I just took my first cruise in over 20 years, and I have to say, my expectations were exceeded! I hadn’t really considered taking cruises for a long time, but I’ve been fascinated by the recent trend of luxury hotel groups getting into the cruising industry (or at least licensing out their names for such concepts), and I couldn’t help but give one of these a try. This industry is getting crowded — while Ritz-Carlton was first among these, we’re seeing similar concepts launch shortly from Four Seasons, Orient Express, and Aman.
Anyway, I digress. We just sailed with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima, which is the company’s first and smallest ship (there are two more in the meantime, which are substantially bigger). We booked the shortest, cheapest cruise we could, and the goal was to “dip our toes” in the cruising world, so to speak.
I’ll be publishing a very detailed review soon, but would first like to provide some initial thoughts, in no particular order. For what it’s worth, we booked a three-night cruise from San Juan that had stops in St. John and St. Barts, and we paid $3,100 per person for an entry level suite.
As a reminder, Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection participates in Marriott Bonvoy. Furthermore, if you do decide to book a voyage, make sure you book through a travel advisor affiliated with Marriott STARS. This adds significant value, which I’ll talk more about that in a separate post, but I couldn’t believe how few people on our voyage booked this way, and left extra benefits on the table.
Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima is an intimate ship
As mentioned above, we sailed on Evrima, which was built in 2021, is 624 feet along, and has just under 150 suites, accommodating around 300 guests. So while I think it’s a bit of a stretch to refer to this as a “yacht,” it’s only a small fraction of the size of the biggest cruise ships nowadays.
I’ve gotta say, the size of this ship was great for our purposes. It felt like a medium-sized hotel, with truly endless dining outlets and deck space, so it never really felt busy. We basically never had to wait for anything, including not having to queue to get on or off the ship, get on the tender, etc.
Admittedly due to the ship’s smaller size, it doesn’t have as many amenities as some of the huge ships, but that’s by design. So yeah, if you want water slides and malls and roller coasters, this obviously isn’t the ship for you.
I loved the ship’s huge amount of deck space, as it really never felt crowded anywhere. There were so many areas to sit, relax, and enjoy the views, no matter what kind of a vibe you were looking for.
I will say, if you’re into pools, you’ll probably be a bit disappointed, as there’s just one primary pool on the ship, which isn’t terribly big. Personally that didn’t bother me at all (I wouldn’t have swam in it anyway), and the smaller pool also reflects that this is so much smaller of a ship than the others, which I personally view as an advantage.
However, there are some nicely positioned hot tubs, and then my favorite feature, the marina. On days where the ship tenders and there’s sufficient time, they set up this incredible deck at the bottom back of the ship, which is so fun, and not something you’d ever get on a substantially larger ship.
Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima has beautiful suites
Cruise ship rooms are known for being on the small side and for making a lot of compromises compared to hotel rooms, but the accommodations on Evrima impressed me. All accommodations onboard are described as suites (a bit of a stretch if you’re used to hotels, but…), and are elegantly appointed.
The terrace suite is the standard room, and that has an interior space of around 280 square feet (26 square meters), plus a terrace of up to 75 square feet (seven square meters). The bathroom is very nice as well, with double sinks, a soaking tub, a walk-in shower with excellent water pressure, etc.
Just as another example, a few categories up from that is the grand suite, and that has an interior space of around 570 square feet (53 square meters), plus a terrace of up to 118 square feet (11 square meters). This also has double sinks, and even a soaking tub.
The food and drinks were endless, and mostly very good
Quite honestly, it’s the food and drinks that I was most curious to experience, since I was wondering just how high quality they’d be. For one, you have the obvious logistical challenges with preparing food on ships. Beyond that, though, with the cruise being (basically) all-inclusive, I wondered if the quality would live up to what I hoped, given the balance between managing costs and maximizing revenue. My expectations here were exceeded in every way.
For one, the included alcoholic selection was extensive. We’re talking free flowing Moet, a huge wine list, and some pretty premium liquor brands as well. And the cocktails were prepared in the way you’d expect if you were paying, rather than what you’d expect from an all-inclusive experience. Heck, there was even an awesome sommelier who’d come around and help you select wines, even pairing them with each course. Yes, even the complimentary wines, and this wasn’t some sort of a pressure play to pay for a more expensive wine.
The dining was excellent as well, with several venues, all of which I’ll cover in great detail in my review. This included restaurants, lounges, and bars, and even a coffee shop with barista coffee. There was a good mix between indoor and outdoor seating.
