"Long voyage ... What words! You think, young man, listen to the music of these words ...
Far ... far ... vast space ... space. Is not it?
What about swimming? Swimming is a striving forward, moving, in other words. So this: movement in space.
Here, you know, it smells like astronomy. Feel in some way a star, a planet, a satellite, at worst "
(A. Nekrasov. "The Adventures of Captain Vrungel").
My friend Manolo - the owner of one of the largest metallurgical companies in Spain, a man of years and with a tummy - appeared in Dubai quite unexpectedly. "Well, amigo, help me with English, otherwise I want to buy something here, this is a serious matter."
I flew to the meeting like on wings, not really thinking about where exactly it would happen. And only after spending an unsuccessful search for my friend for an hour among luxury yachts, I realized that I was in the very center of the famous Dubai Boat Show and it’s simply impossible to find Manolo among this mass of people, unless the beloved Spirit of the Sea helps me. And he helped. Manolo appeared literally from under the water: "Estimate, this baby dives like a submarine!" - he shouted to me with a happy view from the side of a beautiful yacht. Well, exactly some kind of child ...
What, what are these shows made of?
Since I had a rather vague idea about yachts that did not go beyond the belief that a yacht is a wooden creaking boat with red sails, I could not miss the opportunity to satisfy my informational hunger for a person and a journalist.
The Dubai Boat Show is held every year and is one of the most significant events in the world of yachts and everything that surrounds them.
This year the event was held from March 15 to 19 under the auspices of the Dubai World Trade Center. 19 thousand people visited the Boat Show, and its exposition occupied an area of 40 thousand square meters. m, which demonstrated their products 440 participants from three dozen countries. For boats with a displacement of 39 to 200 cubic meters. ft. it took almost a hundred moorings. Local and foreign companies were represented almost equally: 49% and 51%, respectively.
The range of exhibited products was extremely wide - from motors and diving equipment to the latest generation yachts. Two schools of navigation - Jebel Ali and DIMC - showed the achievements of their students.
I also found here the stand of Knotika holding, known not only for its marine school, which pays great attention to crew safety and continues the traditions of England, Germany and America, but also for a wide variety of projects in all areas.
Knotika is famous, first of all, for its ability to organize various events on the water. These are, for example, original traveling exhibitions: yachts go from one place of demonstration to another accompanied by an experienced vessel “Commodore” and a fast “Engineer”, and all that is necessary to provide them, as well as exhibits, travel along the land along the coast simultaneously with them.
This year, Knotika will be hosting the GCC Marine Achievement Awards, which is expected to be a kind of Academy Award for Maritime Affairs; About 500 participants and 1000 guests will take part in it.
Which yacht is better?
"A yacht - she is like a woman:" - my Spanish friend began an excursion, but stopped, admiring one of the moored white-winged yachts. “Beauty,” he said, and plunged into contemplation. I had to explore the three yachts that interested me on my own.
Majesty 118
The name of this yacht ("Majesty") hints at its size - 118 feet, that is 36 m in length (28 m along the waterline). The yacht with a displacement of 110 tons can reach speeds of up to 23 knots and take on board 3800 liters of water and 20 000 liters of fuel.
The interior of the Majesty 118 captivates with luxury and comfort. The spacious lounge allows you to freely place in it a dining table for ten people and two large soft sofas with coffee tables. Next to the lounge is the kitchen, equipped with the latest technology.
The yacht is designed for ten guests and three crew members. All passenger cabins (three with double beds and two with two single beds), as well as a cabin for team members, are equipped with separate toilet rooms with everything necessary, including six showers and two bathtubs. There is also a large dressing room.
Spacious engine room provides easy access to any mechanism. The flybridge provides comfortable seats; from the raised steering compartment offers a great view. Everywhere on the ship - royal luxury: In a word, welcome to your own floating palace!
De birs 100
This yacht is intended for owners who want to take relatives and friends on a trip, and at the same time enjoy the flight of the yacht over the waves all alone.
