Review: Sailing On Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima Ship (Lovely!)

While I’ve reviewed hundreds of airlines, airport lounges, and hotels, this will be my first time ever reviewing a cruise. I recently spent three nights sailing on Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima. I’ve been fascinated by the general trend of luxury hotel groups starting their own cruise lines (well, or more accurately, licensing their names out), and I figured it was finally time to give the concept a try.

In this post, I’d like to provide an in-depth review of the experience, covering everything from the suites, to the ship’s amenities, to dining, to what exactly is included with fares. As I mentioned in a previous post, this was my first cruise in over 20 years, and I walked away with a very favorable impression, and this is absolutely an experience I’d consider repeating. Among other things, I liked the the ship as such, the amenities, the quality of food and drinks, the friendliness of the staff, and the inclusions.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection pricing & how to book

Generally speaking, you’ll find that Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection voyages cost anywhere from $700(ish) per person per day, to around $2,000(ish) per person per day. This is obviously at the top end of the cruise market, though given the inflation we’ve seen to hotel rates over the years, by comparison, it’s potentially pretty attractive pricing compared to many luxury land-based accommodations.

We booked a three-night cruise departing from and returning to San Juan. It was possible to board starting at 12PM (with a deadline of 6:30PM), and it was possible to disembark starting at 7AM (with a deadline of 9:15AM), with a stop in St. John the first day, and a stop in St. Barts the second day.

The cruise voyage cost $3,100 per person based on double occupancy for a standard suite, and that included all taxes & fees. Ford booked us through the Marriott STARS program, which is the best way to book Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection voyages.

The fare is the same as you’d find direct, and for booking through an eligible travel advisor, you receive a special welcome amenity, an onboard credit of $150 per person per sailing, and a special bridge tour.

There’s no reason not to book this way, as it gets you extra value without costing you extra. For example, our special welcome amenity was a bottle of Veuve Clicquot (compared to the standard Moet onboard… you can have as many of those as you’d like!), plus a delicious box of chocolates.

One other thing I should point out — we were traveling as a group, and had four rooms. That’s because this was Ford’s annual retreat for his team, and I just tagged along so I could review the experience. So you’ll notice that I have lots of pictures of food, and that’s partly because we were often dining as a group.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection inclusions

What exactly is included with Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection voyages? Well, everything from the accommodations, to gratuities, to most dining and drinks, to entertainment, to unlimited Starlink Wi-Fi. It would probably be more useful to just call out what isn’t included (which can be covered with the Marriott STARS credit):

• Spa treatments and shore excursions cost extra
• There are a limited number of onboard activities that cost extra, ranging from private fitness classes, to a private wine tasting
• Dining in the specialty restaurant costs extra
• There’s a selection of premium wines and spirits that cost extra
• Laundry services can cost extra, though certain Bonvoy elite members get free laundry service, while there’s also a complimentary onboard self-serve laundry facility for all guests

What I can say is that I didn’t at all feel like they were cutting corners with inclusions, and the whole thing felt very generous. We spent exactly zero dollars on the ship aside from our fare, and let me tell you, we were living it up. The only “paid” experience we had was the dining at the specialty restaurant, but that was covered by our Marriott STARS credit (back when we booked, the credit covered the entire specialty dining experience, while now the benefit has been reduced a bit, though it’s more flexible).

For example, I was super impressed by the included selection of alcohol. It’s not just garbage wine and liquor that’s included, but plenty of premium brands, Moet, etc. Furthermore, you really don’t feel pressured to tip beyond the gratuities that are included (you’re not asked to sign at meals, for example). In an era where hotels do so much nickel & diming, it sure was nice to feel like we weren’t being ripped off at every junction, given the high fares in the first place.

One thing I do have to mention is that I felt that the cost of some of the excursions or transfers they were trying to sell were extreme. I expect a huge markup from a luxury cruise line or hotel, but some of the amounts surprised me.

For example, they leave a letter in your suite offering transportation for the last day, when you leave the ship. A private car for up to two people from the ship to the airport upon arrival, a 15-minute drive? That’ll run you $338! Is this a Rolls-Royce transfer with caviar service enroute?! Or is that just how much cruise lines try to charge for these things?

