Antibes, a town in the Alpes-Maritime department in south eastern France which lies on the Mediterranean’s Cote d’Azur, has had a star guest this week, with the celebrity being the Kingdom 5KR, the luxury yacht that stole the show in the James Bond 007 film Never Say Never Again.
Worth €80 million, or $99.864 million, and measuring an astounding 85 metres (279 feet), the vessel made her film debut in 1983 with Scottish actor Sean Connery and was considered for a time to be the largest yacht in the world. The vessel can be considered a luxurious party palace; it contains five decks, a discotheque, a movie theatre, a helicopter landing pad, and a pool thrown in for good measure.
The Kingdom 5KR, now residing in Port Vauban’s quai des Milliardaires, or the Billionaire’s Dock in English, has been in the possession of Saudi Prince Al Walid Ben Talal since 1991. The prince is considered to be one of the most important men in the Arab world at present, and was named Arabian Business’s Arab with the most influence in the world. His wealth is estimated to be at $18 billion.
Antibes’ Port Vauban is home of the prestigious Yacht Club D’Antibes and is the Mediterranean’s largest marina. As of this year, rates for a berth at Port Vauban start at €1 million ($1.2483 million) and go up to €1.4 million, making it rather unaffordable to all except the ultra-rich.