On the De Birs 100 on the miniature flybridge there is a very convenient control post with a 360-degree view. Three comfortable chairs on the bridge give the captain the opportunity to communicate with guests without leaving the post, and each compartment is designed so that the yacht team has quick and easy access to the bridge.
This beautiful yacht with a length of 30 m (24 m along the waterline) in the basic configuration can reach a speed of 30 knots, but can accelerate to 35 knots if you install the appropriate engine on it. Its displacement is 94 tons, it can take on board 1800 liters of water and 9000 liters of fuel.
With its exterior designed by specialists of De Birs Yachts and the famous Italian company Arrabito Naval Architects, with smooth streamlined lines and silver hull color, the yacht resembles an airplane.
The spacious lounge has a dining table for eight people, a sofa, two armchairs and a coffee table. All four passenger cabins (three with double beds and one with two single beds) are equipped with separate toilets and dressing rooms.
Ambassador 36
The Ambassador 36 can be compared to the most advanced sports car. With almost 11 m in length (8.5 m at the waterline) and displacement
4.5 tons, it has a speed of 38 knots and can take on board 150 liters of water and 750 liters of fuel.
You can operate this powerful sports yacht from a comfortable cabin; guests are accommodated in a spacious cockpit. The owner has the opportunity to choose where the engine will be located. This yacht with a large bedroom and kitchen, as well as an extensive passenger cabin, can serve as a nook for two couples who want to enjoy a rest on the water.
New aspects of shipping in the Gulf
At the exhibition, as always, local manufacturers were noted, for example Al Haleb Marine with two new yachts 44 and 52 feet long. Al Shaali (AS Marine), which introduced the Magesty 118 model mentioned earlier, did not stand aside. In addition to the leading manufacturers in Europe and America, Camper & Nicholson and Performance Marine entered the Middle East market for the first time. The main sensation was the world's first diving yacht company Exomos.
On March 16-17, within the framework of the exhibition, a conference was held for the first time on the development of shipping in the Gulf. According to experts' forecasts, huge popularity among foreign investors of real estate properties, whose owners, besides a house in Dubai, also receive a comfortable parking for their own yacht, will affect the sales volumes of ships and, accordingly, the intensity of navigation in the waters of the Gulf. Of course, competition between sellers will also intensify: now they need not only to sell yachts, but also a decent after-sales service should be organized.
Along with the growing demand for recreational vessels, in particular for fishing, yachts are being modified, becoming not only a luxury, but also a means of transportation. This is especially true for those who buy property on islands under construction. Helal Saeed Khalfan al-Mari, director general of Dubai Trade Center, claims that 10,000 new berths are provided on the Palm Islands (now there are 28,000 in Dubai). The most important developers of Dubai, whose projects are related to the sea - Futtaim, Emaar, Nakheel - have expanded the range of ships presented.
Local distributors - Al Masaood, Al Seer Marine, Al Khalifah Mohammad Al Fuqaei - demonstrated the latest products from Honda, MTU, Suzuki, Volvo Penta, Yamaha. The external exhibition area adjacent to the sea was decorated with large stands of Baja, Boston Whaler, Doral, Emirates Craft, Regal, Sea Ray International, as well as many other companies offering a huge selection of products.
According to local organizers, the Boat Show plays a large role in the development of the UAE industry. “Once upon a time,” Said Harib, director of the Dubai International Maritime Club, told me, “Only foreign companies with new technologies participated in the Show, and local ones just followed them. Now we are tough competing with manufacturers from Australia and Europe. Year after year, a share local participants grew:
gradually we also mastered complex production. Now there are five times more local participants than at the very first exhibition. "
While I was talking with great interest to the exhibitors, the Spirit of the sea took hold of my soul and heart more and more, and I better and better understood my Spanish friend. In the circle of friends, we consider him a little crazy: an extremely rich man, but lives in the port, on a yacht.
Now it doesn’t surprise me at all why he is always so eager to go where the famous Rambla promenade in Barcelona rests on the promenade and the sea, and where his beautiful yacht stands at the pier. The sea is his home. And every day he visits his luxurious villa on the Costa Brava only in order to take from the housekeeper a basket with fresh herbs and tomatoes.
Anastasia Zorina
