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Yachting World

• Digital Edition

Best luxury yacht: 7 ultimate luxury cruisers you can buy

• Toby Hodges
• March 14, 2024

Toby Hodges takes a look at all the nominees and the winner of the best luxury yacht category in the European Yacht of the Year Awards

The definition of the best luxury yacht will differ according to personal opinion and from boat to boat. This year’s nominees in the luxury yacht category of the European Yacht of the Year Awards proved that perfectly.

The European Yacht of the Year awards are selected by a broad panel of expert judges from across the globe. These are people who spend their professional lives sailing and comparing yachts, so you can be certain that the yachts which stand out in this field are truly the best of the best on the market.

The best luxury yachts

Best luxury yacht winner 2024 – arcona 50.

When you enter the fiercely competitive 50ft luxury performance yacht market you better get it right. And the jury felt Arcona managed that. This watershed design for the traditional Swedish brand, by X-Yachts co-founder and former designer Niels Jeppesen, is a big, contemporary new Arcona, one that sees it move away from its cruiser-racer heritage and classic interiors.

The on trend styling inside and out is backed up by a premium level of build and finish quality and sailing performance – particularly if you have the performance sails, traveller and deep (2.95m) keel options the test boat carried, although the latter does limit your berthing and anchoring options.

While I doubt it’ll be raced or will suit typical bluewater use, it offers a purity of performance push-button sailing: a handsome prospect upwind in a light breeze, it transforms into a powerful reaching machine with stacks of control.

As chairman of our jury, Jochen Rieker, puts it: “The boat certainly did not win for her somewhat borrowed looks. She wins by checking all the boxes in all other respects. Slipping along gracefully in the lightest of airs, holding her stride and her balance in more demanding conditions, offering warmth, light and this reassuring feeling of utter quality down below – there simply isn’t anything to fault.”

Contest 50CS

The Contest 50CS, for example, is an archetype luxury cruising yacht, one built to the highest standards and that could take you to most waters in impeccable comfort. This model is, uniquely, available in two versions: this more conventional 50CS with aft master cabin, or the forward owner’s suite version on the aft cockpit Contest 49CS . We ran a full test on the latter after spending two days aboard in the North Sea, where that noticeably high freeboard, which may not aid boarding nor windage, helped keep us dry on deck in a steady Force 6 gusting 7.

As the 50CS proved, this Judel/Vrolijk design keeps slipping along in the light stuff too, providing enjoyable sailing in 6 knots breeze under a code sail. The centre cockpit offers a deep protected guest area, but also links well to the spacious aft deck.

And the Wetzels-Brown-designed interiors of Contests today are stunning and hard to match. The engineering, access to usable stowage, details and finish on the 50CS is first class and to get this level of quality at this size is special.

Both Contest and X-Yachts are early adopters of hybrid power, offering their bluewater cruisers with optional electric drives. For the XC 47 this was designed-in from the start to offer Oceanvolt’s award-winning new 25kW regenerative drive.

The XC 47 is another wonderfully engineered and thought out yacht for distance cruising, in particular for those who also enjoy hands-on helming pleasure. That should come as no surprise to any X aficionados, but what really struck me most about this yacht was the stowage, and the forethought needed to create that, together with how practical it has been made.

That may sound slightly anticlimactic but ask any long-term cruiser and stowage is always a priority. On deck, this constitutes a huge lazarette and sail locker, plus clever systems for launching a dinghy via davits and a liferaft canister, while below decks every square inch of space has been used effectively, with lockers hinged with gas struts.

It’s clear the Danish yard went to considerable time and effort, even building a full mock up of the interior that could be canted 20° each way.

If the deck saloon style looks didn’t sell this model to all – this is the first full non-Jeppesen designed X – the jury were converted once they’d taken the helm. ‘Quirky’ became ‘muscular and bold’. The ease with which it can be sailed from the cockpit was also appreciated.

While I understand many offshore cruisers like a protected centre cockpit and more sun protection, the attention to detail, stowage and practicalities, combined with the direct steering, motion and enjoyable sailing this X offers make it a standout new offering.

Jeanneau Yachts 55

Meanwhile the Jeanneau Yachts 55 stands out for different, unique reasons in this category, offering a completely new concept in comfort on deck while at anchor and a novel accommodation layout. Its focus is on outdoor living space.

What helps place this in a luxury bracket is not simply the price or the creative input of superyacht specialist design duo Philppe Briand and Andrew Winch, rather that its layout creates a palatial amount of private space for the owner’s suite. Guest cabins have their own direct access from the extensive cockpit via gullwing doors.

It certainly makes sense for solo owners or couples using it as a warm water apartment. How many people this will suit is another question, as it segregates any guests, crew or children from the galley and saloon.

I used the term monocat when I first viewed it, as the 55 really does attempt to mix the two worlds, particularly in terms of providing owner privacy and lounging space. Choose the rigid hard top and windshield and there’s a vast amount of covered area including a dinette and chart table – plus a bimini can shade all that extensive aft deck too.