There were no buffets in sight, which personally I’m happy about, as everything was a la carte. Not a single restaurant we dined at was ever full, with the exception of The Pool House, right after boarding.
We even had dinner at S.E.A, the specialty restaurant that ordinarily costs extra (however, if you book through Marriott STARS, you can potentially have that added for your journey). This was also a phenomenal dining experience, and at times I forgot I was on a ship.
I do have to say, the problem with cruising (as I see it) is that you just eat, eat, eat, eat, and then eat a little more. Oh, wait, and you also drink. The amount they offer you just seems never-ending, as it’s hard to go very far without being offered a glass of champagne. As we were ordering food, staff would typically ask if we wanted another appetizer, or side, or main course, or dessert. No, I think the 21 courses of food I’m eating per day just about cut it, including the three desserts I was force fed during lunch. 😉
But hey, all-in-all, this was way better than I was expecting. While a few dishes were a miss, by and large, they were very good.
The service standards greatly exceeded my expectations
Cruise lines are generally known for offering friendly service, and I was curious to what extent Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection would deliver. While Ritz-Carlton is a luxury hotel group, I find service at the brand to often be a bit scripted and canned, so I wondered what service would be like on the ship.
I can only speak based on our voyage, but I found the crew to be stellar. With a nearly 1:1 ratio between passengers and crew, service was incredibly attentive.
I was expecting the crew to be friendly and well intentioned, since that’s kind of a standard among cruising. However, what impressed me most was how polished the crew was, and how invested they were in making sure guests had a great experience.
The logistics of ships like these are outrageously complicated, so I was just amazed by the consistently great service, from the ship’s general manager and entertainment director, down to the restaurant staff and room attendants.
To me, this is an area where the ship’s small size shines. You see familiar faces, they get to know you, you get to know them, etc. Having fewer than 150 rooms is obviously very different than being on a ship with 2,500+ rooms. It felt to me like the crew were proud to work on the ship, with management constantly roaming the ship.
Cruising is a delightfully relaxing & easy experience
I’m not someone who is going to be converted into exclusively vacationing on cruises rather than hotels. That being said, after the first experience, I’m 100% sure this won’t be my last one. Okay, I’ve actually already booked my next one, so that’s simply a fact. A few thoughts on that front:
- I’d love to take a cruise to somewhere that can actually most efficiently be explored by ship, because I think that’s where the most value is; to Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s credit, there are actually some really cool itineraries, including in Alaska, Asia, Iceland, the South Pacific, etc. (Antarctica is of course still the ultimate cruise destination)
- Cruising is just such an easy experience, and there’s something so refreshing about that; you really don’t have to think about anything, and it’s also just really enjoyable to sit on a deck enjoy the views, the breeze, etc.
- I think cruising is especially good for families, and I can’t wait to take our kids on a cruise, because they would adore it (well, I’m not sure our 9-month-old would have much of an opinion, but our 3.5-year-old would have the time of his life)
- In an era where it feels like so many luxury hotels rip you off at every possible corner, I can’t say how nice it was to not sign a single check, not once be asked to tip someone, and to be able to order whatever one wants without it costing extra; I know this is just an argument in favor of all-inclusives, but I had forgotten just how nice this is
- As an introvert, I was a little worried about what the cruise crowd would be like, but it was honestly a delightfully mixed crowd that didn’t skew in any one direction, so I didn’t at all feel like an outsider; I got the sense it was a good mix of people who had never been on a cruise before, as well as those who had
Bottom line
I just got off Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima, after a quick three-night cruise in the Caribbean. I don’t want to suggest that the cruise changed my life or that I’m now exclusively obsessed with cruising, but I am sure that cruising will now be a type of travel I pursue more regularly, particularly with family.
While Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is pricey, I walked away from the experience with a positive impression, thanks to a beautiful ship, luxurious rooms, excellent and varied food and drinks, friendly service, and some cool amenities. Best of all, I found the vibe on board to be nice, with an interesting array of passengers.
Admittedly if you’re looking for a mega ship with endless amenities, this isn’t it. But I actually think this is a really compelling way to travel, especially if you can take a voyage to an interesting destination, or if you’re just looking for a relaxing time.
Of course this journey was expensive, and priced at the top end of the cruise market. However, with the rates that so many luxury hotels are charging for basic rooms while including very little, I thought there was an argument to be made for the value of this. Anyway, I realize this is quite a drawn out teaser, so stay tuned for the full review…
What’s your take on the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection experience?
