$500m price tag and bronze statue similar to his girlfriend: What we know about Jeff Bezos’s wild superyacht

Jeff Bezos and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez were recently spotted relaxing on the Amazon founder’s new superyacht, which is reportedly worth nearly $500m.

The 59-year-old billionaire was photographed aboard the 417-foot-long vessel as it set sail along the coast of Spain on Monday, 15 May. In photos obtained by the Daily Mail, Bezos was seen shirtless on the megayacht’s sundeck, while Sanchez was dressed in a pink bikini and white cover-up.

The 250-foot tall boat even came equipped with a figurehead that bore a striking resemblance to Bezo’s 53-year-old girlfriend. The polished wooden sculpture, which sits at the prow of the yacht, depicts a woman carved in the style of a Roman goddess, complete with long hair and a flowing gown.

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s maiden voyage comes nearly five years after the vessel was first commissioned in 2018 for half a billion dollars. The yacht – named the Koru after the Maori word for “new beginnings” – comes complete with three decks and a pool.

Koru, previously known as Y721, is the tallest sailing yacht in the world with three masts measuring more than 230 feet, according to Boat International. It reportedly cost Bezos $485m.

The boat’s exterior has a classic design of a black hull with a white superstructure. Although the brand-new vessel doesn’t come with a helipad, the Amazon founder reportedly purchased a support yacht, worth $75m specifically to land his helicopter.

The Koru was constructed by Dutch yacht maker Oceano near Rotterdam in the Netherlands. It caused quite a scandal in February 2022 when the vessel nearly required the historic Koningshaven Bridge to be dismantled because its masts were too tall to pass under the bridge.

When Oceanco requested the city of Rotterdam dismantle the 100-year-old bridge – known to locals as “De Hef” – outraged citizens planned to throw rotten eggs at the superyacht. The yacht maker rescinded its request and ultimately hauled the 417-foot vessel to a separate shipyard to install the masts.

The yacht reportedly costs $25m a year to maintain, according to Page Six, but it seems that won’t be a problem for Bezos – whose net worth is an estimated $141bn.