david geffen yacht portland

Gigayacht spotted in Portland Harbor attracts attention

by Ariana St Pierre , WGME

PORTLAND (WGME) -- A $400 million gigayacht floating in the Portland Harbor is turning heads.

According to the Press Herald, a yacht is typically at least 30 feet long, a superyacht is 80-100 feet long, a megayacht is 200 feet, and a gigayacht is over 300 feet long.

The yacht, named Rising Sun, is owned by billionaire entertainment mogul David Geffen, according to CBS News.

CBS News reports the boat's original owner, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, sold Rising Sun to Geffen in 2010.

The Rising Sun reportedly has 82 rooms, including a gym, a basketball court, a wine cellar, a spa, and a movie theater, according to CBS News.

• Also read: 'It's amazing:' Nearly $70M middle school set to open in South Portland

It can reportedly accommodate up to 16 guests and 45 crew members.

Geffen’s gigayacht is the 20th largest in the world, according to the Press Herald.

It’s certainly an eye-catcher at five stories high and 453 feet long.

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Photos: david geffen's "superyacht" docks in portland harbor.

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One of the largest yacht's in the world, owned by David Geffen, was docked in Portland Harbor on Tuesday.

PHOTO: WMTW Image

Geffen is a former record producer and founder of Dreamworks.

His yacht, the Rising Sun, is listed as one of the largest yachts in the world.

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David Geffen's 82-Room Megayacht Docks In Portland, Maine

The picturesque harbor at Portland, Maine hosts a number of luxury cruise ships in the fall months, but rarely does a privately owned vessel of a similar stature grace its waters. Thus when the world's 10th largest yacht, David Geffen's 453-foot long Rising Sun  docked there recently, it caused quite a sensation. The five-story, 82-room yacht took up enough space for several smaller boats at the city's Ocean Gateway International Marine Terminal. Originally commissioned by Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison from Germany's Lürssen shipyard in 2004, the yacht cost about $250 million to build. The Rising Sun features luxe accommodations for 12 people, in addition to 30 crew members, and features a gymnasium, spa, sauna, wine cellar, private cinema and basketball court that converts to a helipad. 

Geffen and Ellison were originally co-owners of the yacht before Geffen took full control of it in 2010. It it is the largest yacht in the world owned by a U.S. citizen. It is not known whether Geffen was on board the yacht when it arrived in Maine, but here's where a few other billionaires docked their yachts recently: 

• Russian Billionaire Andrey Melnichenko brought the world's "coolest" megayacht — a 390-foot, $400 million vessel designed by Philippe Starck and dubbed the A  — to Auckland, New Zealand.
• Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich brought the 536-foot  Eclipse , the second largest yacht in the world which cost around $800 million, to the southern Croatian island of Mljet.
• Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen arrived in Iceland aboard the 414-foot Octopus , the 13th largest yacht and the largest expedition yacht in the world.

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Who Owns the $400M 82-Room Gigayacht Floating in This Maine Harbor?

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We're no strangers here in Maine to seeing the ultra-wealthy dock their massive floating mansions on the docks at one of hundreds are amazingly beautiful ports. Even though we're used to it, it's still remarkable when a yacht of THIS size shows up.

According to many people on Facebook, Instagram and even WGME, a gigayacht has docked in Portland. Now, to be fair, I had no idea what a gigayacht even was until I read a little further into it.

The Portland Press Herald explained in part that "a yacht is typically at least 30 feet long, a superyacht is 80-100 feet long, a megayacht is 200 feet, and a gigayacht is over 300 feet long."

The yacht, currently docked in Portland Harbor, is a whopping 453 feet in length, WGME reported , and is run by a crew of 45 people and features at least half a dozen decks, has a built-in wine cellar, movie theater, fitness gym and is equipped with more than 82 rooms.

But, how how does a yacht of this size COST? I mean, it has to be a few thousand bucks, right?

In fact, this astonishing piece of nautical equipment cost a staggering $400+ million to build, according to WGME.

Who has that kind of money and the desire to build such a floating palace? None other than David Geffen.

But who the heck is David Geffen?

According to Forbes , Geffen is the cofounder of Dreamworks Animation and "the founder of record labels Asylum Records, Geffen Records and DGC Records."

Forbes states that as of August 2023, he's worth over $7 billion. With a B.

For a little more insight into just how LAVISH this sailing paradise is, check out this YouTube video we came across that provides even more info (and pictures!) of this epic gigayacht.

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David Geffen's 82-Room Megayacht Docks in Portland, Maine

The picturesque harbor at Portland, Maine hosts a number of luxury cruise ships in the fall months, but rarely does a privately owned vessel of a similar stature grace its waters. Thus when the world’s 10th largest yacht, David Geffen’s 453-foot long Rising Sun  docked there recently, it caused quite a sensation. The five-story, 82-room yacht took up enough space for several smaller boats at the city’s Ocean Gateway International Marine Terminal. Originally commissioned by Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison from Germany's Lürssen shipyard in 2004, the yacht cost about $250 million to build. The Rising Sun features luxe accommodations for 12 people, in addition to 30 crew members, and features a gymnasium, spa, sauna, wine cellar, private cinema and basketball court that converts to a helipad. 

