An Eco-Friendly Motoryacht
I shot the above photo while standing in the main saloon onboard Cristalex, a 100-foot Azimut motoryacht, at last week’s charter show in Genoa. Looks like lots of other charter yachts, right? Don’t see anything all that different?
The truth is, what makes Cristalex different–dare I say unique, at least in her size range–is the yacht’s dedication to being eco-friendly. That’s not an adjective typically associated with motoryachts, but in this case, it’s fitting. The yacht’s owners are keen not just on having a great charter yacht, but also on running it in as environmentally responsible a way as possible. To that end, the crew have been instructed to make use of everything from organic sheets to non-toxic cleaning products to biodiesel fuel.
“The owners are trying to reduce their carbon footprint,” Capt. Martin Greatbanks told me. “Even our washdowns, we try to use biodegradable and eco-friendly products. We can’t always guarantee things like biodiesel, but we try.”
It’s an interesting sentiment onboard a charter motoryacht, and by Greatbanks’s own admission, the operation is not perfect. Biodiesel, for one, is not available nearly as often as regular fuel, and sometimes, industrial products are the only solution to problems such as spilled oil and the like.
What Greatbanks says he and his team have found during their first year onboard Cristalex, though, is that they need to resort to such “typical” products much less often now that they actively pursue other options.
“It was strange when I joined the boat,” he told me, “but it’s actually quite fine once you learn about it. Things take a little more elbow grease sometimes, but we rarely have to resort to harsh chemicals for anything.”
As you can see in the photo above, the yacht is spotless (and quite stunning, to my personal tastes). If you’re interested in chartering a lovely yacht with an eco-friendly attitude, then Cristalex just might be for you. She’s part of the fleet at Ocean Independence, and any reputable charter broker can tell you more.