The yacht was remodelled by architect Cäsar Pinnau,[8][9] who made full use of the ship's size and powerful naval engineering systems to create large, ornate interiors and elaborate luxuries.

These included a mosaic swimming pool that converted to a dance floor, and a children's dining room designed and painted by the illustrator Ludwig Bemelmans.

[12][13][14] Apart from his mistress Maria Callas and his wife Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Aristotle Onassis entertained celebrities such as Umberto Agnelli, Giovanni Battista Meneghini (Callas' husband until 1959 when she left him for Onassis) , Richard Burton, Clementine Churchill, Diana Churchill, Winston Churchill, Jacqueline de Ribes, John F. Kennedy, Greta Garbo, Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, Grace Kelly, Anthony Montague Browne, Rudolf Nureyev, Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan, J. Paul Getty, Eva Perón, Françoise Sagan, Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, and John Wayne.

Unsold, an attempted 1996 purchase by American Alexander Blastos fell through when his deposit check bounced,[20] later resulting in a wire fraud conviction.

[21] The vessel was purchased in a 1998 government-sponsored auction by Greek shipping magnate John Paul Papanicolaou, an Onassis family friend.

Christina O has a master suite, eighteen passenger staterooms, and numerous indoor and outdoor living areas, all connected by a spiral staircase.

Compared to a typical 21st-century superyacht, her staterooms are small and Christina O lacks the indoor boat storage that is now standard; however, the number of living areas is large, and the amount of outdoor deck space is generous.