The world renowned luxury yacht MOTOR YACHT A has been spotted in the waters of South Malé Atoll near Jumeira Vitavelli, Maldives.

MOTOR YACHT A is a 119m luxury yacht, built in Germany by Blohm & Voss and delivered in 2008. She was designed by Philippe Starck with Martin Francis developing the naval architecture.

Her top speed is 23.0kn and she boasts a maximum cruising range of 6541.0nm at 19.5kn with power coming from two 6035.0hp MAN RK280 diesel engines. She can accommodate up to 14 people with 35 crew members. 

The design for what would become the worlds most talked about superyacht bubbled into Starcks mind at his home in Burano, Venice, in 2004. There was no brief beyond an idea of length and a demand for six cabins. 

Rumour has it that it took Philippe Starck just two hours to design Motor Yacht A. But that, as it turns out, is way off. "Sometimes it only takes 30 seconds to make a design," says the Frenchman in his heavily accented English. 

"I think to myself it is too easy, it cannot be possible. But 90 per cent of my work is like this. I am a little ashamed. Its not normal."

Typically for a mega yacht, A is decorated, equipped, and staffed to an extremely opulent standard. There is almost 24,000 square feet (2,200 m²) of interior space, including 2,500 square feet (230 m²) for the master suite.^[Starck, known for his occasionally risqué design choices, also added a secret "nookie room" hidden behind mirrored panels.

Mirrored surfaces feature extensively throughout the interior, along with Baccarat crystal which is used not only for the glassware and tableware, but for the furniture too.There are six guest suites, although they have moving walls and can be converted to four larger staterooms.

Above-deck there is a helipad and swimming pool forward of the superstructure and two more pools aft, one of which is glass-bottomed and can be viewed from the below-deck disco.

Theres one word Starck keeps hitting on to describe Motor Yacht A: harmony."Its a beautiful volume and its designed to always have the best place, depending on the weather, the sun or your mood. You are free. Its a free place. Other boats are not free, you are completely constrained."

"The less you have materially, the more you have intelligence, the more you have competence and the more you have harmony with humanity. The only thing which is deeply beautiful is harmony, because it is timeless. Can you imagine that this boat was designed a long time ago, but when you see it it is completely fresh. You dont want to change a thing."

The 142.8-metre vessel boasts 300 ft masts that are taller than Big Ben, and counts eight decks (connected by a series of lifts), a free-floating spiral staircase, huge swimming pool, and underwater observation pod among its stunning features. 

37 staff are employed on the vessel, and there are living quarters for five more staff accompanying the owners or their guests.Security is tightly controlled, with 44 mm (1.7 in)-thick bomb-proof glass in the windows, over 40 CCTV cameras, motion sensors, biometric fingerprint/keypad entry for restricted areas, and a rumoured escape pod in case of emergencies.

Just a ferry ride away from Jumeirah Vittaveli, a celebrity and billionaire hotspot. All the determinants of uber luxury can be found on the island, including a $35,000-a-night retreat, the Royal Residence, an area of 3,500 sq m (equivalent to two thirds of a football pitch) with five bedrooms and six bathrooms, a lily pond, private gym and spa, a rectangular living pavilion, a Zen-like sunken lounge with olive-green sofa seating and a sea-facing lawn and so much more.