Geffen and Ellison were originally co-owners of the yacht before Geffen took full control of it in 2010. It it is the largest yacht in the world owned by a U.S. citizen. It is not known whether Geffen was on board the yacht when it arrived in Maine, but here’s where a few other billionaires docked their yachts recently: 

• Russian Billionaire Andrey Melnichenko brought the world’s “coolest” megayacht — a 390-foot, $400 million vessel designed by Philippe Starck and dubbed the A  — to Auckland, New Zealand.
• Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich brought the 536-foot  Eclipse , the second largest yacht in the world which cost around $800 million, to the southern Croatian island of Mljet.
• Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen arrived in Iceland aboard the 414-foot Octopus , the 13th largest yacht and the largest expedition yacht in the world.

Jared Paul Stern

Jared Paul Stern, JustLuxe's Editor-at-Large, is the Executive Editor of Maxim magazine and has written for the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, the New York Times' T magazine, GQ, WWD, Vogue, New York magazine, Details, Hamptons magazine, Playboy, BlackBook, the New York Post, Man of the World, and Bergdorf Goodman magazine among others. The founding editor of the Page Six magazine, he has al... (Read More)

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Hollywood billionaire David Geffen has been self-isolating on his superyacht in the Caribbean during the coronavirus pandemic. Take a look at the $590 million yacht.

• Billionaire David Geffen is in the hot seat for a "tone-deaf" Instagram post about isolating on his yacht, Rising Sun, in the Caribbean, The Guardian reported .
• Geffen reportedly paid $590 million for the yacht, which previously belonged to Oracle founder Larry Ellison .
• Rising Sun is something of a playground for the rich and famous, as Geffen has been known to host celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Leonardo DiCaprio on board.
• Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was spotted on the superyacht last summer.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories .

Billionaire and entertainment mogul David Geffen is in the hot seat this week for a "tone-deaf" Instagram post about isolating on his $590 million yacht in the Caribbean during the coronavirus pandemic, The Guardian reported .

On Saturday, Geffen posted photos showing his  superyacht, Rising Sun, in the Grenadines with the caption, "Sunset last night. Isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus. I hope everybody is staying safe." The backlash on Twitter was prompt, with people calling his post "shameful" and out of touch, reported Business Insider's Katie Warren . He appears to have since  deactivated his Instagram .

It's the same yacht that  Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was spotted on in the Balearics, Spain, last summer. In a photo posted to Geffen's Instagram , Bezos was seen with his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez; the supermodel Karlie Kloss; and former Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein.

But Bezos and crew aren't the first to cruise the high seas with Geffen, who appears to love hosting celebrities, musicians, and actors. Leonardo DiCaprio, Bradley Cooper, Oprah Winfrey, and Barack and Michelle Obama have also previously kicked back on Geffen's 400-foot-plus superyacht. 

Here's a look at Rising Sun — and the big names who have been on board.

The entertainment mogul David Geffen, founder of DreamWorks, SKG, Asylum Records, Geffen Records, and DGS Records, owns Rising Sun. According to Forbes, he's worth an estimated $7.8 billion.

Source : Forbes

The 454-foot megayacht was originally built for Oracle founder Larry Ellison. Geffen bought a half-share in 2007 and the other half in 2010, totaling $590 million.

Source :  Forbes

The exact value of the superyacht is unclear. However, a 2019 put its value at $300 million.

Source : Yacht Harbour

Rising Sun was constructed by the German shipbuilder Lurssen. Once Geffen became owner, he had the yacht refitted over a six-month period.

Source : Boat International

The yacht can accommodate 18 guests and a staff of 55 people. It even has a basketball court.

The top deck is dedicated entirely to the owner and includes a double-height cinema.

Geffen has cruised everywhere from St. Bart's and the Tobago Cays in the Caribbean to Portofino, Italy, and Ibiza, Spain, according to posts Business Insider previously viewed on his now-deactivated Instagram — but not without a few friends.

Rising Sun is a great place for entertaining. A scroll through Geffen's Instagram feed before it was deleted showed that he's hosted many a celebrity guest on board.

Oprah Winfrey, Bradley Cooper, Orlando Bloom, Katy Perry, Chris Rock, Bruce Springsteen, Mariah Carey, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Tom Hanks have all joined Geffen in cruising the high seas, according to now-deleted Instagram posts.

♥️ happiness entrepreneurs ♥️ A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry) on Jul 28, 2019 at 8:57am PDT Jul 28, 2019 at 8:57am PDT

Source : Business Insider , GQ

But Geffen doesn't just invite actors and musicians on board. In 2017, Barack and Michelle Obama were spotted on board while the yacht was in French Polynesia.

Source : Business Insider

And in summer 2019, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, investment banker Lloyd Blankfein, and supermodel Karlie Kloss were spotted aboard in the Balearics in Spain.

But Geffen likely won't have any friends on board anytime soon during the coronavirus pandemic.

On Saturday, he posted a photo to his Instagram from Rising Sun. The caption read: "Sunset last night. Isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus. I hope everybody is staying safe."

