“Mine is bigger than yours” – the rise and rise of super-yacht tourism
From ‘maxi’ to ‘super’ to ‘mega’, recreational vessels over 30 metres in length are more prevalent than ever before. Improvements in technology and the application of materials such as carbon fibre and titanium have allowed the construction of recreational vessels of unprecedented size. The owners of these vessels continue to invest enormous sums in larger and more extravagant vessels each year. Super-yachts are now a specialist area of marine tourism that supports a significant industry which ranges from design, engineering and construction to navigation, hospitality, publishing, photography and art. A number of locations and events have been deliberately created to attract these floating palaces, but super-yachts are also becoming more self sufficient and visiting increasingly remote places. Alongside the impressive feats of engineering, opulence and economic impacts associated with these vessels are issues of piracy, security and environmental management.
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