Ahpo: A Custom $355 Million Superyacht That’s Perfect in Every Way

That custom luxury superyacht is Ahpo, known as Project Enzo at German shipyard Lurssen ahead of its delivery in 2021. Both the codename and the official name bear slight hints as to the owner, Canadian-Jamaican billionaire Michael Lee-Chin, who commissioned it in 2017, as a replacement to his existing Lurrsen yacht Quatroelle. “Enzo” stands for “Enzo Ferrari” because the owner is a massive Ferrari fan and collector, while “Ahpo” is an endearment term that means “grandmother,” which only makes sense if you know that he specifically asked for delivery on his mother’s 89th birthday.

Ahpo is essentially a family yacht, and the brief was clear about how it should be that first and foremost. That said, it comes with incredible luxury amenities and outstanding features, custom details and technical innovations that put it on par with all the other Lurssen builds that we’ve been hearing so much about since March 2022, when sanctions against Russian oligarchs went into effect on a global scale.

As Robert Moran, founder and CEO of brokerage firm Moran Yachts, once said, there are only about four or five shipyards in the world that come close to delivering perfection in naval design, and Lurssen is right there at the top of this very short list. Perfection is not dependent on budget and it goes beyond the expectations of the owner; Moran defines it as the sum of all details of a project, all of which have to be perfect in their own right.

So is Ahpo, a beautiful, elegant, luxurious, stable, and high-performance superyacht that was created for a sea-loving family, but can easily work as a successful charter platform, since it’s geared toward socializing, wellness and outdoor activities. There is good reason for Moran’s warm praise of the project: his firm did not just broker the deal between the owner and Lurssen, but it also offered Ahpo for charter when it was available and, as of the time of press, is holding the listing for its sale. For the first time since its 2021 delivery, Ahpo is on the market – and it’s asking a whopping €330 million (approximately $354.5 million at the current exchange rate).

With a total length of 115.10 meters (377.6 feet), Ahpo offers a very generous interior volume of 5,257 GT spread across six decks. Accommodation onboard is for 16 guests in eight suites, and 36 crew in separate, sizable quarters, including the pilots for the two helicopters that can land onboard, gym trainers and yoga instructors, a trained masseuse, and a professional hairstylist.

At first sight, a brief description of the features of Ahpo wouldn’t make it that much different from other Lurssen superyachts, be they oligarch-owned or not. But perfection (and the devil, apparently) is in the details, and it’s here where this vessel stands out – starting from the Nuvolari Lenard-designed exterior, with cascading black and white decks and a golden trim near the water surface, to the intricate details inside.

The master suite, for example, occupies two floors and comes with its own private terraces, gorgeous and very romantic bathrooms (hers more so than his, with plenty of Venetian glass and mirrors, three types of onyx, and more bird and flower mosaics than you can count), a study, and the gym. The study is more like a formal boardroom, designed around a custom table with an old map of Jamaica done in bronze and blue resin, matched to a most spectacular blue light fixture. Custom too, of course.

The master spiral staircase is another example of how Ahpo strives for perfection as a build through the delivery of perfect details. Connecting all decks, it is designed around a sculpture that integrates handmade crystal feathers, frozen in mid-flight. The handrail represents an olive tree that changes subtly as it grows upwards, to match the styling and the bas-relief on the wall of each deck, while the steps are fine backlit marble clad in leather and silk carpeting.

The spa zone, which integrates a plunge pool, a Turkish-style hamam, an ivory and onyx fountain, and a massage room, is all done in bamboo: bamboo wood for the finishes and real bamboo stems with painted leaves for the décor. Where there’s no bamboo, there are gorgeous, intricate mosaics and starlit ceilings in a variety of stones, inviting to complete rest and relaxation, of the kind only this much money can buy.

Ahpo also has a 12-seat cinema, also fully customized with mosaics of the owners’ favorite actors and state-of-the-art tech, a gorgeous beach club with a lounge bar, a glass-encased winter garden, and a promenade area that allows guests to have long walks in the open air without as much as setting foot on solid ground. Finishes range from “standard” teak to polished hardwood, a variety of stones, glass and metal, and the finest and most expensive fabrics.

Because no one wants beauty without brains, Ahpo is packed with technology that ensures smooth and efficient operation, whether at anchor or underway. The superyacht uses a heat recovery system that captures heat from the two MTU diesel engines and generators, and uses it to heat the swimming pool, the spa pool, and other water systems. At-anchor stabilizers, dynamic positioning system, controllable-pitch propellers that ensure precise maneuvering at lower speeds, and optimal noise insulation contribute to the smoothest, quietest, most comfortable and most efficient operation.

For fun, Ahpo offers two custom 12-meter (40-foot) IC Yacht tenders, rescue tenders, RIBs, and a range of water toys that includes everything from a sailboat, to WaveRunners, jetskis, inflatables and fishing gear. All these are common for any charter vessel, and all the more so for one that could command more than $2.7 million a week, not including expenses, as Ahpo did on a handful of occasions.

Thanks to the twin MTU engines of 4,351 hp each, Ahpo can reach a top speed of 18 knots (20.7 mph/33 kph). When cruising at 12 knots (13.8 mph /22 kph), its range is of 8,500 nautical miles (9,781 miles/15,700 km).

Brains, brawn, and beauty in a complete – and very expensive – package known as Ahpo.