Last year, Oceania Cruises unveiled its top tier of accommodations, the Owner’s Suites, with furnishings by Ralph Lauren Home. The designer Trevor R. Howells, a former RL Home director, wanted to give passengers the sense that they were boarding “the most luxurious personal yacht, perhaps owned by Mr. Lauren himself,” he says. From the glamour shot of Audrey Hepburn in sailor stripes to the American-flag fabric gracing the decks, the suites reflect Lauren’s well-known love of travel, Old Hollywood, and the good life.
There are three per ship, at more than 2,000 square feet each. They offer a stark contrast to the, shall we say, intimate charms of typical cabins. Guests can enjoy a gemstone-embedded foyer, floor-to-ceiling windows draped with sail fabric, and an ebony grand piano that will play Debussy if you ask it nicely. The Mayfair dining table comfortably seats six. The Cote D’Azur king bed could easily double as a life raft. And the quartzite bar offers ample elbow room for shaking Vesper martinis or sampling a bottle of Sassicaia, which the sommelier at Toscana (deck 14, reservations only) will personally select for you. Your butler would be happy to help with that as well.
What seals the deal, though, is the private deck: a wrap-around teak veranda, large enough for four passengers to each have a bit of privacy. Have your book and cocktail brought to you by a trusted hand. (The Riviera’s suites were unveiled last April; a renovated Marina hits the waves with upgraded Owner’s Suites in spring 2020.)
