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Luxury cruise ship shopping: How retail therapy has evolved for modern travellers

Luxury cruise ship shopping is more sophisticated than ever before, evolving to include preloved designer fashions and accessories. Here’s what your luxury travel clients can expect to find onboard when in need of a little ‘sea-tail’ therapy. 

Luxury cruise ship shopping is more sophisticated than ever before, evolving to include preloved designer fashions and accessories. Here’s what your luxury travel clients can expect to find onboard when in need of a little ‘sea-tail’ therapy. 

Browsing high-end shops onboard luxury cruise ships is an integral part of the cruise experience for today’s cruise travellers. There’s plenty of time to try on that coveted watch or necklace, slip on a gorgeous dress or three, and experiment with exclusive perfume, cosmetics and skincare brands – all with the help of attentive, well-trained sales staff. 

Pop-up stores, designer trunk shows, exclusive partnerships with world-famous and small, independent brands complement traditional duty-free shopping and create that all-important, leisurely ambience.

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Rolex boutique on EXPLORA I

Responding to guests’ interest in sustainability and the circular economy, some cruise lines now have boutiques specialising in preloved designer fashions and accessories.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ newest ship, Seven Seas Grandeur, offers a unique collection of pre-loved designer bags and leather accessories, while Harding+ (one of the big global cruise-line retail suppliers) opened P&O UK’s first recycled designer shop onboard Arvia in 2022. Guests can find gorgeous vintage pieces from brands such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Hermes. 

Starboard is another major retail supplier to the cruise industry, providing the full luxury cruise ship shopping experience to luxury cruise lines such as Crystal, Scenic, the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, Silversea, Virgin Voyages and more. Starboard also offers standalone boutique stores for LVMH brands, including Bulgari and Hublot, and distributes cosmetic ranges such as La Prairie and Lancôme.

Celebrity Edge and beyond

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Designer perfumes are available at Attraction onboard Celebrity Edge. Credit: Jessica Weiller/Unsplash

Guests onboard Celebrity Edge, which is sailing in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific until April 2025, can indulge in an irresistible array of retail therapy opportunities. 

Upmarket stores include Attraction, for perfumes and cosmetics by world-famous names including Dior, Chanel and Estée Lauder, as well as boutique brands Jo Loves and Atelier; Time Is Now, for sought-after watches for men and women by Hublot, Tag Heuer, Bulova, Gucci, Fendi, IWC, Citizen, Breitling, Zenith and Panerai; and Sense of Self, for bags, leather accessories and sunnies from designer brands such as Coach, Marc Jacobs, Alviero Martini and more. 

To The Edge is where guests will find Celebrity Edge inaugural branded souvenirs, including fashion, homewares, travel gear and pop-up fashion collections from the likes of Melissa Odabash and Orlebar Brown; and What Goes Around Comes Around sells vintage pieces from designers such as Chanel, Hermes, Prada and Fendi.

New to Celebrity Cruises‘ brands, available on select ships such as Celebrity Beyond, include La Maison du Chocolat’s first boutique at sea, Stella McCartney’s fashion, footwear and accessories, Marni clothing and handbags, and Beekman 1802, the world’s biggest goat-milk skincare company. 

Grand lobby boutiques

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The Experience Lounge on Queen Anne

Cunard’s newest ship, Queen Anne – now sailing around Australia on her first world cruise – is the first in the fleet to feature Reloved, Harding+’s dedicated brand for preloved luxury goods. The range includes classic leather accessories and a range of globally renowned vintage jewellery by renowned British designer Susan Caplan.

The centrepiece of Queen Anne’s Grand Lobby Boutiques is arguably the Cabinet of Curiosities. This stylishly presented collection, which is part art exhibition, part retail space, weaves together elements from the Cunard archives and sought-after pieces from Garrard, Chanel, Theo Fabergé, Launer, By Alona and more, and are available to both admire and buy. Many items have never been available at sea before.

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Queens Room Boutiques, Queen Anne

The Grand Lobby Boutiques also include the Experience Lounge, which offers talks, tastings and try-on events; the Queens Room Boutiques, where guests can find an array of new-to-Cunard brands such as Raishma, Shaun Leane and Hugo Boss; a store dedicated to watches; and an updated Cunard Collection of upmarket souvenirs and gifts.  

Although Queen Anne has a sizeable library – fleetmate Queen Mary 2’s library is one of the largest at sea – unlike QM2 and Queen Victoria, she doesn’t have a bookshop. Hello, Cunard: it’s not too late to retrofit.

The journey

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Cartier boutique on EXPLORA I

There’s only one cruise ship where you can buy pieces by acclaimed Italian jeweller Buccellati, and that’s 2024’s uber-luxe EXPLORA II. The collections are renowned for their use of rare stones with brilliant colours mixed with white and gold, and are inspired by archive drawings by the company’s founder, Mario Buccellati.

Buccellati is one of more than 30 bespoke brands that form The Journey, which Explora Journeys says “redefines the shopping experience at sea” by offering stores that focus on craftsmanship with provenance.

Companies featured in The Journey’s stores are preferably B-Corp certified (meeting the highest standards in social and environmental performance), reflecting Explora Journeys’ own commitment to sustainable practices. 

Guests can shop The Journey for luxury brands such as Memo Paris, Kampos, Save The Duck, Bottega Conticelli, MOSCOT and the line’s own perfume brand, Mandala Blue by Explora Journeys.

Rolex opened its first official on-ship boutique onboard EXPLORA I, and both ships have stores dedicated to luxury brands Cartier, Panerai and Piaget.

Princess Sphere Class

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A customer shopping for jewellery with Princess Cruises

Launched just a year ago, Princess Cruises’ newest ship, Sun Princess takes retail therapy to a new level – literally. More than 200 boutiques are set over two decks, offering everything from fashion and leisurewear, fine jewellery and watches, designer accessories, and beauty and wellness products.

Sun Princess introduced 25 first-at-sea brands, including Chanel No. 1, Beyond Yoga and Varley, sustainable fashion from Neu Nomad, handbags by Italian brand Pinko, and three new jewellery lines: Shaun Leane, Yvonne Leon and John Hardy. Waves is the first Princess-branded merchandise store, offering an exclusive limited Princess Inaugural collection celebrating first Sphere Class ship in the fleet.

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Boutiques onboard Sun Princess. Credit: James Morgan, Getty Images for Princess Cruises

The Premium Watch Lounge is home to the first-at-sea Breitling Lounge concept and the latest TAG Heuer boutique design, plus an array of men’s and women’s timepieces from Longines, Rado, Tissot and Hamilton.

Professional skincare education, products and services from Chanel, Demalogica and Prai Beauty are offered as well as a range of luxury brand cosmetics and organic skincare products in the Beauty and Wellness Boutique.