Twitter lit up with backlash, with people calling his post "shameful" and out of touch. Geffen then deleted his Instagram.

—Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) March 28, 2020

Source : Twitter

While the combined $590 million that Geffen spent to buy Rising Sun is an astronomical figure, it pales in comparison to the world's most expensive yacht. That title goes to the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich's yacht Eclipse, which is estimated to be worth anywhere from $600 million to $1.5 billion.

Source: Business Insider

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Hey, poors: David Geffen wants to show you his yacht

We’re starting to get seriously worried about the rich people, folks. Not “worried” in the sense of being concerned that they might actually ever   be adversely affected, either by COVID-19 itself, or by the economic and social shake-ups that the global response to the virus has necessitated. More “ worried” in the sense that it’s actually baffling how bad so many of them have proven themselves at not issuing nigh-daily accidental   press releases on the financial and emotional benefits to be had in rising up and devouring them whole. It’s getting to the point where it almost feels like some sort of cash-induced brain disease, a hideous and infectious need to say something about their vast reserves of wealth, safety, and power, when “nothing” would certainly have sufficed.

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Take, for instance, the now very locked-down Instagram account of ludicrously wealthy and powerful Hollywood executive David Geffen . Anyone who knows who Geffen is—Dreamworks co-founder, Geffen Records creator, maker and breaker of presidents—knows that he is, if not richer than God, then rich enough that he and God can share some knowing and superior nods . But did you know that David Geffen has a yacht, and that yachts are pretty sweet places to weather a global viral pandemic? David Geffen would like you to know this. (Or at least he did, before the comments got too mean.)

Geffen made the above, screenshotted posts on his Instagram earlier this week, apparently not really thinking about the fact that other people might not have a y acht anchored off the Grenadines to hang out on while life on the mainland continues to get more painful and surreal. (By the way: As far as we can tell, that’s the Rising Sun , “the sixth largest motor yacht in the world.” Did you know that David Geffen is so rich that his Wikipedia page has a separate entry for “Yachts”?) Said comments were intriguing and fascinating enough to the non-yachted classes that Geffen is now trending on Twitter, although presumably he doesn’t k now this yet , because we assume rich people get the nice version of Twitter where the @ button no longer works.

David Geffen has done some good things in this world: He’s made a lot of donations to medical schools over the years, and also that Beetlejuice cartoon he produced in the ’90s was pretty sweet. (Although he also once got into a massive fight with the Malibu city government because he refused to build a legally mandated beach access path for us poors to use after he gobbled up a bunch of oceanside property, so there is that.) But we’re getting pretty concerned that his case of can’t-read-the-fucking-room-itis has reached chronic, if not terminal, proportions. Pray for David, folks. Or pray against him. W e’d understand doing that second one, too, really.

Inside The Rising Sun: David Geffen's $590 Million Superyacht

David Geffen's superyacht 'The Rising Sun' is certainly a playground for the rich.

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Details of the yacht, interior and exterior details, the rising sun’s onboard comfort and entertainment.

Billionaire and entertainment mogul David Geffen reportedly purchased the superyacht for $590 million from the Oracle founder Larry Ellison. It was reported that wealthy people love spending money on yachts, and about 88% of the luxury market can be associated to spending on yachts. For this reason, it is not at all surprising that billionaires are spending so much money buying yachts . Yachts can be considered as the pinnacle of luxury and decadence and about $22 billion annually are spent on Yachts by the wealthy people. The Rising Sun has hosted numerous famous celebrities including American talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Academy Award winner Leonardo DiCaprio on board and even Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was seen hanging out in the superyacht.

Geffen has cruised everywhere using the Superyacht from St. Bart's in the Caribbean to Portofino to Italy and even Ibiza, Spain. He loves travelling using his yacht but not without his friends and some high profile celebrities. Among the guests in his massive yacht are Julia Roberts, Maria Shriver, Steven Spielberg, JJ Abrams, Karlie Kloss, Peter Harrington-Cressman, Paul McCartney and even Michelle and Barack Obama. Take a look inside the majestic yacht of Geffen.

RELATED:  Inside The Flying Fox: Jeff Bezos' $400 Million Mega Yacht

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/205054589254118565/

The Rising Sun is a motor yacht which was designed by Jon Bannenberg and was built and constructed in 2004 by German shipbuilder Lürssen. The yacht reportedly costs $200 million to build. The yacht was built at Lürssen’s Bremen shipyard for the founder and CEO of Oracle Corporation, Larry Ellison. It was delivered to Ellison in June 2004. Since 2010, David Geffen has owned the yacht. Geffen bought half of the share of the 454-foot megayacht in 2007 and decided to buy the yacht in full in 2010 which totaled his payment for $590 million. The exact estimated value of the yacht is still unclear but as of 2019, the yacht was valued for $300 million. After Geffen bought it, he had the yacht refitted in the period of just six months.

