paul allen yacht octopus video

Paul Allen's 414-foot superyacht is for sale for $325 million. Take a look at the late Microsoft cofounder's yacht, which has 2 helipads and a glass-bottomed underwater lounge.

• Paul Allen's former 414-foot superyacht is for sale for 295 million euros , or about $325 million, yacht brokerage Burgess told Business Insider.
• The Lürssen-built yacht, Octopus , has eight decks, an elevator, a cinema, two helipads, and a glass-bottomed underwater observation lounge.
• The yacht, which Allen reportedly paid about $200 million to have built, has been spotted cruising all around the world in places like Cannes , Hong Kong , Argentina, the Philippines, and even Antarctica .
• The late Microsoft cofounder was known to throw lavish themed parties on board that were attended by A-listers including George Lucas , Mick Jagger, Karlie Kloss , and Chloe Sevigny.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories .

A superyacht that belonged to late Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen has hit the market for 295 million euros, or about $325 million, yacht brokerage Burgess told Business Insider.

The 414-foot yacht, Octopus, has eight decks, an elevator, a cinema, two helipads, and a glass-bottomed underwater observation lounge. Allen reportedly paid about $200 million to have the superyacht built by Lürssen. It was officially launched in 2003.

Allen was known for hosting star-studded parties on his yacht during the Cannes International Film Festival in France. Guests have reportedly included George Lucas, Mick Jagger, Karlie Kloss, and Chloe Sevigny.

The vessel is one of several assets the late billionaire's estate has put up for sale since his death, including a $110 million Beverly Hills property and a MiG-29 fighter jet.

Take a look at Allen's superyacht and the places it's cruised, from Cannes and London to Argentina and Hong Kong.

Paul Allen's superyacht, Octopus, has hit the market for 295 million euros, or about $325 million.

The Microsoft cofounder, who died in October 2018 , reportedly paid about $200 million to have the superyacht built by Lürssen.

The 414-foot yacht, which was built in 2003 and refitted in 2019, has some truly lavish amenities spread out over its eight decks.

On its entertainment deck , the yacht has a cinema, gym, spa, and a basketball court. 

It also comes with a glass-bottomed underwater observation lounge and a hyperbaric chamber.

On its dedicated owner's deck, Octopus has a private elevator, a private bar, a hot tub, and an al fresco dining area.

The yacht can sleep up to 26 guests across 13 cabins, as well as 63 crew members in 30 crew cabins.

The superyacht has plenty of room for toys. Octopus comes with two helipads and storage space for seven tenders, two submersibles, and a large SUV.

It comes with a Pagoo , a submarine that can accommodate eight guests and two crew for dives of up to eight hours. 

Octopus is "one of the most well-traveled yachts in the global fleet," according to Burgess.

It's an ideal explorer yacht for those who want to travel to some of the world's most remote locations, according to the yacht brokerage firm. 

The superyacht has been spotted all over the world, from the coast of Turkey ...

... to London, England ...

... to Hong Kong ...

... to southern Argentina.

According to Burgess, the superyacht has also traveled to Antarctica, the Philippines, and traversed the Northwest Passage.

Allen was known for throwing star-studded parties on board Octopus during the Cannes International Film Festival in France.

The exclusive parties had a different elaborate theme each year, from Bollywood to Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," as Raisa Bruner previously reported for Business Insider.

Guests reportedly included "Rolling Stones" frontman Mick Jagger, model Karlie Kloss, and Hollywood A-listers George Lucas, Mischa Barton, John C. Reilly, and Chloe Sevigny.

At the Bollywood-themed party in 2015, dancers performed musical dance numbers for the guests.

On va dire un groupe de #danse #indienne un peu particulier... Ils dansent sur la piscine recouverte pour la soirée... #Yacht #Octopus #PrivateParty #Cannes #Bilionnaire #Lifestyle #India #Bollywood A post shared by Céline Victoria Fotso (@celinefotso) on May 19, 2015 at 4:45am PDT May 19, 2015 at 4:45am PDT

For the "A Midsummer Night's Dream" party the next year, the yacht was transformed into an enchanted garden.

