There’s no denying the fizz of expectation during the annual Cannes Film Festival. Over the years, thanks to my producer husband, I’ve trailed in the paparazzi popping wake of A-list stars up the red carpet and the hallowed steps of Le Palais. But this year I am in Cannes for a very different debut, as one of the first passengers to get a preview of Orient Express Sailing Yachts’ Corinthian.
Corinthian is not just any launch. Fresh from her maiden voyage from the shipyard Chantiers de l’Atlantique, in Saint-Nazaire, and at 720ft long, this is the world’s largest sailing yacht – a striking mash-up of super-yacht and traditional masted boat that puts all the other vessels cluttering the Bay of Cannes in the shade.
A new star in Cannes Harbour
Filling a gap somewhere between cruising and megabucks charters, superyacht-style voyaging is trending among luxury hotel groups and Orient Express Sailing Yachts – a partnership between French hotel brand Accor and luxury conglomerate LVMH – is betting big. Ritz Carlton launched a collection of yachts in 2022, Four Seasons Yachts’ Four Seasons I debuted in March, while Amangati by Aman at Sea takes to the water in 2027.
As I approached the boat on a tender from Cannes and rounded the bow, the sheer scale of Corinthian loomed. It’s even more impressive when you realise this is all for only 110 guests. Marella Cruises’ Marella Discovery 2 ship that has dropped anchor nearby is just 144ft longer with 918 cabins, 21 decks and 1,836 passengers.
Stepping onto the seven-deck Corinthian is like being swept into a fever dream of nautical extravagance, where reality is suspended. I am a yacht and cruise virgin, but within five minutes on board, I realise I am about to be spoilt for life.
With a second, almost identical yacht, Olympian, launching in April 2027, few rivals can lay claim to such a seam of inspiration to draw on thanks to the rich legacy of Orient-Express trains.
Entering the reception-cum-library spanning the width of the ship, a large, Art Deco-esque, tropical-style bas relief by Etienne Rayssac, a French sculptor, greets me.
This sets the tone for the rest of the ship. Overseen by Maxime d’Angeac, Orient Express’ creative director, who is also onboard, it’s a love letter to French craft and design. It leans into travel’s glamorous golden age with inspiration drawn from Orient-Express trains, Art Deco and the SS Normandie ocean liner, all distilled for more contemporary tastes.
An Art Deco fantasy
For the design, archives were pored over and an army of 2,000 artisans were called upon for every detail. With jewel-like tones, velvets, metres of exotic wood panelling, marble and marquetry, it rivals anything on dry land. Everything is bespoke – I covet the silver puffer fish cocktail stick holders that sit on the bars. Perhaps, most importantly, it can all only be experienced if you are a passenger.
Spread over three decks, the 54 suites – the most exclusive of which are the penthouse suites on the seventh deck, some larger than your average semi – are looked after by a staff of 170.
Despite being the smallest on board, my airy Suite Panoramique with its aubergine and burnt ochre tones, rivals any uber-luxurious hotel room I’ve stayed in. There’s rope cornicing detail on the ceiling, a Calacatta marble bathroom, oak floors and mahogany panelling. But my favourite feature is the two daybeds below the large picture window, a clever solution to no balcony, which proves the perfect spot to read or doze to the gentle rock of the waves.
Michelin-level dining at sea
You’ll also find five restaurants and eight bars on board. La Table de l’Orient Express by Yannick Alléno – one of France’s most Michelin-garlanded chefs – is the top table. With room for just 24 diners and a captain’s table, its dark, rippled glass walls have been designed to mimic moonshine hitting waves.
Meanwhile La Terrasse, with its Deco-inspired double staircase, is where breakfast, lunch and dinner are served either inside or al fresco. There are the likes of cacio e pepe pasta, salad Niçoise and club sandwiches for lunch, while dinner is a white tablecloth affair with turbot fillet and roast rack of lamb. After dinner, I seek out the hidden door in the barber shop to find Le Speakeasy, a low-lit, late-night bar with a pianist tinkling out jazzy numbers to accompany my nightcap.
There are also private dining rooms such as La Perle, with its hand-embroidered walls, which guests can book exclusively. But my favourite is lunch at L’Ecrin: I perch around the shell-shaped bar, as the chefs handed over a procession of dishes such as scallop tartare, oysters and caviar with blinis.
As you would expect, on board activities say more stealth wealth than slot machines. The large – by any land standards – Le SPA by Guerlain offers massages and treatments (for an extra charge), a gym and studio with a daily schedule of Pilates, yoga and relaxation. Sébastien Bazin, Accor’s CEO & chairman, confides that one of his favourite parts of the boat is its marble-clad, Moorish/Roman-style thermal suite and it’s hard to disagree.
Elsewhere there’s a pool with sun loungers, more loungers on Le Flybridge (an open-air sun lounge on deck seven), a canyon-like lap pool and an extendable water sports platform with a floating pool. There’s also a cinema, a theatre for cabaret-style evenings, music studio, games room, a children’s club and La Bibliothèque with curated shelves of more than 1,500 books.
Under full sail in the Mediterranean
The following morning, sails deployed, I experience the open sea splicing through the glistering Mediterranean along the Riviera coastline, the snow-dusted peaks of the Alps in the distance.
The cutting-edge SolidSail technology means the yacht can be propelled by wind as well as its state-of-the-art engine. Craning my neck from Le Flybridge, huge 325ft sails resemble a trio of smaller boats tilting into the wind, white sails piercing the deep sapphire of a cloudless sky.
The first individual passengers will be able to experience life at sea Corinthian-style from July 19 courtesy of a three-night journey from Marseille to Rome.
Given its heritage, Orient Express could slap its label on almost anything and it would attract an audience. But just like the trains, Corinthian offers something more ephemeral, a rarefied experience that brings the romance back to travel along with some serious bragging rights. For the lucky ones who can afford it, Corinthian is pulling ahead on its wind-powered wave of opulent nostalgia.
Aoife O’Riordain was a guest of Orient Express Sailing Yachts (020 8163 9430; orient-express.com). A two-night Monaco to Marseille itinerary departing on October 3, 2026, costs from £11,225 per suite on an all-inclusive basis.