The motor yacht has a tonnage of 7,841 GT and has a length of 138 m that is about 452 ft 9 in. It utilizes the installed power of the diesel engine of 4 × MTU 20V 8000 M90 with 36,000 kW. It also has 4 propellers as its propulsion and has the speed of 28 knots that can comfortably run at the speed of 26 knots but can run at the maximum speed of 30 knots. It was built with steel hull and an aluminum superstructure that includes a teak deck. It also features an anchor stabilizer which provides the people on board an exceptional comfort. Unlike some other luxury yachts, the Rising Sun is not available for private charter.

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/532058143448158436/

The superyacht has about eighty two rooms and has the ability to accommodate about 18 guests and 55 staff and crew members. The eighteen guests can comfortably stay in the nine suites at the yacht which can ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience . The massive yacht even has a basketball court on board. The top deck is entirely dedicated to the owner which includes a double-height cinema. Aside from the basketball court, there is also a wine cellar and a movie theater which can be found among the eighty two rooms of the yacht.

The interior design of the yacht was designed by design house Seccombe Design. The exterior design on the other hand was designed by Bannenberg & Rowell and was refitted in 2011 after David Geffen has requested for it. The builders of the Rising Sun have experimented with the extensive use of some structural glass that gives off a clean and stripped-down profile for the yacht. This includes the builders extensively working on the engineering and systems of the yacht. The exposure of the yacht’s structure is one of the overarching themes in the superyacht’s design.

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/400961173065183662/

There is a reason why a lot of famous celebrities and public figure enjoy hanging out at the superyacht. For the added comfort and entertainment, there is a sauna, underwater lights, beauty salon, elevator and gym at the superyacht. It offers the luxuries of the land space on a secluded area which gives them the privacy that they need. The general arrangement of the layout of the Rising Sun has given the guests spacious cabins which have a direct access to the exterior side decks of the yacht. With the use of the 45-degree indents in the yacht’s superstructure, the guests are also protected from the weather.

The yacht has so much space that the guests can roam around and just party. The top deck was designed entirely for the owner’s entertainment. The guests can also enjoy the double-height cinema which was embedded just like the stone of the avocado.

READ NEXT:  Inside SYMPHONY: Bernard Arnault's $150 Million Yacht

Sources: Business Insider , Luxury Launches , Yacht Charter Fleet , Boat International

The yachting crowd was gearing up for a booming 2020 sailing season. Then the coronavirus happened.

If you were one of the lucky Americans to own a yacht before the coronavirus shut down the country, you were probably on the water.

In the first three months of the year, the average yacht sailed farther than the year before, according to an NBC News analysis of MarineTraffic boat-location data of 514 U.S.-flagged yachts at least 90 feet long.

For the billionaire David Geffen , that meant sailing around the South Pacific on Rising Sun, his longer-than-a-football-field superyacht, which includes another boat, the Rising Sun Cat, which docks inside. Like-minded superyacht owners followed suit, ditching the perils of sheltering at home — customer limits at grocery stories and trading designer clothes for toilet paper , among other struggles — for life at sea.

But after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on March 13 , ship travel plummeted. What looked like a big season ahead for the yachting crowd turned anything but as the coronavirus spread, shelter-in-place orders were issued and island coastal borders were tightened.

Superyachts are generally at least 90 feet long, according to several superyacht club managers in Florida. The vessels typically have a paid crew on board and come with multiple bedrooms and lounging areas.

“You know it when you see it,” said Enrique Quintero, the general manager at the superyacht club Prime Marina in Miami.

For superyacht owners, the go-to spots before the national emergency declaration were the Florida Keys, the Bahamas and the Caribbean: paradises that had little-to-no confirmed coronavirus cases and were still mostly open. Yachting season for the region was at its peak for the year, with nearly 65 superyachts stretched throughout the region. After Trump’s declaration, four-fifths of the ships set sail for the U.S. At the same time in 2019, there were three times as many U.S.-flagged yachts in the Caribbean.

As states began to issue stay-at-home orders and the country ground to a halt, the yachting season became less about leisure and more about finding somewhere to shelter in place.

“A lot of people had that idea that, ‘Oh, I'm going to jump on my boat’”

Phil Brassington, a Florida-based shipwright who specializes in long-term sailing equipment, has worked late nights and weekends since February to keep up with increased customer demand. Though some of his customers made it to sea, several puttered out around the Keys, stuck stateside because of travel restrictions . From yacht shipwrights to yacht salesmen, work in the industry has picked up as affluent customers come calling.

“I've been very busy, because as COVID-19 unfolded, a lot of people had that idea that, ‘Oh, I'm going to jump on my boat and leave,’” Brassington, who has lived with his wife and two children on their catamaran for the last few years, said.

Covid Tracker These states have the most coronavirus cases. See the day-by-day breakdown.

Among those eager to escape the pandemic was Brian Harmon, 57, a retired restaurateur and chef. As coronavirus case numbers began to ramp up in mid-March, Harmon made plans to leave the mainland on his catamaran, Salty Dreams.

“I was not going to participate in the insanity,” said Harmon, who lives on Florida’s mainland when he’s not sailing. “So I decided that I thought the best way to a quarantine would be to hop aboard Salty Dreams and get off land.”

