Have you ever dreamed of life on a cruise ship, spending your days coasting with the motion of the ocean and watching the sun set on the horizon each evening? Some people are actually living that life. They take up residence on cruise ships by booking consecutive cruises for months and years on end. In this article, we’ll outline how much it actually costs to live on a cruise ship.
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Is it even possible to live on a cruise ship?
Believe it or not, some people actually do take up residence on cruise ships. And we’re not referring to the officers and crew members! Some notable present and former examples include Mario “Super Mario” Salcedo (Royal Caribbean), Lee “Mama Lee” Wachtstetter (Crystal Serenity), and Beatrice Muller (Queen Elizabeth 2).
THE TRUE COSTS OF LIVING ON A CRUISE SHIP
How do they do it? To live on a cruise ship that’s not residential (more on those later), you essentially have to book consecutive individual cruises on a ship for as long as you’d like to live onboard.
If possible, those who are taking up a floating residence try to book the same cabin for most or all of their time onboard. Thus, they won’t have to move their belongings around from cabin to cabin. This means they’re usually booking their cruises as soon as the booking windows open. This ensures they have their choice in cabins (and a better shot at being able to select the same one).
Some people only live on one ship for their entire “life at sea” career. Others, like Super Mario, have experienced living on several vessels — in his case, Royal Caribbean ships.
How much does it cost to live on a cruise ship?
Now that you know it’s possible to live aboard a cruise vessel, let’s get to the main reason you’re reading this article. What does it actually cost to live on a cruise ship? The cost of living on a modern passenger ship varies greatly depending on many factors. These include the cruise line you choose, the region the ship is sailing (many itineraries demand a premium!), and the type of accommodation you choose. Here’s a breakdown of the main costs associated with living a life at sea (the cruise way!).
Cruise Line
The cruise line you choose has a big impact on how much it will cost to live at sea. You could choose a mainstream family line such as Carnival or Royal Caribbean. Or, you could upgrade to a premium line like Celebrity or a luxury or ultra-luxury brand such as Viking or Regent Seven Seas. Depending on which type of cruise line you choose, your per-day cost of living on board will differ dramatically.
In the cruise line decision-making process, looking over different lines’ loyalty programs is imperative. You’ll quickly reach the highest tiers (if you haven’t already reached them) by living on board. Depending on the cruise line, loyalty programs can include perks that will save you massive amounts of money in the long run. Some of these perks can include free laundry service, wifi, drinks, and specialty dining nights.
“Super Mario,” for example, has spent over 20 years living on Royal Caribbean ships in interior cabins, mostly on itineraries in the Caribbean. Through the line’s loyalty program, he only pays 150 percent of the cruise fare for a single traveler. Often a solo guest has to pay 200% of the fare to account for the lack of a second passenger. Before any taxes, fees, or other add-ons, he pays around $150 a day to live onboard.
In an article for the Washington Post back in 2016, “Mama Lee” Wachtstetter said she spent around $450 per day living on Crystal Cruises’ Crystal Serenity. Accounting for inflation, this would be around $580 in 2023.
Super Mario and Mama Lee are great examples of the vastly different costs of living on a cruise ship depending on whether you go for a mainstream or luxury cruise line.
For the purposes of this article, we’re going to assume that you choose a mainstream line like Royal Caribbean, Carnival, or Norwegian. We’ll also assume that you’re going to live on board with one other person, such as your spouse.
Ship & Sailing Region
Once you’ve settled on a cruise line, the ship (or ships) you’re going to live on are the next piece of the puzzle. Thinking about what’s important to you when it comes to a place to live day-to-day is imperative.
Consider how you want to utilize public spaces like lounges and outdoor decks. Think about the amenities you place a lot of value on as well. If you want a quiet, smaller ship, you’ll probably go for an older vessel with fewer bells and whistles. If you want an environment buzzing with energy and lots of fun things to do, you’ll probably go for a larger, newer ship.
You’ll also need to pick a ship that’s sailing in a region you want to “live,” both in terms of the cost and the climate that you desire. For example, voyages in Alaska are generally more expensive than sailings in the Caribbean. They offer a shorter cruise season and cooler weather. The Caribbean is a more affordable year-round cruise region with hot and humid weather.
Here, for cost average purposes, we’re going to assume that you’re sailing in the Caribbean.
Stateroom
Once you choose a ship, it’s time to think about what type of accommodation you want to make your home. Picking a stateroom is important — especially when booking lots of consecutive cruises where you’re going to be stuck with your choice for months (or more) on end.
Many cruise ship “residents” choose interior cabins because, despite their lack of a window or balcony, they are significantly cheaper and most time is spent out on the open decks and in other public areas anyway. However, if natural light is extremely important to you or you don’t think you’ll do well without fresh air on your own private balcony, those are options to consider.
Here’s an idea of what you might pay for a voyage on a mainstream cruise ship in the Caribbean. As a starting guide, expect to pay around $100 to $150 per person, per night for an interior cabin. At $125 per night, that’s $91,250 per year for a couple, or $250 per night. This does not include taxes, port fees, daily gratuities, or add-ons. For a balcony cabin, our estimation goes up to around $175 per person, per night, or $350 for a couple. That’s $127,750 per year, again not counting taxes, fees, or gratuities, nor other add-ons.
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Other Costs
On top of the published cruise fare, there are other associated fees not included in the price of a cruise.
