Passengers give peek at life onboard nine-month cruise that's like reality TV
A nine-month long cruise to some of the most beautiful places in the world has become a self-shot reality TV show obsessed over by millions.
The Ultimate World Cruise is a nine-month-long, round-the-world voyage with Royal Caribbean on its ship Serenade of the Seas. Over the course of 274 days guests will be whisked to seven continents, stopping off at some of Earth's most spectacular sites including the Great Wall of China, Petra and Iguazu Falls.
It isn't the stunning views that have made the Ultimate World Cruise hashtag the place to go on TikTok over the past month. Instead it is the porthole content creators have offered into their lives aboard the luxury ship which has proved so captivating.
In increasing numbers people are asking and finding answers for questions such as 'what exactly do you eat onboard a nine-month cruise', 'who can afford the £42,000 to £92,000 price tag' and 'how anyone can stand being on a boat for that long with the same people?'
Two of the break-out stars from the cruise are Andrew and Ale Kenney, a young American couple who have welcomed viewers into their life aboard the ship through a series of popular videos. In one clip Ale gives a tour of her room, showing the view of sunny Aruba through the porthole, golf-mad Andrew's putter that he brought from home and their 'really tiny' bathroom.
Couple living on cruise ship as it makes 'more sense' than paying mortgage
There is something charmingly everyday about their experience onboard and as they show their followers around the ports they've stopped off in. In one video Andrew films two cruisers happily bopping along to the Macarena led by an upbeat member of staff on an otherwise deserted deck.
Their content is very typical of that produced onboard and then poured over by those on land. It is largely drama free and a bit sleepy - a decent reflection of what life on a cruise is really like. Madison Schwetje provides a similar service to her 80,000 followers.
On Christmas she posted a video detailing how December 25 was spent aboard a massive cruise ship drenched in equatorial sun. In it she shows the captain dancing along in a Zumba class and her family members taking part in a festive belly flop competition.
"I literally just watched a video about how they did nothing for Christmas??? The more nine month cruise TikTok I watch the more I’m conflicted," one person wrote in the comments.
There are of course exceptions to this low drama depiction of life onboard, most recently in the form of a hefty weather front which is currently battering the ship and injecting a little peril into the sailing. Social media fans avidly followed for updates after the shop was hit by a ferocious gale pelting the vessel, with clips claiming to show a pool forming inside the gym.
One commenter expressed concern about when the ship will later head to Drake's Passage and be exposed to the collective power of the Atlantic and Pacific where the two oceans meet.
Sea Director ND is another TikToker who has dedicated her time to scrutinising content from those aboard the ship, reporting claims that passengers were being pelted with 60 knot winds on Tuesday as the ship steamed out of Rio.
Assuming that the sturdy vessel makes it through okay, the forecasting will go down as the latest valiant effort to inject some peril into a cruise that has captivated millions because or in spite of its lack of drama.
Joe Martucci is one video creator who has found an audience while bobbing around the Seven Seas. The 67-year-old recent retiree from St. Cloud, Florida was encouraged to post video updates about his life onboard by his four kids and has now clocked up 410,000 likes.
“This is not us trying to become famous,” he says in one early video. Now he posts daily with his wife, who refer to themselves as 'cruise mum and dad'. In one Joe smiles joyously as he putts a golf ball as the ocean slips by behind him.
Seeing Northern Lights tops 'wish list' of travel experiences for 2023
Mundane as it may be, this kind of content is clearly hitting the spot for many. "Your Tik Toks are everything to me right now. I lost my dad recently and he didn’t get to spend any of his retirement savings. He was only a year away from retirement," one person wrote below.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