Within a week he had built a crew solicited from an online sailing forum and had cast off for the Florida Keys. In the weeks since, he’s spent most of his time fishing, tinkering with the boat and watching “Peaky Blinders”on Netflix when there’s an internet connection. His crew consists of a married couple from upstate New York in it for the experience. The wife, an attorney, works by phone whenever she can and the husband is often away on Harmon’s dinghy exploring.

In mid-April, after a month or so at sea, Harmon was out of groceries and had to turn around as popular islands in the Keys restricted travel. At Key West, the dockmaster held onto Harmon’s driver’s license while he deboarded for an hour to get gas and groceries. At Marathon, he wasn’t allowed to leave his boat at all. The inconsistency and lack of freedom drove him to turn Salty Dreams around for a slow-paced float back to mainland Florida.

Despite droves of boats such as Salty Dreams sailing home, yacht salesmen are keeping busy, according to Michael Costa, a salesman based in California. His company, SeaNet , deals in selling whole yachts and shares of yachts, akin to a timeshare.

In the past few weeks, he’s seen an increase in families drawn to the fractional ownership program, which has a price tag starting at $250,000. Most customers, Costa said, are interested in weekend getaways.

“I think that people are looking at private yachting as a very interesting alternative in this environment,” Costa said. “People are rethinking their vacation trips to Europe or having to travel long distances as it relates to getting on a plane.”

Ports close, add restrictions

Most islands in the Caribbean, such as the Bahamas and the U.S. Virgin Islands have implemented restrictions similar to those in the Florida Keys, allowing few ships out and fewer in. Yachters have been left with two options: shelter-in-place until the waters open or retreat stateside.

The island clusters are gathering spots for a majority of superyachts outside the U.S. After seaports began closing in the Florida Keys in late March, many superyachts set sail toward islands in the Caribbean, which started closing soon after.

Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Minnis sent in warships from the Royal Bahamas Defense Force in early April to prevent unauthorized ships from traveling the islands without written permission.

For Katie Gasper, 39, who has been living at sea for years with her husband and 11-year-old son aboard a 65-foot yacht, the crackdown meant staying put.

Gasper, a former physician assistant and current stay-at-yacht mom, and her family were in the U.S. Virgin Islands in mid-March, a day after the Islands confirmed its first coronavirus case. If it weren’t for prior docking reservations, the family wouldn’t have been allowed in .The island’s shelter-in-place rules are similar to those stateside: Nonessential businesses have temporarily closed, restaurants are limited to takeout and delivery, and gatherings of more than 10 people are prohibited.

COVID TRACKER Map of how many coronavirus cases have been confirmed across the country

They’re still allowed to travel on land throughout St. Thomas, but the limitations have started to bite at their day-to-day schedule. Since March, their typical day isn’t that different than before the pandemic: biking, homeschooling, board games and yoga. Gasper said the most uncomfortable difference is the lack of human contact.

“We don't really hang out with people,” Gasper said. “Drinking at sundown is a really big thing for sailors. We've done it only once in the past three or four weeks with friends of ours that are an older couple. We just sat 6 feet apart from each other on the dock getting drunk.”

The Gaspers are staying put until further notice, postponing a loosely planned trip that would have taken them through the Panama Canal and toward Australia, where Gasper’s husband dreamed of staying for a few months. She said the family feels safer docked in the islands than they would stateside, largely because of the distance between themselves and coronavirus hot spots.

The port they’re docked in, Charlotte Amalie, had been crowded for weeks, Gasper said. But after the island’s social distancing measures went into effect, the superyachts cleared out and headed for Florida’s beaches, which Gov. Ron DeSantis opened portions of two weeks later .

“It was kind of just like business as usual here,” Gasper said. “A lot of the megayachts were coming and going and partying. Now many of the boats are returning to the U.S. prematurely. They're either sailing up there or being shipped on freighters up there. It's emptied out quite a bit.”

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Letter to the editor: Counterpoint on the Geffen gigayacht

Negative coverage of the mogul’s visit to Portland overlooked his philanthropy, his vessel’s beauty and his accomplishments in the world of entertainment.

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The Aug. 23 front-page article “Lavish and looming, gigayacht bobbing in Portland Harbor attracts curiosity and contempt” was extremely unwelcoming and cold to owner David Geffen, his crew and guests he may have aboard.

My husband and I walked along the Eastern Promenade and viewed Geffen’s amazing yacht. It was a sight to behold and looked even more beautiful at night, lit up like a city on the water. Wish we had been interviewed by the reporter who wrote the article and quoted only negative responses from onlookers: “It’s not interesting, it’s too blah,” for one. We would have said how majestic and stately it is, and how nice it is for this business magnate, who could travel anywhere in the world, to visit Portland.

We all enjoy the music Geffen has produced for artists such as the Eagles, Cher, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Donna Summer, to name a few. Also, Geffen is known for his philanthropy. He has given copious amounts of money to UCLA’s nonprofit Geffen Playhouse theater company, the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Yale School of Drama and New York City’s Lincoln Center, to name a few of his recipients.

