How do you top yourself if you’re the creator of a multi-award-winning superyacht? It is easy. Build the same yacht again…only bigger and better.
This yacht follows in the footsteps of the acclaimed 45 meter Aquos Yachts motor yacht BIG FISH. Fifty-meter motor yacht STAR FISH is under construction at McMullen & Wing.
LAUNCH DATE AND ACCOMMODATIONS
Aquos motor yacht STAR FISH projects to launch in April of 2012. She is based on the same hull form as M/Y BIG FISH. The yacht will have six staterooms, specifically for 12 guests. In addition, she accommodates 14 crew. Her Owner’s deck has an optional forward-facing cabin and both fore and aft decks.
UNIQUE DESIGN
STAR FISH has a unique arrangement by Greg C. Marshall Naval Architects. It allows the sky lounge deck to be dedicated solely to the owner’s use. It can also be incorporated in the yacht’s public space scheme during luxury yacht charter outings. The captain’s cabin and wheelhouse are located above. They are on a fourth deck with a dramatic flying bridge and observation pod above it.
Golf on a yacht charter – concept of yacht Star Fish
Fore! At the back of the yacht, builders create a golf green for golfing enthusiasts to practice their drives. Using biodegradable (fish food) golf balls helps the environment.
We first introduced our readers to McMullen & Wing yacht BIG FISH in January 2011, as the vessel set out on an around-the-world odyssey. Along the way, the owner, designer, and builders continued to collect awards and platitudes for the edgy, angular, and dramatic megayacht, specifically created for sea-going adventure.
The finalists for an international design awards program have been announced and several mega yacht charter vessels lead the pack.
SUPERYACHT SOCIETY AWARD
The International Superyacht Society has released its lists of finalists for the 2011 International Design Awards. Four of the five nominees in the Best Power category for yachts 40 to 60 meters in length are charter vessels:
Based solely on peer review, the International Superyacht Society Design (ISS) Awards celebrate the finest naval architecture, design, interiors, and engineering in the newest yachts in the large yacht industry.
AWARD GALA
Winners will be announced at 7 p.m. Oct. 27 at ISS’s annual International Design Awards Gala at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort in Fort Lauderdale.
Some of the newest and largest yachts for hire win awards. They starred at the sixth annual World Superyacht Awards. This was in London, May 7, 2011.
MOTOR YACHT OF THE YEAR
Sixteen new yachts were honored. Nine are available for hire. These are in popular vacation destinations around the world. The 50 meter EXUMA was co-winner of the prestigious,”Motor Yacht of the Year,” with yacht, Eclipse.
OSCARS OF YACHT INDUSTRY
The Neptune awards are considered the “Oscars of the yacht industry.” A beautiful evening ceremony took place at London’s historic Guildhall. The distinguished guests attend the glittering gala . For instance, over 500 yacht owners and naval architects. Also included were designers, their families, and friends. With this in mind, it was an amazing event.
NEPTUNE TROPHIES
Silver Neptune trophies went to owners of sail and motor yachts delivered in 2010. For instance, Kokomo (sailboat) and Sycara V (motoryacht).
COMPANY PRESIDENT COMMENTS
Jana Sheeder, President of SailAway and 1-800 Yacht Charters beamed as the final award was announced.
“We are so proud to represent for charter nine of the winning yachts,” said Sheeder. “This is a great testament to the talents and keen eye of our charter department. Our team spends countless hours identifying potential yachts for hire. We look at nearly one hundred vessels each year, hoping to discover 10 to 20 new yachts that exemplify elegant design and luxurious amenities. It is these yachts – the best of the best – that we present to our clients for their yachting vacations.”
AWARD WINNERS
Here is the list of winners, with click-for-brochure charter yachts highlighted in yellow:
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT
3,000 Gross Tons (GT) and Above
Winner: Eclipse
Judges’ Special Award: Palladium
The ancient city of Istanbul will play host to the seventh annual World Superyacht Awards
at the luxurious Ciragan Palace Kempinski on 5 May, 2012.
Çiragan Palace Kempinski – Istanbul
THE OSCARS
Combining a glittering awards ceremony with a gala dinner/dance, the Awards , often dubbed the “Oscars” of the superyacht industry, will be attended by an elite guest list of megayacht owners from around the globe.
WHICH YACHTS STEAL THE SHOW?
