I want you to stick with me on this, because this isn't just another article about a "rich person's toy." I went down a rabbit hole this week, and what I found is so much more interesting than that.
The prompt was simple. A colleague just messaged me, "Hey, can you dig up the story on the superyacht Platinum from Mackeddie Marine?"
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Simple, right?
I figured I'd be in and out in an hour. I'd find a 10-year-old spec sheet, a couple of photos, and that would be that.
What I found instead was a genuine mystery. A case of mistaken identity, a forgotten masterpiece, and a brand-new, nine-figure giant that has completely, and totally, hijacked the original's name.
This isn't just an article about a yacht. It’s about two of them. It’s about a perfect time capsule from 2008 and the insane, almost unbelievable evolution of an industry in just over a decade. It's the story of a name, and how that name came to represent two completely different dreams.
Seriously, you’re going to want to see this.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Part 1: The Original Gangster – The Platinum We Were Looking For
First, let's pay our respects. Before we get to the glittering 2024 giant, we have to talk about the original. The one that started my search. The 2008 Platinum built by Mackeddie Marine.
Now, if you're a yachting nerd like me, the name "Mackeddie Marine" immediately perks you up. Why? Because they're not one of the "Big Three." They're not a massive German or Dutch shipyard pumping out 100-meter-plus vessels like clockwork.
Mackeddie Marine is a boutique Australian builder. They're based in Launceston, Tasmania. Think "artisan" more than "industrial." These are shipwrights in the classical sense. We're talking about a place where craftsmanship, grit, and a deep, deep knowledge of the sea are the primary currencies. They're known for building rugged, no-nonsense vessels that are made to work and to last.
So, back in 2008, when the world was... well, let's just say it was a turbulent time, Mackeddie Marine quietly launches this 38.3-meter (that's 126 feet) custom motor yacht. And they call it Platinum.
In an world of flashy, lightweight, look-at-me fiberglass boats designed to hop from Monaco to St. Tropez, the Mackeddie Marine Platinum was...
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
different.
It was heavy.
And I mean that as the highest compliment. The first thing that blew my mind when I dug up the specs was its construction: a full-displacement steel hull.
Let me translate that from boat-nerd to English. Most yachts this size, especially at the time, were built from GRP (fiberglass). It’s light, it's fast, it's relatively cheap to build with. But steel? Steel is what ships are made of. A steel hull means comfort. It means stability. It means you don't crash through waves; you push them aside. It tells you the owner didn't just want a floating condo; they wanted a vessel that could go anywhere.
This wasn't a "Med-hopper." This was a "world-explorer."
And the specs back it up. Get this: the 2008 Platinum has a cruising range of over 4,000 nautical miles.
Let me put that in perspective for you. That is Sydney to Hawaii... with fuel to spare. That's New York to London... easily. This was a boat built with a very specific, adventurous dream in mind. It was designed to cross oceans, not just decorate a marina.
And the look of it? It’s just... chef's kiss. The exterior was penned by the legendary Dubois Naval Architects and Alan Muir Designs. If you know that Dubois name, you know it stands for one thing: performance-meets-elegance. The lines are timeless. It doesn't look like a "Euro" boat. It has this powerful, purposeful profile. It's not a "floating sneaker" or a "spaceship." It's a ship. It looks as good today as it did the day it launched.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Then, there's the inside. The interior design was by a firm called Traditional Timber Interiors. And the name says it all. This is where I really fell in love. You just know what that interior feels like. It’s not the stark, white, minimalist museum-boxes we see so often today.
This was an interior about warmth. About craftsmanship. You can almost smell the hand-rubbed varnish and the rich leather. We're talking about real, book-matched timber veneers, intricate joinery, plush carpets, and comfortable furniture you actually want to sink into. It was designed to be a home on the water, a cozy, safe haven after a long day's passage.
The 2008 Platinum accommodates 10 guests and 6 crew. That’s an amazing ratio. It’s intimate. It’s a family boat, a "friends" boat.