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima ship layout & basics

For some background, we were sailing on Evrima, which is Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s first and smallest ship. Just context on the three ships in the fleet:

• Evrima is the first ship, and it was built in 2021; it weighs 25,400 tons, it’s 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 weighs 46,750 tons, it’s 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 weighs 46,750 tons, it’s 790 feet long, and it has 226 suites that can accommodate 452 guests

For one, I’ve gotta say, Evrima is one spiffy-looking ship, if you ask me. I’ve never seen a better looking cruise ship, though admittedly I don’t think I’ve seen every cruise ship.

Personally I love how intimate Evrima feels, as it really never felt crowded. I realize for those used to cruises, this ship is downright tiny. But even as someone who is primarily used to hotels, this felt to me like a mid-size hotel in terms of the number of guests, so that’s quite a contrast to so many other ships, which are the size of Las Vegas casino hotels.

For those curious, you can see the entire Evrima deck plan here. There are essentially eight floors accessible by guests, and that includes deck three, the marina, which is only open certain days, while tendered. Suites are on four different floors, restaurants and bars are on five different floors, and one floor is partly dedicated to wellness.

I felt like the ship was easy to navigate, with the staircase in the center of the ship, plus the two elevators there, being the easiest ways to get around.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima check-in, boarding, & tendering

Our voyage was starting from San Juan, with boarding possible between 12PM and 6:30PM, for a 7PM departure. We arrived a little before 2PM. I know that boarding cruises can sometimes be a drag, and can make an airport during a government shutdown look organized, by comparison.

However, thanks to the small size of the ship, that wasn’t the case at all, and our experience was seamless. As we pulled up to the terminal in a car, we could immediately drop our luggage at a counter outside. What impressed me is that we were then accompanied by the same person all the way through the boarding process.

We were brought into the check-in facility, where there was live music, drinks, and snacks. While there was a ton of seating, there was no need for that, as we were helped right away. We had to present our passports, provide a credit card for incidentals, and have our pictures taken (for our room cards), and that was it. The whole process took maybe five minutes.

At that point we were just walked the short distance to the ship, and proceeded up the staircase, where our cards were scanned, and we were welcomed onboard.

For what it’s worth, the entrance to the ship is on deck four, which is also where you’ll find the reception area and concierge desk.

Getting off the ship was equally seamless, and took less than five minutes, including clearing immigration. Once again, we were accompanied from the ship to the curb.

While we’re on the topic of getting on and off the ship, I should mention that we tendered in both St. John and St. Barts, and found the experience to be easy. There were two tenders constantly running, so they leave every few minutes, and they weren’t at all crowded.

In St. John, we had the tender all to ourselves in one direction, and shared it with three other people in the other direction. The tender was a bit fuller in St. Barts (since most people wanted to get off), but there was still no wait.

It’s also nice how they set up a little shaded seating area wherever they dock, so you could at least wait comfortably to get back on the ship.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima suites

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima ship has 149 accommodations, all of which are marketed as suites, and they’re split between six different categories. We were traveling as a group with several rooms, and ultimately some of our rooms ended up getting upgraded. I was happy about that, since it meant I could photograph a few different kinds of rooms.

Let me note that we were full paying guests, and while I have top-tier Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador status and we booked through Marriott STARS, I don’t believe that upgrades are the norm. So while I didn’t ask for anything and was never even in contact with anyone from Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, I suspect we may have been upgraded either due to the blog, and/or because Ford’s team books a fair number of these voyages.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection terrace suite

To start, let’s take a look at a terrace suite on deck eight, which is an entry level room on the ship.

These rooms are marketed as being 280 square feet (26 square meters), with a terrace of 75 square feet (seven square meters).

While it’s probably a stretch to call this a “suite” in hotel terms, of course accommodations at sea are generally at a different scale, so this is a good size by those standards. The room featured a king size bed, a chair in the corner, a desk area with a stool, and a wall-mounted TV. I found the finishes throughout the room to feel super luxurious as well.

The bathroom was a good size, with double sinks, a walk-in shower (with excellent water pressure, even if the controls were a little difficult to use), and a toilet in a separate area. Toiletries were from Diptyque.

The room also had a nice terrace with a couple of chairs and a side table.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection grand suite

Next up, let’s take a look at a grand suite on deck eight, which is a mid-level suite. This is what Ford and I ended up staying in. These rooms are marketed as being 570 square feet (53 square meters), with a terrace of 118 square feet (11 square meters), so they’re around double the size of the entry level suites.