#enchantedgarden party aboard #myoctopus with a basketball hoop behind me and a #yellowsubmarine below and a helicopter in front! Thanks #paulallen for another incredible night aboard #octopus #cannesfilmfestival A post shared by DANIEL BENEDICT (@danielbenedict) on May 17, 2016 at 7:13am PDT May 17, 2016 at 7:13am PDT

Guests were given flower crowns and the vessel was decked out with floral arrangements and illuminated trees.

What a dreamy night thanks #PaulAllen for yet another spectacular evening. #octopus #superyacht #cannesfilmfestival #cannes2016 #festivaldecannes 🍾🍾🍾 thanks to @ivanbittonstylehouse @ivanbitton for styling me 💞💞 A post shared by Sheila Shah (@iamsheilashah) on May 16, 2016 at 8:20pm PDT May 16, 2016 at 8:20pm PDT

While performers were always brought on board, Allen was known to get onstage himself and rock out to some Led Zeppelin.

Paul Allen is really cool! Playing Led Zeppelin himself for guests on Octopus yacht A post shared by Vasily Klyukin (@vasilyklyukin) on May 17, 2016 at 6:56am PDT May 17, 2016 at 6:56am PDT

Allen's $325 million superyacht is among several sizable assets that have been put up for sale by the late billionaire's estate since his death.

The estate is also selling a $110 million plot of land in Beverly Hills that Allen owned for more than 20 years and his MiG-29 fighter jet.

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Video: Paul Allen and crew of superyacht Octopus discover long-lost WWII shipwreck

Microsoft co-founder and yacht owner Paul Allen and his team on board superyacht Octopus have discovered what is believed to be the wreck of one of the biggest warships of the Second World War, the Japanese ship Musashi , which sunk in 1944.

Paul Allen has been looking for the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Yamato class battleship Musashi for eight years, using the largest expedition superyacht in the world, 126 metre Lürssen Octopus as his lead search platform. The billionaire philanthropist broke the news on Twitter after the wreck was found on 2 March lying on the seabed 1,000 metres down, in the Sibuyan Sea off the coast of the Philippines.

She was lost on 24 October 1944, and Paul Allen’s team have shared video footage (above) showing the boat for the first time since her disappearance. Shot remotely via Octopus ’ unmanned submersible vehicle, the footage shows details on the warship such as a valve wheel from a lower engineering area, Musashi ’s catapult system which launched its Mitsubishi planes, a 12.7cm gun turret, its two 15-ton anchors and the bow of the Musashi , which would have had on it a large teak chrysanthemum which was the imperial seal of Japan.

The director of Japan's Kure Maritime Museum Kazushige Todaka has told CNN after viewing the footage that it appeared that the vessel was the Musashi and that given the location and the depth at which the wreck was found, he was "90 per cent sure" it was her.

In an interview with CNN , he says, "The location of the sunken ship has never been identified since it went down. I have heard countless stories in the past that the ship was discovered, but they all turned out not to be true. It's a wonderful discovery, if it's true, as we have long been looking for the battleship." Todaka said it was “a meaningful discovery and a good chance for us to remind ourselves about the war and its tragedy”.

Paul Allen told CNN that he had been fascinated with World War II history all his life, inspired by his father's service in the U.S. Army, saying, "The Musashi is truly an engineering marvel and, as an engineer at heart, I have a deep appreciation for the technology and effort that went into its construction. I am honoured to play a part in finding this key vessel in naval history and honouring the memory of the incredible bravery of the men who served aboard her."

The warship  Musashi  was launched on 1 November 1940 after a top secret build operation in which she was entirely covered, for fear of giving the big secret away to the Allies. At the time she was the largest class of warship ever constructed, displacing more than 69,000 tons. She was one of two Yamato-class battleships constructed by the Imperial Japanese Navy. Four years later she had become a primary target for the Allied forces engaged in the war in Japan and after a fierce four-hour battle on October 24, 1944, during the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, the warship was eventually sunk by what the US Navy reported as 10 hits from torpedo planes. Navy dive bombers also hit the ship 16 times.

