In this article we have asked our yachting specialist to make a review of these first 20 years of yacht design of the new millennium, to discover the 20 yachts that marked this era in terms of style, architecture, design, innovation and ideas. Look back on the journey made by architects and shipyards over all these years.
The following selection is presented starting from the most important vessel in terms of length. That’s why it starts with Azzam, the biggest yacht ever built: with her 180 metres of pure beauty, she has held the title since 2013, despite Dilbar ranks first in terms of gross tonnage. As a matter of fact, while the first boat holds the record size-wise, the second one wins when it comes to volumes. In third place we find Sailing Yacht A, which in one of the previous issue of Superyacht Digest we voted as “the most instagrammed megayacht of the century”. Although we don’t think this is going to change any time soon, some shipyards have secret projects in the pipeline, which, they promise, they will steal the show, just like Sailing Yacht A did.
Flying Fox and Serene, both boasting an exterior design by Espen Øino International, rank #4 and #5 respectively in our selection. The first one, besides being beautiful in every single aspect, is the biggest boat available for chartering to date. Therefore, if you would like to spend your next summer aboard a true gem of the sea, far away from the bans and restrictions we have sadly become accustomed to lately, Flying Fox is what you are looking for. She is available for you thanks to the exclusive management of Imperial Yachts.
Serene, built by Fincantieri, was among the giants of the sea the year she was launched, as well as the biggest vessel ever built in Italy.
Al Lusail boasts a unique design, with her wavy lines that artistically outline her entire profile. In a 2018 issue of Superyacht Digest – in an attempt to compare some megayachts with a particularly elegant and artistic design to important works of contemporary conceptual art – this design was compared to a work by artist Paolo Scheggi.
Motor Yacht A – Sailing Yacht A‘s older sister – is still extremely fascinating and unique and can be easily recognized also by the non-experts. Jubilee, very elegant and super contemporary. Luminosity, a majestic glass palace that seems to be suspended above the sea.
Respectively #10 and #11 in the ranking we find two great sailing boats, Black Pearl and Maltese Falcon, whose beauty speaks for itself. Ace, thanks to her “eye” that characterizes her exterior design so strongly, is still deemed a true icon of the sea. At the time of the project, the boat was conceived to offer the highest quality cruising experience on board, both in terms of relaxation and wellness.
85-metre Bold is the longest all-aluminum yacht in the world, fast and sustainable. Savannah, beautiful and green, is the first hybrid superyacht. Alfa Nero is the yacht that has revolutionized life on board, with her sea level aft pool area.
With brand new Excellence and Artefact, we enter the world of pure design: as a matter of fact, we are talking about two ideas that took shape from a pencil sketch and eventually hit the water. Pi, first conceived as Syzygy, with her double-curvature glass windows really stole the show at the 2019 Monaco Yacht Show, where she was regarded more as an architectural work, than a simple vessel.
Our selection ends with Exuma, by Philippe Briand: she is the first motor-yacht designed to be a green vessel, at a time when we thought that only sailing boats could be.
#1 Azzam

LOA 180.65m – Lürssen Yachts (Naval Architecture: Lürssen Yachts, Exterior design: Nauta Design, Interior design: Christopher Leoni)
#2 Dilbar

LOA 156m – Lürssen Yachts (Naval Architecture: Lürssen Yachts, Exterior design: Espen Øino International, Interior design: Winch Design)
#3 S/Y A

LOA 142.81 m – Nobiskrug (Naval Architecture: Dykstra Naval Architects – Nobiskrug , Exterior/Interior design: Philippe Starck)
#4 Flying Fox

LOA 136m – Lürssen Yachts (Naval Architecture: Lürssen Yachts, Exterior design: Espen Øino International, Interior design: Mark Berryman Design)
#5 Serene

LOA 133.9m – Fincantieri Yachts (Naval Architecture and Exteriors: Espen Øino, Interior design: Reymond Langton – Luca Dini Design)
#6 Al Lusail

LOA 123m – Lürssen Yachts (Naval Architecture: Lürssen Yachts, Exterior design: H2 Yacht Design, Interior design: March & White)
#7 M/Y A

LOA 123m – Blohm & Voss (Naval Architecture: Francis Design – Blohm & Voss, Exterior design: Philippe Starck, Interior design: Philippe Starck)
#8 Kaos (ex Jubilee)

LOA 110.1m – Oceanco (Naval Arch.: Azure – Oceanco, Exteriors: Igor Lobanov, Interiors: Sam Sorgiovanni Designs – Reymond Langton Design)
#9 Luminosity

LOA 107.6m – Benetti (Naval Arch.: Benetti, Exteriors: Azure – R. Langton – G. Cassetta – Zaniz Interiors, Interiors: Zaniz Interiors )
#10 Black Pearl

LOA 106.7m – Oceanco (Naval Arch.: Oceanco / Dykstra, Exteriors: K. Freivokh / Nuvolari Lenard, Interiors: K. Freivokh / Nuvolari Lenard / Villate D.)
#11 Maltese Falcon

LOA 88m – Perini Navi (Naval Architecture: Dykstra – Perini Navi, Exteriors: Ken Freivokh Design, Interiors: Ken Freivokh Design)
#12 Ace

LOA 87m – Lürssen Yachts (Naval Architecture: Lürssen Yachts, Exterior design: Winch Design, Interior design: Winch Design)
#13 Bold

LOA 85m – SilverYachts (Naval Architecture: Espen Øino International, Exterior design: Winch Design, Interior design: Vain Interiors)
#14 Savannah

LOA 83.5m – Feadship (Naval Architecture: De Voogt N.A., Exterior design: Cristina Gherardi / De Voogt N.A., Interior design: Cristina Gherardi )
#15 Alfa Nero

LOA 82m – Oceanco (Naval Architecture: Azure Yacht Design – Oceanco, Exterior design: Nuvolari Lenard, Interior design: Alberto Pinto)
#16 Excellence

LOA 80m – Abeking & Rasmussen (Naval Architecture: Abeking & Rasmussen, Exterior design: Winch Design, Interior design: Winch Design)
#17 Artefact

LOA 80m – Nobiskrug (Naval Architecture: Nobiskrug, Exterior design: Gregory C. Marshall, Interior design: Reymond Langton Design)
#18 Pi (ex Syzygy 818)

LOA 77.25 m – Feadship (Naval Architecture: De Voogt N.A., Exterior design: Jarkko Jämsén – Aivan, Interior design: Sinot Yacht Arch. & Design)
#19 Atlante

LOA 54.8m – CRN (Naval Architecture: CRN, Exterior design: Nuvolari Lenard, Interior design: Gilles & Boissier)
#20 Exuma

LOA 80m – Perini Navi / Picchiotti (Naval Architecture: Philippe Briand, Exterior design: Vitruvius, Interior design: Perini Navi)