Sometimes, luxury objects are witnesses and even protagonists of great stories around them. There are many examples of jewelry or works of art that have experienced more adventures, thefts or historical events than many real people. Luxury yachts too They are a good example.
The superyacht Dubaibefore becoming the floating whim of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Emir of Dubai, also accumulated more adventures before even sailing than many ships in their entire useful life: a disgraced prince, an embargo, two countries and a construction that lasted almost a decade. Despite all that odyssey, the most surreal chapter would come right at the end, when the ship was already finished and almost ready to deliver.
What starts badly…
The history of Dubai began in the 90s, when Prince Jefri Bolkiah, the controversial brother of the sultan of Bruneicommissioned the construction of a megayacht from the German shipyard Blohm+Voss (today a subsidiary of Luerssen Yachts), with exterior design by the British studio Winch Design.
The project got off to a strong start, but its construction came to a screeching halt when the prince entered in conflict with his family when it was discovered that he was squandering billions of dollars. Its assets were confiscated, and the yacht, with the steel hull and part of the aluminum superstructure already built but unfinished, ended up in the hands of the managers charged with trying to recover part of the fortune that Bolkiah had defrauded.
Such how they counted in Boat Internationalthe yacht, half built, went up for auction and ended up being acquired by the government of Dubaibut the path there was not direct. Before arriving in the Arab Emirates, the project went through some shipyards in Türkiyewhere they tried to continue with its construction. However, the project was not progressing at the planned pace and the cost overruns did not stop growing.
Therefore, the Dubai authorities decided to move its construction to the Emirates, where Platinum Yachts, a subsidiary company of Dubai WorldI would finish it. The yacht (well, its shell) had been lurching around half-built for years, but its adventure would still have a long way to go.
The problem is that, despite what its name may indicate, Platinum Yachts was not exactly a company with a tradition in shipbuilding. The team that took the reins of the emirate’s most ambitious project actually did not know how to build boats. Even less one of super luxury like the one that should have been the Dubai.
According to counted the company’s CEO, Kostis Antonopoulos, that forced them to do accelerated and on-the-go learning. So that the workers themselves understood what they were building, Antonopoulos took them to the Monaco Yacht Showone of the most prestigious nautical fairs in the world. “It was a great experience for them and a quantum leap in their knowledge and understanding,” he explained. At its busiest time, the construction of the Emir of Dubai’s yacht mobilized nearly 800 direct workers, in addition to subcontractors.
The Burj Al Arab, but let it sail
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s brief for the interior design team left no room to skimp on luxuries: he wanted “a Burj Al Arab floating”.
Just weeks before the official handover, the Emir of Dubai came on board for an in-person inspection. At some point during that visit, he went down to the lower decks and tried to make a call with his cell phone. However, as happens inside many buildings, as meters of steel were interposed with the exterior, the losing mobile coverage.
For someone used to everything working the first time, this was unacceptable and had to be resolved immediately. His proposal was not going to please those in charge of the project: all the ceilings that had just been completed, with their impeccable luxury finishes, had to be dismantled again to install signal amplifiers and their wiring throughout the boat to guarantee the maximum mobile coverage in every corner of the yacht.
Thus, the yacht valued at around 500 million dollars, built for almost ten years and with a story worthy of a novel, had to wait a little longer to be delivered because its future owner I didn’t have mobile coverage in the living room.. This is luxury when it doesn’t admit half measures.
According to the expertsthe interior of the Dubai It can accommodate 48 guests and a crew of 88, with a master suite, five VIP suites and six staterooms with balconies, plus a 21.3 meter wide atrium, cinema, nightclub, gym, spa and helipad with the capacity for a Blackhawk helicopter to land on it.
When the ship was delivered in 2006 and became the largest and most luxurious yacht in the world at that time, thanks to its 162 meters in length and a weight of 12,488 tons.
Image | Wikimedia Commons (Ukrainian Government, Imre Solt, trolvag), Charterworld
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