Jeff Bezos' superyacht may not see past the waters of the Netherlands anytime soon.
The Dutch city of Rotterdam announced it wouldn't be dismantling a part of its Koningshaven Bridge for Bezos's superyacht, the Y721, to sail through its waters, leaving it trapped and even possibly unfinished in the future, per CNET.
Bezos' superyacht is being constructed by a privately owned Netherlands-based custom yacht builder, Oceano.
Bezos' Superyacht Details
Bezos' superyacht, according to Boat International, measures 417 feet in length and has a three-masted schooner made of aluminum and steel. It allegedly stands at over 131 feet tall, per the Elite Traveler. Once it sets sail, it will dethrone the current largest sailing yacht, the Sea Cloud, which was commissioned for philanthropist Marjorie Merriweather Post back in the 1930s.
The superyacht is so large that if it stood vertically, it would be almost the same height as the Great Pyramid of Giza.
It features an on-deck swimming pool, a cinema, several lounges, and several business areas on its three decks, per Luxuo. It even has a support boat.
The support boat, according to Forbes, is mostly in charge of the superyacht's "toys" that won't fit in the superyacht, such as Bezos' submarine, aircraft, cars, and even other yachts.
The support boat also has a helipad for Bezos' helicopter to land on, per Bloomberg.
The superyacht's construction is expected to be completed sometime in 2022, most probably during the summer months.
The Problem With Bezos Superyacht
To say that Bezos' superyacht is huge is an understatement. However, its size may be its Achilles' Heel - the reason why it won't see past Dutch waters.
The bridge that Bezos' superyacht wants to pass under is the Koningshaven Bridge in the Dutch city of Rotterdam.
Lovingly nicknamed "De Hef" or "The Lift," the bridge was built in 1877 and has suffered damage during the German bombings during World War 2. It has since been renovated, with the local municipality vowing that it will never be dismantled again.
However, the bridge only has a clearance of 131 feet, despite the lift. As such, the clearance the bridge provides is too small to the Y217 to pass under.
Unfortunately, the superyacht must pass through the bridge. SuperYacht News revealed that yachts or any other seacraft built by Oceanco have to pass through four bridges to get to the North Sea, and from there, the English Channel.
Oceanco's shipyard is located in the town of Albasserdam, along the Noord River. Bezos' superyacht will travel upstream pass the Brienenoord Bridge, east of Rotterdam, and then will go through De Hef the Koninginnebrug Bridge.
Afterwhich, it will have to pass through the Erasmus Bridge, and go through the Blankenburgverbinding Tunnel.
Once the superyacht clears the tunnel, it is now free to reach the North Sea and the English Channel.
However, since Rotterdam has denied Bezos' request to dismantle De Hef and let his superyacht pass through, the Y217 is essentially trapped within Oceanco's shipyard.
There is no other way out of the Netherlands unless Bezos could find a way to transport the superyacht across land and launch it onto another river.
Additionally, many of the Dutch were angered about Bezos' request to have De Hef temporarily disimantled due to it being a historical site as well as a functioning bridge.
Should Bezos' superyacht pass through De Hef, around a thousand dutchmen and women, mostly from Rotterdam, will allegedly come to throw rotten eggs at the superyacht as a sign of protest, per GeekWire.
