Ship that travels the world full time — here’s how much it costs
A floating apartment. A residential yacht. A holiday home that travels the globe.
The World, a luxury liner, has many descriptions, but “cruise ship” is not one of them, said resident Jim Minarik.
“The only thing that’s similar between the world and a cruise ship is they float on the water,” he said. “If our ship was a cruise ship, there’d probably be 1,500 passengers. When we’re really busy, we have between 200 and 300.”
The World has 167 privately owned apartments, ranging from 290-square-foot studios to 3,240-square-foot four-bedroom residences.
Minarik and his wife bought their apartment in 2020 with plans to spend one to two months a year on the ship. However, he said, they now spend up to half of the year on board.
Many residents bring their own furniture and employ interior designers to decorate their apartments.
Source: The World
“We just found we love so much about the community, the way of travel — it’s very leisurely and comfortable,” he said. “You’re continuously seeing something new.”
Minarik said the couple were so enamored by the onboard experience that they eventually bought a second, larger apartment on The World, keeping the first apartment for family and friends.
Life aboard the ship
Like many cruises, The World has multiple restaurants and bars, yoga classes and a gym, two pools, a medical center and round-the-clock room service.
But the similarities mainly end there. For starters, on this ship, the owners call many of the shots.
“It’s a democratic society on board,” said Residential Director Eddie Wong. “They vote on things like the itinerary, they vote for refurbishments on the ship,” as well as its board of directors.
An outdoor pool sits quiet while The World was docked in Singapore in May 2024. On average, there’s around 150 residents on the ship, although this number can double during expedition trips and year-end and school holidays, said Residential Director Eddie Wong.
Source: CNBC
Itineraries change yearly, Wong said. The schedule for 2026 has been finalized, he said, and includes stops in Antarctica, French Polynesia and Easter Island, the latter of which he called “one of the most sought-after locations in the world.”
The World docks in around 100 ports per year, stopping for two to five days, rather than a few hours, said Wong.
“We’ll pull into a port, like the Amalfi Coast,” said Minarik. “We stay for three or four days, so we may not even get off on the first day … we might just go off for dinner.”
The World creates photo books after its expedition trips, which in 2024 includes trips to Antarctica, Australia’s Kimberley region, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, Wong said.
Source: CNBC
Several owners live on the ship full time, but most come and go as they please, he said.
After cruising from South America to South Africa, Minarik said, he and his wife disembarked in Cape Town and went on safari for two weeks, before heading home to Orange County, California. The friends they were traveling with caught back up with…
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