Find out what a portion of water will cost you in the land of stars, sand, and luxury villa rentals

Ever since Bardot turned the world’s eyes on St. Tropez in the 1950s, the area has been a beacon to the rich, famous, and those who’d like to be. So it’s no surprise that when Wealth Bulletin came out with their list of most expensive places to dock a superyacht, St. Tropez was not only on the list, but in the top five. While the Italians have the lock on the first three priciest yacht spots, the report makes it clear that saving yourself a berth in one of the marinas of St. Tropez won’t come cheap. And with only thirty mega-yacht berths available, throughout the St. Tropez waterway, both price and space are making staying on a yacht for a St. Tropez vacation prohibitive for even the world’s most lavish travelers.

In compiling their report, the Wealth Bulletin used a 230-foot yacht, the longest length that some exclusive marinas will allow, as theirsample. To be as accurate as possible, the prices cited do not include dates of high activity in certain ports like the film festival in Cannes or Monaco’s F1 race.

So how much will it cost you, exactly, to moor a 230-foot vessel in St. Tropez? €1,300 a day.

And with just thirty mega-yacht berths available, the peak periods of June through August for the Cote d’Azur are consistently booked, which is why vacationers to St. Tropez routinely see yachts dotting the bay’s azure horizon.

Considering the high percentage of yacht-wielding socialites, celebrities, and otherwise wealthy jetsetters, it might seem strange that so few berths are made available by the St. Tropez port authority, especially considering that it is one of the most famous ports in the world for luxury travel. But size, quality, and environmental considerations play key factors in limiting the number of yachts allowed in St. Tropez’ bay at one time.

First off, the bay is quite small compared to others: while the U.S.’s vacation-oriented Chesapeake Bay stretches 200 mi (322 km) long by 30 mi (48 km) wide, the Gulf of St. Tropez’s coastline is only 7.45 mi (12 km) long by comparison, allowing for only a limited number of safe berths for large yachts.

In addition to the limitations in size, the St. Tropez port authority also seeks to limit the number of yachts in the bay in order to control water pollution as well as unsightly boat traffic.

Of course, there are even more expensive places to moor your yacht in Europe.

Seven of the top ten marinas can be found in Europe with the most expensive, in Capri, costing €2,900 ($3,914 U.S.) per night. The bargain of the bunch? Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island Marina at €421 per night. Of course, these costs don’t include all the other annual expenses that go along with owning a yacht, which can run up to about twenty percent of the vessel’s total value.

Despite the high cost of owning a yacht and anchoring it in St. Tropez, the berths in these high-end marinas are always full and often taken by boldfaced names. If you’ve booked a yacht or luxury vacation villa in St. Tropez this summer you’ll be sunning yourself alongside the likes of Paris Hilton, who has been seen jumping off her yacht Tatoosh and getting sprayed with champagne on club roofs in the middle of the day.

Paris Hilton aside, for many of the elite travelers to St. Tropez, it’s becoming much more comfortable and convenient to book a luxury villa rental instead. With gorgeous grounds and round-the-clock service, luxury villa rentals in St. Tropez offer just as much luxury service and amenities as any superyacht, but with the added bonus of being much closer to the beaches and center of town. Getting into town from a yacht, after all, requires an inconvenient ride to shore on a dingy.

What’s more, you’re guaranteed to find ten times as many luxury villa rentals to choose from in and around St. Tropez, compared to only thirty slots for yachts in the St. Tropez bay. So, if you’re ready to experience the full luxury of St. Tropez, spend your time there in a luxury villa hotel and simply enjoy the yachts from a distance.

Tags: luxury villa rentals, Paris Hilton, St. Tropez marina

This entry was posted on Friday, July 23rd, 2010 at 10:18 am and is filed under Entertainment, Saint-Tropez. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.