The new Adventure Area at the Monaco Yacht Show was a terrain set aside for superyacht toys and travel off the yacht: landside, airside, and into the hidden depths of the ocean.

Monaco Life skipped along to find out more.

The Bubble

It began on the back of a beer mat, last year at the Monaco Yacht Show (MYS), when two men went for a drink. The result of that drink was launched in September and it is known as Project Hercules – a collaboration between Espen Øino International (EOI), Dark Ocean DeepSea and Triton Submarines. It is the world’s first patent-pending elliptical advanced versatile acrylic (AVA) pressure hull submersible.

The two men were John Ramsay of Dark Ocean DeepSea Design, the world’s leading submersible design and engineering studio, and Andrea Bonini, yacht  designer and project manager at EOI.

The Hercules sub-sea craft takes a total of seven people down deep (200m) for up to 10 hours and is designed to travel at eight knots (twice that of traditional private subs). Option ideas for this very big bubble (2.35m H x 2.75 W) include twin designer chaise longues in high grade leather, an oversized daybed, or a large glass bottom floor space with scatter cushions.

The luxury subcraft idea bloomed from Bonini’s “what if” fantasies that Ramsay was ready to run with: What if you glided instead of dived straight down? What if the inside was as wonderful as the outside? “When I met Andrea last year it was quite obvious straight away that he was amazingly talented and also incredibly enthusiastic about submarines,” says Ramsay. “He has this ability to create beautiful things but also package them up with sensible engineering so you know it’s going to work.”

Ramsay loves the switch in focus of the project; it’s not just about the deep-sea world outside, but the experience inside too: “You go down for a few hours, in private, see what you see might see, and have a wonderful time with people. That’s never been the focus of the sub before.” It could also possibly be used as a tender, Ramsay suggests: “We are talking with some hydro dynamicists about how quickly it’s going to move along the surface, so potentially guests get in and you can have them arrive on the shore and you’d absolutely know you’re not going to get splashed!”

The Bike

Founder René Renger and co-designer Marcus Weidig have built a bike with a hole in the middle – Novus. It’s a handcrafted, limited series full carbon fibre motorbike and it launched at the MYS. Explains Renger, “When you get on a Novus bike you feel like you’re James Bond in the next James Bond movie. This is the only light bike on the market. It’s a ride into the future.” The battery powered motorbike goes from 0-50 km/hr in 1.9 seconds, weighs 103kg, has a range of 150km and a maximum speed of 125km/hr. “It’s sustainable luxury,” explains Renger. “It’s super light, weighing 50% less than a comparable performing motorbike.” The idea for Novus sprang from E bikes and electrified motor cycles, “but neither of them were very inspiring and we wanted to create  for the future using electricity.”

Novus sold two bikes at the MYS but, says Renger, “More importantly, we connected with the yacht charter companies and they are all very interested. Monaco is, anyway, a very special place for us; it is moving towards sustainable mobility and we offer the first premium electric light bike that can be the perfect tool for crowded city commute.”

The Beast

The limited edition (15) bonkers-big, Brabus 900 Crawler was sold out on the last day of the MYS. The off-street supercar was built to celebrate the company’s 45th anniversary – the ultimate off-road racer that is strictly not for street driving.

“If you’re looking for an exciting ride, this is it,” suggests Brabus’ Dirk Möller: “It’s a super-special professional off-road vehicle for the desert or forest, and for competition or family use,” he explains. The Brabus 900 Rocket V8 twin-turbo rockets from 0-100km in 3.4 seconds. Bumper fun for everyone.