First Impression: Elisabeth F
Date toured: December 2007

The 173-foot motoryacht Elisabeth F turned a lot of heads at this month’s industry-only charter show in Antigua—so many, in fact, that I named her the belle of the show on my Editor’s Blog. It was the first time I’ve ever seen a boat built in 1979 earn as many or more accolades as the brand-new launches sitting right next to her on the docks.
     That’s right: Elisabeth F is nearly 30 years old, originally launched by the Feadship yard as Wedge I and then called Avanti IV before getting yet another owner and the name Elisabeth F this past summer.  He gutted her in a refit that lasted several months, making her into a virtually all-new boat complete with an extended swim platform that increased the original yacht’s length by just over 16 feet.
      “They ripped out everything,” explains Liv Kristin Jacobsen, the Monaco-based broker who manages the yacht for charter through the three-year-old Finnish company Kaukonen & Kaukonen. Elisabeth F is just the second yacht in their fleet (the other is a 78-foot Ferretti motoryacht), and this coming winter season is their first offering charters. That’s why they hired Jacobsen, who previously worked at a prominent international charter company.
     She told me that Elisabeth F’s owner sought out experienced charter crew, including a captain who used to be in command of the 182-foot motoryacht Twizzle, a well-regarded newer launch from the Feadship yard. The first mate and chief stewardess also have experience working on boats, Jacobsen says, but the chef is new to the charter industry, having come from luxury restaurants in London—including one that he owned.
     “The owner turned up this summer with nine extra guests for dinner, and the chef was perfectly flexible,” Jacobsen told me, indicating that he would fit in well with the yachting lifestyle.
     All the crew are good with families, since the owner has six children ranging from 8 months old to early teens. “It’s water sports all day,” Jacobsen says. “There’s not a water sport this crew doesn’t know. They’re a very family-friendly boat. There’s even a big pull-down screen for family movie night up on deck.”
     That deck, on the same level as the helm, is the most impressive part of Elisabeth F. Where most motoryachts in this size range have an enclosed sky lounge guest area with doors that connect to an outdoor deck, Elisabeth F has one large space specifically designed for indoor-outdoor parties (see the photo at right). If rain is in the forecast, there’s an Isinglass (clear plastic) shade that pulls across to protect the indoor space. With the shade open, this deck can easily hold as many as 80 people for a party. And it can be a swimming party, since there’s a diving platform at the back of this deck for anyone who wants to leap into the water from two stories up.
     Back inside, the two biggest cabins are the master (see photo below) and VIP, both on the main deck with king-size beds. Down on the bottom deck there are six more cabins, two with queen-size beds and four with twin beds and Pullman-style bunks. So for a regular charter, Elisabeth F takes 12 guests in eight separate cabins—plenty of space to spread out—and for static charters that stay at a single dock, she can sleep 20 guests each night.
     The refit updated the interior décor in contemporary style, one that is comfortable as well as elegant. There’s even a hint of humor in the decor, as the owner let his children choose the colors of the bathrooms in the twin cabins, where you’ll find red and purple tile. One quibble that animal lovers may have with the new décor is that animal hides are used as some of the fabric coverings, such as baby ostrich blinds and stingray-skin drawers in the master suite.
     No animals were harmed, however, in the creation of the yacht’s new audiovisual and communication systems. Elisabeth F’s crew have access to some 600 daily newspapers that they can print on a charter guest’s demand, as well as about 1,000 DVD movies, iPod docks, WiFi throughout the yacht, and satellite television in the master and VIP cabins (the rest of the guest cabins have TVs with DVD players).
     As refits go, this one is a clear winner. The introductory base rate for charters onboard Elisabeth F in the Caribbean this winter is $200,000 per week, with her 2008 Mediterranean season rate rising to 200,000 euros. Contact any reputable charter broker for more information.—Kim Kavin