Inside the biggest superyachts at this year’s Miami International Boat Show
The Miami International Boat Show is back after a pandemic hiatus, returning with extravagant superyachts from around the world at Island Gardens Marina.
Through Sunday, the show is spread over six venues, with organizers expecting 100,000 people. With over 600 exhibitors, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau says it’s the first time the entire 1.4 million-square-foot convention center is being used since its 2018 remodel and expansion.
To see the largest, priciest superyachts, attendees must purchase a VIP ticket and head to Watson Island off the MacArthur Causeway. The Miami Herald checked out some of the largest yachts at the show and found on-board amenities like a hot tub and swimming pool, an elevator, a massage room and a turbine jet engine.
Here are the five largest superyachts on display at the show:
Il Barbetta, 145 feet
Italian-made Il Barbetta is the show’s fifth-biggest yacht and can be yours for $14.5 million. Completed in 2009 and refurbished in 2021, it has five bedrooms, including a master suite at the bow of the boat with a 180-degree ocean view. And one bedroom was converted to a full gym.
Crewed by nine people, Il Barbetta can go up to 4,000 miles with its 16,600-gallon gas tank and it cruises at 12 knots. This superyacht has an uncommon feature: an elevator that runs up and down its three decks. The top deck has a hot tub, bar and vast lounging space.
“A lot of people got very rich during the pandemic,” Il Barbetta’s yacht broker John Cohen said, “so in today’s market, luxury goods are in demand, and there’s no better luxury good than a yacht.”
Thunder, 163 feet
Michael Ratcliff, the yacht broker for the Thunder, said that this ship is unlike anything he’s seen in his 40 years in the industry.
“There is a highly decorated interior; it’s anything but understated,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like this one.”
The Thunder was built in Australia in 1998 and refitted in 2021. It’s the show’s biggest yacht for sale at $8.8 million. The Thunder has five staterooms, plus a massage room with glossy wood-paneled walls. Its main dining room has an oval-shaped table that folds into the roof for guests to have open space for cocktail hour.
The bow of the ship has a swimming pool, which can be drained while the ship is cruising. The swimming pool, when drained, can also hold the ship’s tender — the smaller boat that often accompanies larger ones.
For a yacht of its size, the Thunder has an especially shallow draft, specifically built to navigate the shallow waters of the Bahamas. The Thunder also stands out for its speed. Most superyachts cruise at 10 to 15 knots, but the Thunder’s first motor was a turbine jet engine, which allowed it to go up to 35 knots. It’s been retrofitted to a smaller motor to reduce fuel costs, but still can cruise at 25 knots.
If you buy the Thunder, the brokers will throw in the turbine jet engine, in case the new owner wants to reinstall it.
Gene Machine, 180 feet, and the Gene Chaser, 182 feet
Two of the five largest superyachts at this year’s boat show were built to be a pair. Jonathan Rothburg, a scientist known for his accomplishments in gene sequencing, built the Gene Machine as a leisure yacht, but also as a laboratory, which was completed in 2013. The Gene Chaser is the Gene Machine’s “support boat,” with even more lab space and equipment and plenty of storage for water toys like small boats and Jet Skis.
Marguerite, 201 feet
This 41-foot tall vessel is the largest superyacht at the boat show. Completed in 2014, it has six cabins for 12 guests, plus houses 17 crew members. The German-built ship includes a hot tub, a gym, and a two-story master suite. It’s available for charter at a cool half a million dollars a week, according to YachtCharterFleet. However, it is currently not for sale.
This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
