The Accor group can count on a major boost to accelerate the development of the emblematic Orient Express brand: LVMH. The world leader in luxury goods has just joined forces with the revival of this mythical name the world of travel, relaunched by the French hotelier with the creation of prestige hotels, a new generation of luxury trains and ultra VIP yachts, christened Orient Express Silentseas.
Already underway, this renaissance will result in the opening of the first two hotels in Rome and Venice in the coming years, the launch in 2026 of the first sailing yacht, currently under construction at Chantiers de l'Atlantique, and the launch of Dolce Vita trains in Italy in 2025. Before rewriting history of the Orient Express on the Paris-Istanbul line, using original carriages redesigned by the architect Maxime d'Angeac.
To go even further, LVMH has signed an agreement with Accor a strategic investment - the amount of which has not been disclosed - in the Orient Express brand, the company operating the future hotels and trains, and in the entity owning the two sailing yachts. For this last activity, a third partner is also being sought in parallel. " Today, with LVMH, Orient Express is opening a new chapter in this wonderful adventure, with the ambition of exploring new horizons and embodying the boldness and creative passion that drive us".said Sébastien Bazin, CEO of the Accor group, while Bernard Arnault, the head of LVMH, assured us that ". each of our groups will bring the best of its know-how to bear to take Orient Express to the pinnacle of the art of entertaining" .
In addition to financial resources, LVMH brings its unique expertise in high-quality products and services, particularly in the world of travel. LVMH also has a similar offer since the acquisition in 2018 of the Belmond group, which includes luxury trains, notably the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express and the Royal Scotsman, and around thirty of the world's most luxurious hotels, such as the Cipriani in Venice and the Copacabana Palace in Rio. Until 2014, the Belmond group was known as... Orient Express! It had a long-term licensing agreement with the SNCF, before the railway company took over its rights, turns to Accor in 2017 to relaunch the brand, which will be definitively acquired by the French hotelier in 2022.
Will Orient Express accelerate its development by bringing back hotels that once bore this prestigious label? Clearly not, since according to Accor's communication, " the two groups will continue to develop their respective brands, the two entities being managed independently" . More than looking to the past, LVMH and Accor are together looking to the future. To new horizons of luxury.
