The Ritz-Carlton’s Luminara is a design-led haven at sea

the ritz-carlton yacht collection luminara review — Exterior view

(Image credit: Courtesy of The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection)

Stretching a languid 794 feet, the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s third vessel, Luminara, features 226 suites sprawled across ten decks. Its design is inspired by Malta’s historic lighthouses and the legacy of the Knights of Valletta, though it’s fair to say this is an aesthetic connection most guests will miss entirely as they linger over cocktails by the infinity pool. What nobody will miss, however, is the small fortune spent on what is essentially a sleekly elegant, floating beach resort.

Tour the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection's Luminara vessel

Nodding to the fluidity of the sea, Toronto studio Chapi Design has orchestrated the public spaces with curves everywhere, and there is plenty to admire here. For starters, nothing remotely resembles cruise-ship plastic, to the point that it’s easy to forget you’re at sea. The Living Room – an auditorium repurposed as a piano bar – is dressed with pieces by Calder and Matisse flanked by Poliform's Stanford Bridge chairs, because nothing says one-per-cent insouciance than hanging museum-grade art in a room where people spill Negronis.

Even the deck furniture skews fancy, not least Vondom's Tulum Collection, and Talenti's George sunbeds. The Humidor is dressed with buttery Time Lounge leather armchairs by Poltrona Frau, whilst the Art Bar positions Minotti's swivelling Torri Bold armchairs beneath Cycladic installations to create a sort of louche gallery lounge where you half-expect the bartender to hand you a price list with your cocktail.

Meanwhile, London studio AD Associates handled the suites, each opening onto private terraces. The Owner's suites offer light-flooded volumes with terraces large enough for jacuzzi tubs and dinner parties. That said, the Grand Suite is just as comfortable (and considerably less expensive) with dining table, discrete sitting area, extra-king bed, bathroom with double sinks, standalone tub and an unexpectedly capacious rain-shower.

The material palette favours tactile warmth – oak millwork in moody tones, marble from Emporada quarries, glass treated to a smoky finish. The furniture reads like a tour through Italy's premier manufacturers: low-slung pieces by Minotti alongside Giorgetti, Molteni sharing space with Talenti armchairs, Duc-Duc sofas by Cassina, and customised Ligne Roset sofas. It’s the kind of accumulation that suggests the spec sheet had no word limit.

In the end, whether the Luminara constitutes a yacht or an exceptionally well-appointed ship remains contested, though after your third Poltrona Frau armchair sighting, the semantic debate feels absurdly academic.

The Luminara sails Southeast Asian routes through May before repositioning to Alaska and Canada. Rates from $8,800 per person

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Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.