A Stunning Yacht House in the Crimea

A very beautiful yacht house that includes four apartments for vacations is sited on the southernmost tip of Ukraine’s Crimean coastline.

Designed by the Italian firm based in the UK,Robin Monotti Architects, the Foros Yacht House is inspired by the traditional Russian “dacha” holiday homes.

Neighbours include the dachas of former USSR president Gorbachev and current Ukrainian president Yanukovich, and close by are magnificent palaces and churches from the Tsarist era.

Monotti conceived the building as a contemporary reinterpretation of these traditional villas on the coast.

The design started with the central yacht storage space which is a space 18 feet high and 45 feet deep.

The original idea was just to store the client’s 13 foot yacht, and provide “captain’s” quarters.

Only afterwards did the client decide to add the three rental apartments, taking advantage of “the Russian Riviera”, with its dramatic coastal scenery and balmy Mediterranean climate.

The apartments are clustered around the yacht house space at various levels, almost like barnacles on a rock.

The clustering solves a design problem of how to avoid the gigantic yacht-house door from overpowering the structure.

Each of the apartments boasts gorgeous views above glassed framed balconies straight out to sea, unimpeded by window framing.

The immediate sounds and smells of the sea environment is ever present, in all its changing moods.

The apartments don’t let you forget you are exposed to the marine environment; you can almost taste the salty sea spray here.

Beautifully proportioned on the minimal structure, portholes referencing naval architecture avoid seeming tacky.

Entered from the road along the cliff, the entrance to the building has only narrow slits to let in light, so that once inside, the viewer is hit by the contrast of a blast of light looking out to sea.