I found the suite to be functionally designed. As you enter, there’s first a door leading to the toilet (which can also be accessed from the other side of the bathroom), and past that is a desk area.

There was then the very bright and spacious living room, boasting a dining table with four chairs, and a sofa and chair with ottoman, along with a wall-mounted TV. There were sliding doors on both sides, leading to the balcony.

On the desk next to the living room was the minibar area, with had a Nespresso coffee machine, a tea selection, and a minibar, which could be filled however you wanted. Of course since this is a nice cruise, you can also just order a cappuccino, or martini, or whatever, to your room any time, at no cost.

There were then two sliding doors connecting the living room to the bedroom. The bedroom was cozy and dark, which is great for actually getting sleep. Across from the bed was a TV, and then on each side of the TV was a closet space, so it was nice to have so much space to store things, so the room didn’t become a mess.

The bathroom was then off the back of the bedroom, and was huge. It had double sinks, a soaking tub, a walk-in shower, and a toilet in a half bathroom (with a toilet and sink) off to the side, also accessible from near the room’s entrance.

I was impressed that toiletries were both in reusable containers from Diptyque, and also in individual containers from BVLGARI.

The balcony was significantly more spacious than in the standard suite, and had two chairs, a side table, and a lounger.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection loft suite

For a look at another interesting accommodation type, Evrima also has terrace suites, which one of Ford’s colleagues ended up in. This is a unique product that you won’t find on Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s two other ships, because as you’d guess, this is a two-level suite — they’re located on decks four and five (so you can enter and exit through either level).

The terrace suites are marketed as being 587 square feet (55 square meters), with a terrace of 75 square feet (seven square meters). Interestingly, these are priced lower than the grand suites, despite being a bit bigger, and unique. I suspect that’s because they’re on lower floors, and people like being higher up. But I really love this room type.

On the upper level, you’ll find a living room with a circular dining table, a couch, a chair with an ottoman, and a wall-mounted TV.

There’s also a half bathroom on the upper level, so this is a pretty good setup for families (well, other than the potential dangers of the stairs).

There’s then a staircase going down to the bedroom area.

The bedroom was spacious in and of itself, with a king size bed, a desk with a chair, another TV, and a full length mirror.

The full bathroom was on the lower floor, and was spacious, though it was a little smaller than in the grand suite.

The upper level has a small balcony in this cabin, while the lower level just has a large window. So I suppose that’s the one downside of this option, though I still do really like it.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima pool & deck space

This is my first time reviewing a cruise, so I’m trying to think of how to most methodically break things down. I’d assume that general outdoor space all falls into one category (deck space, pools, hot tubs, etc.), so let’s take a look at that, starting at the top of the ship, and working our way down.

Most of deck 10 is taken up by The Observation Lounge (which is the indoor space), while the outdoor area is the Observation Terrace, and it has one of the nicest outdoor areas you’ll find on a ship. To me, this is definitely an area of the ship that has more of a mega-yacht vibe than cruise ship vibe.

Then much of deck nine is dedicated to the spa area, though at the very front you’ll find the Spa Terrace, which is intended to be an adults only space. This has plenty of comfortable seating options, including lounge chairs, and it’s also where you’ll find (what I consider to be) the ship’s nicest hot tub.

At the back of deck nine you’ll find plenty of outdoor seating that’s covered. There’s sort of a makeshift bar here, and that seems to be because the Marriott Bonvoy elite happy hour (and perhaps other “private” events) are held back here.

While deck eight consists mostly of guest rooms and the bridge, the back of the deck is where you’ll find one of the restaurants, Mistral, and there are also some loungers plus a plunge pool of sorts there.

Then deck seven consists just of rooms, and deck six consists of rooms and some restaurants, which brings us down to deck five, which is where you’ll find the main pool area. This space has one main pool, plus a jacuzzi off to each side, along with loungers.

I appreciated how all the outdoor spaces had readily available sunscreen and aloe. This should be the norm, but all too often, it isn’t.

