How The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection & Marriott Bonvoy Partnership Works

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is the luxury cruise line associated with Marriott. One of the cool things about Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is how the cruise line belongs to Marriott Bonvoy, so in this post, I’d like to go over the details of how that works in practice, given that I just took my first voyage with the company, so have some firsthand experience to share.

What is Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection?

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is a small luxury cruise line that set sail in 2022. As you’d expect, Ritz-Carlton cruises have become pretty popular, given the well-known hotel group they’re related to. Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection now has three ships. Just to give a sense of the experience:

• Evrima is the first ship, and it was built in 2021; it’s 25,400 gross tons and 624 feet long, and it has 149 suites that can accommodate 298 guests
• Ilma is the second ship, and it was built in 2024; it’s 46,750 gross tons and 791 feet long, and it has 224 suites that can accommodate 448 guests
• Luminara is the third ship, and it was built in 2025; it’s 46,750 gross tons and 790 feet long, and it has 226 suites that can accommodate 452 guests

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection has journeys in Europe, the Caribbean, Alaska, Asia, the South Pacific, and beyond. In many cases, voyages are to smaller ports than the larger cruise lines. The company has an all-inclusive concept, with cruises including meals, drinks, and much more (this is different than the new Four Seasons Yachts and Aman Yachts concept).

Note that while Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection has the Ritz-Carlton name, it has very little to do with Marriott — this is primarily a licensing agreement, and the cruise line isn’t owned by Marriott. Fortunately part of that agreement includes loyalty perks.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Marriott Bonvoy partnership

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and Marriott Bonvoy have a partnership, which can be quite lucrative. With this, it’s possible to earn points and elite nights, redeem points, and receive elite perks, for Ritz-Carlton cruises. Let’s cover all the details.

Before we do, let me just mention that you can take advantage of the Bonvoy perks regardless of whether you book direct or through a travel advisor.

Earn Bonvoy points with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection

Marriott Bonvoy members can earn both points and elite nights for Ritz-Carlton cruises:

• Earn 5x Bonvoy points per dollar spent on Ritz-Carlton cruise fare only (so this extra points earning doesn’t apply to incidentals)
• Earn one elite night credit for every night spent onboard on a Ritz-Carlton cruise
• Ritz-Carlton cruise fare spending will count toward the spending requirement for Bonvoy Ambassador status, which sure makes it much easier to reach the $23,000 spending requirement
• Earn bonus points when using a Marriott Bonvoy co-branded credit card at the same rate you would when staying at a Marriott property; on most cards, like the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (learn more), you can earn 6x Bonvoy points per dollar spent

As you can see, you earn points at half the rate you would at Marriott properties (you usually earn 10x Bonvoy points per dollar spent). So the points earning rates aren’t quite as good, and on top of that you don’t receive bonus points based on elite status.

As far as the logistics of earning points on Ritz-Carlton cruises goes:

• In order to earn Bonvoy points on your sailing, you need to add your Bonvoy number to your reservation at the time of booking, or if you do it after booking, it needs to be at least 30 days before departure
• You can earn points for up to three rooms, assuming you’re paying and are staying in one of the rooms (and all that spending counts toward the Ambassador status requirement); however, you only earn elite nights for up to one room
• Points and elite night credits will post to an eligible Bonvoy account within 14 days of completing a journey

To provide some firsthand experience, I had my co-branded Marriott credit card correctly code the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection purchase for extra points. Furthermore, the points and elite nights posted just one day after the end of the voyage, which was way faster than I was expecting.

Redeem Bonvoy points with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection

Marriott Bonvoy members can redeem points for Ritz-Carlton cruises:

• Redeem 180,000 Bonvoy points to save $1,000 on a cruise fare
• You can redeem beyond that (with no limits) in increments of 90,000 Bonvoy points to save an additional $500

In other words, Marriott Bonvoy is valuing points at ~0.56 cents each toward the cost of a cruise when redeeming. That’s not great — it’s less than my valuation of 0.7 cents per point — but it’s also not terrible, especially if you have more points than vacation time, and this concept appeals to you.

Marriott Bonvoy elite perks with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection

Marriott Bonvoy elite members can get some useful perks when taking Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection cruises. Specifically, members can expect the following elite perks:

• All Marriott Bonvoy elite members receive an invitation to an onboard elite reception
• Marriott Bonvoy Gold members and above receive the choice of an in-suite welcome gift, which varies by tier
• Marriott Bonvoy Platinum members and above receive a complimentary first evening laundry pressing
• Marriott Bonvoy Titanium members and above receive priority boarding and departure
• Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador members receive early access to specialty dining, plus complimentary laundry throughout the cruise

Those are some pretty decent perks when you consider how much is already included with cruises, so typical hotel elite perks like breakfast wouldn’t be worth anything. In particular, Ambassador members getting complimentary laundry is pretty cool.

Stack Marriott Bonvoy & Marriott STARS to maximize value

If you want to get as much value as possible from your Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection voyage, the correct play is to stack Marriott Bonvoy and Marriott STARS benefits, as the two aren’t mutually exclusive. So yes, absolutely take advantage of your Marriott Bonvoy elite perks, and earn points on these journeys.

But on top of that, if you book your journey with a travel advisor affiliated with Marriott STARS, you’ll receive perks that you can stack as well, without paying extra. Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is supposed to have the same pricing through all booking channels, so that gives you the best of both worlds.

Booking Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection through STARS gets you a special welcome amenity, a bridge tour, a $150 per person credit toward certain onboard spending, and more. There’s no reason not to stack the two. If you’d like to book through Marriott STARS, Ford and his team are happy to help, and can be reached at [email protected].

Ritz-Carlton cruises & Marriott Bonvoy FAQs

Bottom line

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection has a partnership with Marriott Bonvoy, allowing members to earn and redeem points, and take advantage of elite perks. I’d say this is a pretty solid partnership for those who are into loyalty programs, in terms of the ability to earn points and take advantage of elite perks.

What do you make of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection & Marriott Bonvoy partnership?