My husband and I welcome David Geffen back and hope he has a wonderful visit in Portland. We also hope the negative Press Herald article will not convince him to never return.

Sally Connolly South Portland

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Billionaire David Geffen’s yacht drops anchor off Bar Harbor

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BAR HARBOR, Maine — One of the largest private yachts in the world has been anchored off the local waterfront for several days and is expected to be around for another day or two, according to local officials.

The Rising Sun, owned by recording and film executive David Geffen of Malibu, Calif., is more than 450 feet long. According to Forbes magazine, Geffen has an estimated net worth of $5.6 billion and is ranked the 57th richest person in the United States.

Rising Sun reportedly was built for Oracle CEO Larry Ellison in 2004 by Lurssen Yachts, a private family-owned shipyard in Bremen-Vegesack, Germany. According to the website Superyachts.com , Rising Sun can carry up to 16 guests and 45 crew members. The boat has a top speed of 28 knots or 32 mph.

According to Wikipedia , Rising Sun is the 10th largest motor yacht in the world.

Charlie Phippen, Bar Harbor’s harbormaster, said Saturday that the boat has been anchored off Eden Street, in Frenchman Bay in front of College of the Atlantic and several seasonal hotels, because the other anchorages in the bay have been occupied by cruise ships. Rising Sun is too large to tie up to the municipal pier or its attached floats, he said.

Aside from cruise ships, Bar Harbor usually gets a steady stream of private yachts all summer long, most of which tie up at the town pier or at local hotel marinas, according to the harbormaster. Private yachts that don’t tie up to local piers usually are anchored in the harbor or bay for privacy reasons or because they are too big to navigate the inner harbor, he said.

Other notable yachts have appeared in Bar Harbor in recent years. In 2006, The Floridian, a 228-foot yacht owned by billionaire H. Wayne Huizenga, anchored off Bar Harbor. In September 2011, the Mirabella V , a sloop with a mast 290 feet tall, anchored in Frenchman Bay.

Also off Mount Desert Island, Rebecca , a 139-foot yacht owned by Texas billionaire Charles Butt, has made multiple recent summertime appearances in the mouth of Somes Sound. Butt owns a summer home nearby in the Mount Desert village of Northeast Harbor.

Follow BDN reporter Bill Trotter on Twitter at @billtrotter .

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Bill Trotter

A news reporter in coastal Maine for more than 20 years, Bill Trotter writes about how the Atlantic Ocean and the state's iconic coastline help to shape the lives of coastal Maine residents and visitors.... More by Bill Trotter

This New Yacht Is Sailing to Gorgeous, Lesser-known Ports in the Caribbean Sea — and I Was on Board With 'Below Deck's' Chef Ben

E merald Cruises' new Emerald Sakara ship brings guests to smaller ports in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, with an onboard marina and the occasional Bravo-lebrity.

With a couple dozen guests looking on, chef Ben Robinson was showing how to slice and dice a fresh red snapper. “You kind of feel him — but you don’t fondle him,” said Robinson, the fan favorite from the Bravo reality show Below Deck, who’s always ready with a quip. As he pulled a perfect filet off the bone, he explained how to salt the fish and that there’s no more important relationship than the one you have with your fishmonger. “My advice is to always be friendly,” he noted. “I like to support my mom-and-pop [businesses]. If you become familiar with them, they’ll say, ‘Hey, I got this in this morning.’”

The cooking demo, which also featured a ceviche how-to and tips on knife sharpening, was one of many “Chef Ben” moments on my trip aboard Emerald Sakara . It’s the newest 100-passenger vessel from Emerald Cruises, which launched in the fall of 2023, a sibling vessel to the Emerald Azzurra .

During an eight-day voyage in March from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda, the reality personality was definitely one of the star attractions. Robinson spent several evenings in the galley, creating special dishes such as a panko-crusted veal striploin stuffed with pesto.

He also hosted a well-attended Q&A about his life in the kitchen — and spent plenty of time connecting with fans, many of whom booked the trip specifically to chop it up with Below Deck alum.

“We definitely booked because of Ben,” said Shannon Welnel , a Montana-based travel advisor who had lots of praise for his cuisine — and the yacht-like atmosphere on board the 100-passenger ship. Other guests I spoke with admitted they hadn’t seen much Below Deck, but were intrigued by the chance to chill with a Bravo-lebrity.

Emerald Sakara

• With a max of just 100 passengers, Emerald Sakara feels at times like a private yacht, with no lines and no crowds, and outstanding service from a highly experienced crew.
• Minimalist rooms recall the stripped down aesthetic of Miami Beach or Mykonos, Greece, with pops of color from Missoni Home accents and a sleek-yet-functional bathroom with plenty of storage space.
• While this small ship has but one restaurant and one poolside cafe, there’s plenty of choice when it comes to meals, whether you’re hitting the breakfast or lunch buffet or choosing from the dinner menu.
• The onboard marina, which is open in favorable weather conditions, offers watersports and swimming off the stern of the ship.
• Easy to understand and mostly inclusive pricing covers meals, beverages at mealtime, many tours, and surprisingly speedy Wi-Fi.

