"A lot of times, it's first come, first served," said Chris McChristian, who is working on his British captain's license. "If you get there and it's too tight, you'll go to a facility that's not as good or be at anchor somewhere having to commute in by tender. With owners, that's a very awkward position to be in." The mega-yachters, he added, "like to step on and off the boat."
But all that is about to change.
In an effort to capitalize on the megadollars that mega-yachts can bring to a harbor area, coastal resorts around the globe are racing to build or retrofit their marinas to accommodate the colossal cruisers. Nowhere is the pursuit more pronounced than in the Caribbean, where there are still large chunks of undeveloped shores, and in Florida, where a real estate boom over the last few years has been fueling new waterfront developments.
A haven found
From Miami to St. Thomas, new marinas with names like Super Yacht Harbor and Yacht Haven are being developed with berths for boats as long as 137m, roughly half the length of a 2,000-passenger cruise ship. To keep mega-yacht owners busy -- not to mention spending -- while their boats are parked at the marina, developers are surrounding their ports with high-end restaurants and retail shops. To entice yacht owners and their entourages to stay longer, they are also building luxury condominiums and five-star hotels.
As a result, a new real estate concept is beginning to emerge centered on the lifestyle of the boating elite. Island Capital Group in New York is transforming an existing port, Long Bay Harbor in St. Thomas, into a mega-yacht marina called Yacht Haven Grande with 48 slips averaging 30m in length. Twelve luxury condominiums, four waterfront restaurants, high-end shopping and a private yacht club around the 32-acre harbor are scheduled to open in the fall.
In Miami, Flagstone Property Group is designing Island Gardens, a US$480 million development to be built on Watson Island, between downtown Miami and South Beach. Island Gardens will include a 50-slip Super-Yacht Harbor for vessels up to 137m, a Westin hotel and a Shangri-La Hotel, to open in 2008, offering round-the-clock butler service.
Developers believe the mega-yachts will be an attraction, drawing other visitors to the destination as well. "It's not only a place to visit for the mega-yacht owners, but also a great opportunity for people to enjoy viewing the mega-yachts," said Mehmet Bayraktar, chief executive of Flagstone Property Group. "That's how places like Monaco and Portofino became famous. People want to get close to that lifestyle."
Bigwigs
Bigwig boaters who pull into these new marinas can expect white-glove treatment. Uniformed dockhands will greet owners upon arrival, help bring boats in and assist crews in obtaining provisions. The owner will be able to step off the boat for fine dining or a massage. A concierge office will be available to arrange car services or sightseeing excursions.
Many port towns see these new developments as a way to increase the flow of high-end tourists and help their economies with new jobs and revenue from servicing the big boats that stop by -- a 47m yacht can guzzle 16,000 gallons of gas at one fill up, for example -- as well as pampering their owners.
In 2002, the average expenditure of a mega-yacht visit to boatyards in Broward, Dade and Palm Beach counties in Florida was US$140,000, according to a report by Thomas Murray, a marine business specialist at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science at the College of William and Mary. The direct economic impact of mega-yacht repair and maintenance projects at local boatyards was an estimated US$181.6 million.
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