By Caroline Tell
When Kim Puterbaugh's daughter graduated from college last summer, she decided to take her on a nine-night Ritz-Carlton yacht trip from Amsterdam to Lisbon. Anything, Puterbaugh said, to avoid the crowds she had experienced the summer before.
"We couldn't even walk down the street in Santorini because there were so many people," Puterbaugh, a retired obstetrician-gynecologist based in Raleigh, N.C., said. "It was so claustrophobic and overwhelming. Now, whatever it takes to be able to do things with a smaller group of people is so much better."
The irony is that ships once helped create the very problem Puterbaugh and other travelers are now desperate to avoid. For years, big cruise ships funneled crowds into destinations like Venice and Barcelona, fueling overtourism concerns and prompting officials to impose restrictions on cruise traffic, ship size and visitor volume.
Rather than defaulting to the usual beachfront hotels, savvy summer travelers to Europe are turning to a new generation of yachts from ultraluxury brands like Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons and Aman. For some, being at sea is only one part of the appeal: The right ship can also provide an escape from the masses.
"If there's a theme I'm hearing from travelers in 2026, it's friction," said Brian Kelly, founder of The Points Guy. On a yacht, you can move between destinations without worrying about logistics. "Book a villa on land, and you're fighting for crowded restaurants and packed beach clubs, especially in peak season," Kelly said.
Caline Basroon, a New York-based travel adviser with Protravel International, has booked multiple clients on hotel-branded yachts this summer. She thinks of her customers as the type who have spent multiple summers at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes, France, where some of her customers were waitlisted this year. Others opted out of staying on the French Riviera entirely, telling Basroon they were tired of "the scene," she added.
"Luxury now isn't just about where you're traveling, but how effortlessly you're experiencing it," Basroon said. "With these ships, you can wake up in St. Tropez and have lunch at Club 55 without battling traffic in and out of town. The next day, you're in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, without packing your bags."
This year, Addie Bell Zackon and Brandon Zackon, founders of luxury travel advisory Jetset & Travel, have booked close to 20 sailings for clients on the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, launched in 2022.
Those clients range from young couples to multigenerational families, the Zackons said, but everyone is driven to book by a combination of aspiration and frustration. "We sent an ultrahigh-net-worth client to the Amalfi Coast last year, and he came back saying, 'Never send me there again -- it was way too crowded,' " Brandon Zackon said. "That was eye-opening for us."
Access and ease
On the Ritz-Carlton yachts Evrima, Ilma and Luminara, which run itineraries throughout the French and Italian Rivieras, Greek Isles and Dalmatian Coast, a dedicated in-house concierge team plans passengers' day on shore by the minute so that they don't have to wait in lines or battle traffic. Private drivers wait at the pier to shuttle guests to snorkeling trips, cooking classes or even helicopter charters.
Itineraries on Seabourn, one of the earliest players in the luxury cruise scene, offer guests a way to bypass peak crowds entirely. A trip that stops in Turkey includes an after-hours visit to the ruins in Ephesus, for a classical music concert when the site is otherwise closed to the public. Another day, guests can join a private wine tasting and dinner at Karnas Vineyard in Bodrum.
Other cruise operators, like Explora Journeys, steer travelers towards lesser-known ports such as Calvi in Corsica and Syros in Greece.
Trading accommodations on land for itineraries at sea isn't entirely without compromise. Travelers gain convenience and access, but may sacrifice some spontaneity in the process. Cruise trips are largely fixed months in advance so there's little room for improvisation.
Exclusivity also comes at a cost. A European voyage on a Ritz-Carlton ship can range from $6,800 per person for four nights in a standard room to nearly $90,000 for 11 nights in the highest-end suite. Those rates include most meals and drinks on board. The Four Seasons Yacht I, which runs routes sailing the Greek Isles, the Ionian and Dalmatian coasts and the Istrian Riviera, starts at $31,000 per double occupancy standard suite for seven nights. When Aman at Sea debuts its 94-passenger yacht next May, rates will start at $10,500 per suite per night, based on double occupancy.
Still, when looking at peak-season prices in Europe, some see a bargain. A double room at Le Sirenuse, a luxury hotel in Positano in July can reach over $4,000 a night before a single Negroni is added to the tab.
On the Ritz-Carlton Ilma, while Puterbaugh loved the unlimited Champagne, attentive staff and lobster dinners, some of her favorite moments were the quietest ones: morning coffee, reading on her balcony and long stretches when the ship felt nearly empty despite being fully occupied. She always found space to spread out, and when a destination looked too crowded, she appreciated having the option to simply stay onboard.
"I remember sitting in a cafe in Bordeaux and seeing a guide with an umbrella and this huge herd of people following behind," Puterbaugh said. "I thought, goodness, I would never want to do that."
Yachting by the Numbers
On a new breed of hotel-branded luxury yachts, prices can rival those of the world's most exclusive resorts, but so can the level of access. Here, some of the newest players sailing Asia, the Mediterranean and beyond.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 12, 2026 19:00 ET (23:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comments