I love luxury hotels, and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht was made for people like me
It was a tough day (wink wink) being a TPG reporter Tuesday when leaders from Marriott International welcomed me and a few colleagues aboard Evrima, the first vessel to hit the seas under The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection brand.
It was also my first time on any cruise ship — yes, really. They hired me to write about hotels, after all!
However, I certainly might be the kind of person who keeps this new enterprise from Marriott International afloat (well, if I could afford to shell out a hefty penny for one of these trips).
While you can find rates as low as $5,000 per person for some excursions, View Suites on an upcoming Evrima voyage from Barcelona to Rome start at $52,100 per person based on double occupancy.
That’s one significant tab, even for luxury hotel travelers. The target audience is consumers who don’t blink an eye about rates like those at the Aman in New York City, which can exceed $3,000 a night.
It’s increasingly important that hotel companies such as Marriott have something to offer their customers across various travel sectors. Marriott already does this with a number of land-based luxury hotels — the sky and sea are the limits for what might be next.
“I think we'll look at anything that helps us achieve our objectives of ensuring our customers don't need to look outside our ecosystem for what they seek for virtually any trip purpose anywhere in the world,” Marriott CEO Anthony Capuano told me during a lunch with reporters aboard Evrima this week while it was docked in Fort Lauderdale.
I felt relaxed walking aboard Evrima. It felt less like my preconceived notion of a sprawling cruise ship with a massive reception area. Instead, it was more like stepping through a chic side entrance of a glamorous hotel or resort.
Admittedly, we were there during a quieter turnaround space before passengers arrived. Still, when passengers did begin to trickle in later in the day, it appeared to be more of a calm arrival with Champagne and smiles.
