They were once sanctuaries where days on the high seas could be spent with a book, exquisite food and fine wine, safe in the knowledge that being cut off from the wider world meant problems had to wait.
For the super-wealthy, used to being in control of business empires, such time off-grid was both a blessing and a curse. Such halcyon days of remoteness are now a thing of the past.
Technological advancements along with the rise of flexible working have fostered a niche but growing trend: W.F.Y.—working from yacht.
Shipbuilders are responding to a shift in the needs of the super-rich who now want the ability to have board meetings in the middle of the Atlantic. And it is a need that has only become greater in the face of uncertainty, such as tariffs, under the new world order.
For yacht owners, one of the gamechangers is the brainchild of a man supporting the seismic shifts out of the U.S. The invention of Starlink —the satellite technology developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX—means super fast broadband is available in the middle of oceans.
“It used to be that people might want a vanity area in the cabin that could double as a desk but the major limitation was always the wi-fi,” said Nick Hatfield, the managing director of Sanlorenzo Yachts U.K., which is the brand representative for the Sanlorenzo shipyard in Italy. “It was effectively running off a mobile phone so as you got further offshore the signal would just drop out.”
Starlink, he said, had changed that and the company was fitting it on nine in ten of the yachts it builds. “It is incredible,” he said. “I did [an] Atlantic crossing at the end of last year. The owner of the boat was on board and one day he had three board meetings in the middle of the Atlantic as we were sailing along. It’s really opened up what people can do because of how good the connectivity is.”
The satellite internet service from SpaceX uses thousands of small satellites in low Earth orbit to deliver the high-speed internet in remote or underserved areas where broadband is limited.
Hatfield said there had been a rise in demand for blank white wall spaces on yachts so that Zoom meetings could be held against inconspicuous backgrounds.
“It’s been about making it more of an office space, so there are not windows in the background that make it very clear you’re not in an office but on your yacht somewhere.”
Sanlorenzo’s yachts start at about $6.7 million for a 24-metre boat.
Organizers of sailing rallies have also spotted an increase in competitors, given that “digital nomads” can now work at sea.
The Coho Ho Ho departs from Puget Sound in Washington State in late August and ends a few weeks later in San Francisco or San Diego. In 2023, about half of the 12-strong fleet had a Starlink dish. In 2024, all boats had them.
It is a similar picture elsewhere. In 2023 about a third of the 200 boats departing Gran Canaria on the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers had Starlink. Last year about 80-90 percent had the technology.
“Internet connectivity always limited people before,” Hatfield said. “You’d hear people say ‘I’ve got a call at 11 so we can’t leave port until after that’.
“Now it just doesn’t matter. They can be off a Greek island, they can be in the middle of the Mediterranean or on passage between the South of France and Sardinia, and work as if in an office on land.”
Ben Clatworthy covers transportation and travel for The Times of London
