Happy Haute New Year

Luxury yachts make waves in St. Barts as Texas high rollers like Jerry Jonesring in the New Year

Business mogul Ron Perelman's super yacht C2 is among the 200-foot and largerbeauties anchoring at St. Barts.
Photo by Shelby Hodge
Gustavia Harbor, St. Barts, is where you'll find a cast of super stars andsuper-yachts for New Year's.
Wikipedia
Sight-seeing along the Gustavia harbor is a rich diversion.
Photo by Shelby Hodge
The 190-foot Lady Sheridan is among the super-yachts anchored at St. Barts forthe holidays.
Northrop & Johnson
The super yachts lined up like lavish ducks in a row in the harbor at Gustavia,St. Barts' capital.
Photo by Shelby Hodge
Roman Abramovich's 538-foot Eclipse, currently anchored at St. Barts, isconsidered the largest private yacht in the world.
Photo by DCwom/Wikipedia
Hundreds of sailboats pack the St. Barts waters during the holidays.
Photo by Shelby Hodge
Gustavia is the social center of St. Barts winter fun.
Photo by Shelby Hodge
Paul Allen's 271-foot Tatoosh is another of the super-yachts decorating St.Barts waters.
Photo by Oxam Hartog/Wikipedia

The countdown to 2013 began in St. Barts several days ago, when the gilded swans of the sea began gliding in, anchoring in the azure waters of Gustavia Bay.

On the eve of New Year's Eve, the local yacht registry recorded 130 vessels, 17 of those in the super-yacht category (measuring 200 feet or more in length). And a handful of Texans were floating along with the best of them.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones anchored in aboard the 290-foot Nirvana (for sale for $300 million and change), his arrival later than most due to the Sunday night Cowboys game against the Redskins. The tariff for a week on that floating behemoth will set you back a cool 1 million euro.

Jerry Jones anchored in aboard the 290-foot Nirvana (for sale for $300 million and change), his arrival later than most due to the Sunday night Cowboys game against the Redskins.

Anchored in the midst of this luxury flotilla was the Lady Sheridan, the swank, 190-foot yacht belonging to Sheridan and John Eddie Williams, Texas tobacco attorney. Plains Exploration CEO Jim Flores, wife Cherie and their children spent the holiday aboard one of the sleek charters, while Dallas automobile mogul Ken Schnitzer, his family and a few Texas friends sailed in on another.

The show dog in this exclusive fraternity of the super rich was Eclipse, the 538-foot monster owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich. The world's largest private yacht and its owner were the focus of the paparazzi who invaded for the holidays, hoping to capture his image as well as that of other stars that dropped in for his legendary New Year's Eve bash.

In recent years, Abramovich has brought in entertainment, including Beyoncé and Jay Z, Gwen Stefani, Kanye West and the Black Eyed Peas. This year, the Kings of Leon were in St. Barts to headline the energy czar's party, considered the hottest New Year's Eve ticket on the planet. Only 400 of the super celebs, trust fund babies and business moguls anchoring across St. Barts were invited, and security was tight, tight, tight.

Nothing was too extravagant for this crowd. One yacht owner had the chef from Nirvana bring in fresh truffles from Europe. On the Maltese Falcon, a 289-foot sailing yacht, a lower sail was raised Sunday night for a giant-sized airing of the Cowboys game, giving the appearance of a drive-in movie.

While their captains kept a lid on who chartered which boat, you can bet that there were superstars bunking in the super-yachts. Among the 17 biggies at anchor were Tatoosh, Microsoft mogul Paul Allen's 271-foot playpen; the 313-foot Limitless, owned by The Limited founder Leslie Wexler; and business magnate Ron Perelman's 261-foot C2.

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Hottest Headlines of 2025

Dallas readers RSVP'd 'yes' to the top 10 society stories of 2025

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Marissa Phillips, Braden Leschber wedding, Tuscany

Photo by Kseniya Palchi via Facebook/Marissa Phillips and People magazine.

Marissa Phillips and Braden Leschber wed on June 3, 2025 in Italy.

Editor's note: As we look back at the most-read society stories of 2025, we see that the love for America's Sweethearts — and their weddings — has not wained. Readers delighted in knowing all the details about two Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' nuptials, as well as the myriad events surrounding the debut of the newest Dallas debutantes. Of course, all the celebrities who showed their support for worthy causes at glamorous gala after lavish luncheon were a big hit, too.

