The new Yacht Club de Monaco, a.k.a. Monaco Yacht Club, held its grand opening last week. More than 4,000 people attended, including Prince Albert II of Monaco, club members from 66 countries, and participants in the Giraglia Rolex Cup. (On a related note, the Cup was finishing in Monaco for the first time.)
Ceremonial steps rich in tradition preceded guests’ ability to tour the new building. First, the Monaco Yacht Club was blessed by the Archbishop of Monaco. Then, Prince Albert formally closed the former club’s headquarters across the harbor. He did so by lowering the yacht club’s flag. He and Bernard D’Alessandri, the club’s secretary general, carried the flag to the new Monaco Yacht Club via a traditional Med fishing boat. “With this architectural masterpiece, we wished to affirm Monaco’s yachting identity, our ambition being to continue to orient our country’s future prosperity toward the sea,” Prince Albert says.
The new Monaco Yacht Club was designed by the famed company Foster + Partners. The architecture firm is renowned for striking designs and sustainability. The Monaco Yacht Club structure resembles a yacht, stretching 656 feet (200 meters) long and rising a few “decks” high. In fact, the floors are actually called decks, and some rooms are “cabins.” Deck two (first floor) contains a lounge, bar and restaurant, and pool all exclusively for members. Deck three has cabins for visiting guests, plus offices and a two-level reception area. Full-height glass can slide open on various decks. Furthermore, the open-air observation decks and aft terraces can be shaded with fabric mimicking sails, supported by structures akin to booms and masts. These are a nod to Monaco’s roots in yachting and, of course, the megayachts that regularly moor just outside in the marina. In fact, 26 berths for megayachts to 197 feet (60 meters), plus slips for sailboats and other craft, are right at the new Monaco Yacht Club’s doorstep.
In terms of sustainability, the Monaco Yacht Club has photovoltaic panels, solar thermal panels, and sea-water cooling systems. Nigel Dancey, senior partner at Foster + Partners, says, “With all of our projects, our approach to sustainability is to maximize the natural advantages of the local climate, while mitigating its extremes. We have also used locally sourced or recycled materials. Our starting point for the Yacht Club was extensive analysis of the climate and the way that the different spaces are used. Photovoltaic cells and solar thermal panels convert Monaco’s sunshine to energy, while the sea water is used for cooling, and the facades can open completely to allow natural ventilation.”
Shops and public spaces are further part of the Monaco Yacht Club. Like its predecessor, it also incorporates the club’s sailing school. “The building is a little like a city in microcosm, with schools, parks, offices, restaurants, a network of interior circulation ‘streets,’ and a hierarchy of public and private, social and functional spaces,” Lord Norman Foster of Foster + Partners says. “It is a continuation of Monaco’s dense urban fabric, as well as the Yacht Club’s traditions and will be an important part of civic life. Every child in Monaco learns sailing at some stage during their education, and those lessons will be in the new building. As a result, the Yacht Club will become even more rooted, in a public sense, in the Principality and part of its cultural and urban fabric.”
There’s one more item of note about the new Monaco Yacht Club. It has a special Riva Aquarama lounge, named, of course, for the famed runabouts produced by the Italian boatbuilder. Located on the top floor, it can host more than 1,000 people. Bernard D’Alessandri says, “Since the 1950s the stories of Monaco and Riva have been entwined. They evolved naturally together for 60 years, from the first floating dock, by Carlo Riva, supported by Prince Rainier III, to the creation of the 100-meter tunnel dug out of the rock, to keep the temperature of the boats constant in winter, like the methods used for fine wines. We are really proud that our two worlds have met in this new scenario, sharing their expertise to create a welcoming and sophisticated atmosphere. Riva is the symbol of l’Art de Vivre and of the pleasure of experiencing the sea, which is the same philosophy we adopt on a daily basis.”
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