Being the biggest of the bunch doesn’t necessarily come without its challenges — especially when it comes to reputation in the luxury hotel orbit.
Marriott International is the world’s largest hotel company and has a hefty portfolio of luxury hotel brands, from St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton to W and Edition. But that sheer scale can also leave some luxury aficionados looking elsewhere for upscale accommodations.
It’s not entirely unheard of to hear hotel snobs, er, experts say big hotel conglomerates like Marriott can’t deliver the attention to detail required to make an ultraluxury guest return to a property. But Marriott certainly appears positioned to capture a variety of luxury and ultraluxury travelers in 2025 and beyond.
Marriott’s complete slate of luxury brands encompasses Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts, W Hotels, The Luxury Collection, Edition, JW Marriott and Bulgari Hotels & Resorts. There are also offshoots like Ritz-Carlton Reserve.
Certain hotel snobs may not like to see their favorite property link up with a big brand and its loyalty program, like Marriott Bonvoy, but it appears plenty of luxury hotel owners see the benefit. Marriott had more than 530 luxury hotels at the end of last year, and more than 260 are in various stages of development — with 30-plus new luxury hotels expected to join the Marriott orbit this year, per a company presentation at the recent International Luxury Travel Market conference in Cannes, France.
“We see that luxury hospitality is really entering a promising new era,” Tina Edmundson, president of luxury at Marriott, said during a breakfast presentation at ILTM. “It’s really fueled by financial growth and a desire for personal and, importantly, emotional growth.”
Edmundson noted the strong outlook on luxury travel isn’t just because of ongoing growth in global wealth. It’s also because that wealth is passing onto the next generation of luxury travelers, presenting an opportunity for brand development and reinvention.
“There’s no doubt the next era, like always, will have some things that stay the same, some things that persist and some things that will change,” she added.
This was evident to me most recently during a stay at The St. Regis Mexico City. The St. Regis brand — dubbed “the House of Astor” after John Jacob Astor, the founder of the original property in New York City — might be synonymous with classic luxury. After all, this is the brand known for butler service, cocktails at the dimly lit King Cole Bar in New York and sabering Champagne in the lobby.
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I found that there was plenty of that to be had at the Mexico City property. (Thank goodness: Who doesn’t love a morning delivery of an iced americano by one’s butler?)
But you’ll also find a mix of local and modern flourishes. The King Cole Bar in North America’s largest city featured an expansive outdoor deck overlooking the Diana the Huntress Fountain on Avenida Paseo de la Reforma, and even the Christmas decor — in partnership with fashion brand Carolina Herrera — had a cooler-than-cool vibe of red and pink florals that offered a couture-meets-La Condesa backdrop to afternoon Champagne sabering.
Some of these design tweaks coincide with broader observations in the luxury sector.
“While many of the luxury brands have focused on serving the high-net-worth customers, there’s really this large and expanding base of aspiring luxury travelers, and they are increasingly willing to spend a larger share of their wallet on upscale travel options,” Edmundson said back in Cannes.
Global spending on luxury leisure hospitality stood at $84 billion in 2023, but that’s expected to climb to $107 billion in 2028, per Marriott’s presentation at ILTM. Half of luxury sales are attributed to aspirational luxury consumers who might occasionally splurge on high-end stays or goods compared to those deemed high-net-worth individuals.
Further, 80% of the luxury goods market will be millennials and Generation Z by 2030 — even more reason for high-end properties to start thinking about creative twists like a Carolina Herrera Christmas tree in the lobby once the holiday season rolls around to court the next generation of luxury, fashion-forward travelers.
“This group hasn’t been a priority for us, but they are very much a priority going forward,” Edmundson said.
Where can travelers, regardless of generation, check out the latest and greatest in luxury at Marriott this year?
Some of the company’s most-anticipated openings of 2025 include The Lake Como Edition in Italy, the JW Marriott Hotel Tokyo, The St. Regis Cap Cana Resort in the Dominican Republic, the debut of the revived W New York – Union Square, Nekajui, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Costa Rica and The Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Madrid.
Start counting your Marriott Bonvoy points and get to planning your next luxe getaway.
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