Here are the 10 hottest society stories of 2025 in Dallas:

1. Dallas opening of NY Mediterranean restaurant Avra draws society set. An unusually high-wattage crowd of more than 500 turned out on September 18 for the VIP opening of Avra Estiatorio, a Mediterranean restaurant concept founded in New York by restaurateurs Nick Tsoulos and Nick Pashalis, who were inspired by seaside tavernas across Greece.

2. Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders star marries sweetheart on New Year's Eve. A Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders alum whose proposal was featured on the Netflix series America's Sweethearts married her own sweetheart on New Year's Eve: Kelcey Wetterberg wed Nate Crnkovich in a dreamy, two-day affair on December 30 and 31, 2024, in their hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

Kelcey Wetterberg, Nate Crnkovich, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders wedding Kelcey Wetterberg and Nate Crnkovich were married in a two-day extravaganza, December 30 and 31, 2024. Photo by DGass Photography via People magazine.

3. 42 new Dallas Symphony debutantes begin 2026 Presentation Ball prep. The end of the school year brought the beginning of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League debutante year for 42 local young women. Just a few months after last year's DSOL debs "Texas dipped" into society (and raised big bucks for the symphony), the organization introduced a new class during Announcement Weekend festivities in Dallas.

4. Christie Brinkley helps bid farewell to beloved Dallas awards luncheon. After nearly three decades of honoring extraordinary leaders and uplifting survivors, The Family Place brought the curtain down on the Texas Trailblazer Awards Luncheon October 10 at The Fairmont Dallas. Keynote speaker Christie Brinkley proved that resilience and charm never go out of style.

The Family Place Texas Trailblazer Awards 2025 Christie Brinkley, Gloria Campos. Photo by Tamytha Cameron

5. Dallas Cowboys cheerleader ties the knot in dreamy wedding in Tuscany. Dallas Cowboys cheerleader Marissa Phillips married her college sweetheart, Braden Leschber, in a picture-perfect wedding under the Tuscan sun of Italy on June 3, 2025.

6. Ultimate guide to Dallas' best black-tie balls and bashes of fall 2025. Dallas was in for a star-studded social season this fall. Music legends, Broadway luminaries, and A-list actors all walked red carpets, presented awards, and delivered keynote addresses at the city's most glamorous galas and lavish luncheons.

7. Dallas Cattle Baron’s Ball '25 fires on all cylinders with Post Malone. A weekend deluge tried its best to bring the 2025 Dallas Cattle Baron’s Ball to a screeching halt. But co-chairs Nina Sachse, Courtney Derderian, and their pit crew of hundreds had been working with the theme “All Cylinders” for over a year. Rain didn't dare slow them down.

Post Malone, Cattle Baron's Ball 2025 Post Malone performed at Cattle Baron's Ball. Photo by Adam Degross

8. Charitable chefs orchestrate fundraising feast for Dallas nonprofit KidLinks. Dallas music therapy nonprofit KidLinks annually composes a foodie-fundraiser unlike any other: Symphony of Chefs sees an impressive ensemble of Dallas chefs prepare a multi-course meal, tableside, for guests. The 15th annual edition took place at the new Astoria Event Venue on Monday, February 24.

9. Dallas Crystal Charity Ball 2025 takes elegant expedition to South of France. Attendees of the 2025 Crystal Charity Ball were promised an Expedition d’ Elegance, and indeed, Dallas’ grand dame gala delivered a night of globe-trotting glamour. Doormen in white tie and top hats greeted 1,540 guests as they strolled into the Hilton Anatole on Saturday, December 6.

Crystal Charity Ball 2025 Laura Pierson (in Lela Rose), Francis Harrison (in St. John) Julianne Santarosa (in Terry John), Bailey Harrison (in Sue Gragg), Sharon Lee Clark (in Ese Azenabor), Caroline Harrison (in Sue Gragg) Photo by Ashley Gongora

10. Dreamy DIFFA Dallas gala invites glammed-up guests into surreal soiree. We're always in favor of a gala where you can turn up wearing pajamas, but when that gala is House of DIFFA, those PJs had better be glam. The 2025 theme combined the eerie with the ethereal: Dreamstate, which DIFFA described as "a surreal realm where the power of dreams fuels transformation and fantasy gives way to fearless impact."