophy of bigger is better. Take for instance the example of how when Saudi Arabian businessman Adnan Khashoggi built the 85m Nabila in 1980 it was the world’s largest private yacht. Nowadays the same yacht is actually only the 32nd largest yacht in the world. Furthermore it’s current owner, H.R.H. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who has renamed the boat Kingdom 5KR is rumoured to be in the process of upgrading to a much larger gigayacht that could well place him atop next year’s listing. We can only wait in anticipation. Stay tuned.
Dubai
160 metres
H.R.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Originally commissioned by Prince Jefri of Brunei, this gigayacht was sold-off when Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah decided to stop financing his brother’s exuberant lifestyle. Sheikh Mohammed bought the finished hull in 1998 but had the construction moved from Germany to Dubai. Amazingly for such a large yacht, only 24 guests can sleep aboard albeit in palatial sized quarters. The most exceptional features include a 21m wide atrium, a swimming pool, cinema, disco, Blackhawk helicopter, a gym with a squash court and a submarine.
Al Said
155 metres
H.R.H. Sultan Qaboos bin Said
Having previously owned the 7th largest Arab-owned boat Sultan Qaboos has upgraded into the gigayacht club with this new Lürssen build. Handed over in May this year, she was named Al Said after the Sultan’s previous 104m boat. Flying the Omani flag, and operated by the navy of the Sultanate of Oman, Al Said can boast more sailors than any other private ship afloat with a whopping 136 crew members. Normally accompanied by her supply and support ship Fulk Al Salamah, her home port is Muscat.
Prince Abdul Aziz
147 metres
H.R.H. King Abdallah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
Previously named Abdul Aziz, she currently serves King Abdallah and has enjoyed much more use as of late, having made visits to the Kingdom’s beachfront residences in Golfe Juan, France and Marbella, Spain. She comes magnificently equipped with a fully working hospital, a mosque, an automobile garage, a pool that rises up to become a dance floor and a 20-man helicopter. The three US-leased missile launchers installed by the late King Fahd have been decommissioned and replaced by a sophisticated underwater surveillance system.
El Mahroussa
146 metres
Arab Republic of Egypt
Built for Isma’il Pasha the Khedive of Egypt in 1865, this yacht has borne witness to historical events including the opening of the Suez Cana in 1869, and has hosted many high-ranking dignitaries including Empress Eugénie of France. Having undergone three major refits and two lengthenings, it is unfortunate that this historically significant and attractive yacht is rarely used these days. She can normally be found moored in Alexandria from where she continues to serve as the Presidential yacht while being cared for by the Egyptian Navy.
Al Salamah
140 metres
H.R.H. Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
Built by a consortium of Germany’s HDW and Lürssen, this boat was delivered in 1999 in record-time and with superlative finishing. Owned by Saudi Arabia’s current defence minister, Al Salamah would most likely take the title of the yacht with the most internal volume if such figures could be ascertained. She has 8 decks, 82 rooms, and an estimated crew of 96. With a total engine power of 17,540hp she can reach speeds of up to 22 knots. Most exceptional of all is the glass-encased indoor swimming pool on the top deck.
Al Mirqab
133 metres
H.R.H. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani
This is a revolutionary build from Kusch Yachtbau in Wewelsfleth. Designed for the current ruler of Qatar by Tim Heywood, with an interior by Andrew Winch, Al Mirqab was delivered just a couple of months ago. She is powered by a diesel-electric hybrid system that will help conserve the environment. The unusual set-up involves five 2,800kW generators that power two electric motors driving conventional shafts and a centrally positioned azimuthing electric pod drive located beneath the hull.
Issham Al Baher
116 metres
Saudi Arabian Royal yacht
Previously named Atlantis, this yacht is the sister ship of Aristotle Onassis’ Atlantis II. She was offered by shipping tycoon Stavros Niarchos to then Prince Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al Saud and was renamed Prince Abdul Aziz. She was then handed down to Prince Sultan before he himself upgraded to Al Salamah. Her current owner is unknown but she was renamed to Isham Al Baher after Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz no longer needed her although she is still believed to be a Saudi Royal yacht.
Lady Moura
105 metres
Dr. Nasser Al Rashid
Built by Blohm & Voss and launched in 1990, this yacht is manned by an impressive 61 crew members. She features a pool that when raised becomes a helipad, a 24-metre long dining table, a 14-metre Cigarette tender and two hydraulically operated water-level balconies than can be used for dining or water sports. Most astonishing of all, Lady Moura’s insignias visible on the port, starboard and rear are all plated in 24-karat gold. She has just finished a repair of the damages inflicted after she ran aground off Cannes in 2007.
Kingdom 5KR
86 metres
H.R.H. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al Saud
Built by Benetti in 1980 this superyacht was formerly owned by two other famous businessmen: Adnan Khashoggi and Donald Trump who both lost her in bankruptcy settlements. The current name derives from Prince Alwaleed’s company, his favourite number and the initials of his children, Khaled and Reem. The colour scheme of beige and green is also used on the prince’s A380, his helicopters, his jet skis and just about everything else he owns. Crucially however this was the first boat to use a beige hue and many others have followed suit.
Golden Odyssey
80 metres
H.R.H Prince Khaled bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
Owned by the current assistant minister of defence and aviation, and one time Desert Storm commander, this yacht also has a 66-metre support vessel that always accompanies it called Golden Shadow. Prince Khaled is the founder of Living Oceans Foundation to preserve and protect oceanic ecosystems and he often lends out the yachts for scientific research voyages. One of its more notable features is a live coral reef in an aquarium that almost fills a whole wall of the onboard dining room. A replacement yacht is currently in design.
Al Diriyah
79 metres
Sheikh Ahmed Yamani
This boat is owned by Sheikh Ahmed Yamani, the now 78 year old, former Saudi oil minister who was instrumental in the 1973 oil embargo. Al Diriyah is named after the town in the northwestern outskirts of Riyadh that was the original home of the al Saud’s, and which was the capital of the first Saudi dynasty from 1744 to 1818. The ship was built in 1960 in Japan at the National Bulk Carriers, and was once owned by Charles Revlon and then later by Dr. Nasser al Rashid before it was eventually sold to her present owner.
Tueq
78 metres
H.R.H. Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
Funnily enough this boat was not featured in the listing last year but after an almost 7-metre lengthening, Tueq, owned by the governor of Riyadh, finally made it. Following the works, the yacht is now equipped with two sets of the latest Bofors 30mm automated response system that pop out from the newly-added sections. She also has over 100 tons of high-tech kevlar body-protection armour and a 15cm thick reinforced steel band added all along the waterline area to protect the yacht against kamikazes in small boats.
Montkaj
78 metres
H.R.H Prince Mohammed bin Fahd bin Abdul Aziz al Saud
Montkaj was delivered in 1995 and used for one year before she returned to the Amels shipyard to undergo a three-metre extension that improved her appearance. This superyacht, owned by the Governor of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, is still the largest build by that yard. One of her best features is an owner’s suite that runs over two floors. There are a further 12 cabins available for guests who are looked after by a crew of 30. She can normally be found in the port of Antibes in the South of France.
Samar
77 metres
Kutayba Alghanim
Samar is the largest yacht built in the UK since the Queen’s decommissioned ship, Brittania, over 50 years ago. She was constructed by Devonport Yachts for Kutayba Alghanim, who named the boat after his child. The most notable features include a glass staircase running through the centre of the vessel, a gym, steam room, heated and refrigerated pools on the upper deck and a drive-in style dry dock tender garage at the rear. This is the only boat in the list that is available for charter, but at 650,000 Euros a week she doesn’t come cheap.