Let me say that if you’re looking for a ship with an amazing pool, this probably isn’t it. It’s an area where this ship has more of a mega-yacht vibe than a cruise ship vibe, as the one “real” pool is quite small, and it’s also right in front of one of the restaurants, so you sort of feel like you’re “on display” in there.

Personally I have very little interest in cruise ship pools, so that wasn’t an issue at all. I just loved the massive amount of beautiful deck space for lounging around (especially in the mornings and evenings), and a pool doesn’t hold much appeal to me.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima spa & gym

Evrima’s wellness area, including the spa and gym, is located on deck nine. It’s a pretty big facility, when you consider how small the ship is.

We didn’t get any spa treatments, but as you might expect, there’s a full-service spa with massages, facials, etc. You can find the menu below, and yes, treatments aren’t cheap.

There are five treatment rooms onboard, and treatments can even be performed outdoors, which is pretty cool. The spa also has a beautiful lounge and grooming salon.

The spa then has a relaxation area, and changing rooms have saunas and steam rooms.

The ship’s gym is located at the very front of the spa and wellness area. It’s open daily from 6AM until 11PM, so it has longer hours than the rest of the spa, but still isn’t 24/7. I loved how the gym had such a nice view out over the spa deck.

The gym wasn’t huge, but was sufficient, given the size of the ship. It had plenty of cardio equipment, and a decent amount of weight equipment.

There was also a pilates room, and there were included classes that guests could register for (in addition to paid private ones).

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima marina

One of the very cool aspects of Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is that the ships have a marina of sorts. The idea is that on days where the ship is tendered and weather conditions permit, they have a whole fun setup at the back of the ship. You can access this via a staircase on deck five, and then it takes you down to deck three. This was set up during our day in St. John.

This is such an unbelievably cool space. For one, there’s a fully covered area, which opens up on both sides. When the marina is in use, there’s a bar setup here, so that you can order food and drinks.

Past that, you’ll find a bunch of loungers set up on the very back of the ship.

That then leads to the inflatable marina area, which is super cool. The idea is that the water in the middle of the marina area acts as a “pool” of sorts, as it’s enclosed with a net, to minimize risk. You can’t actually jump off the marina and into the open ocean, for example. This was a lovely setup, and we enjoyed our time here.

What a fun feature! I should mention that you need to sign a waiver to use this area, and kids need to wear life vests. They also have several crew members on hand to make sure everyone stays safe.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima kids club & activities

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima has Ritz-Kids on deck eight, which is intended for those between the ages of four and 12. It’s nice to have a dedicated space for kids, though I can’t speak to the quality of the programming, as we didn’t bring our kids on this cruise.

Ultimately I think Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is a good option for families, though admittedly there are definitely cruise lines more geared toward children. I imagine it varies by sailing, but there were at most a handful of kids on our cruise.

While we’re on the topic of activities for kids, let me also briefly mention that I was impressed by the huge number of activities onboard for adults. There was everything from a themed nightly party, to trivia, to live music all over the place, and more. So despite the ship’s smaller size, one shouldn’t get bored here. The only thing I’d mention is that there’s no traditional theater or anything, so don’t expect nightly shows.

Below is a small sampling of the daily acitivites onboard.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima restaurants & bars

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima has an impressive selection of dining venues, so let me go over them, and share our experience. Food and drinks really were a highlight on the cruise, and I was delighted by the quality of food and drinks that was included.

I think it’s worth noting that you won’t find a single buffet onboard Evrima, and that’s by design. However, you’ll notice that there’s no shortage of food, and you’re encouraged to order as much as you’d like. For example, we’d constantly be asked if we wanted to order more appetizers, more main courses, more desserts, etc.

Let me first cover the very basics of the outlets, and then I’ll take a look at each more closely:

• The Evrima Room is open for breakfast and dinner; it’s one of the more elegant dining outlets with all seating indoors, and it serves “seasonal, locally inspired menus”
• The Pool House is the casual daytime restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, serving breakfast, lunch, snacks, and drinks, with an international selection
• Mistral is open for lunch and dinner with outdoor seating, and it serves Mediterranean cuisine
• Talaat Naam is open for lunch and dinner with both indoor and outdoor seating, and it serves Southeast Asian food
• S.E.A. is open for dinner with indoor seating, and it’s the specialty restaurant that costs extra to dine at
• The Living Room Cafe & Bar serves drinks and snacks all day, and even has a coffee shop where barista coffee is available all day
• The Observation Lounge serves drinks in the afternoons and evenings, and is the primary evening venue

With the above out of the way, let’s take a look at each venue in more detail.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima The Evrima Room

The Evrima Room is located on deck four, and unlike most of other dining venues, all the seating here is indoors.

