First it was Ritz-Carlton. Now hotel groups Four Seasons and Orient Express are joining the race to have the most luxurious and personal yachts at sea.
It’s a story that’s been simmering for years, with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s latest ship, Luminaria joining two other 450-guest ships in 2025. Four Seasons 1 is finally launching in March 2026, while Orient Express Corinthian, an offshoot of the Accor Group’s luxury hotel brand, is making its inaugural sailing in October. Both new entrants are already building their second yachts and unveiling plans for 2027 sailings.
The Four Seasons I debut is later than scheduled. Resets have been part of the story since Four Seasons announced the yacht design in 2022. Four Seasons 1 was expected to hit the waves in 2025 but that shifted to a Caribbean season starting in January, 2026. But now the official inaugural March 20-29 will be the start of a spring Mediterranean season.
Four Seasons I is a 679-foot mega yacht with 95 suites and 11 restaurant and bar concepts situated among 14 decks. The sleek vessel has a 220-person guest capacity, along with a 210-person staff, making for a nearly 1:1 guest/staff ratio. (For comparison, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ship, hosts 7,600 passengers and 2,350 crew members.)
With a cost to build of $4.2-million per suite, Four Seasons boasts “no expense is being spared in terms of the remarkable custom design. “The first Four Seasons Yacht will offer nearly 50 per cent more living space per guest than currently available, offering ultimate privacy, flexibility and spaciousness in an all-suite nautical residential setting,” builder Marc-Henry Cruise Holdings says. And that’s reflected in the brochure fares, which can range from approximately $24,000 to over $44,000 per suite for a seven-night cruise.
Orient Express Corinthian
In 2018, STX France revealed a carbon-free cruise vessel design trademarked Silenseas that uses wind as the main power source. The technology was first tested on Ponant’s yacht Le Ponant, which replaced one its existing sails with a new carbon-fiber mast that can unfurl 16,000 square feet of sail. On the Orient Express Sailing Yachts ship, three masts have the capacity to provide up to 100 per cent of propulsion from wind, but there are also modern high-tech engines.
The 54 staterooms on Orient Express Corinthian are all outside, for a maximum passenger capacity of 130, with 170 crew and staff) The largest accommodation is the Presidential Suite which is 9,526 square feet in size, with a private 5,700 square foot sundeck. A total of 48 cabins are situated on decks 4-5-6, and 6 premium suites are on deck 7. All feature panoramic bay windows and interior design based on premium wood, natural leather, and marble crafted by selected artisans.
The Corinthian’s journey begins with a 14-night wellness-focused transatlantic crossing from Lisbon to Barbados, and from there, the experience is tightly curated around gastronomy, culture, and nature. Chef Yannick Alléno oversees all culinary offerings onboard, including five restaurants and private dining spaces. Meanwhile, onshore excursions focus on local food and nature experiences.
From Barbados, the ship will operate mostly two to nine-night roundtrip itineraries through March 2027, visiting St Barths, Moskito Island (BVI), the Exumas (Bahamas), and Tobago Cays (Grenadines).
Looking ahead
In May, Marc-Henry Cruise Holdings ordered a second Four Seasons yacht, with inaugural sailings planned for 2028. That again was a year later than initially announced.
Four Seasons Yachts is preparing for its second Mediterranean season in 2027, unveiling 33 voyages and more than 40 compelling new ports of call. Each itinerary has been designed to guide guests to both iconic shores and lesser-known locales—including the introduction of Egypt to the destination list. The 2027 season marks an evolution of the Mediterranean offering for Four Seasons Yachts, with no repeated itineraries from the inaugural year. . Each itinerary features strategic overnights, allowing travellers to venture further into Egypt and experience the Valley of the Kings and the Pyramids of Giza.
Meanwhile, Orient Express has started construction of its second ship with the keel-laying ceremony for the Orient Express Olympian. The event took place at the Saint-Nazaire shipyard in France marking a milestone on the way to delivery scheduled for the spring of 2027.
Story by Wallace Immen, The Cruisington Times
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