This New 279-Foot Gigayacht Has a Glass-Bottomed Pool That Doubles as a Watery Skylight

The Italian shipyard just unveiled new details about its 279-foot behemoth, known as Project Life, at the Palm Beach International Boat Show. Besides being the company’s largest engineering-platform-based yacht, the steel vessel is all about creating the ultimate socializing experience for you and your guests while you take in the ocean views.

“We came up with the name for a very simple reason,” said Federico Ferrante, president of Benetti Americas at the press conference introducing the concept. “It is a celebration of life, but very cosmopolitan and international.”

And Benetti brought together a top-tier team to work on the project. Acclaimed yacht designer Espen Øino designed Project Life’s exterior and layout, while François Zuretti, an interior designer who has been a frequent collaborator with the shipyard, crafted the interiors for seamless indoor-outdoor living. Sleek lines mix with the boatbuilder’s classic flair throughout the vessel. Massive windows keep the indoors awash in sunlight.

One of Project’s Life standout features is its nearly 3,000-square-foot beach area in the stern. The space, which is open on three sides, allows you to easily move between the beach platform and the indoor beach club. And you can reach the ocean with ease, thanks to the two 46-foot-wide fold-down side doors and a spacious swim platform. “It becomes a marina on the water,” said Ferrante. “But also a huge social hub. There’s also an innovative bar concept where people in the pool can sit and enjoy food and drinks. The bar is recessed so that it does not interfere with the view.”

Inside, meanwhile, the beach club is full of neutral-colored lounge areas accented by blue hues—a color that’s further amplified by the glass-bottomed pool perched above, bringing in sunshine from the main deck. That 194-square-foot swimming pool (it’s also three feet deep) acts as a social hub on the main deck, bringing guests together with the surrounding seating and the nearby bar.

“This project is all about flow, the five decks flowing into each other,” said Ferrante. “It took an incredible amount of design work to make sure the flows work in a technical way because this yacht can hold many people. You want to make sure the owners and guests can move in their own worlds, and the crew in theirs, without interference. But they need to be able to interact.”

Project Life has six staterooms, all located in the front of the main deck. The 1,055-square-foot owner’s suite acts as a personal retreat; it comes with an extra room that can be used as an office or a place to enjoy a hobby or two. The accommodation is completed with a glass-enclosed area, which Benetti calls the Skylounge, where one can enjoy those sea views in private.

The glass-bottomed pool doubles as a kind of skylight—or human aquarium—for the beach club.

Elsewhere, you can unwind in the 1,206-square-foot main salon, filled with wooden accents, shades of blue, and those floor-to-ceiling windows. The upper foredeck, in addition to offering uninterrupted 270-degree views, is home to a helipad, a Jacuzzi, and more lounging spots. As for the bridge deck, it’s crafted as an open-air dining experience with plenty of space to entertain. The owners can also interact with the chef as they’re whipping up meals via two live-cooking setups.