Former Onassis' yacht inspires Four Seasons Yacht design

   September 30, 2022 ,   Cruise Industry

The exterior design of two cruise superyachts that Four Seasons Yachts is due to operate seems to have been inspired by a yacht that belonged to the Greek shipping tycoon, Aristotle Onassis (1906-1975).

In 1954, he acquired the frigate HMCS Stormont which had been built in Canada in 1943 and converted her into a luxury yacht that he named after her daughter Christina.

Onassis owned the 99-meter, 2550-ton vessel until his death and entertained a range of celebrities onboard with his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, former wife of President John F. Kennedy.

The 2 units of the Toronto Canada-based Four Seasons Yachts (subsidiary of Four Seasons Hotels Ltd) will be larger with a length of 207 meters but the lines of the newbuilds that are on order from Fincantieri Italy bear a resemblance to the former Onassis' yacht, which currently remains in service as Christina O.

The structure housing the funnel suite onboard the Four Seasons ships was shaped to resemble the funnel of Christina Onassis. A mast with sitcom equipment and the stern deck with swimming pools are another similarity with the famous older ship.

Four Seasons yacht

In a statement, Four Seasons said that globally renowned design partners had been engaged including Tillberg Design of Sweden as the lead architect responsible for the design of exterior/guest suites and London-based Martin Brudnizki Design Studio for the design of a lot of the ship’s public areas. The design partners will be paired with the direction of Prosper Assouline.