"She went down by the bow, capsizing when the forward deck was submerged," said the Navy report, based on survivor accounts. In all 1023of the  Musashi 's crew were lost in the battle and the sinking, with more than 1,300 survivors saved by other Japanese warships.

A statement released by Vulcan, Allen's company, said that the team combined historical data with advanced technology to narrow the search area, and that Allen had "commissioned a hypsometric bathymetric survey of the ocean floor to determine the terrain" before searching the area with a Bluefin autonomous underwater vehicle. The Vulcan statement added that the team is "mindful of the responsibility related to the wreckage of the  Musashi  as a war grave and intend to work with the Japanese government to ensure the site is treated respectfully and in accordance with Japanese traditions”.

Octopus  was fitted out for serious expedition work, featuring a helicopter pad and garage aft and a second helicopter pad on the bows. A novel facility of her design is her internal dock, which, opening from her transom, runs forward through the yacht, allowing a 20 metre submarine and a tender of similar size to float into their storage positions. Once secured, the water is pumped out, leaving them resting on chocks.

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Paul Allen’s 414-Foot Superyacht ‘Octopus’ Will Be Available for Charter in Antarctica This Winter

Camper & nicholsons has designed a seven-day tour for intrepid explorers to see the southernmost continent., demetrius simms, demetrius simms's most recent stories.

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Paul Allen’s megayacht Octopus created serious waves when it was launched back in 2003. It’s one of the world’s largest vessels, after all. Now, for the first time, the epic 414-footer will be available for exclusive charter in Antarctica .

The late Microsoft co-founder’s beautiful behemoth, which was added to the Camper & Nicholsons charter fleet back in 2021, will spend the summer in Central America, Northern Europe and the Pacific, before journeying to the Earth’s southernmost continent in late 2022. From here, the UK-based yachting company’s seven-day Antarctica tour will allow intrepid explorers to come face to face with some of the most breathtaking natural wonders.

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Covering an array of notable destinations, from King George Island to the Gerlache Strait to Deception Island, the itinerary is packed with ski tours, polar plunges, scenic hikes and more. You’ll also have the chance to see Antarctic fur seals, humpback whales and penguins, while contributing to wildlife conservation with locally based scientists.

A look at the ship’s pool, jacuzzi and deck.  Courtesy of Camper & Nicholsons

As you might expect, seafarers will be kept in the lap of luxury while aboard Octopus. The ice-class megayacht, which was designed by Espen Oeino , comes fitted with an array of glitzy amenities, including a glass-bottomed aquarium, an observation lounge, a pool, gym, spa and cinema. The vessel also sports two helipads to facilitate comings and goings, along with an array of toys and tenders for day trips and further exploration.

Jonathan Quinn Barnett ‘s interior, meanwhile, which was refit by Monk Design in 2021, comprises multiple dining areas and bars, along with an extravagant master suite, two VIP suites, seven double staterooms and three twins. Naturally, there’s plenty of space for the crew, too.

“She’s the perfect yacht to undertake such a voyage,” Jacqui Lockhart, head of charter marketing Europe for Camper & Nicholsons, said in a statement . “She’s well-equipped to host intrepid charterers off the beaten track with a fully equipped medical suite and dive center on board—complete with hyperbaric chamber—as well as a submarine and two helipads.”

One of the VIP bedrooms on board the Octopus .  Courtesy of Camper & Nicholsons

Octopus has an impressive range of 12,500 nautical miles when sailing at 12 knots and can clock 19 knots when cutting through the sea at maximum speed. Allen, who was an avid ocean explorer, took the vessel to the farthest corners of the globe to further oceanographic research. Now you can make your own discoveries. Charter rates start at $2.2 million per week.

Check out more images below:

Courtesy of Camper & Nicholsons

Demetrius Simms is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. After starting their career in PR, they transitioned to freelance writing in 2020. Their work has now appeared in lifestyle and culture…

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Secret buyer nabs Microsoft grandee’s superyacht for £200m

For £1m a week you can rent 126-metre ship built for Paul Allen, with two helicopters, two subs and a recording studio

A vast “explorer class” superyacht built for Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has been sold for almost £200m, and is now available to rent for anyone with about a £1m to drop for a week.