So, the 2008 Platinum was, and is, a masterpiece of understatement. A true connoisseur's yacht. It’s the "if you know, you know" of the seas. A rugged, reliable, beautiful explorer built by Australian artisans, designed to silently disappear over the horizon.
It’s a boat with soul.
I was feeling pretty good about this. I'd "found" the story. A forgotten gem. A cult classic.
And then... I kept digging. And the entire story got... complicated.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Part 2: The "Complication" – The New Giant in the Room
As I'm scrolling through images, my search results start to get... weird. The sleek, 38-meter Aussie boat is suddenly interrupted by... this thing.
This... goliath.
At first, I think it's just a bad algorithm. A different yacht with a similar name. But no. The headlines are all the same: "Admiral Yachts Launches 78m PLATINUM."
My friends, this is where the story pivots. Hard.
In 2024, another yacht named Platinum hits the water. And guys... this thing is a monster. It's not just "in another league." It is a completely different sport.
Let's do a quick tale of the tape, just so you understand the scale I'm talking about.
The 2008 Platinum (Mackeddie):
Length: 38.3 meters (126 ft)
Builder: Mackeddie Marine (Australia)
Volume: 375 Gross Tons
Crew: 6
The 2024 Platinum (Admiral):
Length: 78.29 meters (257 ft)
Builder: Admiral Yachts (Italy)
Volume: 2,146 Gross Tons
Crew: 25
The 2024 Platinum isn't just longer; its internal volume, the actual space inside, is nearly SIX TIMES larger.
This isn't our Tasmanian artisan. This is The Italian Sea Group. This is haute couture shipbuilding. This is a statement piece.
And the statement is mind-blowing.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
The "Snake-Like" Exterior
This is where my jaw just dropped. The exterior is by Lobanov Design. If you're not familiar with Igor Lobanov, he's basically the industry's rock-star. He doesn't design boats; he designs sculptures that float.
He described the curves on Platinum as "snake-like," and he's not wrong. The profile is this incredible, flowing, muscular thing. It's somehow both hyper-aggressive and impossibly elegant at the same time. It's the "masculine meets feminine equilibrium" he's famous for.
And the paint. My god, the paint. It's not just "white." It's this insane, complex palette that shifts from pure white to matte black, with various shades of grey and a subtle champagne hue. It changes in the light. It's less a "paint job" and more a "livery."
This is a six-deck behemoth, and every single deck has a "wow" moment. But it's what's inside that truly separates it from... well, from just about anything.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Inside the Futuristic Palace
The interior is by Sinot Yacht Architecture & Design. These are the Dutch masters. The same firm behind some of the most iconic yachts in the world. And on Platinum, they were clearly given a blank check and a mandate to "create a new benchmark."
The vibe? "Timeless but contemporary."
But what that really means is "materials you've never even heard of, used in ways you couldn't imagine."
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Are you ready for this list?
Ceilings adorned with platinum leaf inlays. Yes. Actual platinum.
Heated marble floors.
Mother-of-pearl detailing.
Exquisite, textured Lacewood veneers.
The entire thing is connected by a panoramic glass elevator that isn't hidden in a corridor; it's a central sculptural feature, wrapped in a breathtaking staircase.
The Owner's Deck isn't a "room." It's a 100-square-meter private apartment (over 1,000 sq ft) with 180-degree panoramic views that's completely separate from the rest of the guest areas.
The VIP Cabin on the main deck is full-beam. It's bigger and more luxurious than the master suite on 90% of other superyachts.
But all that is just "standard" megayacht luxury. It's the amenities where this boat just... it just leaves orbit.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
The "Wait, What?!" Showstoppers
This is the stuff that makes you giggle. It's just so extra.
1. The Beach Club Spa:
Okay, so every new megayacht has a "beach club" (the area at the back, at water level). But Platinum's is on another level. It's not a gym with a fold-down platform. It is a full-blown spa sanctuary. We're talking a massage room, a sauna, and a Hammam (Turkish bath). And the ceiling of the Hammam? It's a "starry sky" effect created with fiber optics.