The penalty comes in additional weight and wetted surface, and is felt in the handling and performance, the latter particularly in lighter breeze with the optional in-mast furling, self tacking headsail and shallow draught package we had. However, it’s set up to be easily managed from the mid cockpit with good visibility from the twin helms and easy circulation thanks to the ramped side decks. Full report in YW February 2024.

Best luxury yacht 2023

Best luxury yacht winner – oyster 495.

It is hard to imagine that the decor of a yacht can change its look and feel quite this much, yet the layout of this second 495, Eddie Jordan’s dramatic looking Tuga , is in fact identical to the first boat that I spent several days aboard last summer.

At its heart is a wonderfully (Humphreys) designed and engineered luxury bluewater cruiser conceived from the ground up, built in a new dedicated facility to a repeatable quality very few yards are capable of.

The 495 offers consistent passage making speeds in real voluminous comfort – whether enjoyed from the deep cockpit or the best-in-class aft cabin. Deck stowage and mechanical space is also superb.

Then factor in the family appeal of Oyster’s after sales and world rally programme and you start to appreciate the premium world this sub 50-footer gives access to.

The first yacht fully conceived under CEO Richard Hadida’s reign, this is also the smallest completely new Oyster 495 since 2005 – and it’s a triumph. It was our September 2022 cover star in which we featured the full review from our Oyster 495 three day test .

Beneteau Oceanis Yacht 60

The Oceanis Yacht 60 is a very different beast indeed to the 62 it replaces as flagship for the Beneteau range. The yard has learned plenty from the success of the First 53/OY 54 and wanted to create a 60 in this style and with the same deck layout (albeit larger and wider) and ease of circulation.

The construction experience of the smaller model clearly helped too, as this is a whopping five tonnes lighter than the bulky OY62 and with a deeper (2.6m) keel. The telling result is on the water. It feels sporty to helm and we averaged a knot slower than the single figure 6-8 knot windspeeds upwind and matched them reaching with Code 0 and a slight swell.

The vast cockpit works well, sheltered below the semi rigid bimini, it has plentiful lounging space with sailing systems led aft to the twin helms. The interior sees a 3+3 layout, where Beneteau wanted to get rid of the corridor effect of the OY62. The galley is forward to help open out space, while the forward suite with offset berth and headboard aft works well to give space with privacy.

This is an attractive, voluminous yacht that leaves a good overall impression whether under sail, on or below decks.

Ice 62 Targa

It all looks pretty funky below decks on the Ice 62 Targa too, especially if you’re watching the masthead fore and aft cameras (plus bow and prop cam) on central displays mounted in the saloon while you slip out of the dock! The Ice is a seriously impressive, contemporary yacht, one that in looks, performance and execution, won over many of the judges.

The first to launch is a highly customised project for a passionate sailing owner who covers long distances solo – he’d already sailed it 3,000 miles around the Med that autumn. It’s impressively stiff, sails handsomely and, thanks to a telescopic keel, points well. We matched single figure windspeeds, and clocked up to the high 9s in 12 knots wind.

Umberto Felci’s team spent 4,000 hours on the design, providing lots of space and light to the interior and a chillout zone in the semi raised saloon. This was easily the coolest looking yacht, with its aggressive reverse bow, chamfered gunwales and carbon T-top bimini, and all engineered and built to a high standard.

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EUR 124,950,000† (EU VAT paid)

• Length: 90.1m (295.6ft)
• Guests: 14 guests in 7 cabins
• Built: 2010 (refitted 2024)
• Lurssen-Werft

O'PTASIA

EUR 89,999,000

• Length: 85m (278.9ft)
• Guests: 23 guests in 10 cabins
• Built: 2018
• Golden Yachts

EUR 79,750,000† (EU VAT paid)

• Length: 80m (262.5ft)
• Guests: 18 guests in 9 cabins
• Built: 2007

PROJECT 825

Price on application

• Length: 75.8m (248.7ft)
• Guests: 12 guests in 6 cabins
• Built: 2025
• Feadship, Royal Van Lent

EUR 109,000,000 (EU VAT paid)

• Length: 74m (242.8ft)
• Guests: 14 guests in 6 cabins
• Built: 2017

EUR 55,000,000† (EU VAT paid)

• Length: 70.6m (231.6ft)
• Built: 2011
• Proteksan Turquoise

EUR 24,800,000 (EU VAT paid)

• Built: 2002 (refitted 2022)
• Royal Denship

EUR 49,500,000†

• Length: 65m (213.3ft)
• Built: 2011 (refurbished 2021)

EUR 35,800,000

• Length: 64.8m (212.6ft)
• Built: 2006 (refitted 2017)

MAGNA GRECIA

EUR 15,000,000

• Length: 63.8m (209.3ft)
• Built: 1986 (rebuilt 2019, refitted 2019)
• Elsflether Werft

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Used Yachts For Sale From $5,000,000 – $10,000,000

Listed below are used yachts for sale worldwide from $5,000,000 – $10,000,000. Use the search tools to narrow your exploration. SYS Yacht Sales offers a wide range of luxury used yachts for sale, including long range cruisers, motor yachts, trawlers, express cruisers, center consoles, sailboats and everything in between. Search world-renowned manufacturers like Horizon, Hargrave, Benetti, Trinity, Sunseeker, Princess, Westport and much more. Need assistance? Contact our experienced yacht brokers. We look forward to helping you find the yacht that's right for you.

