How to tell the movers and the fakers at the Monaco Yacht Fair – where vessels sell for £150m each

In a rarefied world such as the Monaco Yacht Show, it is important to mark yourself out as one of the elite. This involves learning a few new rules. The first is, if someone asks what the traffic was like on the way in, simply shrug, because you took a six-minute helicopter ride from Nice Airport to the tiny principality.

This ensures you soar over the azure Mediterranean and get a bird’s eye view of the mansions that dot the waterfront, rather than sit in the snarling traffic that clogs the coastal road during star-studded events like this one.

Next is footwear. Anyone worthy of visiting a yacht show knows that laces or any form of complex gladiator strap is a terrible idea, as shoes are slipped off when you climb on board. Pedicures are a must for men and women alike – and don’t forget that the inside of your footwear will be on display.

“Of course we notice little things like that – it’s part of our job,” says Sarah*, who works for a yachting charter company. “There was one man who was very self-important and insisted on being shown around every boat possible and kept saying he was planning to buy big, until someone noticed that his loafers had a gold H&M stamp on the inside sole.”

Monaco is a billionaire’s paradise – and never more so than during the annual yacht show, when the harbour is dotted with hulking boats costing upwards of £15m. The principality already has the highest GDP in the world, but it is during the annual September event that 30,000 of the world’s wealthiest people descend on the tiny city-state on the French Riviera. These include yachting-industry insiders – superyacht builders, designers, and brokers – and super-rich private clients looking to tour, charter, or purchase yachts.

Data hasn’t been aggregated for this year’s show yet, but in 2019, 125 yachts worth a collective £3.1bn floated into Port Hercules over the course of the week-long event, and it is certainly an impressive sight to behold.

I arrived on day one of the press preview. Behind me were the mansion-studded mountains of the Riviera, and in front of me were these gleaming, dazzling feats of human technology, sitting in the late summer sunshine. The crowd was sleek and preppy, with expensive watches peeping out from under navy blue jackets, and Hermès slip-on loafers close to a uniform.

The largest superyacht at the show this year is Benetti’s giga yacht flagship 108m IJE, on sale for £150m. Launched in 2019, it has five floors, a vast heated swimming pool on the top deck, a cinema room and a collection of jet-skis and water toys.

Then there is Kismet, which boasts a star-studded list of past charter guests, including Beyoncé and Jay-Z. It is estimated to cost $145m to buy with a charter price of £800,000 per week. The yacht can easily fit 16 guests in eight large bedrooms, with the master stateroom featuring a private deck complete with a hot tub and access to the yacht’s helipad – perfect for Succession’s Logan Roy.

One of my favourite yacht tours was of the beautiful Liberty with her sleek, dark grey hull and contemporary interior. It can sleep 12 guests and boasts a crew of 11 and felt like the perfect vessel to drift around the Mediterranean on. Moskito – named after the island – was equally lovely, while JoyMe offered every modern amenity, including the chance to buy it with Bitcoin.

“The yachts are selling very fast,” says Fiona Maureso, the senior yacht broker from Northrop & Johnson, which looks after charters for Liberty. “The newer boats are selling even faster, and I’ve honestly never seen a better market – even when the Russians first crowded the market, we weren’t seeing sales like these post-Covid ones.”

Maureso puts this boom down to the fact the super-rich are now looking for a controlled environment to relax in – and what could be more controlled than a yacht? Over the last year, she has noticed new trends develop, with families spending far longer on board than they ever did before, and children getting homeschooled from the upper deck. There is also a drive from owners to explore new far-flung destinations from the comfort of the vessel.

Given this rise in sales, are hugely expensive events like this one in Monaco even necessary? They are certainly pleasant – most of my interviews took place on the hot, sunny upper decks of a yacht with a glass of champagne in hand – but commentators have argued all year that the pandemic would spell the death of fair, while industry insiders pointed to the fact that the market has worked even better than usual, despite all events being cancelled in 2020.

"The past 18 months have shown that you don’t need a yacht show to buy a yacht," says Maureso. "Modern marketing tools like 360° walk-though videos and detailed, video conferences with brokers, captains and other experts have allowed buyers to identify their perfect yacht, some even going on to purchase the vessel without ever having set foot on board. However, nothing beats the first-hand experience of walking through one. Buying a yacht is like buying a home; it’s visceral, the chemistry has to be right. That said, I believe the format of yacht shows will naturally change, perhaps with fewer exhibitors and more focus on the yachts."

In the past, the Monaco Yacht Fair hummed with after-dark activity. Champagne spraying, quaffing and popping was ubiquitous and the stands in the heart of the fair – known as the Dutch Village – were party central. This year, stringent regulations have put paid to all that: stands can’t have more than four people in them, masks must be worn everywhere, live music is banned and black-clad security agents lurk everywhere, checking the rules are being adhered to.

Maureso explained that in order to hold a small event on Liberty, they needed to work within strict rules that said there couldn’t be more than one person on board for every four square-metres of space, which meant the crew had to even measure the deck before the guest list was sent out.

"The restrictions are a bit ridiculous," she says. "Owning a yacht is about freedom and imposing stricter measures than actually required by government is excessive. Visitors to the show are being fined €150 for not wearing a mask properly out on the docks, even though a health pass is mandatory for everyone entering the show vicinity. Hospitality is severely restricted, yet networking has always been a valuable part of this show for industry professionals."

Despite the noticeable lack of parties and the far smaller crowds, the entire world still gleams with wealth and exclusivity. A few of the guests I spoke to had jetted in from the Art Basel VIP press day on private planes with NetJets, no doubt fresh from buying art to hang on the walls of their new super-yacht.

As for me, I ended my brief foray into the world of billionaire yacht owners with a swim in the sun-warmed September sea, a few minutes after sunset. The horizon still glowed with heat, and dotted across the bay were sleek vessels coming in and out of harbour. From the water, I could hear the sound of music, laughter – and what sounded distinctly like a party.

Out at sea, of course, you’re free to ignore the rules, and that has always been a huge part of the appeal...

*Names have been changed