In a display of wealth that spits in the face of the current economic crisis, Russian ka-chillionaire Roman Abramovich is having a 350 million dollar, 550 foot yacht built (according to CrunchGear). I think he could have picked up an ailing financial firm on Wall St for only a few bucks more. Oh yeah, he's already in that business - better to diversify.

The ship will boost its own economic system on board considerin it will require a crew of 70 to steer the vessel, manage the disco, pools and helipads, keep the submarine and jet skis tuned up, and, oh yeah, work the missle defense system built into the boat!

We sure have come a long way since old school pirates had cannons poking out of wooden hatches along the side of a ship.

Of course, this isn't too much of a stretch given that Mr. Abramovich already has an anti-missile system on his Boeing 767.

All I have to say is, cool toys! Spend it if you've got it.

Labels: Economy, Famous, Pirates, Yachts

Does it seem like there is an unreasonable amount of news about big boats lately?

Celebrity launched its largest cruise ship ever, the Celebrity Solstice, at just over 1,033 (yes, one thousand) feet long, and with a beam of 121 feet. My ideal boat would be about half as long as the Solstice is wide, but let's get back to the Solstice. A half acre field of live grass on the top deck is a big deal, but I'm surprised it hasn't been done before. Same with the solar panels - nice touch, but it seems sort of obvious. If you're into cruises, here's a review from a cruise critic who already spent some time on the Solstice.

In other my-boat-is-bigger-than-your-boat-news, The Maltese Falcon, Tom Perkin's floating ego boost, made its American debut over the weekend, sailing into San Francisco at dead-low tide so as to fit under the Golden Gate Bridge. We pointed out two years ago that the MF has three masts that are nearly 200 feet high... each! Again, a third of that size would be a very comfortable boat length for yours truly.

Here's video from the day in the bay



Lastly, one of the biggest boats in NYC returns home this week after two years of repair and updating in New Jersey. You can see the USS Intrepid on the move here.

And if that's not enough, here's a list of the 50 largest motor yachts in the world, and the Sheikhs, Sultans, Princes and tech tycoons that own them.

Labels: Boat of the Week, Famous, Yachts

This past week The Edge announced to the world that Bono's new yacht - CYAN - doesn't exactly belong to Bono. Turns out the yacht actually belongs to David Howell Evans, more commonly known to the world as "The Edge".

According to the Belfast Telegraph, The Edge stated, "It's not Bono's yacht at all, it's mine. Bono doesn't know a thing about boats."

I wonder if Cyan is still available for charter, as it's listed here as available for a mere 140,000 to 175,000 Euro per week.

Labels: Famous