BVLGARI Luxury Hotels & Resorts: What Are They?

There are a couple of brands belonging to Marriott that tend to cause confusion. One of those brands is Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and the other is BVLGARI Luxury Hotels & Resorts. I recently wrote about the basics of Ritz-Carlton Reserve (and what makes the brand different than Ritz-Carlton), and in this post, would like to talk a bit about BVLGARI.

BVLGARI doesn’t participate in Marriott Bonvoy

BVLGARI hotels don’t in any way participate in the Marriott Bonvoy program, even though the hotels are displayed on marriott.com. When staying at BVLGARI properties:

• You can’t earn Bonvoy points
• You can’t redeem Bonvoy points
• You don’t receive any sort of elite recognition if you have Bonvoy status

For all practical purposes, think of BVLGARI as not being part of Marriott, except the brand is bookable through Marriott’s website and app. BVLGARI does participate in Marriott STARS, meaning that when booking through an eligible travel agent, you can receive perks like free breakfast, a $100 hotel credit, and a room upgrade subject to availability.

I’m sharing BVLGARI’s lack of participation in Bonvoy upfront, because I don’t want people getting excited over these properties, only to realize at the end of this post that these hotels don’t participate in the Bonvoy program.

Now, I think it’s entirely possible that we see BVLGARI participate in Marriott Bonvoy in the future. Ritz-Carlton Reserve belongs to Marriott Bonvoy nowadays, and I see no reason the same couldn’t happen for BVLGARI. With Marriott Bonvoy having dynamic award pricing, it seems like the economics of redemptions at these properties could be more practical.

The basics of BVLGARI hotels

BVLGARI (or Bvlgari, or Bulgari — the “V” in place of “U” is intended to reflect the Roman alphabet) is an Italian luxury brand known for watches, fragrances, jewelry, leather goods, etc.

Over time the company has launched collaborations to get into other spaces, and one of those collaborations has been for hotels. BVLGARI currently operates nine hotels, with a further five in the pipeline.

BVLGARI got into the hotel space as part of a collaboration with Ritz-Carlton (which is owned by Marriott), and the first property opened in 2004. The portfolio has grown at a fairly slow pace, with the second hotel opening two years later (in 2006), the third hotel opening six years after that (in 2012), and then the fourth and fifth hotels opening five years after that (in 2017). The brand is now growing at a faster pace, and by 2028, should have a dozen properties.

For what it’s worth, here’s how the luxury hotel group describes itself:

Bvlgari Hotels & Resorts aims to be the leading luxury hospitality collection in the world. Comprised of a few, selected properties in major cosmopolitan cities and luxury resorts destinations, its aim is to convey the excitement of the Bvlgari brand, its timeless glamour and its heritage of magnificent Roman jeweller.

BVLGARI hotel & resort locations

Currently BVLGARI has nine hotels, in the following locations and with the following number of rooms:

• BVLGARI Bali has 59 rooms
• BVLGARI Beijing has 119 rooms
• BVLGARI Dubai has 101 rooms
• BVLGARI London has 85 rooms
• BVLGARI Milan has 58 rooms
• BVLGARI Paris has 76 rooms
• BVLGARI Rome has 114 rooms
• BVLGARI Shanghai has 82 rooms
• BVLGARI Tokyo has 89 rooms

In addition to the properties currently open, there are another five BVLGARI hotels expected to open in the next several years:

• BVLGARI Maldives Ranfushi is supposed to open in 2026
• BVLGARI Bodrum is supposed to open in 2027
• BVLGARI Miami Beach is supposed to open in 2028
• BVLGARI Cave Cay is supposed to open in 2029
• BVLGARI Abu Dhabi is supposed to open in 2030

There were initially also plans for properties in Los Angeles and Moscow, though those projects are no longer moving forward.

The best way to book a BVLGARI stay

The best way to book a stay at a BVLGARI property is through a travel advisor who is affiliated with the Marriott STARS program. When booking through a Marriott STARS travel advisor, you’ll receive the following additional perks:

• Complimentary full or continental breakfast daily for up to two people per room
• Hotel credit valued at 100 USD once per stay
• Room upgrade, subject to availability at check-in
• Complimentary basic Wi-Fi daily
• In-person welcome
• Personalized welcome amenity and note

Ford and his team can help with Marriott STARS booking, and can be reached at [email protected]. A few things to note:

• In order to be eligible for Marriott STARS perks, you’ll generally have to book the flexible/standard rate, which should be among the lowest rates available; sometimes there are also promotional rates bookable through STARS
• You’re better off booking through Marriott STARS rather than programs like Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts® or Virtuoso because upgrades are prioritized for Marriott STARS guests; that’s because this is Marriott’s own proprietary program
• That being said, sometimes other programs will also have deals, or if you have select co-branded credit cards, there may be incentives for booking through those programs

Are BVLGARI properties worth staying at?

BVLGARI isn’t the first luxury brand to get into the hotel market (just look at Cheval Blanc, owned by LVMH), so are these hotels actually worth staying at, or is this just a vanity project?

BVLGARI has opened properties in some of the world’s most competitive hotel markets, with a surprising focus on cities (Cheval Blanc, meanwhile, primarily has resorts). Admittedly there are tons of amazing hotels in Dubai, London, Milan, Paris, Tokyo, etc.

BVLGARI puts a big emphasis on fashion, service, food & beverage outlets, and amenities, and that’s reflected at properties around the globe. When it comes to the guest experience, a couple of things stand out.

First of all, BVLGARI properties consistently have very impressive spas, with beautiful indoor pools, and extensive wellness areas. So if you like a great spa pool, then BVLGARI properties are for you.

BVLGARI properties are also really consistent with their food & beverage offerings. All properties have the signature Il Ristorante Niko Romito outlet, which is phenomenal, in addition to some other outlets. Some people will love the consistency of always knowing the restaurant they’ll get at the hotel, while others may be bored by that level of consistency.

I’ve stayed at the BVLGARI Milan, BVLGARI Rome, BVLGARI Dubai, and BVLGARI Paris, and had good stays at all four. They all had excellent service, great restaurants, and nice design. Personally, I think the Rome and Paris properties are the best ones I’ve stayed at. I’ve also heard great things about the Bali property, and particularly, about the Tokyo property.

My general take is that BVLGARI properties offer a top notch experience, though I wouldn’t necessarily consider them to offer great value for money, as they’re typically priced on the high end of the market. They’re going primarily after fashion obsessed people who aren’t very price sensitive. I suppose that’s a logical demographic to go after, given how consumer behavior has evolved.

Interestingly, I’d say the guest demographic is a bit different than with some other luxury hotel groups, in terms of the nationality of guests. I’ve found the guest profile to be much less North America centric than some other luxury hotel groups. Instead, the brand seems to do better than just about any other luxury hotel group with guests from Africa and Asia.

Bottom line

BVLGARI’s hotel collection started as a joint venture with Ritz-Carlton, which is how it’s connected to Marriott. Unfortunately for Marriott Bonvoy members, these hotels don’t in any way participate in the loyalty program, meaning you can’t earn or redeem points, and can’t take advantage of elite benefits when staying with the BVLGARI brand. That certainly could change in the future, as we now see Ritz-Carlton Reserve participate in Marriott Bonvoy.

I find BVLGARI properties to be intriguing — while there’s a limited connection to Marriott, the brand has some fantastic properties, especially in places like Bali and Tokyo.

Has anyone stayed at a BVLGARI property? If so, what was your experience like?