Octopus was the world’s largest yacht when she was built for Allen in 2003 and the 126-metre vessel marked a turning point in superyacht design, capable of being used for deep sea exploration as well as living a life of luxury on the high seas.

On the market since Allen’s death in 2018, the superyacht was originally listed for sale at €295m (£250m) before being reduced to €235m. It is believed to have sold for slightly under the asking price. The Allen family office declined to comment.

The identity of the Scandinavian buyer is unknown, but it is to be made available for charter via Mayfair-based yacht broker Camper & Nicholsons . The broker, which declined to comment, has not yet set a weekly rental price. However, other very large superyachts can cost as much as £1m a week to rent.

In 2019, Kylie Jenner, the Keeping up with the Kardashians reality TV star and cosmetics empire billionaire, spent €1.1m chartering the 91.5m (300ft) yacht Tranquility .

The eight-deck Octopus has 13 guest suites, including a private owner’s deck. There is also a cinema, a gym, a spa, a basketball court, a pool (which converts into a dancefloor) and a pizza oven. It features not one but two helicopters, two submarines and space for seven tenders and a large SUV. The yacht has quarters for up to 63 crew.

Allen, a keen adventurer, asked superyacht designer Espen Øino to create a yacht capable of carrying out expeditions. “It was a very ambitious brief, because none of the tenders, tools, RVs, subs, helicopters could be outside – they should all be concealed,” Øino has said.

The ship was used by the Titanic director, James Cameron, for a dive to the bottom of the 10,925 metres to the Mariana trench, the deepest point in the world.

Allen also used the ship to help to recover the bell from the British battleship HMS Hood, which was sunk by the Bismarck in the North Atlantic.

“When I first stood on the bridge, I felt as though I was on a spaceship,” Allen wrote in his autobiography Idea Man. He said having a pool, basketball court, cinema, and recording studio on the boat meant “all my passions come together in one movable feast”.

“It turns out if you go 1,000 ft down in the ocean, it’s really dark, and the animals are really strange,” Allen said in 2011. “But if you put on some Pink Floyd, it’s fantastic.”

The onboard recording studio has been used by Mick Jagger, Bono, Usher and Joss Stone. Øino has said equipping the recording studio to Allen’s demands had been a particular challenge.

“Mr Allen’s interest in music was enormous and the acoustic quality was nothing less than a shore-based one,” Øino said. “There were 54 tonnes of AV/IT equipment aboard. A very complex boat in many ways. I think he loved it.”

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Inside Paul Allen’s Former Yacht on Sale for $90 Million

By Katie Schultz

The estate of the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen is offering the sale of his 303-foot-long superyacht , Tatoosh , for a cool $90 million, according to Dirt . If you’re thinking those stats aren’t impressive enough for the billionaire and tech magnate , well, you’d be right. Tatoosh , which is currently the 60th largest yacht worldwide, was just Allen’s secondary vessel. His main yacht, Octopus , sold last year for $325 million and stretches 414 feet long, making it the 20th largest yacht in the world.

As for Tatoosh , the recently-listed vessel was custom-built by German shipyard Nobiskrug in 2000 for fellow American tech mogul Craig McCaw before being bought by Allen the following year for an estimated $100 million. The craft was put up for sale shortly after Allen’s death in 2018, but was taken off the market for an extensive refitting that was completed last year.

The dining room aboard the ship. 

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Inside the vessel, 11 staterooms can accommodate up to 19 guests with access to a lengthy list of lavish amenities that includes a heated swimming pool with a hydraulic-powered mosaic floor that can raise and lower, a parquet floor salon complete with a limestone fireplace and a bar, a movie theater adorned in red velvet, a beauty salon, a gym, two helicopter pads, a sunbathing and diving area decked out with a blue-tiled spa, bulletproof windows, a fleet of jet skis, multiple 43-foot tenders, and a crew of 31 to oversee it all. The owner’s quarters include a private deck, two dressing rooms, and an observation lounge with a private galley, all spanning across two of the ship’s five decks, which are all accessible via elevator.

