yacht club de monaco wikipedia

By SuperyachtNews 27 Sep 2022

From cosy yacht club to world knowledge bank

Bernard d’alessandri, general secretary and managing director of yacht club de monaco, explores its evolution from meeting place to platform for change….

The superyacht industry is at an interesting juncture in its development. Unlike previous years, when growth was primarily focused on selling and building as many vessels as possible, there is now a much greater emphasis on sustainable growth and long-term viability.

Yacht Club de Monaco has a vital role to play in the superyacht industry’s future and its model has changed to take on far more responsibility, leveraging its vital link between owner and industry.

“If we go back to 2012, the Yacht Club de Monaco in its current form did not exist. We were in a different location on the other side of the marina,” says general secretary and managing director Bernard d’Alessandri. “It was, like most other yacht clubs, a cosy traditional yacht club that served as a meeting place for our various members. However, when we changed the building to where we are today, the expectations for what we must achieve changed overnight.

“Today, our primary roles are twofold. Firstly, we are the world’s premier yacht club and, secondly, we have a duty to promote yachting and Monaco to the world.”

While this view might be contested by various other yachting hubs around the world, it’s generally accepted that Monaco is the true global capital of yachting and, as such, it was never likely that Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM) would be able to continue being just a yacht club in the purest sense. The world, whether Monaco and the yacht club like it or not, looks to the region to set the agenda for the yachting community and lead by example when it comes to supporting and implementing change.

Of course, there are limits to what an institution such as YCM can achieve given the complexity of the assets, the profile of their owners and the speed and variety of ongoing developments.

“In terms of development, YCM’s most important role is to be a platform of communication. We have to present the solutions to our members and try to create links between them and the premium industry at large,” adds d’Alessandri.

“Within an industry that is so incredibly complex, from the engine room to the unique relationships between stakeholders, it is impossible to contain all the necessary knowledge in-house. That said, it is our job to do whatever we can to bring the most pertinent developments, especially where this relates to sustainable solutions.”

With such a high concentration of industry players and businesses within an area of only two kilometres (1,561 employees, 150 companies and €753m of annual superyachting revenue), YCM, on moving to its current facility in 2012, launched the Monaco Capital of Yachting project to further strengthen the business in the region and reaffirm the Principality’s position as a global leader.

“Without immediate change, there simply will be no industry in the future. As the oceans become increasingly damaged, fewer and fewer people will want to go yachting. The two are inexorably linked and we must do everything in our power to protect the oceans.”

At its core, the Capital of Yachting project focused on the promotion of luxury and superyachting, and how they both related to Monaco. However, earlier this year, it was determined that the Capital of Yachting project simply did not go far enough, so YCM launched Monaco Capital of Advanced Yachting.

At that launch, Pierre Dartout, minister of state for Monaco, said, “The vision is simple: Monaco must always be ahead on economic and environmental issues. We must mobilise all stakeholders. It is an essential factor in our economy’s appeal to business as the Principality offers an exceptional network of all professions operating in this industry.”

“Because of the influence that Monaco has on the superyacht industry, we have a responsibility to promote not only luxury and the superyacht experience, but also the most sustain-able and beneficial ways of yachting,” says d’Alessandri. “Personally, I feel an immense amount of guilt and shame for the way that the industry has conducted itself up to this point.

“Of course, during certain periods, we were not furnished with all the necessary information, nor indeed were certain systems and practices available to make yachting more sustainable. Nevertheless, I am determined to use my remaining time to leave the industry in as good a position as possible to try to balance my own impact.

The guiding principle of the Advanced Yachting project is to drive growth that is not only economically sound, but also pays due respect to the environment through engaging stakeholders in a number of projects to promote sustainable yachting.

However, it’s important not to see the project as just a sustainability initiative because the industry’s future and growth is dependent on making sustainability an economically viable option. Pulling the project together is a charter that allows stakeholders to make clear their commitment to sustainable development.

Founded by YCM and Credit Suisse, the Superyacht Eco Association (SEA) has been introduced to increase the industry’s awareness of its carbon footprint. Through the SEA Index, YCM and its partners aim to create a clear system for rating the carbon efficiency of superyachts.

While there are also various other systems of measurement, these are primarily aimed at technically and scientifically minded businesses and individuals; the SEA Index aims to simplify the process to allow owners and other major stakeholders to easily track the credentials of their own vessels, with a mind to making changes and improving their ratings.

The hope is that the SEA Index will become a global standard of measurement for the industry. As well as the SEA Index, a number of ongoing programmes, including Ocean Week and Energy Boat Challenge, will continue to drive the sustainable agenda.

