Want to take advantage of Marriott STARS benefits, including a space available room upgrade, complimentary breakfast, a hotel credit, and more? Contact Ford ([email protected]) for more details. He may even be able to help if you already have a stay booked. This is valid for paid stays at BVLGARI, EDITION, Ritz-Carlton, Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and St. Regis.
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 wanted to talk a bit about BVLGARI.
In this post:
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 booking channels. 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. We saw Ritz-Carlton Reserve recently join Marriott Bonvoy, and I see no reason the same couldn’t happen for BVLGARI. With Marriott Bonvoy now having dynamic award pricing, I’m guessing the economics of redemptions here would be more practical for Marriott.
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 three 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 2026 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 2025
- BVLGARI Miami Beach is supposed to open in 2026
- BVLGARI Los Angeles is supposed to open in 2026
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 100USD once per stay
- Room upgrade, subject to availability at check-in
- Complimentary basic Wi-Fi daily
- In-person welcome
- Personalized welcome amenity and note
A few things to note:
- Many Marriott STARS travel advisors don’t charge any booking fees for BVLGARI stays; Ford and his team don’t for BVLGARI stays, and can be reached at [email protected]
- 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
- 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
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 London, Milan, Paris, etc.
BVLGARI puts a big emphasis on service, food & beverage outlets, and amenities, and that’s reflected at properties around the globe. I’ve stayed at the BVLGARI Milan, BVLGARI Rome, and BVLGARI Dubai, and had good stays at all three. They all had excellent service, great restaurants, and nice design.
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 recently saw Ritz-Carlton Reserve start to 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 Bali and Dubai.
Has anyone stayed at a BVLGARI property? If so, what was your experience like?
| Want to take advantage of the Marriott STARS program to receive extra perks (like breakfast and upgrades) at BVLGARI? Contact [email protected] for more details. He may even be able to help if you already have a stay booked. |
Just left a 5 day stay at the Bulgari Paris today. It is Just fabulous. Wonderfully elegant modern hote, an outstanding SPA, fabulous food and amazingly appointed suited. The hotel has only 76 rooms, and the staff knew us well by the end of our short time there. Absolutely top notch and more intimate given the smaller size versus the four seasons across the street. Go and enjoy
I get that businesses want to grow into different sectors. But when your brand is so inextricably linked with just 'One Thing', the dissonance is going to be real and jarring when you slap it onto something else. Brand dilution can be counter-productive, with no long term guarantee of success. A much better approach is sub-branding, especially if you're venturing into 'new' sectors (e.g. 'XXXXXX' Luxury Hotels, brought to you by Bulgari.)
What next?...
I get that businesses want to grow into different sectors. But when your brand is so inextricably linked with just 'One Thing', the dissonance is going to be real and jarring when you slap it onto something else. Brand dilution can be counter-productive, with no long term guarantee of success. A much better approach is sub-branding, especially if you're venturing into 'new' sectors (e.g. 'XXXXXX' Luxury Hotels, brought to you by Bulgari.)
What next? A Faberge cafe and bistro? A Tiffany's airline? A Chopard rental car agency? A Van Cleef & Arpels plant nursery?
You think you get it but you really don't.
Tiffany started as a stationary store, LOL.
Amazon sold only books, just like Borders.
Virgin sold vinyls and cassettes, just like Tower Records.
Amazon and Virgin both have airlines.
Borders and Tower Records, what else to say.
The reverse was also true.
Pan Am owned InterContinental. TWA owned Century 21.
Pan Am and TWA are gone, their subsidiaries isn't.
Lucky Samsung...
You think you get it but you really don't.
Tiffany started as a stationary store, LOL.
Amazon sold only books, just like Borders.
Virgin sold vinyls and cassettes, just like Tower Records.
Amazon and Virgin both have airlines.
Borders and Tower Records, what else to say.
The reverse was also true.
Pan Am owned InterContinental. TWA owned Century 21.
Pan Am and TWA are gone, their subsidiaries isn't.
Lucky Samsung didn't get your memo, otherwise they probably went out of business selling dried fish and noodles.
A much better approach? Wait till Don buys Intuit.
TurboTax, brought to you by Donald Trump. LOL.
With a killer slogan, "Best privacy, your returns from 2016 are still a secret"
Stick to your blue collar and let your union reps do the white collar jargons.
LOL. Except that we weren't alive and don't associate these brands with what they may have been compared to what they are now. Way to go showing your age BOOMER! Dead!! LOL.
Well under your logic,
"A Faberge cafe and bistro? A Tiffany's airline? A Chopard rental car agency? A Van Cleef & Arpels plant nursery?"
Would all be fine one you're dead? LOL.
You really need to stick to your blue collar stuff.
Bvlgari SH is amazing. Even better than PH or WA and on par with Peninsula imo. Great rooftop bar and service.
I stayed in Bulgari Milan - it is a beautiful hotel with excellent location, has nice garden - which is not common in the middle of the city. Room was big and comfortable, service was excellent, restaurant was very good too. It was expensive but the same price - more or less - was Mandarin Oriental, Four Seasons and Armani. Personally I liked it and highly recommend.
They may be fine hotels, but I just find that "V" insufferably pretentious. If I ever happen to stay in one, I will make it a point to call it "Bevel-Gary" at every opportunity.
Got it, insufferably pretentious. @"Grik-Har-D"
Its a brand founded in 1884. Maybe we can wait to see who talks about you in year 2160. It has all righs to be pretentious...
I'll add to Lee. Some friends got married at Bulgari Bali. Yes it's an amazing property but it's often double the price of the other amazing properties nearby. We didn't stay there purely for cost. The wedding, however, was spectacular.
They are simply riding on the name. The property in London is expensive but I wouldn't call it luxury. The lobby is uninspiring - for comparison, as uninspiring as the lobby of the Waldorf Astoria in Chicago. The rooms are small - on par with the Mandarin Oriental down the street. If you're heading to London and want a true luxury stay, look to another property. I have not been to other Bulgari properties. But, if the London property is typical . . .