Beacon Of Luxury

It is difficult to understand the passion yacht owners and builders have for their luxury boats until you experience the capabilities of the vessels for yourself. Chong Seow Wei does just that at a private preview of the Ferretti Group’s fleet in Monaco, and discovers a world of engineering excellence

- Chong Seow Wei

THE TEMPERATURE WAS mercurial as we made our way to Monaco’s most well-known district, Monte Carlo. The days were scorching and the nights were chilly. The vibe of this famous destination along the French Riviera, however, remained constant: elite, trendy and hedonistic, but classy and undoubtedly enchanting. Favourable tax laws aside, it was easy to see why the likes of retail billionaire Philip Green and film star George Clooney would flock here all-year round, most probably on their yachts. After all, Monte Carlo is a destination that can provide both CIA-type privacy and Hollywood-style publicity, depending on what you come for.

For three years now, the world’s most affluent have had one more reason to visit this tiny principality: the private preview of the Ferretti Group’s complete fleet of yachts. The yacht company was established in 1968, by brothers Alessandro and Norberto Ferretti who, fascinated with sailing since they were kids, decided to diversify their family’s speciality car dealership where they worked as car salesmen. In 1971, they received praise for their first boat, a 10m wooden motorsailer. Nearly a decade later, they debuted their first motoryacht, which marked their entry into producing boats suited for sport fishing.