The idea of taking ordinary people beneath the surface is older than most realise. 

The first true passenger submarine arrived in 1964, when Jacques Piccard unveiled the Mésoscaphe PX-8 for the national exhibition in Lausanne. 

For months it carried visitors into the depths of Lake Geneva, giving thousands their first glimpse of an underwater world normally reserved for scientists and explorers. It proved that a submersible could be safe, comfortable, and genuinely entertaining, long before modern tourism got involved.

The following decades saw the business evolve with the typical “cigar-shaped” tourist submarine many people recognise today.

From the Caribbean to the Pacific, these steel-hulled workhorses took groups of up to fifty passengers down several times a day, often year-round.

They were engineered to strict standards, maintained with care, and built to keep diving almost without pause. Most of them have completed thousands of dives with a flawless safety record.

Now many of these submarines have reached the end of their original routes. Yet the heart of what made them reliable remains: a proven, classed pressure hull designed for serious underwater work. 

Their commercial story may be ending, but their potential is far from spent. They are waiting for a new purpose, and the next chapter could be far more imaginative than the last.

SUB71 is inviting imaginative industrial designers, naval architects, and marine engineers to come up with new ideas.

Think of them as open canvases waiting for original ideas.

How might cutting-edge design meet new underwater experiences?

Possibilities include:
🛏️ An intimate underwater hotel suite?
🚢 A private “submersible superyacht”?
🔬 A permanent research habitat?
🍽️ A quiet, atmospheric dining space below the waves?

This goes far beyond a cosmetic update. It’s a complete re-imagining of form, function, and ambition.

If you’re a designer or engineer with a vision for how these vessels could evolve into something extraordinary, SUB71 would be glad to hear from you.

➡️ Share your concepts, big or small.
➡️ What would you create if you had a submarine as your starting point?

For more information on tourist subs or future opportunities, contact us at info@SUB71.com.