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Used Yachts For Sale Between $900,000 and $1,000,000

Finding a used yachts for sale between $900,000 and $1,000,000 that fits your needs when it comes to number of passengers, horsepower, inside accommodations, and other features on board can be a challenge with so many options available on the market today. There are many types of boats available between $900k and $1m like  center-consoles ,  cruising yachts , and  fishing boats , with many good options across all length ranges Still, there are plenty of opportunities with brands like  Sea Ray ,  Carver ,  Princess ,  Grand Banks ,  Meridian ,  Viking ,  Hatteras ,  Bertram , and others. Let the team at United Yacht Sales help you find the right vessel that fits your needs under $1 million.

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The biggest sailing yachts to join the market in 2022

The sailing yacht market experienced a small boost in 2022 with 52 sales secured - a 24 per cent increase on last year - and more than 120 new listings, according to BOATPro. We look back on the biggest sailing yachts to join the market in 2022...

Length : 56.4m Builder : Alloy Yachts

Salvaje was delivered in 2014 as Mondango 3 and was one of the largest to leave the sheds at New Zealand-based shipyard Alloy Yachts . Her profile and naval architecture are the work of Dubois Naval Architects and she joins the market with a new set of 3Di sails and an overhaul of the engines and rigging. Highlights include a lifting keel, a climate-controlled cockpit protected by sliding glass side screens and curved glass doors, as well as a spa pool on the aft deck.

Salvaje is asking €29,500,000 with Edmiston .

Length : 55m   Builder : FNM

Elena looks deceptively classic, but she was actually launched in 2009. She is a replica of a racing schooner of the same name that took part in the 1928 King’s Cup trans-atlantic race, sailing from New York to Santander in record time. She is based on original 1910 drawings by designer Nathanael G. Herreshoff and is a tribute to the golden age of yachting. Built with racing bones, her crew has collected plenty of silverware since her launch - Elena has won Antigua Classic Week, Les Voiles de St Tropez and Monaco Classic Week.

Elena is asking €12,000,000 with Y.CO .

Length : 49m Builder : Perini Navi

Silenco was launched in 2001 as the third unit in Perini Navi 's popular 50 metre series. Not only is she a comfortable cruiser with a Christian Liaigre interior, she is also racing royalty with class wins at the Perini Navi Cup and Loro Piana regattas. Two aluminium masts stand 52 metres and 35 metres tall with custom captive reel winches and electric furlers for the genoa and staysail. Silencio was extensively refitted in 2012 and again in 2021 where she completed her 20 years ABS survey and received a new suit of sails from Evolution including a mainsail, mizzen and genoa.

Silencio is asking €13,500,000 (VAT paid) with Edmiston .

Francesco Petrarca

Length : 49.4m   Builder : Benetti

Francesco Petrarca has quite the history. Built in wood by Benetti , she started life in 1941 as a commercial ship used to transport marble from Carrara in Tuscany to Alexandria in Egypt. Some twenty years later, she was found languishing in an Egyptian port by engineer Giorgio Varvaro who set about restoring her and converting her into a yacht. She was re-rigged as a three-masted staysail schooner and enjoyed twenty more years of cruising before she changed hands in 1999 and was refitted once more.

Francesco Petrarca is asking €1,900,000 with Edmiston .

Length : 47.4m     Builder : Mengi-Yay

Gweilo is a two-masted schooner built in cold-molded epoxied wood and offered for sale following an extensive refit in 2022. A traditional-style rig and a long keel is the work of Gerard Dykstra and creates a comfotable ride for guests. Her interior is finished in dark panelled woods and rich fabrics with accommodation for eight.

Gweilo is asking €5,800,000 with Fraser .

Length : 45.26m     Builder : Perini Navi

Blush has enjoyed an enviable charter record on both sides of the Atlantic and has been cruising since her launch in 2007. The popular Perini Navi is offered for sale following an extension refit period to the tune of €1.8 million including her fifteen-year class survey. For owners looking to host larger groups on board, her master suite can be divided into two to create a fifth cabin. 

Blush is asking €12,495,000 with Camper & Nicholsons .

Length : 43.9m Builder : Alloy Yachts

Encore is an all-rounder. Since hitting the water at New Zealand shipyard Alloy Yachts in 2013, she has competed in many a regatta, where her carbon rig and Dubois pedigree come into their own. Equally, she is a proven world cruiser and can remain autonomous for up to six months thanks to considered freezer capacity, tankage and storage, paired with a range of 4,000 nautical miles. She is offered for sale by her original owners with low engine hours. 

Encore is asking $19,995,000 with Camper & Nicholsons .