While the nominations include private yachts as well as charter vessels, it’s the newest and largest yachts for hire that seem to steal the show each year. Some of the winners at the six annual installment in London, May 7, 2011 include, for example
SYCARA V
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT – 1,300 GT to 2,999 GT
Winner: SYCARA V
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT – 500 GT to 1,299 GT
Winner: MARY-JEAN II
BEST DISPLACEMENT MOTOR YACHT under 500 GT
Winner: EXUMA
Judges’ Commendation: BIG FISH
THREE DECK SEMI-DISPLACEMENT OR PLANING MOTOR YACHT
Winner: CALLIOPE
MORE WINNERS
MOTOR YACHT OF THE YEAR
Joint Winners: Eclipse and EXUMA
THE SAILBOATS
BEST SAILING YACHT – 45 meters and up Winner is Zefira
Judges’ Special Award goes to ATLANTIC KOKOMO also receives Judges’ Special Award
Commendation by Judges goes to TWIZZLE
BEST SAILING YACHT – 30 meters to 44.99 meters
Winner is IMAGINE
WHERE IS ISTANBUL
Straddling the Bosphorus Strait separating Europe and Asia, Istanbul embodies the best of both cultures. The city has been the capital of three empires, each leaving a heritage of amazing architecture and monuments.
THE PALACE
Once an Ottoman palace, the Çiragan Palace Kempinski Istanbul is located on the European shores of the Bosphorus. It has spectacular views over the strait. The palace is a 5-star resort. It is a registered member of The Leading Hotels of the World. Its 313 luxurious rooms include 20 suites in the hotel. In addition, 11 suites in the historical palace.
There is an old idiom. “You can’t keep a good man down.” This applies to a 45 meter superyacht with a penchant for adventure. Just 15 months after her launch, motor yacht BIG FISH is now on her second trans-Atlantic crossing and nearing 50,000 nautical miles on her own bottom. On her maiden voyage she crossed the Pacific Ocean, transited the Panama Canal twice, chartered inAntarctica, and cruised extensively inJapan, Tahiti, the Galapagos Islands, the Amazon, Sweden, Norway, and theCaribbean.
POPULAR CHARTERYACHT
In the process, mega yachtBIG FISHhas booked more than $2,500,000 inluxury yacht charterrevenue.
BIG FISH
This 45-meter ocean explorer was built in 2010 for an owner who wanted a yacht that could to travel to remote parts of the world, but which also had a contemporary, open style with floor-to-ceiling windows. Designed by Greg Marshall and built at the McMullen & Wing yard in Auckland, New Zealand, this modern-day explorer is loaded with enough aquasports gear to turn the head of any action adventurer.
WATERTOYS
BIG FISH carries SCUBA and fishing gear. She also carries lots of water toys. For instance,
26 foot custom-built tender with a 200 mile range
Sailing dinghies – 2
2 wake boards
Ocean kayaks – 2
2 windsurfers
kite board sets – 2
5 paddle boards (SUP’s…stand up paddleboards)
Water skis
GYMNASIUM
For “drier” exercise options, she has a full onboard gymnasium. For example, she offers a spin bike, free weights, rowing machine, yoga mats, and more.
The British Antarctic survey ship, RSS Ernest Shackleton, drydocked recently in Denmark. Her hull stunned the shipyard engineers and paint specialists. The ship spent two seasons battering her way through ice up to 2.5 meters thick. A high content of abrasive gravel and volcanic lava exists in the ice. Amazement seizes the inspection team. The hull coating stayed virtually intact and undamaged.
STRIPPED HULL
This is in strong contrast to the Shackleton’s previous drydocking. Specifically, almost the entire hull with a conventional ice-going underwater hull coating, was practically stripped. Bare, unprotected steel exists.
THE HULL COATING
The difference lay in the fact that when the Shackleton left drydock in 2009, the hull was newly coated with Ecospeed, a glass flake vinyl ester resin underwater hull coating proven to have extraordinary anti-corrosion strength and flexibility.
The success of the new underwater hull coating on the Shackleton heralds a breakthrough in icebreaker protection. Some observers foresee this as an opportunity for the expansion of Arctic luxury yacht charter.
BIG FISH – McMullen & Wing Superyacht
COLD WATER EXPEDITION YACHT
Leading the way for cold-water expedition yacht charters is motor yacht BIG FISH. This 45-meter explorer is a 2010 build. Her owner wants a yacht that travels to remote parts of the world. In addition, also has a contemporary, open style with floor-to-ceiling windows. Designed by Greg Marshall and built at the McMullen & Wing yard in Auckland, Big Fish visited Antarctica as part of her virgin circumnavigation of the globe.
“We see more expedition-style yachts enter the market each season,” says Sheeder. “Exploration vessels like motor yacht BIG FISH are opening the door to a new world of charter possibilities. The new Ecospeed hull coating technology could mean even more yachts will be able to safely visit remote cruising grounds in both the Arctic and Antarctic. I can’t think of a better way to learn about nature and our endangered wildlife.”