The owner’s stateroom aboard the ship. 

To maintain and staff the superyacht, which will be one of the largest yachts on display during the Monaco Yacht Show later this month, potential new owners will have to be prepared to pay $9 to $10 million per year in addition to the hefty price tag. Tatoosh is being represented by the Monaco-based yachting company Fraser.

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It’ll cost you eight arms and a leg!

But if the incessant chatter about yacht-owning Russian oligarchs of late has gotten you all hot and bothered for an over-the-top, out-of-this-world sailing experience — minus said oligarchs, one hopes — we have three words for you: Release the kraken.

Or rather, release the much mellower-named yet equally fantastica l Octopus , a 414-foot megayacht set to ply the chilly waters of Antarctica for the first time as a charter ship during our winter, its summer, from Dec. 1 to Feb. 28, 2023 (Christmas/New Year’s week is already booked).

As Elon Musk, Larry Ellison and Jeff Bezos have all made clear, computer geeks have excellent taste in conveyances — launched in 2003, this 9,923-gross-tonnaged beaut is no exception, having been commissioned and once owned by Microsoft’s late co-founder Paul Allen.

Now it’s under the aegis of 240-year-old big-boat broker and operator Camper & Nicholsons .

With a fancy pedigree gussied up with fun European diacritics, Octopus was designed by Norwegian-blooded Espen Øino and built by German shipyard Lürssen.

The cephalopodic cruiser comes with copious spec porn: 13 cabins (the master served by an elevator); two helipads (BYO choppa); eight decks; seven tenders (to us fellow 99-percenters, those aren’t snacks, but smaller boats that go to and fro the shore); a movie theater; a glass-bottom observation “aquarium” lounge; an original photo of Marilyn Monroe among its quirky memorabilia collection; even a fully equipped medical suite and a hyperbaric chamber should things go sideways down there, as they say, “on the Ice.”

Yachts are one of the few things in life still A-OK with being fat-shamed in 2022. Slap them with a beefy prefix like “mega,” “super” or “giga” and expect the price tag to likewise pack on the pounds.

For this overseas jaunt, Octopus will slither her figurative tentacles deep in and around your wallet, suctioning up a cool $2.2 million. (Crypto is also welcome, assuming it’s still worth anything by then.)

If you and 11 other sybarites can swing it, a not-for-the-faint-of-heart, seven-day itinerary awaits, starting with the actual boarding of the ship. To begin, you’ll have to both get to, and fly out of, Punta Arenas, Chile, and land at Frei Station’s gravely airstrip on King George Island in the South Shetlands. Octopus will be patiently R&Ring there after having summered around Central America and the Pacific.

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All aboard and welcome to the bottom of the world!

From here on, your fever dream of a week begins. Sail through the blowhole-geysered Gerlache Strait. Have breakfast with the four gals who spend a third of the year (wo)manning the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust at Port Lockroy on Wiencke Island where the UK’s southernmost operational post office also sits (send mom a postcard for the ages, of course). Explore the wreckage of the whaling ship Guvernøren by kayak. Sail into the crater of a live volcano. Confess whatever need be inside the continent’s Russian Orthodox Trinity Church (there actually may be an oligarch or two here, sorry).

There’s so much more insular wonderment to behold, but we shan’t spoil it.

And, oh my, the critters you’ll befriend along the way are beyond amazing: leopard seals; humpback and killer whales; gentoo penguins; toothfish (known to American tummies as Chilean sea bass); and, yes, sea spiders “the size of dinner plates,” who are totally more scared of us than we are of them … right?

The geographic nomenclature around these remote parts ranges from the whimsical to the all-out kooky, from Kodak Alley and oh-so-suss Deception Island, to Neptune’s Window and the Nipple. Enjoy the weirdo signage, just don’t steal any, tempting as it may be.

For the rare marine biology major you know and love who actually parlayed their degree into a career, or that flat-earther in your life who needs a stark in-person reality check, inking a deal for a trek aboard Octopus will make their day, their week, their life — right alongside yours. Godspeed.

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