Second Ritz-Carlton Collection yacht deepens Maltese link with ‘Ilma’

The Ritz-Carlton’s luxury yacht cruise offering is preparing to inaugurate its second yacht with a maiden trip in September, with the new vessel set to not only fly the Maltese flag but also be christened with a name immediately recognisable to any Maltese speaker – Ilma.

The first of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s vessels, Evrima, was launched in 2022, and was also registered in Malta.

The Maltese links run deeper still, with reservations from Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa being received by the firm’s Malta office, situated in the Forni Complex at the Valletta Waterfront.

The company is evidently pleased to promote its Maltese roots, with the new Ilma making the connection loud and clear.

The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection received its new vessel on Monday, and took to social media to mark the moment.

Ilma was built by the French shipyard Chantiers de l’Atlantique. Its exterior was designed by the Finnish studio Aivan and the interior was designed by the British architectural and design company AD Associates and lighting designer DPA.

Measuring 240 metres by 29 metres, the 46,750-ton Ilma features 11 decks, eight of which are guest decks.

It can accommodate 448 passengers across 224 suites, and 378 crew members.

Speaking to Forbes earlier this month about the difference between their offering and the experience provided by regular cruise ships on the one hand and private yachts on the other, Tina Edmundson, president for luxury at Marriott International and Jim Murren, CEO of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, said that the ‘floating luxury hotel’ experience fills a gap in the market that neither of the other options can fill.

“The variety of restaurants that we have, the quality levels that we deliver, the type of entertainment that we bring to bear and the amount of service that we bring – we have a one-of-a-kind crew-to -passenger ratio that no-one else has in our space,” said Mr Murren.

“We took our inspiration from private yachts and, working closely with Ritz-Carlton, we created a hospitality experience that’s very different than what you would get on a cruise.”

Ms Edmundson meanwhile highlighted how it all starts with the size of the vessel: “The space-to-guess ratio is very generous, so even when we’re full, it never feels dense. The facilities are really different, too; there are hundreds of quiet spots where you can tuck away with a book or your computer anywhere on the boat. The service and culture of Ritz-Carlton is critically important and, in my mind, quite a differentiating factor. And then there’s all the other amenities on top, from the quality of food to the wine. It feels different.”

On the other hand, people who charter a private yacht miss out on the social experience of a communal hotel: “If guests are coming with a group of people, or they’re multi-generational family, they want to meet like-minded folks who also have that adventurous ‘can do’ spirit, and you can’t do that on a private yacht. It’s not so much a value proposition for them, it’s more of a lifestyle decision that they’ve made,” said Mr Murren.

Although the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection was the first mover in the luxury yacht cruise space, and the first to recognise Malta’s potential as a hub for the space, it has been followed by Four Seasons Yachting, both in the market segment and to Malta, with recent promotional material prominently featuring the Maltese flag.