When the Rolex Yacht Prestige II was first introduced, the combination of its complete precious metal construction and the extraordinary engineering within the movement meant that it was the most expensive item in the Rolex catalog. It was one of the most expensive products in the Rolex catalog. This turned off many admirers, but the introduction of stainless steel and two-tone replica watches soon opened the doors to the Yacht Prestige II to a wider range of buyers.
The 2011 Rolesor model sacrificed some of its full wall of gold for 904L stainless steel and more or less cut the asking price in half, while the all-steel version retailed for a further reduction. The visual appeal of the Rolex Yachtsman II is a love/hate relationship, which means it hasn’t caused the same general frenzy as the Daytona or Submariner. It’s not entirely impossible for authorized retailers to even have one or two models in stock, something that’s not possible for the vast majority of the brand’s other sports watches. For this reason, used watch models do carry a premium, but nowhere near as much as some of the other models in the brand’s catalog.
The Yacht Prestige II is a busy watch with a lot of information to present, and as a result, its dial initially looks a bit cluttered. However, this is due in large part to the 1-10 numerals on the bezel that mirror the horseshoe-shaped track on the face. This is clearly a countdown scale for regattas, designed to help yacht captains synchronize the movement of their boats with the starting gun of the race.
Despite containing only four models, the collection actually covers a good range of tastes. Stand out in the race with the model number 116688, arguably the flashiest Rolex standard available, with an all yellow gold case that makes the bright blue bezel stand out. At the other end of the spectrum, the white gold and platinum Ref. 116689 is as understated and reserved as a 44mm wide, 14mm thick, highly complex solid gold sports watch can be. Only the red chronograph hands and the arrow-style hands give this virtual monochrome a boost.
In between, the stainless steel and Everose Rolesor models do the job of appealing to more middle-of-the-road tastes. Their color combination, along with the mix of brushed and polished elements of the replica watch itself, keeps it on the right side of the excess, and the bezel numerals of the two-tone model are also filled in Everose gold, a nice touch. No version of the Rolex Yacht Prestige II can be described as subtle and is guaranteed to receive some attention.