If you were creating a spaceship to explore distant planets, you’d want it to be designed by people who build cruise ships. They’re self-sufficient floating worlds that imaginative designers create as unique, welcoming environments. In an ongoing series, The Cruisington Times takes a deep dive behind the scenes of innovative ship design. This is part one; click here for the rest of the story.
Story by Wallace Immen
In a bathroom, three guys are standing in a shower–each trying to grab a towel.
In a public room, a team of designers is brainstorming ways to turn a staircase into a chandelier.
And yet another team is sketching ways to pay homage to Michaelangelo on the ceiling of a lounge.
These are just few of the daily challenges designers wrestle with behind the scenes to create a memorable new cruise ship. And who better to explain the intricate process than Yohandel Ruiz, founding partner of ship design company Studio Dado, that’s become the go-to firm for cutting edge ships from Regent Seven Seven Seas, and its sister fleets Oceania Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line.
“Feeling like you’re in a home, only better is the goal. If we get right, it leads to a seamless experience,” Ruiz said in an exclusive interview with The Cruisington Times as the Studio’s designers were in the midst of creating what they aim to be the most awe-inspiring ship yet—the Seven Seas Prestige. It‘s the first of a trail-blazing new class of ships from Regent Seven Seas Cruises, which boasts it has “the world’s most luxurious fleet.”
What makes designing a cruise ship different from a building on land?
The main difference is a cruise ship is a moving object. There are forces and stresses that you don’t have on a land-based project, so we have to put the engineering first while creating innovative designs. Months and months of design thinking and testing are behind every detail.
Guests don’t realize the level of care and precision we have to get into. It’s not just about how comfortable a chair feels; it’s solving how a door will close so that it doesn’t rattle, or ensuring a light fixture that weighs half a ton in the atrium doesn’t don’t sway or vibrate.
We work with a large range of suppliers and subcontractors on every stage of planning and construction and there are teams of specialists in areas like lighting, entertainment equipment and acoustics who work together to create designs that function perfectly but are also attractive for guests. We get to work with some of the most amazing and advanced thinkers located in every corner of the planet, and that makes it great fun.
Prestige is a new class of ship for Regent Seven Seas. Have you started with a clean slate?
Yes, this is a completely new platform for us. It’s going to carry 830 guests and the layout of the ship is more spacious than anything Regent has built before. The Grand Atrium is going to be larger than any we’ve done, with a monumental staircase that spans nine decks topped by a skylight that will allow a lot of light to filter in. And while on other Regent ships the elevator area is enclosed, on Seven Seas Prestige it’s all in the open.
A lot of the restaurants are being shifted to the upper decks, so they can take advantage of better views and sightlines. Signature restaurants like Pacific Rim and Compass Rose and bars are going to have amazing views and floor to ceiling glazing with a lot of natural light.
The suites have all grown in size and there are new two-story suites. The Sky View suite is something we’re really proud of; it’s larger than anything we’ve ever designed at sea, literally three times the size of my home. Covering 3,700 square feet of space over two levels, it has an interior lift and grand staircase and the second floor is a master suite with a gym and bathrooms and his and hers walk-in closets. The outdoor space is really impressive and expansive as well.
What were your inspirations?
The studio’s slogan is Design that stops you in your tracks. A central focus was to honor the heritage of the line that’s known for service and attention to detail. And the feel everywhere is designed to be timeless and contemporary at the same time.
We wanted the design to be rooted in the beauty of the Renaissance, a time when the smallest details mattered. We drew inspiration from the Great Masters and so we travelled to Italy a great bit. It was a magical inspiration for many of our designs.
We said this ship should really be about artistry and craftsmanship. So in everything from the reception desk to the suites to the restaurants there’s master craftsmanship, be it leather work or carpentry or art in the restaurants custom designed furniture for restaurants. It’s not just about first impressions, but about continual discovery. As guests live in the space, they’ll start to discover all the artisanal elements of things being carved or woven by hand or and that speaks to luxury. The goal was to amplify the design and add value.
We have innumerable specialists to working on projects. Whether its hand-painted lacquered finishes for cabinetry or a special type of pleated fabric custom made for a headboard that had to be worked by hand, artisanship is going to separate this vessel from the rest.
And every design has to be not only beautiful; but function flawlessly. We set up mock-ups of our designs and we’re really nitpicky. Insights can be as simple as if only we had one more inch, we could fit an extra bottle on this shelf. Trying out options, you get to see the optimal location for the shaving footrail in the shower and the natural place for hooks so it’s easy to reach for the towel.
That’s why the three designers had to hit the shower?
They tested the designs to make sure that you don’t have to step outside the shower to get your towel and wet the bathroom floor. Little details like that define the luxury experience. Guests won’t notice that the towel is in the right place; it just feels comfortable.
And luxury is not just about comfort, but being surrounded by beautiful things we can admire and celebrate. Regent goes to every corner of the world and if we can bring some things that are unique experiences through the design it’s something we’re trying to achieve.
“We always aim to impress guests enough that they go home and tell their friends you’ve got to see this new ship, and experience the restaurants. If we do that, then we’ve done our job.”
The 822-passenger Seven Seas Prestige will be the line’s first new ship since the Seven Seas Grandeur debuted in 2023. Its inaugural season begins in December 2026 for sailings from Miami, Panama City and Los Angeles. See how it’s all coming to life in part two of our inside look at Seven Seas Prestige.
Story by Wallace Immen. The Cruisington Times
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