Modestly priced superyachts come in at around £10 million with an estimated £1 million extra required annually to cover crews, fuel and mooring charges in suitably glamorous harbours in the likes of Monaco or Antibes.
Sadly, I’m short of that sort of cash. So I’m doing the next best thing – I’ve booked a cabin on one Seabourn’s superyacht-style cruise ships.
Pointy hulled and sleek with an elegant deck and discreet cocktail bar, mine looks just the part.
At first glance you might imagine it to belong to the likes of Roman Abramovich, Mark Zuckerberg or Jeff Bezos – each of whom have superyacht whoppers stretching well over 100metres (longer than some football pitches).
At least that’s the impression I get as my chauffeur from Lisbon airport delivers me to the city’s cruise terminal to meet Seabourn Ovation: 210 metres long and gleaming in the sunshine.
Suitcases are whisked to our abodes by polite crew members. My superyacht experience has begun.
Seabourn Ovation does not have mere cabins. I am led to my ‘verandah suite’, with a huge bed, sofa, easy chair and even a dining table.
There’s a walk-in dressing room, a luxurious bathroom with a full-size bath and shower, plus and a complimentary mini bar.
To get a taste of the superyacht lifestyle, travel writer Jeff Mills heads aboard the Seabourn Ovation – seeing how the other half live for a fraction of the price
Mr Mills finds the ship looks ‘just the part’, with an elegant deck and discreet cocktail bar
There are no cabins onboard the Seabourn Ovation, so Jeff instead settles into his ‘verandah suite’, with a large comfortable bed, sofa, easy chair and even a dining table
The doorbell rings. It’s my butler, here to introduce himself and ask whether I would like anything else.
I mention that some lemons for my complimentary G&Ts would be appreciated. I go to enjoy the verandah’s view for a minute or two and return to the suite… the lemons are already there.
Not that you need a free mini bar, as I quickly find out when I take a stroll to familiarise myself.
Take a seat anywhere – by the pool, in any of the lounges or restaurants – and a smartly-dressed crew member will swiftly be on hand to ask if there is anything you require.
This is the way to live, superyacht-style (without actually owning one).
All food and drink is included, unless you choose to splash out on ‘premium’ brands. But I fail to see the need for those. The house champagne is first-rate, as are spirits and ‘wines of the day’.
The restaurants are top-class, too. You do not need to book – with the exception of Solis, a particularly sought-after elegant, fine-dining venue.
I soon establish my own favourite hangouts – al fresco breakfast at The Colonnade restaurant’s terrace, lunch in the shade of The Patio by the pool and dinner in the excellent sushi restaurant.
Jeff describes the restaurants onboard as being ‘top class’, and he soon estabilshes his favourite hangouts, which include The Colonnade, the restaurant’s terrace
A dmittedly there are more passengers on board than on a superyacht – the capacity is just over 600. But it does not feel that way. You never need to queue.
There’s plenty of people watching – and people meeting, too.
Among the refined passengers on board, I meet a middle-aged couple from New York, both in the theatre business. When the subject somehow turns to the question of whether Sir Elton John or Billy Joel is the better performer, the pair say they could not possibly choose, as one is a client and the other a personal friend.
There is a wonderful French lady of a certain age, travelling alone, who tells me she spends most of her life cruising – no wonder she is invited to the captain’s table most nights.
Then there is a charming English couple who disembark a day early as they suddenly need to get back to check everything at their estate in Hampshire is in order, not least their own yacht moored on a private pontoon at the bottom of their garden.
The cruise I am on is the ‘Bay of Biscay, Spain and France Explorer from Lisbon to Dover’ stopping at Porto in Portugal, the Spanish harbours of Coruna, Gijon and Bilbao and French ports of Bordeaux and Rouen.
After it sails to Plymouth and drops by at Portland and Portsmouth before disembarkation in Dover.
There are plenty of shore excursions. I have the pleasure of joining one from Rouen to artist Claude Monet’s house and gardens at Giverny.
On our return, chilled glasses of bubbly are placed in our hands and we dine on fresh seafood on the pool deck. What a superyacht life… I could get used to this.
TRAVEL FACTS
A similar eight-day ‘Tides and Treasures of the Atlantic Arc’ on board Seabourn Quest visiting Lisbon, Porto, Bilbao, St Jean-de-Luz (Biarritz), St Malo, Portsmouth and Dover from June 11-19 is from £3,314pp in a verandah suite. An eight-day ‘Iberian Coast and Northern France’ cruise on Seabourn Ovation departing April 28, 2028 from Lisbon to Southampton costs from £3,998pp (seabourn.com).
Source link
CHECK OUT: Top Travel Destinations
READ MORE: Travel News
