The Orient Express Is Going To Cruise On The Largest Sailing Yacht In The World
The Orient Express is now setting sail officially. The Orient Express is not just a train anymore, but a full-blown luxury hospitality firm within the Accor group.
A revival of the historic train is expected to launch in 2025. However, the team is working on launching Orient Express hotels in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Paris, and Rome. And the firm has declared its next project: cruising on what Accor mentions is going to be the largest sailing yacht in the world.
The luxurious 722-foot Orient Express Silenseas will have 54 suites (including a presidential suite that spans 15,200 square feet and a terrace that spans 5,700 square feet), two pools, an oyster bar, two restaurants, a theatre, a private recording studio, and a speakeasy.
The yacht will be the first of two built for the Orient Express by Chantiers de l’Atlantique, a luxury shipbuilder. Its interiors will be designed by Maxime d’Angeac to restore and updating the Orient Express carriages for the train revival of 2025.
For the vessel, d’Agneac draws inspiration from the French Riviera; Silenseas will sail the Mediterranean during the summer and the Caribbean in winter. Its exteriors, designed neatly by Stirling Design International, are heavily inspired by the 1930s streamlined modern movement, a branch of art deco.
While the vessel is expected to be the most excellent sailboat at sea, it’s aliasing to have a hybrid propulsion system that will initially operate on liquified natural gas (LNG) and then green hydrogen once the fuel is approved for commercial vessels.
The Orient Express Silenseas is scheduled to commence its operations in 2026, while the bookings are expected to go live by 2024.
References: Forbes, Travel And Leisure