Zaca A Te Moana

Length : 43.8m Builder : De Amstel

Zaca A Te Moana is based on a classic 1920s schooner by the name of Zaca that was famously rescued and restored post-war by actor Errol Flynn. Owner Ed Kastelein , who has a passion for restoring classic yachts, decided to commission a lookalike that was launched in 1992 with design by Oliver Van Meer and named Zaca A Te Moana. She has proven her mettle crossing the Atlantic regularly and completing the trip in as little as 10 days thanks to her powerful fore-and-aft rig that allows her to achieve 12-16 knots under sail. She can sleep 12 guests and carries a crew of 10.

Zaca A Te Moana is asking €2,100,000 with IYC .

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The 2020 New Yacht Buyer's Guide

2019 was an exceptional year for boat sales that was driven by new, award-winning models and a strong economy. Our premium brands brought home several significant accolades in 2019, particularly in the under-60 foot range, including:

• Princess Yachts Won Best Flybridge Up To 60 Feet for the F55 by Motor Boat & Yachting
• Absolute Yachts brought home the same award for their Navetta 48 at the Asia Boat Awards
• Prestige Yachts won Best Sports Cruiser Up To 55 Feet with the 520S and the 590 Flybridge was a finalist for Best of Boats
• And while there's no award for Sportfishing Yachts, we're confident that Viking Yachts would have won with the new 46 Billfish
• The 2021 New Yacht Buyer's Guide is now released.

The 2020 New Yacht Buyer's Guide reviews the most exciting new boats from the top yacht brands in the world. SI Yachts makes it easy for you to have the newest and best out on the water with our trade-in program, our expertise in helping you order the right options for your new yacht, and our industry-leading service team. Contact us today to talk about what your boating plans are by calling our main office at (718) 984-7676 or by email at [email protected] . 

New Models For 2020 Below In Order By Length :

Princess Yachts X95

Princess Yachts is nearing completion of the new X95 and as of just mid-February had been placed into the water for the first time. While the U.S. debut will be the 2020 Fort Lauderdale Boat Show, there are order slots available for this exceptional new creation from one of the industry's hottest builders. Designed for long-distance luxury cruising, the X95 has a fuel capacity of over 3,500 gallons and is powered with twin MAN V12 1,900mhp engines. This is perhaps the most exciting new yacht under 100-feet that truly has the mega-yacht feel to it. For more photos, follow this link .

Prestige Yachts X70

The all-new Prestige X70 is one of the most anticipated new boat premiers in 2020. Scheduled to debut at the Cannes Boat Show in September, it will be the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show before the U.S. market gets to see it. The big design change on the X70 is undoubtedly the side-decks being moved to the flybridge which allows the interior walls to be expanded providing greater interior volume. There is a staircase leading from the bow to the flybridge as well as in the cockpit. Stay up to date with the new X70 as they become available here: https://www.siyachts.com/yachting-news-and-events/introducing-the-prestige-x70-luxury-motor-yacht For more photos, follow this link .

Absolute Yachts Navetta 64

The Absolute Navetta series has taken the marine industry by storm thanks to its combination of fuel-efficient, long-distance cruising features and it's really interesting social space enhancements. Absolute continually integrates new ideas into their models from owner feedback and the results are remarkable. The new Navetta 64 will feature an optional VIP cabin in what is normally the transom garage. This additional VIP "Beach Club" features a complete living space and doors that open for a true water's edge view. For more photos, follow this link .

Absolute Yachts 62 Flybridge

Absolute Yachts continues its spectacular display of innovative and thoughtful design with the new 62 Flybridge. A perfect combination of Italian style, luxurious fit-and-finish, and highly sociable living areas, the 62 Fly is an excellent choice for cruising or overnight entertaining with friends. From the aft cockpit sunshade that pulls down to the hydraulic bathing platform, to the wrap-around flybridge seating under the opening sunroof, Absolute has achieved yachting perfection with the 62. For more photos, follow this link .

Princess Yachts S62

The Princess S62 is a new, refreshed model of the popular S60. The S62 received a new window-line that is similar to the updated design that Princess is now integrating into their latest models. The sleek exterior combined with MAN V8 1200 engines, and a 38 knot top speed, provides a truly exhilarating driving experience from the sport bridge helm. Expect Princess quality from the electro-hydraulic bathing platform to the foredeck lounge area. Stay tuned to SI Yachts for more information on the S62 as it becomes available. For more photos, follow this link .

Prestige Yachts 590S

Prestige has evolved its sport yacht line with the new 590S thanks for the incredibly talented design team collaboration between Garroni Design, JP Concepts, and the Prestige engineers. Luxury, comfort, and performance outline the characteristics of the newest Prestige model that feature three separate sun-bathing or socializing areas of the boat. Powered with a paid of Cummins 8.3L 600HP engines (with Zeus pod drives), the 590S can hit a wide open throttle speed of 30 knots. Playing on the ocean never looked quite so amazing! For more photos, follow this link .

Princess Yachts V55

The striking new Princess V55 has all of the best characteristics of the popular V-class series. The innovative new design of the cockpit maximizes your enjoyment on the water through the L-shaped seating, large aft sunpad, folding teak table, wetbar, electric BBQ grill, and an incredible sound system. Whether anchoring up to enjoy the sun or cruising for days at a time, you'll never get tired of the V55's luxurious appointments. The salon and galley are incredibly light and open thanks to the large windows and opening sunroof. For more photos, follow this link .