“Faced with the now all too obvious effects of the climate emergency, we need to be agents of change,” emphasises d’Alessandri. “The whole yachting eco-system has to evolve. As a communication platform, YCM wants to highlight and test new solutions, like alternative power sources for boats; that’s the aim of YCM’s Monaco Energy Boat Challenge that celebrates 10 years [5-8 July 2023].

“But it’s also vital to have intelligent virtuous marinas to accommodate them, hence our support for the Monaco Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous [25-26 September 2022]. It really is a unique opportunity to get the whole ecosystem together – start-ups, manufacturers, investors, yachting professionals, etc. – to build the future. After all, marinas are like micro-cities.”

To fully understand the evolution of YCM, an analogy can be drawn between it and the World Bank. Originally created to provide loans, debt relief and various other financial mechanisms to promote free market-led recovery in struggling nations, the World Bank realised a number of years ago that its primary function was not enough to spearhead effective change.

Gradually, the World Bank developed the notion of becoming a knowledge bank as well as being a financial institution, and YCM has gone through a similar transition. Its original model, a cosy yacht club, was not sufficient to support sustainable growth of the industry. Today, YCM is a knowledge bank and communications platform that is taking on ever more responsibility for the development of the industry.

As the conduit between the premium industry and some of the world’s most influential superyacht owners, the platform and communications channel that YCM now represents is vital for not only stimulating market growth, but also stimulating the right kind of market growth. D’Alessandri and his team have a vital role to play in showing the market how change should be implemented.

This article first appeared in  T he Superyacht Owner Repor t . To gain access to The Superyacht Group’s full suite of content, publications, events and services, click here to join The Superyacht Group Community and become one of our members.

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Yacht Club de Monaco | Quai Louis II | + 377 93 10 63 00

• Members’ Area

• Club’s History
• Missions & Values
• The Clubhouse
• Sustainable Clubhouse
• Management Committee
• Foreign Clubs
• YCM Gallery & Boutique
• Members Area
• MCY Channel
• Publications
• Youth Section
• Youth Competition
• Sailing courses
• Adult Section
• Monegasque crews
• Sport events
• Flotte des Commissaires
• Team Building
• Hall of Honours 2024
• Hall of Honours 2023
• Hall of Honours 2022
• Smeralda 888
• Classic Boats
• Cagliari Monaco
• Monaco Energy Boat Challenge
• J/70 World Championship
• Fête de la Mer
• Monaco Classic Week
• Monaco Optimist Academy
• Monaco Optimist Team Race
• Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series
• Navicap Challenge Elena Sivoldaeva Trophy
• Palermo – Montecarlo
• Primo Cup – Trophée UBS
• Smeralda 888 Championship
• YCM Awards – Trophée UBS
• MONACO OCEAN WEEK
• Members’ cocktail
• Business Symposium
• Captains’ Forum
• Environmental Symposium
• Historic Grand Prix
• Monaco E-Prix
• Monaco F1 Grand Prix
• Oktoberfest
• Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous
• Smart Yacht Rendezvous
• Superyacht Chef Competition
• YCM Concert
• YCM Explorer Awards
• Captains’ Club

Cluster Yachting Monaco

• Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting

Monaco Yacht Show

Environment.

• LBC Academy
• LBC Explorer
• LBC Destinations
• LBC Superyachts
• LBC Tradition

Monaco , Capital of Yachting

The Principality of Monaco has long been a favourite location in the luxury yacht sector, as a privileged home port for many superyachts and HQ for professionals united in the Cluster “Yachting Monaco”.

With many of the world’s most prestigious yachts flying its flag, including a quarter of the largest 100 private yachts, the Yacht Club de Monaco occupies a unique position on the international luxury yacht scene. As the link between all those who love the sea and boats, the YCM aims to support owners and unite all those involved in yachting around its “Art de Vivre” philosophy.

La Belle Classe

La Belle Classe Academy

Save the Date

Ycm marina concert,  september 2024.

The Yacht Club de Monaco under its label La Belle Classe Superyachts unites the yachting sector and supports its members.

Every year since 2009, professionals from across the yachting supply chain attend these dinner-debates, including owners, shipyards, brokers, naval architects, captains, bankers, maritime experts, lawyers, port directors and show organisers.

Superyachts

Captains Club

Launched in September 2007 by the Yacht Club de Monaco, this club is for captains qualified with the Captain 500 GT certificate (or equivalent) and has more than 120 members. The club aims to provide captains of all nationalities with a meeting point where they can socialise and share ideas and experiences.

