Manfredi Lefebvre D’Ovidio has been a visionary leader in the tourism and cruise industries for many decades. With his longstanding expertise and strategic foresight, Lefebvre has played a pivotal role in shaping the luxury cruise sector. His current focus on innovative sectors – such as biotechnology, energy transition, and philanthropy – demonstrates his ability to diversify and lead across various industries.

He and his family are titans of the cruise world. In the 1980s, Lefebvre and his father, Professor Antonio Lefebvre d'Ovidio, acquired Sitmar Cruises (Società Italiana Trasporti Marittimi). They built three cruise ships, two of which were constructed with Fincantieri, before selling the company to P&O Princess Cruises in the 1980s. In the 1990s, his father founded Silversea Cruises, starting with two ships, Silver Cloud and Silver Wind. Under Manfredi Lefebvre's leadership from 2001, the company expanded, growing to a fleet of 12 cruise ships, nine of which were built in Italy, redefining the concept of luxury cruising. In 2018, the majority stake in the company was sold to Royal Caribbean. Manfredi Lefebvre remained Chairman until 2020, when the remaining minority stake was sold.

Manfredi Lefebvre acquired Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group and the iconic brand Crystal, along with two ships. He currently serves as the Executive Chairman of A&K Travel Group and also holds the position of Executive Chairman of Heritage Group.

To date, Lefebvre has brought approximately 33 ship orders to Italy: 2 with Sitmar, the first two cruise ships ever built, 9 with Silversea, 3 with Crystal, as well as 3 with Virgin and 16 with Viking. He also decided to carry out the complete refurbishment of the two Crystal ships in Italy.