Inside the SORDID WORLD of superyachts
In the world of the super rich superyacht owners, staff have to be able to get anything from anywhere within 24 hours. Recently, a “Mrs” (shorthand for a boat owner’s wife) woke up on a superyacht in the Caribbean, far from habitation. She wanted 1000 white roses to adorn the craft. The crew arranged for the flowers to be helicoptered from Miami, then brought to the yacht in time for dinner. The following morning, the Mrs wanted them gone. Unable to throw them into the sea and too far away to drop them at a port, the crew had to jam them into their tiny quarters.
Such stories of extravagance are rife at the Monaco Yacht Show today, where more than 580 exhibitors have set up stalls around the marina. There are ship designers, brokers, interior decorators and recruitment agencies. Here, if you can pay, you can have whatever you want: Swarovski crystalencrusted anchors, personalised toilet rolls and diamanté light fittings. You can buy gold dumbbells for your gym, gold swan taps for your bathroom and gold bins for your tampons.
In the water are 125 boats. Some are newly built for private owners, brought here by the shipyards as an advertisement to other buyers. The biggest at the show is – 111.5 metres, 18 guests, 38 crew,
