De Jorio Design Swiss: they are the epitome of stylish and innovative interior design
Born in 1956 as Studio De Jorio, DJDI was initially led by its founder Giuseppe de Jorio, the architect who was at the cradle of the development of the modern concept of cruise ships starting in Italy and spreading throughout the world. In 1961 Giuseppe de Jorio was selected by Lloyd Triestino as interior architect for their new liner Guglielmo Marconi, his first important project in the passenger shipping industry.
A long list of cruise ships, ferries, luxury yachts and even naval vessels as well as residential projects would follow (see bottom of this page for an overview). Some of the notable projects the firm has worked on over the past three decades include ferries for Grande Navi Veloci, Tirrenia Ferries, Minoan Lines and Grimaldi Holdings, as well as cruise vessels for major brands like Costa Cruises, Princess Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys.
In the 1990’s both his sons Marco (the present CEO) and Vittorio joined the Studio.
Since 1956 until today, ten generations of architects and designers were trained and subsequently worked at de Jorio.
The firm has restructured twice during the last decade: in 2019 De Jorio Luxury & Yacht Projects was formed while in 2022 De Jorio Design Swiss S.A. started life.
Today, De Jorio group, based in Lugano, Switzerland, international firm of creativity, design and architecture as well as technical consultancy ranks among the most successful and innovative in these fields.
Strongly focused on research and innovation , De Jorio Design Swiss remains one of the world’s leading companies with designs based on one of the richest cultures in the world, the Italian one while combining this with refined dualism of Italian and Swiss design.
When the present CEO Marco de Jorio first boarded a wooden motor yacht as a young boy, it started a passion for shipbuilding and design leading him to obtain an academic degree at the Universities of Architecture in Genoa and Rome in 1986, and subsequently contributing his knowledge and expertise to Studio De Jorio, a firm then owned by his father, the renowned cruise ship architect Giuseppe de Jorio. He quickly became a highly skilled and respected designer creating elegant and timeless interiors and, in 2000, he established De Jorio Design International together with his father and his brother, Vittorio de Jorio. His interest in designing ships started with yacht interior design , the first being the 65-metre-long El Bravo motor yacht which was soon followed Costa Line’s Enrico C cruise ship.
However, during the 1980’s, he noticed a few key companies, mainly based in the USA, dominated the cruise interior design industry resulting in a questionable rise in ‘Las Vegas style’ and glitz onboard many ships. The De Jorio studio however ignored these obvious trends and just kept concentrating on creating designs that prioritised elegance, luxury and pure Italian style.
The invention of public ‘urban’ spaces on board, like the piazzetta and the shopping gallery, that were introduced in the refitting of Costa Riviera in the middle 80s has represented a turning point in cruiseship design. Nowadays, we cannot imagine passenger ships without these facilities.
Later, the 2000s marked the return of pure, stylish, contemporary interior design on cruiseships with De Jorio being the leading design studio having been faithful to this interior design style since the 1990’s.
As today’s mass-market family-oriented mega-cruiseships as well as the growing diversification within the cruise industry (shown by emerging brands offering everything from ultra-luxury cruising on large vessels and intimate yachts to expedition cruise ships) result in multiple types of entertainment, food and beverage options and other onboard services, their basic-design had to be reinvented and tailored to these different cruise branches needs to ensure they satisfied the demands of their discerning guests onboard.
Also, over the years design preferences have continued to change too, with ship interiors being increasingly inspired by land-based resorts, hotels and residences.
Of course De Jorio design Swiss maintains good relationships with shipyards, contractors, suppliers and other stakeholders in the passenger shipping industry, keeping their network up to date. Examples hereof are shipyards Fincantieri, T. Mariotti, Sanlorenzo and Chantiers de l’Atlantique, but also with all of their suppliers e.g. furniture brands like Paolo Castelli, Molteni and Minotti. to name just a few.
Over the years, cruiseships have become De Jorio Design Swiss’ major field of activity. The adventure started with the great designs of its founder, Giuseppe De Jorio but since then the cruise industry has grown considerably in complexity.
Nowadays, the cruising experience is more focused on the journey itself with the ship being the destination rather than the regions visited (exceptions being expedition cruises, of course) and architects need to concentrate their abilities not only to make life onboard as actively engaging while at the same time comfortable as possible.
De Jorio design Swiss offers its clients a wide range of services.
It starts with supporting the client with the idea development, the general arrangement (GA-) plans, negotiations withe the builders yard, cost planning etc., followed by helping the client finalize the contract after all aspects of the (design) project have been defined.
The next step is to draft the concept plan, concerning the atmosphere, the character of the public spaces (cabins, halls, pool, theater, restaurant etc.) onboard the newbuilding together with the client. Apart from the design of spaces De Jorio design Swiss team is involved all the way through the final implementation of a project, not only supervising the shipyard during the construction phase of the ship but also suppliers in the creation of prototypes.
But De Jorio studio does more, 3D and 4D virtual experts give clients the opportunity to experience their project before realisation by taking a virtual tour in one of the cabins, or any other public space. This helps them assessing their ideas before the building phase of the project. There is even a dedicated architect who is an expert in new and existing materials. Each sample is archived, according to project, space and client and of course customer scan choose finishes from an impressive archive.
Not only interior design is the field of expertise of the company, de Jorio design Swiss can deliver the design of an entire ship, interiors as well as exteriors which they have proven when Explora I of Explora Journeys was delivered in 2023.
Finally, the designers of the company also often design interior decoration and specific individual elements of the ship themselves, such as furniture and lighting as well as signage with selection of art as an additional service.
De Jorio Design never fails to accomplish superior designs showing elegance and style which is the company’s trademark as it has always been during its existence since 1956.
Portfolio cruiseships
1961 Guglielmo Marconi, 1964/65 Roma – Angelina Lauro – Achille Lauro
1975/80 Carla C. – Federico C.
1985 Costa Riviera, 1986 Ausonia, 1987 Eugenio Costa, 1988/89 Costa Romantica – Costa Classica
1990 Enrico Costa – Eugenio Costa – Costa Marina, 1991 Costa Allegra, 1995 Sun Princess
1996 Minerva, 1997, Dawn Princess, 1998 Disney Magic
2003 MSC Lirica, 2004 MSC Opera, 2006 MSC Musica, 2007 MSC Orchestra, 2008 MSC Poesia – MSC Fantasia
2009 MSC Splendida, 2010 MSC Magnifica
2012 MSC Divina, 2013 MSC Preziosa, 2017 MSC Meraviglia – MSC Seaside, 2018 MSC Seaview
2019 MSC Bellissima – MSC Grandiosa
2020 MSC Virtuosa, 2021 MSC Seashore, 2022 MSC World Europa, 2023 MSC Seascape
2023 Explora I, 2023 MSC Euribia, 2024 Explora II, 2024 MSC World America
