When the Titanic set out on its first voyage in April of 1912, it was the largest ship on the water. As we all know, it subsequently sank in an epic catastrophe that is still one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history. Fast forward a century, and huge strides have been made with regards to ship construction, safety regulations, and seafaring protocol. However, huge strides have also been made with regards to the size of the ships being produced. This of course begs the question, have we really learned from our mistakes? Just last month, London introduced their own $67 million superyacht hotel. It's one of a handful of massive boats created specifically to act as hotels on the water. The boats do bear some eerie similarities to the doomed RMS Titanic, however, this has not seemed to dim their popularity in the slightest.
London's new Sunborn Superyacht Hotel is so large it borders on ridiculous. Built in Finland, the boat was originally part of a luxury spa hotel based in that country. It was subsequently remodeled and tugged to Britain. Moving the massive ship, which has no engine yet, cost $67 million. In order for it to make its way into the city of London, the mast was removed so that it could fit under a motorway that spanned the Thames. This was after they lowered the water level for the entire river by five meters. Even with the lowered water and the mast removal, the ship only cleared the bridge by 5 centimeters.
At 5 stories tall and 102 meters (335 feet) long, the superyacht contains 136 luxury cabins and a host of amazing amenities. Rooms range in price from $300 to $1600 per night, and feature stunning views of the water. There are private balconies that can comfortably hold 20 people, private saunas in most of the suites, and a gleaming gold staircase in the lobby. Each suite comes equipped with its own bedside tablet, so that you can order everything from room service to pillow type, wirelessly. There is a massive state-of-the-art auditorium for business professionals on one floor of the ship, and multiple well-appointed gathering spaces all over the vessel. It is so large, that people standing on board can barely feel water movement. On deck movement is less than 8 millimeters from side to side, so sea sickness is not an issue.
The yacht is currently moored at the Royal Victoria Docks in East London. The berth was leased back in 1999, and has just been waiting for the massive ship to show up. It is attached to the mainland by two large metal arms, and uses London's sewage services and electricity. Installing an engine in the gargantuan boat would have cost an additional $44 million, so this superyacht is basically a floating hotel. Turns out, that's really all the Sunborn company wants it to be. They have plans to put massive yacht style-hotels all over the world. As city space becomes increasingly scarce, they believe the market for water-based hotels will increase. They already have a $200 million superyacht hotel floating just off the coast of Gibraltar, and another is in the works for a spot off the coast of Spain. When it comes to luxury ships, maybe something was learned from the Titanic disaster. You can make them as luxurious as you want, just don't expect to actually sail them anywhere.