Viking 46 Billfish

If you love Viking Sportfish, but don't want a larger model and the need for a captain, the 46 Billfish is your boat. Sporty, easily maneuvered, and rigged to fish, anglers love the new 46 Billfish for its performance. The 140-square foot cockpit is large enough for several anglers and includes Viking's signature mezzanine seating. We invite you to read our article " Viking's 46 Billfish Is The Personal Sportfisherman ." For more photos, follow this link .

Prestige Yachts 420 Flybridge

For boaters that want an easily maneuvered, sporty, relaxing experience aboard their cruising yacht, the Prestige 420 Fly is an excellent option. Whether driving from the upper bridge at a 20 knot cruise or sunbathing on the foredeck sunpads, the Prestige 420 Fly offers freedom and privacy for a couple that want to get away or enjoy a weekend on the water with friends. Prestige will also soon launched the new 420S for those that prefer the design and layout of an express yacht. For more photos, follow this link .

HCB Yachts 42 Siesta (Model Refresh)

While the HCB Yachts 42 Siesta isn't a new model, the 2020 version as has refreshed features. The hull shape has undergone some slight improvements that have resulted in increased speed, faster planing, and overall better performance. The cabin below deck was also re-designed and now offers greater interior volume for overnight fishing or cruising trips. For more photos, follow this link .

Viking Yachts 38 Open

The 38 Open Billfish gives Viking another sub-40 foot sportfish with the amenities and performance that center-console owners crave. Perfect for the owner/operator that enjoys fishing and cruising, the overnight accommodations are luxurious and comfortable. Nothing can match Viking quality in the sportfish market and the 38 Open Billfish has everything you could ask for in a fishing boat. For more photos, follow this link .

Valhalla Boatworks V-37

Viking's new center-console line, Valhalla Boatworks , has absolutely amazed everyone that has had the opportunity to see them at boat shows and so far over 100 have been sold. While all 3 models technically came out in 2019, it was towards the end of the year and are considered 2020 models. The new V-37 is available at our Freeport, NY location. Come experience a new style and quality of center-console that only a legendary company like Viking could achieve. For more photos, follow this link .

Please don't hesitate to give us a call about pricing, options, and availability of any of these models. We are stocking dealers for each brand and can take your existing boat in on trade. Call us today at (718) 984-7676 to get started. Here is a link to last year's article: 2019 Yacht Buyer's Guide .

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• Exclusive: This $20 Million Sag Harbor Home Has Two Boat Slips and a Private Beach

The 12,000-square-foot contemporary retreat also features a sprawling rooftop terrace, an elevator, and a private gym. 

Abby montanez, abby montanez's most recent stories.

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The summer season is weeks away and rentals in the Hamptons are  going fast , but if you’re torn between an idyllic weekend escape and a primary residence, this Sag Harbor home could be the solution. 

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• This Hollywood Hills Home Above L.A.'s Sunset Strip Was Custom-Designed For Absolute Privacy

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The contemporary home spans a roomy 11,723 square feet over three floors and features a private deep-water marina with two boat slips and access to its own private beach , which you’ll no doubt be thankful for come summertime. And, if you’re not into boating or sand in your bathing suit, the sleek waterfront retreat offers a sprawling rooftop terrace with epic sunset views and an outdoor kitchenette. Other highlights are an elevator, a home gym for fitness enthusiasts, and a four-car garage on the ground level.

The glass-box gem was crafted with the help of the award-winning Manhattan-based firm Andre Kikoski Architect . With eight bedrooms and nine-and-a-half bathrooms, there is plenty of space to accommodate a large family and/or a slew of weekend guests.

The first level sports a simple, functional layout that prioritizes indoor-outdoor living. Here, you’ll find four spacious guest suites, two of which lead out to a porcelain terrazzo terrace. Elsewhere, a sitting room is kitted out with floor-to-ceiling oak dividers and a swanky marble glass fireplace.

Unconventionally, but to the benefit of the panoramic views and cool breezes off the water, the top level is where the home’s main living and entertaining area is located. The open-plan space offers a gourmet kitchen with dark wood and Calacatta marble accents, a spacious dining area, and a large lounge. 

“There will never be another opportunity to buy something like 2 West Water Street in the heart of Sag Harbor,” Alexander told  Robb Report . “The home cannot be replicated due to the village’s code; it’s truly a one-of-a-kind property.”    Click here to see more photos of 2 West Water Street, Residence B. 

Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, entertainment, dining, travel to…

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An ultra-luxury cruise line wants to attract wealthy Americans with its all-inclusive 'yachts' — see what the new 128-guest ship will be like

• Ultra-luxury cruise line  Emerald Cruises says its third ocean ship will debut in 2026.
• The all-inclusive vessel, which Emerald calls a "yacht," would accommodate up to 128 people.
• Emerald, known for river cruises, has been investing more in its ocean-based business.

Over the last few years, the mass-market cruise industry's larger-than-life mega-ships — outfitted with loud waterparks and more dining options than you could eat in a week — have dominated the spotlight.

