Destiny’s child The 68-meter Lürssen Kismet leaves little to fate T he term kismet means “destiny” in Turkish and Arabic, as well as Urdu and Hindi. But the owner of a new yacht by that name was leaving nothing to fate when he drew on the combined reputations of Espen Øino and Reymond Langton to design the 68-meter (223foot) motor yacht launched from the Lürssen Rendsburg yard earlier this year. Add yacht manager Robert Moran and experienced build captain Kyle Fultz, and the owner was confident he was onto a winner. “Espen Øino’s initial exterior styling was for a more aggressive, Skat-like vessel,”...

Clockwise from top: The main salon with its circular bar divided by a limousine window makes for a glittering enter­tainment space. The sublime lower-deck lobby forward accesses the guest cabins. A detailed basrelief decorates system aboard Lürssen’s Capri in 2003 and entrusted subcontractor Imtech/Bardwell to look after the installation of the navigation-communication systems. They also stipulated a FarSounder that, depending on water depth, has a forward range of 300 meters. Providing a 3-D image of the seabed and any forward obstacles, the system was originally developed by the U.S. Navy to...

kismet Justin Ratcliffe (bottom) design with an open space in the middle was a specific request by the owner. The generators and main engines are housed on the lower level, with water treatment units, boilers, air compressors, chiller plant, air-conditioning system, etcetera, on the upper level. The open gallery in the middle creates a cathedral-like space. Doubtless the shipyard was daunted by the major rearrangement of the layout the request entailed, but the result is a showpiece engine room that the owner is boyishly proud to show off to his guests. Kismet was designed to be a comfortable,...

kismet upper-deck salon; an ornate drape tassel; the formal dining room. 112 november 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM either side of the bar that cleverly disguise the floodlight sill required by MCA and Lloyd’s. There is also a deck hatch to the garage below with its own boom crane in the deckhead for stowing a motorbike—a solution that also appeared on Apoise (ex-Marlin) launched by Lürssen last year. Guest accommodations consist of a VIP cabin on the upper deck and four double cabins on the lower deck. The latter are identical in layout (the beds can be separated to form twin singles) but contain varying...

kismet Above: the informal “beach house” lounge on the upper deck. Note the coffee-table tops made from tobacco leaves. Bottom, right to left: The lounge has a central skylight with a glass sculpture by Glasszoo. It opens onto the spacious glass depicting details of the Statue of Liberty and the Chrysler building in New York, powerful symbols of the owner’s American citizenship and business interests in the automobile industry. A playful detail is the mini-Chrysler building represented in the custom-made drape tassels by the United Kingdom’s Spina Design. Abaft the dining room is a dedicated...

kismet The sun deck is a supremely comfy outdoor relaxation space with loungers and a hammock. Reader’s Resource Lürssen Yachts Zum Alten Speicher 11 28759 Bremen-Vegesack Germany tel: +49 421 6604 166 fax: +49 421 6604 170 www.lurssen.com more informal and has a well-equipped gym, a steam room and a beach house-style lounge with wraparound sofas, a bar unit and circular coffee tables with découpage tops made from Brazilian tobacco leaves. Builder: Lürssen Yachts Year launched: 2007 Naval architecture: Naturally, there is no lack of exterior social areas, culminating in the Jacuzzi deck, which...