The intimate-ship vibe was also one reason the chef wanted to hop aboard. “This definitely has more of a yacht vibe than any other [ship] I've been on,” Robinson told me one afternoon. “A hundred passengers is not a lot,” he said. “I've been on boats with 2,500 passengers, and you really do feel like you're anonymous. But here, the service is great, and you really are treated as an individual and someone important. And you kind of lose that on the big boats.”

While Robinson doesn’t have immediate plans to join another Emerald cruise, he told me that there were plenty of parallels between his life on megayachts and what the Sakara offers its guests. “It’s been incredible,” he said.

I had to agree. The Sakara certainly has much to offer, both in spite of its smaller size and because of it. While it’s available to book by the cabin, like any cruise ship, it still manages to feel at times like a private yacht, particularly when it sails to less-commonly visited ports such as Culebra, on Puerto Rico, or St. Bart’s. In the latter, we dropped anchor near Eric Schmidt’s yacht, Whisper , and had the whole day to explore the glitzy island and its capital, Gustavia. (After a drive around in the morning, I managed to catch the beautiful sunset from the lovely little Shell Beach, right in town.)

“The benefit of being on a small cruise ship like this one is that we can enter small ports and areas where others can’t,” said Robert Kuznin, the captain of Sakara , who previously worked with several cruise lines, including Paul Gauguin, Seabourn, and Virgin Voyages. “For example, when we dropped anchor in Esperanza Bay,” he explained about our stop at the island of Vieques, “there were only two meters under the keel — and that was the shallowest I’ve ever been!”

The ability to go places that larger ships can’t was also on display one morning on St. Kitts, one of the final stops of my trip. It was still early in the morning, but already four mega-ships were docked in Basseterre, the island’s capital. Instead of tying up next to them on the busy cruise pier, we dropped anchor just off the beach in South Friar’s Bay, a long sweep of sand in the island’s southern reaches. There were no crowds to contend with, no paperwork hassles, no touts offering dodgy cab rides. A five-minute tender ride to the beach was all it took to meet our local guide. Time from leaving the breakfast buffet to our first stop? About 25 minutes. Even the most efficient mega-ship would struggle to make that happen — and they can’t drop anchor right off the one of the best beaches on the island. 

Other moments aboard Sakara felt like something out of Below Deck . One afternoon, I made my way to the yacht’s marina, a platform at the stern stocked with lounge chairs, refreshments, and water toys such as a floating trampoline and inflatable sea kayaks. I jumped off the stern into the Caribbean and then tried out the ship’s Seabob, a floating gadget that’s like a cross between a Jet Ski and an electric scooter.

As I continued my joy ride, I could see another vessel anchored just north of us. Turns out, it was David Geffen’s private yacht , Rising Sun . Of course, we were there first.

Here’s a closer look at all the amenities of the Emerald Sakara , which sails seasonally in coastal waters in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean Sea.

The Staterooms

Welcome to your starship: the stripped down, white-and-gray cabins on Sakara feel sci-fi chic, particularly when the accent lighting is switched on. They’re also, thankfully, spacious and super functional, with ample storage space (including a safe), a small minibar, a coffee station, and a clever headboard built-in that’s a great spot for your charging devices and water bottle. Most of the 50 rooms and suites have verandas; ocean-view staterooms are the exception. Bathrooms are just big enough, with plenty of storage, and are stocked with Espa products and a hair dryer. My cabin, 421, was a 300-square-foot balcony suite toward the aft of the ship on deck four: I never once heard noise from the surrounding cabins or in the hallway, though I did occasionally notice sounds and vibrations from the vessel, something that is common on even the largest of ships. A note on power plugs: my stateroom had U.S.-style outlets throughout as well as USB-A charging ports on either side of the bed, a nice touch.

Bars and Restaurants

Because Sakara is smaller than most cruise ships, it can’t compete on sheer volume of bars and restaurants. Still, the food on board is solid. La Cucina is the only true dining room, with both indoor and outdoor seating; it has somewhat limited hours compared to the round-the-clock dining options on bigger vessels. That being said, I certainly didn’t go hungry: a breakfast buffet is complemented by traditional à la minute options such as omelets and pancakes; lunch is also buffet style with a carving station. Dinner is more restaurant style, with options from an ever-changing daily menu plus always available classics such as Caesar salad, shrimp cocktail, grilled salmon, and spaghetti bolognese on offer. (Many dietary restrictions and preferences can be accommodated.)

On my voyage, chef Robinson put together several special plates, including what might’ve been the best dish of the week: a sesame-crusted seared yellowfin tuna with celeriac puree. The Below Deck star also put together a panko veal striploin roulade one night and, another evening, offered a citrus-cured hamachi with, in a touch of molecular gastronomy, “mango spheres.” Elsewhere on board, a poolside cafe, Aqua Café, has quick bites like burgers and flatbreads, as well as sweets and coffee pulled from a Cimbali espresso machine. The cocktails served in the Amici Lounge and the Sky Bar were consistently excellent, mixed by a talented team of pros who’ve previously worked on Seabourn ships and in some of Dubai’s top hotels. One weaker spot was the selection of wine on board: pours at mealtimes are included, but they didn’t rock my boat. A short list of “chairman’s wines,” available at extra cost, included a couple by-the-bottle finds such as 2013 vintage Cristal ($650) and some mid-tier Bordeaux and Burgundy options.

