Superyachts increasingly live like ultra-luxe estates, but their design is uniquely their own. Or is it? Turns out the latest trend in high-end home design is taking a cue from the sea, using vast expanses of glass to maximize views and weaving in plush features and finishes reminiscent of floating luxury vessels.
Beyond a boathouse, these properties take nautical inspiration to the next level. The result: Distinctive homes that take some of the best elements of superyacht design and apply them to a prime landlocked—albeit waterfront—location, further expanding the luxury quotient of high-end homes while approximating the feel of being out on the water.
It’s a movement Fiona Diamond, founder of London-based luxury property, superyacht, and aircraft design firm, Seymour Diamond, refers to as, “Yacht Standard.” The design and execution of these residences “points to a level of excellence and finish that is not the norm for a residential project,” she tells The Times LUXX.
Diamond is one of a handful of designers and studios like March & White and metrica who are charting this course. “Iconic residential interiors are becoming more and more sophisticated, incorporating the high-end details typical of superyachts,” says Mark Mantione, North American CEO of metrica. “Walls and ceilings are often paneled in rich, standout woods like sycamore, walnut, and oak, and are oftentimes inlaid with architectural metals. In addition, tolerances are engineered down to the millimeter, the same way that they must be on yachts to accommodate a life at sea.”
This superyacht-inspired vacation villa in the French Riviera resort town of Antibes infuses its design with yacht-inspired details from its elongated shape to the vast windows, extensive decking, and speakeasy-style basement entertainment zone. Another along the Santa Monica beachfront, previously co-listed by Don Richstone of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Malibu, was designed to mimic the experience of being on the homeowner’s 145-foot yacht, with features including a rooftop entertainment area with pool, pop-up TV, and deck. Key to delivering that yacht feel is the fact that the home was designed so that all the spaces face forward, just as they would if the structure had been created to glide along the water instead of sit pretty on land.
This remarkable Miami Beach property, currently listed for sale for $6,499,999, is a “one-of-a-kind tropical modern oasis that was masterfully designed to resemble a luxurious yacht,” according to the property’s Miami Beach-based listing agents, Danny Hertzberg and Alyssa Jansheski of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate Florida. “Its interlocking forms create a composition of planes and voids contrasting wood and stone, and glass and masonry, all inspired by the Miami Modern ‘MiMo’ tradition and its maritime context,” says Miami-based architect Reinaldo Borges of Borges & Associates.
The home, located on Miami’s tony Palm Island, enjoys five bedrooms and four baths plus one partial in 6,607 square feet of interior living space, with 53 feet of waterfront and a 1,500-square-foot rooftop deck. From this inspired space, with a lap pool, covered dining, and extensive lounge areas overlooking the water and downtown skyline, you may forget you’re on land, which is all by design. “The raised rooftop pool element over the double-height entry garden reflects its shimmering water through a framed window to the street and porthole windows in the slab and interior walls, as a focal feature of the residence,” says Borges.
Features such as Caesarstone surfaces in the gourmet kitchen, Rosewood finishes, polished volcanic stone floors, and a transparent glass walkway leading to a show-stopping glass and steel stairway make the interior equally captivating, meeting the needs of this discerning clientele.

233 N Coconut Lane | Miami Beach, FL. | $6,499,999
“The ultra-high net worth individuals who own superyachts and appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into them demand the same perfection in their residences,” says Mantione. “Their lifestyle also allows for a high level of customization, with increasing requests for one-of-a-kind, exquisite custom details.”