I just... I can't. Imagine this. You're anchored off a private island. You're at water level, hearing the gentle lapping of the sea. You're in a steam-filled Hammam, getting a massage, looking up at a private galaxy. I mean, come on.
2. The Main Deck Pool:
It's a 6-meter (20 ft) infinity pool. But that's not the cool part. It has a counter-current system. You can hit a button and it creates a jet of water you can actually swim against. You can do proper laps. On a yacht.
3. The Recessed Teppanyaki Bar:
On the absolutely massive sundeck, there's a full-service teppanyaki dining area. But to keep the lines clean, it's recessed. And the extraction hoods? They are telescopic. They rise up out of the cabinetry when the chef is cooking, then disappear completely.
4. The Helideck:
Oh, and of course, there's a touch-and-go helideck on the bow. Because how else are you going to get to your 78-meter spa-ship?
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
The Tech Beneath the Beauty
But here's the crazy part. This is the one thread that, in spirit, connects this 2024 giant back to the 2008 original: comfort.
The 2008 Platinum achieved its comfort with a heavy steel hull. It was a brute-force, old-school, brilliant solution.
The 2024 Platinum does it with cutting-edge, 21st-century tech.
The engineers at Admiral and Azure Naval Architects went psycho on this. They ran endless simulations to optimize the hull shape and propulsion system for one thing: "acoustic comfort."
That's a fancy term for making it silent.
The reports say the vibration and noise levels are "well below the thresholds set in the technical specifications." That means when this thing is underway at 15 knots, you're not hearing the thrum-thrum-thrum of massive diesel engines. You're just... gliding. It's the 2024 version of the 2008 boat's "pushing" the waves aside. It's about an effortless, serene experience.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
Part 3: So... What Does This All Mean?
So why did I just spend 3,000 words telling you about two completely different yachts that just happen to share a name?
Because this is the perfect story of the superyacht industry. It's the story of its evolution, and maybe, the story of its two different souls.
The 2008 Platinum by Mackeddie Marine... that's the Soul of Exploration.
It represents the dream of adventure. Of custom, rugged craftsmanship. Of building a ship that could take you and your family to the ends of the earth, safely and comfortably. It wasn't built for the Monaco Yacht Show. It was built for the Alaskan fjords, the South Pacific atolls, the Northwest Passage. It was, and is, a boat about doing.
The 2024 Platinum by Admiral... that's the Soul of Experience.
It represents the dream of artistry and technology. Of creating a private, six-star, floating world that is, in itself, the destination. The journey is the point. It's a boat about being. It's a machine built to deliver a level of comfort, luxury, and serenity that is, quite literally, impossible to find anywhere on land.
It's almost poetic that they share the name "Platinum." One is precious, rare, and foundational. The other is gleaming, brilliant, and impossible to ignore.
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| This yacht was hiding in plain sight for 15 years. Then, Its story got complicated |
The original Mackeddie Marine Platinum is this incredible, tough, beautiful vessel that is probably, right now, anchored in some remote bay you've never even heard of. Its owners are likely having the time of their lives in total, blissful privacy. It's a boat that has been quietly, perfectly hiding in plain sight for over 15 years.
The new Admiral Platinum is a statement. It's a headline. It's an award-winner that will be photographed in every major port in the world. It pushes the boundaries of what's possible in design, engineering, and sheer, unadulterated luxury.
The original Platinum didn't change the whole world. But it was the perfect expression of its owner's dream, and of its time.
And the new one? It's the perfect expression of ours.
For me? My heart is with the 2008 Mackeddie Marine boat. That's my kind of adventure. That steel hull, that 4,000nm range... that's the dream.
But that 2024 beach club spa with the starry sky? I'm not gonna lie. I'd visit.
Which one would you choose? The Explorer or the Experience?