Imagine this: after a morning spent truffle hunting in northern Tuscany, Italy, and an indulgent champagne and caviar tasting in the afternoon, you retreat to your spacious Four Seasons suite. Inside, art adorns the walls, the green marble bathroom gleams like a private spa and a plush king-sized bed faces floor-to-ceiling windows that open onto your private terrace. It’s the kind of refined environment one might expect in a cosmopolitan city. Except, you’re not in Florence, Italy. You’re floating on water.
This is life aboard Four Seasons I, one of 95 suites on the brand’s first-ever yacht. Set to embark on its maiden voyage in 2026, the ship represents Four Seasons’ debut into luxury cruising, carrying guests through southern Europe, with Greece, Croatia and Spain among its sun-soaked destinations.
The brand joins a growing fleet of hospitality icons expanding beyond land. Ritz-Carlton launched its Yacht Collection in 2022; the Orient Express, known for its luxury train travel, sets sail in 2026, with the 54-cabin Corinthian; and in 2027, Aman will christen its 47-suite Amangati.
For these storied hotel groups, venturing onto the water is both strategic and symbolic, offering a new way to nurture loyalty among their clientele. For travellers, it’s an invitation to indulge their curiosity while elevating their expectations.
“The clients who are now inquiring are more well travelled and are asking, ‘What else can we do?’” says Sabina Cavrak, a Vancouver-based luxury travel adviser with Laurier Du Vallon. “They don’t want the hustle and bustle of 2,500 people on a cruise ship. These yachts offer a different version of cruising for people to step into.”
Where traditional cruises often mean crowds and predictable ports, this new generation of boutique voyages appeals to a traveller who prizes space, style and storytelling. They want curated itineraries, considered design and the kind of seamless service that makes even the most Instagrammable escapades feel effortlessly exclusive.
By 2028, the Cruise Lines International Association projects there will be more than 1.5 million luxury cruise-goers—up from 1.2 million today—a growth rate 2.5 times higher than the overall industry. Virtuoso’s 2026 Luxe Report mirrors that momentum: 38 per cent of its travel advisers report surging demand for ultraluxe getaways.
This new generation of boutique voyages appeals to a traveller who prizes space, style and storytelling
The report’s top customer requests? All-inclusive experiences and privacy, which are two pillars embodied by these new floating sanctuaries, where fares include everything from dining to water sports to gratuities. Aboard Aman’s Amangati, guests can even charter the entire vessel for a fully private voyage.
Boomers and Gen X travellers are also seeking longer stays in quieter ports, preferring immersion over itinerary checklists. Smaller ships can slip into lesser-known harbours, moving leisurely from one locale to the next. On the Four Seasons’ Grand Mediterranean journey, for example, guests visit two ports in Croatia, one in Greece and three in Italy before docking in Malta for its last stops.
For seasoned traveller and writer Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon, the shift is palpable. “I really didn’t feel like I was on a ship,” she says of her February voyage aboard Ilma, part of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection. “It felt like being in a small boutique hotel that just happened to float.”
That sense of intimacy defines this new class of voyage. With only 228 suites, Ilma offers the same understated opulence that guests expect from the brand’s resorts, right down to on-board Hermès and Bulgari boutiques. And then there are the shore experiences available to travellers: private helicopter lunches in Barbuda; marble quarry tours in Carrara, Italy, via four-by-four; or bespoke excursions designed to match a guest’s every whim. Essentially, if you can dream it, the concierge can arrange it.
Each brand brings its signature aesthetic to sea. Ritz-Carlton’s Luminara offers spa-like soaker tubs in select suites. The Orient Express’ Corinthian, designed by architect Maxime d’Angeac, translates the romance of luxury rail travel into art deco–infused interiors of rich wood and velvet.
Together, these vessels mark the next evolution of experiential travel, and for travellers seeking that extra touch without the crowds, this new style of boutique sailing answers the call.
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