Vacations are supposed to be about relaxation, not wrestling with luggage or fighting to snag a last-minute dinner reservation. If you want your next cruise to be flawless, book one that offers private butler service. From unpacking your bags to planning a surprise celebration, these highly trained professionals make sure you can do exactly what you came to do: kick back, relax, and occasionally toast to how fabulous life is at sea.
These are the best luxury cruise ships with private butlers, broken down by what cabin type you’ll need to book to get one.
Celebrity Cruises: The Retreat Suites
Celebrity Cruises’ The Retreat is an exclusive experience that feels like a separate luxury ship. Each Retreat Suite comes with a dedicated butler, access to an exclusive sundeck and lounge, and your own table at Luminae, the suites-only restaurant.
Best of all, you can use Celebrity’s butler chat to text your butler from your phone—perfect if you hate making awkward phone calls.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises: Penthouse Suites and Higher
Regent Seven Seas Cruises has been perfecting luxury voyages for over 30 years. Guests in Penthouse Suites and above enjoy highly trained, professional butlers ready to anticipate every whim.
Think of your butler as a personal concierge (but better). They pack and unpack luggage, book shore excursions and spa treatments, reserve dinner spots, serve meals in-suite, arrange cocktail parties, and even assist with disembarkation. Basically, if you can imagine it, your Regent butler can make it happen. And no, they won’t clean your suite—that’s handled by a dedicated team of suite attendants, leaving your butler free to focus on the fun stuff.
Regent butlers have a flair for the extraordinary. One memorable moment involved twelve tuxedoed butlers escorting a newlywed couple to their first official dinner together, while diners applauded the spectacle. Another guest casually mentioned a love of red roses, and the butler arranged for her suite to be covered in blooms.
Wondering how much to tip your butler? Read our guide to butler tipping etiquette.
Silversea: All Cabins
Silversea takes “every guest attended to” seriously, with a ratio of nearly one crew member per passenger. All cabins on Silversea feature butler service. From unpacking your luggage to drawing a scented bath or organizing an in-suite cocktail party, your butler is there when you need them and invisible when you don’t.
Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection: All Suites
Every suite on the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection comes with a dedicated Suite Ambassador, your single point of contact on board. From bespoke dining reservations to in-suite arrangements and shore excursions, your ambassador ensures a flawless journey from start to finish. Think of them as a concierge, personal planner, and magician rolled into one.
They handle the details so you don’t have to, whether it’s coordinating a private celebration, reserving a spa treatment, or arranging an intimate in-suite dinner.
Uniworld: All Cabins
Uniworld brings the charm of boutique river cruising to life with suites that feel as unique as the destinations they visit. Each suite comes with a dedicated butler who handles everything from packing and unpacking to room service, daily treats, and even laundry.
Orient Express Sailing Yachts: All Suites
Onboard an Orient Express Sailing Yacht, every suite includes legendary service worthy of the Orient Express name. Dedicated butlers ensure your suite is immaculate, assist with in-suite dining, and coordinate every aspect of your journey—from arranging water toys on the marina platform to scheduling spa treatments.
Add in live music, cinema, hammams, and bespoke destination experiences, the Orient Express will be a voyage of a lifetime.
Azamara Cruises: All Suites
Azamara’s suites combine five-star hotel comforts with the freedom of the open sea. Butler service is always included in suite bookings, along with priority embarkation and debarkation, specialty dining, in-room spirits, and unlimited laundry. In other words, your only responsibility is relaxing—and maybe deciding which cocktail to enjoy first.
Best of all, all onboard gratuities are included.
Paul Gauguin Cruises: Suites and Staterooms in Category B and Higher
On the Paul Gauguin, butlers are standard for suites and staterooms in Category B and above. Their services include packing and unpacking, garment pressing, dinner and spa reservations, and even last-minute wardrobe prep for your first evening onboard.
Your butler ensures every request is met with precision, from arranging private shore excursions to orchestrating in-suite celebrations.
Costa Cruises: All Suites
Costa Cruises knows how to start your vacation on a high note: a welcome bottle of champagne in your suite, ready and waiting. With a private butler, every evening is effortless, from unpacking your luggage to booking shore excursions or dinner reservations.
Add in hot tubs, exclusive restaurants, and small, thoughtful touches, and it’s easy to see why Costa’s suite service makes you feel like royalty on the high seas.
Oceania Cruises: All Suites
Oceania Cruises ensures every guest in a suite experiences 24-hour personalized pampering. From the moment you step on board until your final farewell, your warm and attentive butler is there to make life effortlessly luxurious. Trained by the Guild of Professional English Butlers, these professionals have a knack for transforming ordinary moments into unforgettable experiences. Whether it’s hosting an in-suite cocktail hour, organizing a special celebration, or simply serving a perfectly steeped Earl Grey with a slice of grapefruit each morning, your butler is ready to accommodate your every request.
For guests in Owner’s, Vista, Oceania, and Penthouse Suites, the indulgence goes even further. These suites enjoy extra-special services including course-by-course in-suite dining from any specialty restaurant, coordination of shore-side dinner and entertainment reservations, last-minute luggage collection, packing and unpacking, garment pressing, shoeshine service, gourmet evening canapés, and other personalized touches. No request is too big or too small—Oceania’s butlers make every moment at sea completely carefree and delightfully indulgent.
Norwegian: Haven Suites
Norwegian’s Haven suites offer a private, elevated level of luxury at sea. From the moment you step into your suite, certified butlers are on hand 24/7 to take care of every detail, whether it’s arranging extra towels, preparing cocktails, or handling special requests. Haven guests also enjoy exclusive perks like private courtyard access and platinum keycards.
P&O Cruises: All Suites
P&O’s suites occupy the ship’s prime real estate, offering everything from Penthouse to Family suites. From chocolates and champagne on arrival to breakfast in premium restaurants, your stay comes complete with thoughtful extras. Included butler service can manage everything from packing and unpacking to dining reservations and shore experiences.
Looking for more cruise content? Read our guide to the Best Antarctica Luxury Cruises.
