Mega yachts are luxury vessels that appeared on the market in the 1980s. The first in history was the yacht Nabila, launched in 1979 and owned by the oilman Kashoggi.
Their characteristic, as their name suggests, is that they have dimensions that far exceed the standards of traditional yachts.
In fact, the average length of a super yacht is around 40 metres, but they also go much further, as there are no limits to their size and tonnage other than those established by the wishes and possibilities of their owners.
At the moment, the longest of them all is the Azzam, which measures 180 metres and is also super because of its price (500 million euros) and the amount of fuel it can hold (one million litres).
Summing up.
What are mega yachts?
Mega yachts are yachts of 40 metres and more in length equipped with luxury fittings and options.
Some famous mega yachts are:
the Eclipse, Abramovich’s yacht ousted by the Azzam for the record in length, still unsurpassed for its two helicopter landing pads and a missile launcher defence system.
The Mirage, the invisible yacht built of glass when viewed from 50 metres away.
The Ferretti Group’s Custom Line Navetta 37, capable of reaching a speed of 12 knots despite its large size.
CRN Chopi Chopi, the largest mega yacht built in Ancona.
Other super yachts boast indoor swimming pools and beaches, and spaces to make luxury constructions built on land envious.
In the luxury yacht sector, these ‘private ships’ account for about 1/4 of the total market. A portion that is destined to grow and which, predictably soon, will reach 50% of the total.
Italy is one of the countries where the construction of these large luxury yachts will be strategic for the entire nautical sector, and interest in these extraordinary constructions is very high.
But what are the expense items for a potential owner to take into account?
Let’s try to see them all.
Mega yacht cost: the complete overview
The cost of these super yachts, as is easy to imagine, varies with their size.
If a luxury yacht between 30 and 40 metres, such as the Navetta Custom Line 42, has a list price of 18 million euros, the 100-metre models, on the other hand, come close to, and sometimes exceed, 100 million euros. All the way up to the 500 million of the aforementioned Azzam.
These are true monsters of the sea, such as those built by Blohm + Voss, or signed by designers such as Francesco Paszkowski and Lenard Nuvolari, which require almost unlimited availability if one considers all the expenses they entail.
Important items of expenditure concern the management of personnel, including extra salaries, and that for fittings and furnishings, which will inevitably be up to the quality standards of design and prestige that characterise any yacht or luxury mega-yacht down to the last detail.
Let’s take a look at what the most ordinary expenses related to the maintenance of a super yacht reach.
There is certainly no shortage of yachts for sale even when it comes to mega yachts, but it might be useful to know that prices drop a lot when you opt for second-hand.
The choice of models available is wide here as well.
Interested in our list of new yachts? Find out what your next luxury yacht will be. Click to link to the dedicated page.
Mega yachts: how much does it cost to maintain them
The total expected expenditure is about 10 per cent of the purchase value, to which hauling, parking and crew costs must be added.
Then there are ordinary maintenance costs that protect against humidity, sun and salt, and extraordinary maintenance costs that take into account other minor extraordinary incidents.
Indicatively, we can assume a cost of 12,000 euro for hauling and launching and another 10,000 for engine maintenance.
Finally, the purchase of accessories to improve the yacht’s condition will also affect the total expenditure.
Mooring costs are also very significant. The most expensive marina by far is Capri, where daily costs are even double those of Port de Saint Tropez: 2585 euro per day for a 40+ metre yacht in high season. The Italian leader is followed by the marinas of Porto Cervo and Portofino, where, however, the cost does not fall below 2,000 euros.
Here, too, costs rise as the size increases, provided, however, that mooring is allowed.
These include the Mirabello marina in La Spezia, which is certainly one of the most suitable marinas for mooring megayachts – it was chosen by Giorgio Armani for his M/Y Main.
Generally, however, as already mentioned, not all marinas allow large luxury yachts: and from 70 metres in length onwards the only option is to anchor offshore.