Jeff Bezos has a new toy in the works, and it looks like he’s making sure it’ll be ready for summertime travels.
The Amazon founder’s $500 million megayacht, Y721 Koru, was seen having its first day of sea trials, and it’s just as luxurious as you would expect for the third-richest person in the world. The footage of his new vessel was posted by Dutch Yachting, which showed the megayacht sailing out of Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, and heading toward the North Sea. The 417-foot-long ride is the largest sailing yacht in the world, the company notes, and the video shows off the vessel’s three sails and three decks—one of which features a swimming pool.
Bezos ran into some trouble earlier this year when it came out that the Koningshaven Bridge in the Netherlands might have to be dismantled to let Y721 Koru pass through, as the megayacht’s 229-foot masts exceeded the bridge’s 131-foot clearance. City officials briefly agreed to disassemble the bridge but then decided against it in the face of public backlash, according to The New York Times. That negative reaction included a threat from residents to show up and pelt rotten eggs at the $500 million behemoth.
Oceanco, the company that built Y721 Koru, ultimately decided against applying for the permit that would be required for dismantling Koningshaven Bridge, and the boat was instead quietly towed to another shipyard without its mast.
Bezos’s completed yacht will be accompanied by a 246-foot-long “shadow yacht” called YS7512, Damen Yacht’s largest-ever support vessel. It will fit 45 people onboard, feature a helicopter hangar and storage for Jet Skis and other water toys and is reportedly called Abeona, according to Boat International.
As for the main event, Bezos’s Y721 Koru is believed to be based on the Black Pearl from Pirates of the Caribbean, with its unique three-mast design and eco-friendly sailing capabilities. Other amenities beyond the on-deck swimming pool include a cinema, meeting spaces and lounges, according to Luxuo. Oceanco has declined to comment further on included features in order to protect its client’s privacy, but if this vessel is up and running as soon as we think, it won’t be long until more details come out.
