One man's custom luxury toy could never be good enough for another man – not in the sense that it would be lacking in quality but rather that it wouldn't be a true reflection of the second owner. One of Lurssen's most famous, iconic superyachts is living proof of that.
In 2012, the German luxury shipyard launched Ace, a custom project that had been built on commission for an experienced seafarer who had grown tired of chartering vessels that would simply not fit in with his idea of a perfect, family-oriented yacht. That seafarer was Ukrainian billionaire Yuriy Kosiuk.
Ace came in at 85 meters (279 feet) in total length, an interior volume of 2,723 GT, and interior and exterior design by Andrew Winch. It was a big superyacht, verging very close to the megayacht category, offering accommodation for 10 guests across five suites and 30 crew, and the most luxurious amenities possible – some even world firsts at the time.
Ace was impressive from afar, too. Winch had opted to give the superyacht "eyes," a design feature that masked terraced balconies that offered outstanding vantage points to the owner, as both led to a pair of private staircases that allowed him to travel from his suite to the beach club undisturbed, unseen, but clearly seeing everything there was to see.
Photo: Fraser
Described as "a glamorous escape with no compromise," Ace came with the world's biggest and most impressive wellness area, themed guest suites, and an unconventional design that put most communal areas on the main deck, so family time would actually be that instead of members scattered all over the place. It also packed a wide range of toys and leisure features, as befits any family yacht worth the name.
In late 2020, after years of only private use, Ace was listed for sale, with an asking price of €119 million, which is approximately $129 million at the current exchange rate. Some months later, the asking dropped by €2 million ($2.2 million), and Ace found itself a new owner.
Right after the deal was closed, Ace was sent into the yard for a refit. At that point, it had already gone through an extensive refit in 2018, but the new owner obviously wanted to put his personal touch to his new toy.
Photo: Fraser
An Ace by any other name...
In January this year, Ace changed its name in the official records to Eye. For the entire extended refit, the project was kept under wraps at repair yard MB92 in Barcelona, Spain. That shouldn't be surprising with a build of this size, where exclusivity and privacy are key words.
Earlier this month, Eye was spotted for the first time, showing the first signs of the kind of work it underwent at the request of the new owner, who remains unknown as of this writing. Ironically, the one design feature that made Ace instantly recognizable has been wiped off, even though the new name still hints at it.
The curvaceous decks and the "eyes" on Ace have now been replaced by more classical-looking lines and angular decks, making Eye more similar to most superyachts with a conventional design and, in the process, an entirely different build from its previous incarnation. The new owner's goal was obviously to put his own spin on his new superyacht, but it seems to have erased all the personality from the original one.
Photo: Fraser
Of course, that's the impression one gets by looking at Eye from afar. The interior has not been revealed to the public and probably never will unless Eye goes up for charter. Ultimately, that's the choice the owner will have to make, and it will be dependent on whether he's looking to offset maintenance costs or can afford to keep it for private use as Kosiuk did.
The "Eyes" have it
As Ace, this Lurssen build was absolutely spectacular inside.
Most Lurssen superyachts and megayachts can be described this way, but Ace stood out for daring to go against the trend very early on. It was one of the first superyachts to get a shadow vessel (as Ace, it would always travel accompanied by the Damen-built Garcon support yacht) and the first to get such a large and feature-packed wellness area.
Photo: Fraser
The interiors of Ace were designed to be comfortable and family-friendly but in the most obvious luxurious way possible. The wellness area is perhaps the best example in this sense: it had everything from a cold plunge to an ice shower, a jacuzzi, a Russian sauna as well as a traditional one, to a massage room, and the most striking styling inspired by Roman villas, with plenty of marble and mosaics, columns and statues.
Amenities onboard also included a helipad, a cinema room, a formal dining salon where even the tapestry on the walls was a work of art, a fully-equipped gym, a couple of bars, a nightclub, informal lounge spaces both indoors and outside on the decks, and a garage that packed everything from two large tenders to a rescue boat and plenty of watertoys of all kinds. After all, this was a family boat.
Power came from twin MTU diesel engines that took Ace to a top speed of 17 knots (19.5 mph/31.5 kph), with cruising at 14 knots (16 mph/26 kph) for extended range. As you can see, there was more to Ace that met the Eye, if you'll allow this quite-obvious but still funny little pun. How much of these incredible features was kept after the drastic refit remains to be seen.
Photographed here for the first time in the Port of Gibraltar, the 85m Lürssen #superyacht Eye (ex Ace) has completed her multi-year rebuild... https://t.co/28p5AmoLuE
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News