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+377 93 10 63 00

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• Hospitality Architecture

Yacht Club de Monaco / Foster + Partners

• Architects: Foster + Partners
• Area Area of this architecture project Area:  26550 m²
• Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2014
• Photographs Photographs: Nigel Young / Foster + Partners , YCM | Carlo Borlenghi
• Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers:   Franken-Schotter , Basaltina
• Main Contractor : Engeco , SGTM , SOBEAM
• Structural Engineer : OGER International
• Mechanical & Electrical Engineer : OGER International

• Curated by ArchDaily
• Collaborating Architect:  Cabinet Alexandre Giraldi, Alexandri Giraldi, Thierry Aresi
• Mechanical And Electrical Engineers:  OGER International
• Cost Consultant:  Artelia
• Lighting Consultant:  Claude Engle
• Client:  Service des Travaux Publics, Principauté de Monaco
• Design Team:  Norman Foster, Spencer de Grey, David Nelson, Nigel Dancey, Patrick Campbell, Ivan Kaye, David Summerfield, James Barnes, Ulrich Hamann, Hugh Stewart, Annamaria Anderloni, Katy Roach
• Country:  Monaco

Text description provided by the architects. The yacht club is the symbolic centrepiece of the Monaco's remodelled harbour front. It celebrates the principality's spectacular coastline and its nautical heritage, creating a series of deck-like terraces that step up along the harbour to offer unrivalled views out to races at sea or inland over the course of the renowned Formula 1 Grand Prix circuit. Located on an area of reclaimed land, the development extends the city's existing marina eastwards and can accommodate a range of craft, from sailing boats to 100-metre super yachts.

The club is entered via a glazed atrium that frames views out over the harbour to the palace. On the first floor are a clubroom, bar and restaurant

Above is a double-height function space, and above that an apartment for the club secretary and a series of 'cabins' for visiting guests. The uppermost floors accommodate a range of event spaces. The observation decks are shaded by retractable fabric screens supported by a mast and booms. The harbour elevations are fully glazed and shaded by louvres, and can be opened up to provide uninterrupted views. Photovoltaic cells, solar thermal panels and sea-water cooling systems have all been integrated to ensure the building sets new sustainability standards, in line with Monaco's environmental ambitions.

The scheme also introduces shops and other amenities at quay level to animate the harbour.

The lower floors accommodate a rowing club and sailing school, whose sliding doors encourage activities to spread out on to the quayside. Designed largely for children, the school provides classrooms, workshops and lofts for small boats. Inland, there is a landscaped park on the roof of the sailing school and nautical society. Bounded on one side by the club's restaurant terrace and leading on the other side to a new exhibition hall, it complements the sequence of green spaces in this densely populated city and forms a new link in the pedestrian route between the quayside and Casino Square.

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Project location

Address: monte carlo, monaco.

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Yacht Club de Monaco | Quai Louis II | + 377 93 10 63 00

• Members’ Area

• Club’s History
• Missions & Values
• The Clubhouse
• Sustainable Clubhouse
• Management Committee
• Foreign Clubs
• YCM Gallery & Boutique
• Members Area
• MCY Channel
• Publications
• Youth Section
• Youth Competition
• Sailing courses
• Adult Section
• Monegasque crews
• Sport events
• Flotte des Commissaires
• Team Building
• Hall of Honours 2024
• Hall of Honours 2023
• Hall of Honours 2022
• Smeralda 888
• Classic Boats
• Cagliari Monaco
• Monaco Energy Boat Challenge
• J/70 World Championship
• Fête de la Mer
• Monaco Classic Week
• Monaco Optimist Academy
• Monaco Optimist Team Race
• Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series
• Navicap Challenge Elena Sivoldaeva Trophy
• Palermo – Montecarlo
• Primo Cup – Trophée UBS
• Smeralda 888 Championship
• YCM Awards – Trophée UBS
• MONACO OCEAN WEEK
• Members’ cocktail
• Business Symposium
• Captains’ Forum
• Environmental Symposium
• Historic Grand Prix
• Monaco E-Prix
• Monaco F1 Grand Prix
• Oktoberfest
• Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous
• Smart Yacht Rendezvous
• Superyacht Chef Competition
• YCM Concert
• YCM Explorer Awards
• Captains’ Club
• Cluster Yachting Monaco
• Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting

Monaco Yacht Show

• Environment
• LBC Academy
• LBC Explorer
• LBC Destinations
• LBC Superyachts
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25-28 September 2024 : Yachting's flagship event!

Experience the epitome of luxury at the Monaco Yacht Show. Immerse yourself in a world of unmatched grandeur and elegance. Discover 120 extraordinary vessels, including exclusive premieres, meticulously crafted by renowned superyacht builders.

  As you explore the show, be captivated by impeccable craftsmanship and breathtaking design. Indulge in refined amenities that redefine onboard comfort.

Beyond a showcase of yachts, the Monaco Yacht Show offers an immersive experience. Engage with industry experts and gain insights into the captivating world of yachting.

  Embracing sustainability, the show highlights eco-conscious solutions. Witness advancements in sustainable yachting practices.

Join us at the Monaco Yacht Show, where elegance and sophistication meet yachting magnificence. Let your yachting dreams set sail responsibly.