SeaKeepers, a group of yacht owners, has an innovative option: a specially-designed sensing system for measuring sea changes. The 70th annual Miami International Boat Show is set to take place this week. Many of the superyachts in Miami will offer plenty of luxury features, from hot tubs to helipads.
INNOVATION IN YACHTING
But a select few of the luxury yacht charter vessels in town for the show will boast an innovative option that allows owners do a little something good for the planet as their yachts cruise the playgrounds of the rich famous.
Many SeaKeepers yachts have sensing systems that automatically collect ocean and weather readings and stream them to worldwide scientists.
Owners of some of the world’s largest yachts are members, including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, Prince Khaled Bin Sultan, a member of Saudi Arabia’s royal family, publisher Steve Forbes, and Miami Heat and Carnival Cruise Lines owner, Micky Arison.
WHERE DID SEAKEEPERS ORIGINATE?
In 1998, yacht owners in Monaco discussed climate change, then they formed the nonprofit. They then created a system so yachts could do oceanic research.
The SeaKeeper 1000, monitoring system cost millions of dollars. It was donated by the group’s founding members, scientists, and engineers at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. The system measures temperature, salinity, oxygen and acid in the ocean. It also gathers weather readings.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO PROTECT THE OCEAN?
The Seakeepers fight to protect the oceans, and as quoted by the Marine Conservation Institite,
“the ocean is the largest ecosystem on Earth. Living oceans absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and reduce climate change impact.”
Add another name to the growing list of private yacht charter vessels and their owners and crews helping out. Specifically, stepping up to the plate to further the cause of protecting our oceans.
LADY KATHRYN V
Earlier this summer, Lurssen yacht LADY KATHRYN V deployed an oceanographic instrument drifter in the Azores on behalf of The International SeaKeepers Society. The data collected by the drifter will be used for various marine preservation studies.
The 61 meter superyacht was in between summer charters and the crew took the opportunity to assist to place the very first Seakeepers data-gathering floater in the Azores.
SeaKeepers works with institutions such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), to take and record ongoing oceanographic measurements. The collection of this data is used to analyze and study oil spills, marine debris accumulation, and hurricane prediction models. The cumulative effect of this data leads to a better understanding of the marine environment.
Other charter vessels that are participating in the program include the 45 meter McMullen & Wing yacht BIG FISH, currently in the South Pacific, and the 54 meter Sensation Yachts yacht NOBEL HOUSE, based this summer in Cabo, Mexico.
Built in 2011, the 200 ft Lurssen LADY KATHRYN V yacht accommodates up to 12 guests in 6 staterooms. She is available this winter in the Bahamas and the Caribbean at a weekly rate of $450,000. For further information, call 305-720-7245
JUST SAY NO
Say NO to disposable plastic, and we’ll send you a gift! Plastic represents one of the greatest threats to the health of our oceans.
COMMENT AND GIFT
Leave us a comment below saying that you agree not to use disposable plastic shopping bags, and we’ll send you a large “Eco-Hero” tote bag to carry with you! Every little bit helps – thank you for doing your part to protect our oceans!
The final nominees for the 2011 ShowBoats Design Awards are announced. A group of charter vessels lead the way.
59 finalists culled from a record 250 nominations. In specific, for the second annual competition. It is sponsored by Boat International Media. At stake is a coveted “Golden Neptune” trophy. It presents at a gala awards evening. The evening occurs in Palm Beach, Florida, on October 25, 2011.
The list of nominees are excellent charterboats. They are some of the newest yachts available for hire.
BIG WINNER
Dubois Naval Architects is in the spotlight again. They run away with a number of honors at the recent World Superyacht Awards. Their yachts are early favorites to win again. For instance, KOKOMO(finalist – naval architecture; interior layout; interior design). In addition, TWIZZLE(finalist – naval architecture; exterior design and styling; interior design; recreational area for guest use).
The finalists will be scrutinized by an independent panel of judges. This includes superyacht owners and renowned designers from outside the yachting industry.
The award gala will take place at Mar a Lago Club, Donald Trump’s exclusive private club in Palm Beach. It is held on the final day of the Superyacht Design Symposium. The ceremony concludes two days of design-focused events in Florida. These are prior to the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show (FLIBS).
Purchase tickets to the ShowBoats Design Awards Gala before August 19, 2011, and receive a special discount off the regular price
Table of 12 – Early Bird Price: $5670 (savings of $630).
Table of 10 – Early Bird Price: $4725 (savings of $525).
Individual Ticket – Early Bird Price: $535 (savings of $60)
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