The restaurant really is massive, when you consider how few rooms the ship has, plus the fact that there are so many many dining outlets. We had both breakfast and dinner here one day — at breakfast maybe a few tables were occupied, while at dinner, it was around half full.

Since we were staying on a higher floor, I really liked the views from here, since you were closer to the water, which gives a different vantage point.

You can find the breakfast menu for The Evrima Room below.

For breakfast, Ford and I had the lobster croissant and keto pancakes, both of which we enjoyed immensely. Talk about nice presentation, especially for breakfast

You can find the dinner menu for The Evrima Room below. The menu consists of two posts — there’s the classics section, which always stays the same, and then the regionally inspired section, which changes every four days, and varies based on whether you’re in the Caribbean or Europe or somewhere else.

We dined here as a group, and for appetizers, had the crab cakes, pan seared foie gras, mahi mahi tiradito, and spiced chickpea salad.

For main courses, we had the filet mignon, and the salmon, among other things.

We also ended up splitting a few desserts, including the signature chocolate cake, caramel flan de leche, and the passion fruit and mango.

We enjoyed both our breakfast and dinner at The Evrima Room, and this was probably my favorite dining venue onboard well, aside from S.E.A.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima The Pool House

The Pool House is located on deck five, and as you might have guessed based on the name, it’s right next to the main pool area. This is a casual restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, and it’s open for breakfast and lunch, and it can also be visited all day for drinks and snacks.

We had breakfast here one morning, and you can find the menu for The Pool House below.

I had the avocado toast, while Ford had the pitaya bowl. Yum.

Then you can find The Pool House lunch menu below, along with the cocktail list.

We ate here as a group and split a variety of things, including the guacamole, king fish ceviche, jumbo shrimp roll, adobo chicken quesadilla, spiced sea bass tacos, and more.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima Mistral

Mistral is the ship’s Mediterranean restaurant that’s open for lunch and dinner, and it’s located on deck eight, with all seating being outdoors.

We had dinner here one evening, and you can find the Mistral dinner menu below.

For appetizers, we split several things, including the mezze, beef carpaccio, and prawns.

For mains, we had the lobster tail, lobster pasta, prawns, and mahi mahi.

If I had to prioritize restaurants, this is probably the one we were least fans of. It was still quite good, but some of the dishes just weren’t great. For example, I’m a huge fan of mahi mahi, but the one I ordered, which was even the “special” of the day, wasn’t great. Perhaps this was one of those “specials” that they just needed to get rid of, rather than one they were actually proud of? Either way, it was still a pretty good meal, just not as great as the others.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima Talaat Naam

Talaat Naam is Evrima’s Southeast Asian restaurant that’s open for lunch and dinner, and it’s located on deck six, with both indoor and outdoor seating. This is one of the smaller venues on the ship, and we had lunch here one day.

You can find the lunch menu for Talaat Naam below.

We ordered, well… basically everything, so I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Honestly, for an Asian fusion restaurant on a ship, I thought the food quality was really good.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima S.E.A.

S.E.A. is Evrima’s specialty restaurant that’s open for dinner, and it’s located on deck six. It’s the only restaurant on the ship that isn’t included, though we received a credit we could use toward this for booking through Marriott STARS. Normally the cost is $285, which is of course steep when you already have great dining options included.

The restaurant is intimate, with around two dozen seats, so they really try to make it a special experience. The concept here is that the menu was designed by Chef Sven Elverfeld of Aqua, the three Michelin star restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton Wolfsburg, in Germany. Chef Moritz is the chef onboard who was looking after our dining experience, and he was awesome (as were the rest of the staff at S.E.A.). This was really on par with a Michelin dining experience.

You can find the dinner menu for S.E.A. below.

I’ll let the pictures of the dining experience speak for themselves, as this review is approaching 7,000 words, and I imagine you’re getting as tired reading about my experience as I am getting writing about it (I love writing about my travel experiences, but this has taken a really long time). 😉 We had a fabulous meal, and in particular, how cool is that Ruinart Rose dessert?!

