When the world hunkered down in early 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, Palm Beach residents Jacelyn and Jack Botti used the time to plan and build their 119-foot yacht, named Botti, with Jacelyn taking charge of customizing the vessel.
For years, they had brought their yachts — first a 65-foot Viking Princess, followed by an 84-foot vessel by Moonen Yachts — to Palm Beach from the New Jersey home they own on Long Beach Island.
Midsummer 2020 found them in Palm Beach, living aboard their 84-foot Moonen at what was then called the Town Docks, which have since been revamped to become the Town of Palm Beach Marina.
The Bottis had purchased that first Moonen at the 2017 edition of the Palm Beach International Boat Show — the annual event that has returned to the South Flagler Drive waterfront and will run through March 29.
Spending so much time aboard their yacht during the health crisis brought with it an epiphany, Jacelyn explains.
“When you start living on something like that full time, you realize: Gee, it would be nice if this was bigger and that was bigger. And we’ve had a history of going to the next size,” Jacelyn says.
And upon deciding to upsize, it was full speed ahead.
“We were happy with the quality of the ship and very pleased with the level of support that we’ve had from the Moonen administration team back in the Netherlands, and so it seemed a natural fit for us to upgrade to a larger Moonen ship,” she says.
Jack Botti works in the financial sector, specializing in equities. In 1980, he had founded a business named Fluortek to manufacture custom-size tubing for the medical-device industry. He sold that business in 2020.
Jacelyn’s career has included working as head of residential sales for Weichert Realty in New Jersey. Today she is an investor who buys, re-habs and sells real estate projects.
When the Bottis decided they needed a larger vessel, Moonen Yachts had a 119-foot Martinique in production, designed by the Durch Architect Rene van der Velden. The Bottis purchased that model and then extensively had it tailored it to meet their needs. The yacht has since become a familiar site at the Palm Beach Marina.
“We actually extended certain levels of the ship,” Jacelyn says, referring in part to the sundeck, which was fitted with an infinity-edge hot tub that she designed. “On one end of it, I wanted the water to just float away,” she says.
That project — and others — weren’t as simple as they might appear.
“They actually had to rip part (of the boat) out and start over again to enable what we wanted to do,” she explains.
She describes another challenge.
“There are major differences in the design of American ships versus European,” she says, “and this was the first American ship that Moonen had ever built customized from scratch.
“For example, American ships are docked linear, so the (tie-up) cleats have to be (placed) down the sides of the boat, and to install those is very extensive. It’s not just a cleat on the deck. It has to be supported down through the hull of the boat.”
In addition to the exterior changes, Jacelyn took a hands-on approach to the interiors, inspired by the palette and patterns often seen in Palm Beach.
“I liked bringing in exotic animal prints and teals and blues and bright colors,” she says.
She designed and sketched out décor and fittings, which the London-based studio, Indigo, sourced for her.
She designed the yacht’s dining table — inlaid with shagreen leather and buffalo bone — as well as the chandelier above it. “I wanted it to look like a wave, and I had specific ideas of the ‘movement’ of the chandelier and the crystals that were to be used,” she says.
Describing her design for the cowhide headboard in the main stateroom, she says a bit of creative license was involved.
“It looks like a zebra pelt, but obviously the headboard was a king size, and you’re never going to get a zebra pelt that size — and I wanted it to be blue and cream, not black.”
Also of note is the multi-piece glass installation on the sky lounge’s ceiling. “I wanted it to look like lily pads. All of those (pieces of glass) were custom made to look like they float,” she says.
The completed yacht arrived at the Palm Beach Marina on May 6, 2022, to a celebrative reception.
At that point, the Bottis had parted with their previous Moonen and had bought and renovated a home on the near North End of Palm Beach.
But they remain aboard their yacht roughly 60 percent of the year.
As such, the marina is perfect for them, she says. “The marina’s management is very professional, experienced and responsive, and from a security standpoint, they have secured the marina and park, 24/7. We feel very safe there.”
The Bottis enjoy the freedom the yacht has allowed them to travel where they like.
“We have literally gone from Maine — that’s the farthest north we’ve been — to the Turks and Caicos. That’s the farthest south. Any large safe marina between, we’ve been there,” Jacelyn says.
A favorite spot is Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, and the couple also enjoys trips to South Carolina, where they stop in at Charleston — “a great walking town,” Jacelyn says. She also likes to visit Jersey City, because “you have the whole Manhattan skyline view.”
Back in Palm Beach, the Bottis sometimes host friends and family for day trips on the Intracoastal Waterway, and in calm weather, they’ll go out to the ocean dragging their 40-foot Yellowfin.
But when all is said and done, there may be a larger yacht on the horizon for the Bottis.
“My husband and I have actually talked about the next size up,” Jacelyn says.
She adds with a smile: “All my friends panic. They say, ‘I can’t believe you would give this ship up. Just stay with this one.’ But I like to keep busy. I like to keep my mind working.”
Specifications of Botti, by Moonen Yachts
IF YOU GO: Palm Beach International Boat Show
The boat show will run through March 29 along South Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach. Hours are noon to 7 p.m. March 27-28; and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. March 29. Tickets range in price from $37 to $430. Details are available at PBBoatShow.com.
For more than 20 years, Christine Davis has written about Palm Beach real estate, interior design, yachts and other topics in the Palm Beach Daily News.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Climb aboard a Palm Beach couple’s customized 119-foot yacht
Reporting by Christine Davis, Special to Palm Beach Daily News / Palm Beach Daily News
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