But in the ultra-luxury cruise market, it's been the opposite. The smaller and more exclusive the vessel, the better. So much so that Emerald Cruises' next ocean-based ship, launching in 2026, plans to accommodate no more than 128 travelers.

It's a far cry from Royal Caribbean's new 7,600-guest cruise liner . And the price difference is just as steep: almost $250 per night on Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas versus more than $720 per night on the upcoming ultra-luxury Emerald Kaia.

"When people think of cruising now, they automatically think of these large ships ," Robert Castro, the vice president of marketing for Scenic Group, Emerald's parent company, told Business Insider. "There's a market for that, but we're in a unique position."

If you’re familiar with river cruises, Emerald might ring a bell.

The cruise line, owned by Scenic Group, only offered river cruises for its first nine years.

But lately, its biggest growth and investments have been in oceans, not rivers.

In 2022 and 2023, the Switzerland-based company launched its first two ocean cruise ships, which it calls "yachts." Each accommodates a maximum of 100 guests . And so far, they've been hits, with the cruise line experiencing record-high bookings in 2023.

Yes, the ships look like yachts. And yes, they're marketed as such.

But because Emerald's vessels operate group itineraries, they still technically count as cruise ships, albeit really nice ones.

So instead of paying hundreds of thousands of dollars a week to charter a yacht, as is traditional with these high-end vessels , travelers can spend less than $800 a day for a traditional cruise on said yacht-like ship.

While it's not nearly as exclusive, it sure is a hell of a lot cheaper, "bringing the charter yacht experience to reach for people who would never even imagine," Castro said.

Emerald’s upcoming 393-foot-long, 128-guest Kaia would be perfect for fans of small, high-end ships.

The 64-cabin Emerald Kaia would have a larger guest capacity than its two predecessors but would still be tiny compared to most cruise ships, including some of the most luxurious ones.

Regent Seven Seas' new Grandeur can accommodate 746 guests, while Ritz-Carlton says its next ship will sail up to 448 travelers.

Even Four Season's upcoming vessel — with fares up to $350,000 a week — would have a larger guest capacity of up to 222 people. However, it would be almost 290 feet longer than Emerald Kaia.

Like traditional cruise ships, Kaia would have amenities like a spa, two lounges, and three dining options.

The top deck would also have a cabana and bar-lined pool, one of three swimming holes on the ship.

But unlike its mass-market competitors, Kaia would have an open-air marina that would give travelers direct access to the water.

Water platforms are typically only common on yacht-marketed ships, such as Emerald's, Ritz-Carlton's, and, someday, Four Seasons'.

This means guests on the upcoming Kaia could dip in the Mediterranean, Adriatic, and Aegean seas — as is included in its 2026 and 2027 itineraries — without disembarking the ship.

According to the cruise line, Emerald Kaia's future itineraries include an 11-day sailing from Cyprus to Greece and a 20-day one from Seychelles to Kenya.

Its cheapest itinerary is currently an eight-day roundtrip Seychelles vacation in 2027, starting at $5,055 per person.

As an all-inclusive cruise line, amenities like alcohol, WiFi, and excursions would be included in the base fare. However, unlike all-inclusive competitor Regent Seven Seas , guests must pay for their flights to and from the ship.

To compare, itineraries of the same length on Regent's Seven Seas Grandeur and Ritz-Carlton's Ilma would be $36 cheaper and $120 more expensive, respectively, per day.

But the fares aren't stopping travelers from gravitating toward Emerald. Before it unveiled Kaia, its parent company announced a record number of bookings in January — up 67% compared to its previous record in January 2020.

Castro said about 20% to 35% of its guests are American, typically well-acquainted with luxury travel.

The company's goal has been to increase its number of American customers. So far, it's working and is now "on track to be Emerald's No. 1 market," Castro told BI.

The new vessel is being built at a great time for the cruise line.

Strong demand, compounded by a small fleet of small ships, has led to fewer available cabins for its upcoming summer Mediterranean cruises.

Several of these sailings are now fully reserved. The cheapest remaining fares start at $4,570 per person for an eight-day November sailing from Athens, Greece, to Dubrovnik, Croatia.

It's great news for Emerald as it considers a future with more ocean "yachts." "The sooner we fill the ships, the sooner we start building new ones," Castro said.

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What the New Overtime Rule Means for Workers

One of the basic principles of the American workplace is that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay. Simply put, every worker’s time has value. A cornerstone of that promise is the  Fair Labor Standards Act ’s (FLSA) requirement that when most workers work more than 40 hours in a week, they get paid more. The  Department of Labor ’s new overtime regulation is restoring and extending this promise for millions more lower-paid salaried workers in the U.S.

Overtime protections have been a critical part of the FLSA since 1938 and were established to protect workers from exploitation and to benefit workers, their families and our communities. Strong overtime protections help build America’s middle class and ensure that workers are not overworked and underpaid.