Where Emerald Sakara Sails

Though small, this ship isn’t an expedition yacht. Rather, it’s specifically designed for warm-weather coastal cruising, meaning it spends the lion’s share of its time in places such as the Caribbean and, in the Northern Hemisphere’s summer months, the Mediterranean. My trip aboard was spent entirely in the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean, where passages between ports were short and the seas were often calm. (We did occasionally encounter some swells of up to two meters, or 6.6 feet. I saw many guests wearing medicated patches to prevent motion sickness throughout the trip.) Sakara typically spends a season of several months in a given region, with a variety of cruise lengths offered, ranging from six to 24 days. In 2024, the ship will spend April through November in the Mediterranean. Sakara will return to the Caribbean at the end of the year, through April 2025.

Shore Excursions

Tours off the ship were a strong suit for Emerald, at least on my voyage. Most stops offered a variety of activities, ranging from a simple transfer to a nearby beach to a full-on, multi-hour tour. Usually, I found myself ashore with a very small group of folks — fewer than a dozen — and all the guides Emerald arranged were true pros. Passengers raved about a kayak paddle through the bioluminescent bay on Vieques, something I sadly didn’t try myself. I did, however, enjoy a short guided hike on the island of St. John, to the pristine beach along Salomon Bay, which was all but deserted. The organization of excursions felt flawless to me, thanks no doubt to the crew and shore excursion manager, Pilar Atencio. Worth a mention, too, were Atencio’s detailed briefings on what to expect each day. While these sorts of “port talks'' are common on ships of all sizes, they felt particularly useful on Sakara because of how intimate our groups were; many passengers made a point of attending the pre-dinner talks every night, for info on what to expect about our anchorage, historical background on each island, and detailed info about what each tour offering would entail.

Amenities and Entertainment

Call it small but mighty: Sakara has all the essentials, which is a bit of feat for a ship this size. A cozy spa has wellness and beauty treatments, as well as a small hairstyling and facial studio; morning yoga and stretching are available on deck. The fitness center, with a few cardio machines, a Peloton bike, and a variety of weights and other gear gets the job done. The smallish pool and a top-deck whirlpool were lovely — though I spent most of my time in the ocean: the Sakara ’s marina deck is a key feature, and it was open several afternoons during my trip. It’s like the greatest pool party you’ve ever been to, complete with piña coladas, sea kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, and a trampoline, right off the stern of the ship. It is, truly, as much fun as it sounds like, though it is subject to the whims of weather and ocean currents. Also available in some destinations are e-bikes from Gocycle, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis; during my trip, several guests gave them a spin on the island of Vieques. Sakara also carries a ton of snorkeling gear and beach towels, which passengers can borrow whenever they like. In terms of performances, this isn’t the vessel for Broadway-style shows, but guitarist Jamie Ferguson and voyage director Nathalie Millet added plenty of live music to the trip.

Family-friendly Offerings

The youngest passengers I spoke with on my cruise were in their 20s — and they were traveling with their parents. Sakara is perhaps the perfect ship for families traveling with adult children, since it offers such a diverse array of activities to suit different tastes and activity levels, while visiting intriguing destinations. The ship is also intimate enough that everybody can gather easily for meals — or a swim off the stern — without fighting the crowds common on larger vessels. On the other hand, Sakara is probably not the best choice for families with younger children: there’s no kid-specific programming, and you’re likely to be the only ones aboard with little ones. “Emerald Cruises yachts are recommended for people aged 12 and up, and they must be accompanied by and share a cabin with an adult aged 18 or [older],” a spokesperson shared with T+L.

Accessibility

Sakara is probably best described as somewhat accessible: the ship has elevators to all decks and the crew was, on my trip, very accommodating to those with mobility challenges. There are handrails throughout, and bathrooms feature shower grab bars. That being said, several areas of the ship — the outdoor dining terrace, for example — require navigating at least one step even once you’ve reached the deck in question by elevator. “Due to the nature and size of the ships, wheelchairs and scooters are not allowed to be used on board,” a spokesperson told T+L. When the ship is at anchor, it’s only possible to go ashore by tender or Zodiac, both of which could be challenging for those with limited mobility. As Emerald’s FAQ explains: “Guests with limited mobility will require help from a companion, since the crew is limited.” Also of note: many announcements are made only by loudspeaker with no hearing-impaired alternative.

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See Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker in Exclusive Clip From ‘Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill’ Documentary

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Along with Nick Drake, Judee Sill is probably the greatest lost singer-songwriter of the 1970s — an artist whose gifts were so great but their demons were apparently greater. While Drake’s legend has taken its rightful place — due largely to a car commercial, of all things — Sill is yet to get her due. “Lost Angel,” a documentary that premiered at film festivals (and was reviewed by Variety ) late in 2022 and is opening officially this week, does a masterful job of remedying that.

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