If you’ve ever wandered down the waterfront at Port Hercules or Dubai Marina, you’ll have been hard pressed not to admire the superyachts moored there. 20-metre yachts and 100-metre yachts; traditional white wedding cake yachts and yachts in unconventional colourways; yachts with pools, helipads, and drive-in tender bays… Perhaps you’ve looked on amorously, enviously, and a little voice inside your head has pondered: “maybe I should get one?”

You’re not alone. More and more (U)HNWs are embarking on yacht ownership: the industry experienced record sales in 2021 and, while figures have tapered off slightly since, interest has been piqued. “A lot of new buyers are entering the market, many of whom have never owned or designed a yacht before,” says Mark van Heffen, marketing director at Heesen Yachts, the Dutch shipbuilder that has launched more than 200 boats since its inception in 1978. 

So, should you listen to that little voice in your head – the one that dreams of breakfast on the owner’s deck? Equip yourself with the facts first: this is how you commission a superyacht, from engineering to interior fit-out.

A recent visit to Heesen’s Oss shipyard sought to pull back the curtain on the question of what, exactly, is involved in the creation of a 200-tonne waterborne behemoth, which also happens to look like a five-star hotel. Heesen specialises in yachts measuring between 40 and 80 metres and its primary target client is billionaires (although they’ll be happy to take your call if you have €500 million or more in personal wealth). A good place to go for answers, then.

The best way to think about yacht design is to break it down into four categories: exterior design, layout, engineering and interior design. A yacht may have different exterior and interior design teams, or one studio may take on both tasks. It is the exterior designer, however, who pens the layout. 

“Exterior design needs to focus on how people will be living on board, so we actually think about the living spaces early on, along with the exterior proportions,” says Peder Eidsgaard of London-based yacht design studio Harrison Eidsgaard, which has designed a number of yachts for Heesen, from the interiors of the full custom 60-metre Ultra G to a new 50-metre series, Project Grace, which is due to hit the water in 2027.

There’s an anecdote regularly told in yachting circles about one famous superyacht or another starting life as a sketch on the back of a paper napkin at a waterfront bar (the location of said bar shifts from St Tropez to St Barts depending on who tells it). While yacht design can be quite high-tech, utilising things like 3D renders and AutoCAD software, the sketching process still serves designers well. 

At this stage, Eidsgaard likes to establish a theme for the exterior, whether it be sporty, expedition or classic-looking. The designer will inquire about an owner’s lifestyle: which cars, fashion brands or decor styles they prefer, and how they plan to use their yacht. “We are trying to define the owner’s lifestyle, not just now, but in five to ten years from now,” Eidsgaard explains.

The design and build process can take anywhere from two to five years depending on the size and scope of the project, he continues. Thus, the first question a would-be owner should ask themselves is: how soon do I want my yacht? A full custom build will have the longest wait time. Unsurprisingly, creating an entirely bespoke yacht from scratch – from technical platform to interior decor – takes a while.

An owner might instead opt for a semi-custom yacht, which uses a proven hull (and, depending on the builder, a pre-designed exterior) while offering the chance to customise the interior. Heesen has a ‘smart custom’ offering, which allows the yacht’s superstructure – that’s the bit on top, above the hull – to be drawn to an owner’s specifications while using a ready-designed hull.

Buyers may also choose to purchase a series yacht – one from a series of pre-made vessels which are usually slightly different from one another (because what could be more embarrassing than arriving at the marina on the same yacht as someone else?). Project Grace will be one such series: “Because Heesen will make many of these yachts, we wanted owners to be able to choose from various colours, such as a dark hull and a white top, or the opposite,” says Eidsgaard. This is a great option for an owner who wants to avoid lengthy decision-making processes, and values ease above having a truly bespoke model.

There is also usually a range of pre-set interior design ideas that the client can choose from. “Our approach is to give clients the option of customising the interior by playing with material choices and furniture, so they don’t have the same boat as other owners,” says Luca Dini, founder of Luca Dini Design & Architecture. So, even with pre-determined series boats, an owner can still make their mark. How big that mark is depends on the stage at which they come in during the build – the later that is, the harder it is to revise things. While an in-build yacht might look like a skeleton, its furniture is probably already being made at an interior facility, so last-minute changes will cost time and money.

There are ways to shorten the wait time further yet, namely by buying a yacht that is already in build. Heesen is the master of this business model, regularly starting projects on speculation – or ‘on spec’ as those in the biz would say. The latest in Heesen’s 55-metre Steel series, Project Venus, for example, has a delivery date of early 2025, and is on the lookout for an owner, who could sign a contract and step aboard in just one year’s time.

“The boat doesn’t need to represent you as a designer, it needs to represent them as an owner,” says Silvia Margutti, lead designer at Luca Dini Design & Architecture, who helped conceptualise Project Venus’ interior. While many spec yachts will hedge their bets with neutral interiors, Margutti and her team went bold with this one, which has a 1920s-inspired design.

While a yacht’s styling is being determined, so too is its naval architecture: aesthetics may draw the eye, but a yacht is nothing without proper engineering. The process starts with a feasibility assessment, which analyses the exterior designer’s proposal and grapples with the nitty-gritty of making it a reality. “The technical design of a yacht is the integration of all the different systems, equipment and requirements for floating and sailing,” says Perry van Oossanen of Van Oossanen Naval Architects. The naval architect also optimises performance: generally, yachts exist on a scale between a slow-going, fuel-saving displacement hull, or a planing hull capable of fast speeds. Van Oossanen, however, is known for its ‘full displacement hull form’, as seen on Project Venus, which offers optimal performance at all speeds.

So how do you commission a superyacht? In truth, there is no one ‘right’ way but, as  thousands of decisions go into the creation of a yacht, the best thing a prospective buyer can do is to find a team of experts they trust. They can then choose how much or little involvement they would like to have: whether they want to sign off on every nut and bolt (or, rather, every porthole and propeller) or to simply select an oven-ready design. Either way, it’s the job of people like Dini, he says, to “create clients’ dreams”. “As a designer,” he says, “that’s the best compliment you can receive.” 

Visit heesenyachts.com

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