Some workers are specifically exempt from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime protections, including bona fide executive, administrative or professional employees. This exemption, typically referred to as the “EAP” exemption, applies when: 

1. An employee is paid a salary,  

2. The salary is not less than a minimum salary threshold amount, and 

3. The employee primarily performs executive, administrative or professional duties.

While the department increased the minimum salary required for the EAP exemption from overtime pay every 5 to 9 years between 1938 and 1975, long periods between increases to the salary requirement after 1975 have caused an erosion of the real value of the salary threshold, lessening its effectiveness in helping to identify exempt EAP employees.

The department’s new overtime rule was developed based on almost 30 listening sessions across the country and the final rule was issued after reviewing over 33,000 written comments. We heard from a wide variety of members of the public who shared valuable insights to help us develop this Administration’s overtime rule, including from workers who told us: “I would love the opportunity to...be compensated for time worked beyond 40 hours, or alternately be given a raise,” and “I make around $40,000 a year and most week[s] work well over 40 hours (likely in the 45-50 range). This rule change would benefit me greatly and ensure that my time is paid for!” and “Please, I would love to be paid for the extra hours I work!”

The department’s final rule, which will go into effect on July 1, 2024, will increase the standard salary level that helps define and delimit which salaried workers are entitled to overtime pay protections under the FLSA. 

Starting July 1, most salaried workers who earn less than $844 per week will become eligible for overtime pay under the final rule. And on Jan. 1, 2025, most salaried workers who make less than $1,128 per week will become eligible for overtime pay. As these changes occur, job duties will continue to determine overtime exemption status for most salaried employees.

The rule will also increase the total annual compensation requirement for highly compensated employees (who are not entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA if certain requirements are met) from $107,432 per year to $132,964 per year on July 1, 2024, and then set it equal to $151,164 per year on Jan. 1, 2025.

Starting July 1, 2027, these earnings thresholds will be updated every three years so they keep pace with changes in worker salaries, ensuring that employers can adapt more easily because they’ll know when salary updates will happen and how they’ll be calculated.

The final rule will restore and extend the right to overtime pay to many salaried workers, including workers who historically were entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA because of their lower pay or the type of work they performed. 

We urge workers and employers to visit  our website to learn more about the final rule.

Jessica Looman is the administrator for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Follow the Wage and Hour Division on Twitter at  @WHD_DOL  and  LinkedIn .  Editor's note: This blog was edited to correct a typo (changing "administrator" to "administrative.")

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How Fentanyl Laid Waste to Guatemala’s Time-Worn Opium Trade

Reshaping the drug war in one of Central America’s most lawless corners, the fentanyl boom has devastated the trade in opium poppies used to make heroin.

Guatemalan security forces during a mission to eradicate opium poppies last month in Vista Quetzal village, Tajumulco, San Marcos. Credit...

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By Simon Romero

Photographs by Daniele Volpe

Simon Romero and Daniele Volpe embedded with Guatemalan forces on an eradication mission in remote mountain villages.

• April 28, 2024

The convoy rolled out of the military base before dawn into the mist-shrouded mountains straddling Guatemala’s border with Mexico. Its mission: destroy opium poppies used to make heroin.

Armed with rifles and machetes, the caravan’s nearly 300 soldiers and police officers from elite counternarcotics units scaled steep hillsides and waded through bone-chilling streams. They chased leads from drone pilots and inhaled dust as they rode in the back of pickup trucks barreling down washboard dirt roads.

But after scouring village after village, they found only tiny plots of poppies here and there — a fraction of the region’s cultivation in previous years.

“The land here used to be covered in poppies,” said Ludvin López, a police commander, as soldiers fanned out around Ixchiguán, an area of remote hamlets populated by speakers of Mam, a Mayan language. But that was before opium prices plunged from $64 an ounce to about $9.60, he added.

The largely fruitless search for opium poppies in Guatemala over several days in March laid bare a seismic shift in Latin America’s drug trade.

In the United States, the world’s largest market for illicit drugs, fentanyl has largely displaced heroin because of how cheaply and easily Mexican cartels can produce the synthetic opioid in makeshift labs using chemicals from China. Fentanyl is so potent that it can be smuggled in small quantities hidden in vehicles, another advantage over heroin.

As a result, demand for opium poppies has plunged.

In Guatemala, poppy farmers are losing their primary income from what had been their only cash crop, forcing many in already poverty-stricken areas to migrate to the United States. At the same time, local and international authorities fear that Guatemala could emerge as a new hub for trading in the chemicals used to make fentanyl.

Drug busts along the United States-Mexico border also showcase heroin’s decline. In the 2023 fiscal year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations seized 1,500 pounds of heroin, down from 5,400 pounds in 2021.

Seizures of fentanyl in the same period more than doubled to 27,000 pounds, up from about 11,000 pounds.

Even as fentanyl lays waste to the heroin trade and counternarcotics priorities shift, American authorities say that U.S. support for poppy eradication efforts, though limited, is still needed in Guatemala to counter the reach of Mexican cartels that produce heroin.

Still, the highest priority in Guatemala now is combating synthetic drugs and the detection of precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl, said a State Department official who was not authorized to be identified discussing drug interdiction strategies.