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima The Living Room Cafe & Bar

The sheer amount of space on Evrima is nothing short of incredible. Take The Living Room, which is located on deck four, also where you enter. There’s just a massive area called The Living Room, which has a bunch of seating. You’ll find everything from live music to trivia here, and in general, it’s just a nice place to hang out. I never saw more than a few people here at a time.

Adjacent to that is The Living Room Cafe, which is open from early in the morning until late at night. This is one of the only places on the ship that has barista coffee, along with a variety of snacks. Since most restaurants didn’t have barista coffee, I got more than my fair share of drinks here.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima The Observation Lounge

The Observation Lounge is located on deck 10, which is the highest floor of the ship, so it boasts a great view in all directions. This is a nice place to lounge around during the day, and then in the evenings there tends to be more of a party vibe here, as there’s live music, a DJ, and/or some sort of themed party.

Off this space is the humidor, a space where guests can smoke. There’s also a nice selection of cigars available for purchase.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection inclusive alcoholic drinks

Above I’ve mentioned how I was really impressed by the drinks onboard Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, both in terms of the quality of alcohol, plus the preparation of drinks.

For example, below is the drink list at The Observation Lounge, which gives you a good sense of what spirits are included.

Dirty Ketel One martinis were made to perfection, which was appreciated. Honestly, all the drinks I had were excellent, and I would’ve gladly paid for them in a restaurant.

On top of that, there was an extensive list of included wines, which you can find below. The ship even had an excellent sommelier who would help guests choose wines, which strikes me as mighty impressive for an inclusive list. While there’s also a list of premium wines you can order from, I appreciated how he didn’t try to aggressively upsell guests, or anything.

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima service

One of the aspects of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection experience that most impressed me was the service. I guess cruise lines in general are known for having pretty friendly employees, given that making sure people have a fun time is sort of the most important job that cruise line staff have (well, aside from keeping people safe).

Across the board, I found staff to be excellent — they were friendly, professional, and genuinely interested in making sure guests had a great time. A special shoutout to the general manager, entertainment director, and sommelier, for being especially awesome, and constantly checking on guests.

When you come into the experience with a hotel mindset, it’s just kind of weird to be on a cruise ship. For example, you go to the included restaurant, have an amazing meal with food and drinks, and then 10 different people say “thank you so much for joining us.” Well, you’re welcome, I guess, but I’m the one who should be saying thank you!

Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection Evrima guest profile

When I wrote a preview about my experience, several people asked me to comment on the guest profile, so let me dedicate a short section to that. I imagine the types of guests differs massively depending on the type of sailing, the time of year, etc.

On this sailing I can safely say that the crowd felt really… unremarkable, in a good way? It was just a really mixed crowd in every way, and I like that. There weren’t many families, but that might just be because such a short cruise is more appealing to adults than families, and I definitely got the sense the cruise line was kids friendly.

The crowd was honestly no different than I’d expect at any luxury hotel in the United States. I did get the sense that cruising is especially popular with extroverts, as people on the ship seem to be really chatty with strangers. Everyone was super pleasant and wasn’t pushy, but it’s definitely something I noticed as an introvert.

Bottom line

Our sailing on Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima exceeded my expectations, from the nicely appointed rooms, to the very impressive shared spaces, to the delicious food and drinks, to the service. As I mentioned earlier, I hadn’t been on a cruise in over 20 years, but this sure was a nice (re)introduction.

No, I’m not fully transitioning from staying in hotels to taking cruises. However, this definitely won’t be my last cruise, and even if you haven’t considered such a voyage in the past, I’d seriously recommend giving it a second thought. With how much luxury hotel costs have increased (while offering less and less), it’s lovely to have a truly inclusive experience, like this.

In particular, I think cruising is compelling if you really just want to relax, enjoy yourself, and can maybe find an interesting itinerary with some destinations you want to visit. On top of that, if traveling as traveling as a family, I think cruising is tough to beat.

I have a voyage booked on Four Seasons Yachts for later this year, and I’m curious to see how it compares. I’d also be interested to try Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s two other ships, given their different size, especially since they have some interesting itineraries.

What’s your take on the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection experience?