TRAVEL advisors will be key for The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection (RCYC) in Australia, new Vice President and General Manager Seb Seward told Cruise Weekly.
The former British Airways executive, who was appointed to his new role last month, said the travel industry will be key to Ritz-Carlton’s distribution in Australia.
“It’s true we have a higher direct penetration than most of the industry, due largely to the power of the Marriott Bonvoy program; however agents are key for us, especially in Australia and the broader APAC region,” Seward told CW.
“I’ve just spent the week at ILTM in Singapore meeting with many luxury travel agents and discussing how we can work together,” he added.
“We’ll be working closely with agents to ensure that they have the necessary understanding of our unique product in order to effectively sell it.”
Seward is relocating to Australia for the role, and said although nothing is set in stone, RCYC is expected to be based in Sydney.
The local team will feature a number of reservation agents to offer support to its trade partners and direct customers, as well as one or two sales roles, based between Australia and Asia.
However, Seward distanced RCYC from offering a “cruise” experience, with the new VP saying passengers can expect the brand to differentiate itself from other luxury lines in Australia.
“We offer a yacht rather than a cruise experience – smaller vessels that can anchor in more places, yet offer some of the highest space per guest in the industry,” he said.
“You can even swim or paddleboard straight from the marina platform at the aft.”
Seward said early excitement about RCYC in Asia-Pacific has been “extremely positive”, as the cruise line prepares to welcome Luminara, its upcoming third luxury superyacht, to the region next year (CW 27 Jun).
Luminara’s 10 new journeys between Dec 2025 and May 2026 will be the cruise line’s first season in Asia-Pacific. MS