But the soldiers stomping through small vegetable gardens in remote villages were after opium poppies. Finding a few poppies, in patches no bigger than a hopscotch area, they went to work with machetes, chopping the plants. They did the same to the occasional cannabis plant, which remains illegal to grow in Guatemala.

Multiple signs of United States support for the mission — and for Guatemala’s counternarcotics efforts in general — were on display. Some police officers on the mission belonged to units supported by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and undergo regular polygraph and drug testing. Soldiers traveled in four-wheel-drive vehicles donated by the United States.

The State Department declined to provide a detailed breakdown of U.S. counternarcotics funding. But altogether, the country has recently received about $10 million to $20 million a year in military and police aid from the United States, according to Adam Isacson, the director of defense oversight at the Washington Office on Latin America, a research group.

That is roughly the same amount of such aid as a decade ago; overall, Guatemala ranks among the largest recipients of United States foreign assistance in Latin America.

An observer from the State Department, which has funded everything in Guatemala from training border police to an elite anti-gang unit, also accompanied the mission. He declined to comment, saying he wasn’t authorized to speak with journalists.

Since the soldiers’ efforts were mostly fruitless, they spent some of their time cracking jokes while mingling around their pickup trucks. Trying to spread good will, some distributed items from their food packets to villagers; others gave away cheap plastic toys to children.

Still, in an exceptionally poor region where each mature opium poppy plant is worth about 25 quetzals (about $3.20), some villagers clearly seethed at the soldiers’ presence. Some refused to talk to anyone in the convoy, which they viewed as removing one of their only sources of income.

“We hardly have any poppies left around here anymore,” said Ana Leticia Morales, 26, a Mam-speaking mother of two who makes a living selling gasoline smuggled from Mexico. “But the soldiers still come, not to help us, but to make things worse.”

Tensions around eradication efforts have flared for decades in Guatemala, Central America’s most populous country. Opium poppies, which were traditionally grown in mountainous regions stretching from Turkey to Pakistan, began appearing decades ago in Guatemala, as well as in parts of Mexico and Colombia.

Mexican cartels relied on Guatemalan farmers to grow the poppies and then turn them into opium gum. Smuggled across the border into Mexico, the cartels would transform the gum into heroin.

The United States initially responded by spraying herbicides from planes in Guatemala, but suspended those efforts after flight crews came under concentrated gunfire. This opened the way for the ground operations practiced today.

Fentanyl’s emergence over the last decade as a cheaper and much more profitable source of income for the cartels upended the poppy trade in Mexico while producing spillover effects in Central America. Now, the cartels don’t need to worry about heavy rains, which can destroy harvests. They also don’t need to worry about eradication operations.

Eradicators in Guatemala destroyed about 2,011 acres of opium poppies in 2017 compared with just seven acres in 2023, Guatemalan government figures show.

The decline speaks to the ease in Mexico of using chemicals imported from China to produce fentanyl in small labs about the size of a studio apartment, making it ideal for being manufactured in urban settings.

“It’s easier to produce a synthetic opioid in a laboratory than relying on a crop grown in remote mountains,” said Rigoberto Quemé, an anthropologist from the poppy-growing region of Guatemala. “The authorities are attacking the weakest link in the production chain,” he added, referring to eradication efforts. “But instead of disappearing, drug trafficking is still growing exponentially.”

Guatemala, in fact, remains a crucial smuggling nexus for yet another illicit drug — cocaine. The country is also emerging as a place where coca , the plant used to make cocaine, is grown.

Counternarcotics officials in Guatemala, Mexico and the United States worry that Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation, the two Mexican cartels vying for control of the routes already used for smuggling cocaine and opium gum from Guatemala, could use those same passages for transporting fentanyl chemical precursors into Mexico.

The Guatemalan authorities last year arrested Ana Gabriela Rubio Zea, an entrepreneur known for flaunting her wealth on social media, in connection to a scheme to import chemicals from China to manufacture fentanyl for Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel.

Ms. Rubio Zea, who ran an upscale clothing boutique in the elite stronghold of Cayalá in Guatemala City, was extradited to the United States last July to face fentanyl distribution and money laundering charges that could result in life in prison. The Mexican authorities followed that move with an arrest in January of Jason Antonio Yang López, a Guatemalan businessman subjected to sanctions by the U.S. Treasury for importing fentanyl precursor chemicals.

Guatemala’s new president, Bernardo Arévalo, is strengthening ties with the United States in a bid to respond to the fentanyl trade. In a ceremony in March attended by American officials, his government said it was trying to improve ways to combat the trade in precursor chemicals in Guatemala.

But such efforts mean little for villagers confronting fading demand for poppies on the one hand, and eradication programs on the other.

Regino García, a Mam leader from San Antonio Ixchiguán, said poppy prices began tumbling in 2017, eventually crashing to 2,000 quetzals ($256) per kilo from 18,000 quetzals ($2,310).

“Poppies used to help a lot of people make ends meet,” Mr. García said. Now, he said, the steep decline in poppy prices inflicted so much economic pain that “before the money runs out, people depart for the United States.”

Jody García contributed reporting from Guatemala City.

Simon Romero is a Times correspondent covering Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. He is based in Mexico City. More about Simon Romero

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