Monaco cements its role as the heart of international yachting

According to the Yacht Club de Monaco, the Principality’s yachting industry comprises 411 companies and more than 1,400 shore-based jobs. The club says it has established itself as the focal point for exchange and progress for the international yachting community in the Mediterranean.

“In Monaco, decision-makers, yacht owners and industry professionals meet throughout the year to launch new initiatives and shape the sector’s future. This proximity promotes dialogue with the authorities and helps accelerate projects,” says Bernard d’Alessandri, Director and General Secretary of the Yacht Club de Monaco and President of the Cluster Yachting Monaco and Yachting Employers’ Association.

Monaco’s September calendar opened with the Ferretti Group Private Preview and a OneRepublic concert on 5 September at the Yacht Club de Monaco marina. A run of major events followed: the 6th Smart & Sustainable Marina Rendezvous (20-21 September), the 35th Monaco Yacht Show (23-26 September) and the 31st Captains’ Forum (24 September), with the Winter Pop-Up by Cluster Yachting Monaco still to come on 8 October.

The Marina Rendezvous, organised by marina consultancy M3 Monaco, brought together managers, investors, architects and manufacturers who design, develop and operate port infrastructure. Around the Monaco Yacht Show, the Yacht Club de Monaco hosted its annual Owners Lunch and the Captains’ Forum, held in partnership with Jutheau Husson, Oceanco, MB92 Group and ICON Yachts. This year’s forum turned to future energy sources for ships and yachts, comparing available technologies and on-water experience against one key question: which solutions could realistically be deployed on board.

These events sat within the club’s long-running ‘Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting’ initiative, which brings together yacht owners, users, designers, operators and technology developers, with environmental issues at the centre of discussion. Launched in 2020 by the Yacht Club de Monaco and Credit Suisse (a UBS Group brand), the SEA Index® gives owners and professionals an independently certified tool, verified by Lloyd’s Register, for assessing a yacht’s environmental impact from 10 metres upward. It measures CO₂ emissions regardless of propulsion system, using a recognised scientific methodology, while a second indicator developed with AtmoSud factors in nitrogen oxides and fine particles to cover air quality. According to the club, more than 25 marinas across the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Seychelles and Japan have joined the SEA Index network, reflecting demand for comparable data on a yacht’s environmental impact and where it can be improved.

The club’s year-round programme continues into 2027. The Monaco Capital of Advanced Yachting Rendezvous (13-16 March) is set to include the YCM Yachting Student Fair, promoting industry careers to students; a Day of Exploration run with the New York Explorers Club; a Business Symposium supporting the sector’s economic development; and the YCM Explorer Awards, recognising committed yacht owners. The 14th Monaco Energy Boat Challenge follows, from 29 June to 3 July, an innovation contest in which university teams from around the world develop and test new forms of maritime mobility under real-world conditions.

Through this calendar of events, the Yacht Club de Monaco says it aims to unite the international yachting sector around a shared ambition: an industry that is more innovative, more responsible and forward-looking.