Taxes and fees
There are additional taxes and fees listed in the costs before you hit the ‘book my cruise’ button. For example, for a seven-night cruise in the Caribbean you can expect to pay around $100 to $150 in taxes and port fees per person. This, of course, is a fluid number that’s dependent upon how many cruise ports your itinerary includes and the specific destinations themselves.
Take the average ($125), multiply it times two for two people ($250), and multiply that times 52 for weeks in a year. You can expect to pay around $13,000 in taxes and port fees for a year on a ship for two people in the Caribbean.
Gratuities
Mainstream cruise lines charge guests daily gratuities, or a daily “service charge.” On Carnival and Royal Caribbean, this daily charge is $16 per person, per day for regular non-suite cabins (interiors, oceanviews, and balconies). It’s $20 per person, per day on Norwegian Cruise Line. The daily gratuity charges for an entire year on a cruise ship for a couple would be $11,680 on Carnival and Royal Caribbean. Or, $14,600 on Norwegian Cruise Line.
Note: While daily gratuities are automatically charged to your bill at the end of a cruise, it’s an optional fee on most cruise lines. Even though you’re able to remove or modify the amount, we recommend you keep the charge on your bill as-is.
WiFi
If you’re going to live on a cruise ship, chances are you’re going to want internet access. Most mainstream cruise lines provide wifi access in the form of various internet packages with a per-day price. For basic packages that include messaging and social media, expect to pay around $13 to $15 per day. Internet packages that include the ability to surf the internet, email, stream music and movies, and download and upload files cost around $18 to $25 per day. Other cruise lines, especially luxury brands, provide internet access to guests for free.
If we were to assume it costs $13 per day for basic wifi access for one device, that would cost $4,745 per year. If we assume it’s $20 per day for wifi access that includes additional abilities (which many guests would need to work remotely), that’s $7,300 per year.
Keep in mind that wifi is another reason to research cruise line loyalty programs. Once you reach the higher levels in the program, internet access may become free or will be offered at a discount — depending on the cruise line.
Drinks, Specialty dining, Spa, etc.
Once all of the other costs are taken care of, account for any additional spending you might want to do on or off the ship.
Most people who live on cruise ships rarely pay for extras like specialty dining and shore excursions. As mentioned before, reaching the highest tiers of cruise line loyalty programs can help with this. Some include a set amount of alcoholic beverages or a specialty dining meal per cruise as loyalty program perks.
But if you might want to indulge in a spa day or take a shore excursion here and there, be sure to factor those into your overall ‘living on a cruise ship’ budget.
What’s the cost to live on a cruise ship for a year?
Now that we’ve gone over the basic expenses for taking up a life on a cruise ship at sea, let’s see what the average cost to live on a mainstream cruise ship in the Caribbean would be with a high-tier wifi package and no extra expenses like specialty dining or shore excursions.
For an interior cabin, our estimate for two people is around $124,550. For a balcony, it’s $161,050.
World Cruises
A great option to consider if you’re looking to live on a cruise ship is a world cruise itinerary. World cruises are months long, with some reaching durations of six months across many continents. It gives you a chance to make a temporary home onboard with lots of like-minded travelers doing the same thing.
Usually, it also means that you’ll receive additional inclusions in the cruise fare that otherwise might not be included on that particular cruise line. This can be a huge benefit for someone looking to live on board regardless. These can include things like flights to and from the cruise homeport, onboard gratuities, laundry service, wifi, and alcoholic beverages.
World cruises are also convenient for cruise ship “residents” because it means they can book a large chunk of time on a ship without having to make lots of individual reservations. Further, they’re guaranteed to have the same cabin for the entire duration of the sailing.
Residential Cruise Ships
Arguably, the best way to live on a cruise ship is to purchase a residence on an actual residential cruise vessel. Here are some current and future examples of such ships.
The World
Currently, there’s only one residential cruise ship operating called The World. It runs like a condo building. Residents purchase their apartments as they would a condo or house, plus annual ownership costs.
The benefit is that everyone is onboard for the same reason: to live at sea, whether full-time or part-time. Depending on the size, each apartment has its own kitchen or kitchenette which allows residents to make their own meals when they wish. Or they can dine in one of the ship’s six restaurants.
Residents also have a say in where the ship goes. The path the vessel takes around the globe is determined about three years in advance through a resident voting process.
When a residence on The World goes on the market, you probably won’t find one for less than a million dollars. The largest accommodations reach prices close to $8 million.
Storylines
In 2026, a company called Storylines is set to launch its first residential cruise ship called MV Narrative. It will set off on a leisurely three-year journey around the globe. Like on The World, residents purchase their accommodations. Prices currently start at $875,000 and going up to $8 million, plus annual living fees. Guests can also purchase seasonal residency, splitting their apartment with others at different times of the year.
Living on MV Narrative includes laundry service, access to hobby areas, access to watercraft, 20 bars and restaurants, wifi, select alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and access to a private kitchen to cook meals.
Semester at Sea
If you truly want to live out your Suite Life on Deck dreams and you’re still in high school or just starting college, consider looking into Semester at Sea.
College students can spend a semester literally living at sea aboard the program’s ship MV World Odyssey. They can take classes onboard while simultaneously exploring the world. This is done through a partnership with Colorado State University, where students sailing with Semester at Sea are officially enrolled for that semester.
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Comments
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