It’s a dull, grey day in Rome, but as I step inside La Dolce Vita Orient Express‘s lounge, a dedicated space for passengers inside the city’s Ostiense Station, the gloom lifts. The glossy yellow ceiling creates a sense of sunlight flooding the room. Murano-glass tube lights line the walls in rhythmic rows, casting a golden glow. My bags vanish into the hands of a snappily dressed porter. As I settle into one of the burnt orange sofas, a kind server hands me a cappuccino in crisp porcelain adorned with the Orient Express emblem in blue. The journey has already begun – and that’s precisely the point.
The lounge is the first hint of the centrality of design to the latest venture from the French hospitality brand Accor, which has collaborated with the Italian luxury travel company Arsenale Group to revive the Orient Express, the storied train line that journeyed across Europe for 126 years before shuttering in 2009. La Dolce Vita Orient Express launched in April as the first of what will become a six-train fleet with 12 carriages that can carry 62 guests around Italy on one-, two-, and three-night journeys; my voyage will take me to Venice and Portofino. “What attracted me to this project was the idea of creating a journey while remaining still,” says Hugo Toro, the French-Mexican architect behind the lounge.
Immersive, emotionally resonant design is part of Orient Express‘s DNA, which was known for its opulent white-tablecloth dining carts and gilded carriages. The new-look train, by Milan-based Dimorestudio, is a glossy midnight blue that stands out among the commuter trains on the platform. It’s an homage to midcentury Italian glamour but attuned to the tastes of the creative directors, entrepreneurs, and celebrities who will ride it today. The rich velvets and considered patterns are both chic and comfortable. Nothing is overdone, but being on board feels like a special occasion. (There are no dress codes, but I did make a point to wear heels at dinner each night.) Every cabin, corridor, and common space has been meticulously reimagined by Dimorestudio’s Britt Moran and Emiliano Salci, known for their emotive layering in locations like London‘s famed Arts Club. Moments after I’ve boarded, I’m handed a glass of Franciacorta, which I sip in one of the bar car’s neat retro booths while taking in its diamond-shaped motifs and warm jewel tones. “It’s a place where geometry and atmosphere meet,” says Moran. “We imagined it as the setting for a quiet moment at sunset, with curved lines and sharp details guiding the eye like a stage.”
Like Toro, Moran and Salci embraced the brief while staying true to their own creative ethos. The bold patterns reference the Indiscreto screens they sell through Dimoremilano, their luxury furniture line. “Designing a train meant crafting a journey, not just a space,” says Salci. The snug corridors encourage passengers to mingle. At breakfast, I swap stories with a dapper gentleman at the table beside me; at night in the bar car, the Italian passengers cheerfully share the lyrics to “Tu Vuò Fa’ L’Americano” so I can join an impromptu sing-along. But the train’s design also invites us to admire the sights outside out the window – like the moment near Venice when the sprawling green of Veneto suddenly gives way to the Mediterranean.
The marriage of form and function reaches its peak in the cabins. Mine has undulating wood panelling, moody lighting, and a vanity so thoughtfully conceived it should be a design-school case study. There’s space for everything, from hair dryers to travel clutter, all of which can be tucked discreetly into custom cabinetry. “We approached functionality as part of the aesthetic, not as a compromise,” says Salci. “Every element had to contribute to the emotional and visual experience.”
Over 48 hours, I fill my camera roll with details: the glint of cutlery in the dining car, the angle of a light fixture catching the dusk. But what lingers afterward is the way the train has become a conduit for connection. “We weren’t just designing interiors,” Salci tells me. “We were building a moving world, a stage for personal stories.”
This article appeared in the September/October 2025 issue of Condé Nast Traveler. Subscribe to the magazine here.
Great Job Sarah Allard & the Team @ Condé Nast Traveler UK Source link for sharing this story.