Superyachts

Rent an area at the Yacht Club de Monaco

For booking an exhibition area within the Monaco Yacht Show, please contact the Show Organisers:  [email protected]

MYS Website

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Phone Number

+377 93 10 63 06

The Yacht Club de Monaco uses cookies on this site. With your consent, we use them to measure and analyze the use of the site (analytical cookies) and to adapt it to your interests and uses (personalization cookies according to your navigation and your browser). To formalize your agreement (or refusal), go to “privacy Preference.

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Eco-responsible superyacht honoured by Monaco Yacht Club

The Monaco Yacht Club and Crédit Suisse launched the SEA Index® in 2020 to encourage the yachting industry to become more environmentally friendly.

The M/Y Kasper 7 scored highly. The 67-metre superyacht, built in 2023 by the Italian shipyard Benetti and owned by a member of the Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM), has been awarded a 3-star SEA Index® certification.

“ It’s a fantastic tool because it shows how shipowners, crew, and shipyards care about the sea and the environment. We’re very proud to have been awarded 3 stars. It tells us we’re heading in the right direction, ” said Dario Savino, captain of the superyacht and founding member of the YCM Captains’ Club.

This distinction is the result of a CO2 certification process, rigorously audited by the British maritime classification company Lloyd’s Register, and carried out by the YCM for any shipowner who requests it. Vessels that are awarded 3 stars are recognised for their environmental approach and are entitled to exclusive benefits: free membership of the Superyacht Eco Association in 2024, discounts on mooring fees in the YCM Marina, preferential insurance rates with Jutheau Husson, a professional member of the SEA Index®, and a discount for the entire crew on sustainability training provided by La Belle Classe Academy, the Monaco Yacht Club’s training centre.

Yacht Club de Monaco: Flagship events in 2024!

As a reminder, the SEA Index® assesses pleasure boats’ CO2 emissions, to support shipowners who are committed to more environmentally responsible yachting. A five-star rating system is used at the end of this assessment, and vessels that are awarded at least three stars are eligible to join the Superyacht Eco Association. This initiative is an integral part of the collective “Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting” initiative. More and more superyacht owners are embracing more sustainable practices and some are aiming for even higher standards.

The impact calculated by the SEA Index® is expressed in grams of CO2 release into the atmosphere per gross ton, which is representative of the volume of the vessel’s enclosed space. The assessment system is based on a methodology adopted by the United Nations International Maritime Organisation, with specific adjustments for yachts measuring over 25 metres.

Yacht Club de Monaco | Quai Louis II | + 377 93 10 63 00

• Members’ Area

• Club’s History
• Missions & Values
• The Clubhouse
• Sustainable Clubhouse
• Management Committee
• Foreign Clubs
• YCM Gallery & Boutique
• Members Area
• MCY Channel
• Publications
• Youth Section
• Youth Competition
• Sailing courses
• Adult Section
• Monegasque crews
• Sport events
• Flotte des Commissaires
• Team Building
• Hall of Honours 2024
• Hall of Honours 2023
• Hall of Honours 2022
• Smeralda 888
• Classic Boats
• Cagliari Monaco
• Monaco Energy Boat Challenge
• J/70 World Championship
• Fête de la Mer
• Monaco Classic Week
• Monaco Optimist Academy
• Monaco Optimist Team Race
• Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series
• Navicap Challenge Elena Sivoldaeva Trophy
• Palermo – Montecarlo
• Primo Cup – Trophée UBS
• Smeralda 888 Championship
• YCM Awards – Trophée UBS
• MONACO OCEAN WEEK
• Members’ cocktail
• Business Symposium
• Captains’ Forum
• Environmental Symposium
• Historic Grand Prix
• Monaco E-Prix
• Monaco F1 Grand Prix
• Oktoberfest
• Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous
• Smart Yacht Rendezvous
• Superyacht Chef Competition
• YCM Concert
• YCM Explorer Awards
• Captains’ Club
• Cluster Yachting Monaco
• Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting
• Monaco Yacht Show
• Environment
• LBC Academy
• LBC Explorer
• LBC Destinations
• LBC Superyachts
• LBC Tradition

Historic Grand Prix of Monaco

10-12 may 2024.

For its 14 th edition, the Historic Grand Prix of Monaco returns to the mythical circuit of the Principality in 2024, few weeks before the Formula 1 Grand Prix.

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Book a berth during the Grand Prix

[email protected]

Phone Number

+377 93 10 65 00

The Yacht Club de Monaco uses cookies on this site. With your consent, we use them to measure and analyze the use of the site (analytical cookies) and to adapt it to your interests and uses (personalization cookies according to your navigation and your browser). To formalize your agreement (or refusal), go to “privacy Preference.

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