Yacht Formerly Owned By Malcolm Forbes For Charter From $170k P/ Week

Forbes

23-05-2025

Writing about publishing magnate Malcolm Forbes, son of Forbes founder Bertie Forbes, author Christopher Buckley wrote: 'Malcolm is an antidote to the horror stories about extreme wealth. He's generous as hell and he likes to have fun.' It makes sense then, that Forbes owned a 162-foot yacht called The Highlander, which was famous for hosting parties with guest lists that read like a Who's Who of the world's social elite in the 1980s.
Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney and Harrison Ford all set foot on her decks at one point, probably rubbing shoulders with the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol, Barbara Walters and Henry Kissinger. In Royal circles, Prince Charles and the former Kings of Greece and Bulgaria all spent time on board The Highlander. The yacht hosted politcial magnates like Margaret Thatcher, the Reagans and President and Mrs George H W Bush. This is a boat that was no stranger to the spotlight.
This is because The Highlander was never just a boat - she was a key business and entertaining platform that Forbes used lavishly and generously for hosting huge groups. The parties that were held on board held mythic status – once, at a party for Elizabeth Taylor, Forbes dispatched a private jet to pick up a case of perfumes to be used as special gifts for each and every attendee of the party.
The yacht's parties would be wall-to-wall with A-listers. It wasn't uncommon to step into a function on The Highlander and find Hollywood heavyweights chatting away with headline-grabbing politicians. 'One time, I looked up and saw CEOs of six different US airline companies talking together,' recalls Forbes' son Christopher in a magazine feature. 'Where else would you find that?'
Highlander is an icon of the yachting world.
Yachtsman
The Highlander was actually designed with partying in mind from the outset. In the same magazine feature, Forbes' son recalled that the yacht 'had these smaller seating areas and private spaces that weren't too conspicuously private, where people could linger while never prompting the reaction: 'Look at those two off there on their own, talking.'' Fun was also built into the yacht's design, with storage for Harley-Davidson motorboikes and those famous Cigarette and Donzi speedboats that you can see in the aft section in historical photos.
The yacht was legendary for her parties, but she was also notable for doing something completely unheard of at the time – cruising up the Amazon. Even now, this is something that is largely not seen in superyachting, but The Highlander wasn't one to shy away from a challenge. Guests on board recalled the superyacht ploughing through underwater obstacles and having to send the crew under water to inspect any potential damage. One crewmember on the voyage had a passion for bagpipe-playing and he would practise his instrument on the top deck of the yacht most mornings, attracting the attention and applause of local Amazonian people.
The yacht prior to her extension
Feadship
The yacht changed hands after Forbes' death, and led a quieter life in more recent years. She was originally built by Feadship, the most prestigious superyacht builder in the world, to a design by the late Jon Bannenberg, arguably the most esteemed yacht designer to have ever lived. A refit in 2014 in the US saw her total length extended to the 162 feet that she is today, but the refit was sensitive to the yacht's icon status. "We are very big fans of Feadship,' explained the owners at the time. "The Highlander had Feadship's outstanding quality and Jon Bannenberg's iconic profile. The Feadship and Bannenberg mix was irresistible.'
The yacht is still an entertainment icon.
Yachtsman
Now called simply Highlander, the yacht had another refit in 2025 and is now available for private yacht charter in the Mediterranean with Greek-based yachting firm YACHTSMAN. She has space for 12 guests in seven cabins, plus a complement for 11 crew, and she has a large toy locker which includes two Seabobs, one eFoil, two Jet-Skis and more.
She charters from €150,000 per week plus expenses in low season and €170,000 per week plus expenses in high season.