Living on a Cruise Ship? Why Your Travel Insurance May Not Cover You

A few weeks ago, I had a minor heart attack. I’m fine, but it got me thinking. My wife and I are about to embark on a journey. We’ve purchased a condo on Avora Lumina, and our intention is to live at sea for part of the year and in one of our other homes for the remainder. So what if it had happened out there, somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic? Does my AvMed plan cover me? And if so, for how long? When I turn 65, will Medicare cover me when I travel?

I didn’t know the answers. And I’m not alone. Our Live At Sea community has discussed this topic on numerous occasions. Charles Couser put it best in our Facebook group back in May: “It’s the ultimate lifestyle, but it always brings up one massive question: how the heck does travel insurance work when you’re gone for that long?”

The short answer is that it mostly doesn’t. Travel insurance was built for trips—two weeks in Italy, a Caribbean cruise—and it does that job well. But when the trip doesn’t end, you’ve got a different problem, and it needs a different product.

Travel insurance wasn’t built for this

One member of our group found out the hard way that their Allianz annual policy had a 45-day limit on any single trip. Other policies stretch to 90 days or six months. In other words, “annual” describes how long you own the policy, not how long you can be gone.

What most of us need instead is international medical insurance, often called expat or nomad insurance. These policies are designed for people who spend long stretches outside their home country, and they don’t carry the short trip limits. Don’t get me wrong—they aren’t automatically built for someone whose address is a ship, either. Some insurers require you to keep residency in a particular country. Others restrict how long you can be aboard or where you’re covered. Which is why I’d get it in writing that the policy covers continuous residential cruising before paying a dollar.

What our members actually carry

One member who spends eight months a year aboard told us they went with IMG for international medical and evacuation coverage, and they keep Medicare and Medigap for their time back in the United States. A travel advisor in the group carries an annual Allianz policy personally but steers clients to different companies depending on their situation, because someone cruising three months a year has very different needs from someone who sold the house. Another member recommended Alex Routh, who specializes in expat insurance.

My takeaway? Talk to a specialist. I’ve bought a lot of things online because the price looked good. This shouldn’t be one of them.

The pre-existing conditions trap

This one is now personal. Many people considering this lifestyle are retired or close to it, and plenty of us have a medical history—diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or in my case a heart attack a few weeks old. The fact is, an insurer agreeing to sell you a policy doesn’t mean it covers the condition you’re most likely to need treated. Some policies exclude pre-existing conditions outright. Others require medical underwriting, impose waiting periods, or charge more.

Picture buying a residence aboard a ship, planning five years of sailing around the world, and then learning in a foreign hospital that your heart isn’t covered. Not good! Disclose your history accurately and have the insurer spell out every exclusion in writing. For a lot of retirees, this could be one of the biggest financial decisions they make before moving aboard.

Evacuation: the nearest hospital isn’t your hospital

Say you have a serious emergency mid-crossing. The ship’s medical team stabilizes you, and the cruise line coordinates what happens next, which could mean diverting to a port or arranging an evacuation when that’s medically necessary and operationally possible. But who pays? And where do they take you?

Most evacuation coverage gets you to the nearest appropriate facility. Think of an ambulance: it takes you to the closest hospital that can treat you, not your favorite one. Getting you home is a separate benefit, and often a separate product. There are medical transport memberships that will take you to your hospital of choice, but some limit how long you can be away from home, and some won’t arrange a pickup from a ship at all. To be clear, having “evacuation coverage” doesn’t mean someone sends a helicopter to the middle of the ocean and flies you home.

Don’t forget about home

So does my AvMed plan cover me at sea? I pulled out my plan documents to find out. The good news is that US private insurance doesn’t count the days you’re away the way Canadian provinces do. As long as I stay enrolled and keep my Florida home, the plan stays in force whether I’m gone two weeks or ten months. The bad news is what it pays for while I’m out there, which is emergencies only. Non-emergency care outside the US is excluded, prescriptions filled abroad aren’t covered, and if I need an air or water ambulance, I pay 50 percent after the deductible. Half of a helicopter bill isn’t a number I want to learn at sea. One thing in my favor—it’s an ACA plan, so it can’t exclude my heart as a pre-existing condition. Many international policies can.

Back to my Medicare question. Medicare doesn’t cover care outside the United States, apart from a few narrow exceptions. Some Medigap plans add foreign travel emergency coverage, but as of this writing it applies only during the first 60 days of a trip, pays 80 percent after a $250 deductible, and carries a $50,000 lifetime limit.

To be clear, that includes emergencies. A heart attack in the middle of the Atlantic isn’t one of the exceptions. The good news is that Medicare doesn’t count your days away, so as long as you keep paying your Part B premium, you stay enrolled, and that 60-day Medigap clock restarts each time you come home and leave again. Remember, too, that the best time to buy Medigap is the first six months after you start Part B, when insurers can’t turn you down for your health history. For those of us with a heart attack on the record, that window matters.

Don’t get me wrong—that doesn’t mean you can’t be gone for more than 60 days. You can stay away as long as you like and keep your coverage. It means an emergency on day 61 isn’t covered by Medigap, and without another policy you’d pay the whole bill yourself. Even inside the 60 days, a $50,000 lifetime limit doesn’t go far against a serious hospital stay or an evacuation. Which is why I’d carry international medical coverage for the whole time aboard. I’d also ask the Medigap insurer what counts as ending a trip. Does a stop in a US port reset the clock, or do you have to go home?

Canadians have a different issue. Provincial health coverage depends on residency and on how many days you’re physically in the province, so spending most of the year away can cost you your eligibility. The same concern applies in other countries with public systems. And it cuts the other way too—some international policies exclude or limit treatment in your home country. So check both directions before you buy.

The three layers I’d want

If I were starting from scratch—and I suppose I am—I’d look at three layers:

  • International medical insurance. The foundation. It should work across the countries you’ll visit, specifically allow extended or continuous residential cruising, and cover care aboard, care ashore, and your existing conditions.
  • Medical evacuation and transport. Know where they’ll take you and who pays. If getting to your own hospital matters, look for a transport service that offers it and allows long stretches at sea.
  • Home-country coverage. Medicare, Medigap, a private plan like mine, or a provincial system. Know what you keep and what you have to do to keep it.

Some of these overlap, and you may not need three separate products. What matters is that there are no gaps.

Seven questions I’m asking

  1. Will this policy cover me if I live aboard for six months, a year, or permanently?
  2. Do I need to maintain a residential address in a particular country?
  3. Are my pre-existing conditions covered?
  4. Does it cover treatment aboard the ship and in the countries we’ll visit?
  5. What happens if I need an emergency evacuation at sea?
  6. Can I be transported to my home country or preferred hospital?
  7. Will I still be covered when I’m home, and could living at sea affect my domestic coverage?

I’m asking for every answer in writing. What a salesperson tells you isn’t always what the contract says.

Golden Nuggets

  • Travel insurance is for trips. Living at sea needs international medical insurance.
  • “Annual” doesn’t mean a year-long trip. Check the per-trip limit.
  • Confirm in writing that the policy covers residential cruising.
  • A policy that excludes your pre-existing condition excludes the care you’re most likely to need.
  • The nearest suitable hospital and your hospital at home are two different destinations.
  • Talk to a specialist.

Frequently Asked Questions About Insurance When Living at Sea

Does travel insurance cover living on a cruise ship?

It may cover an eligible cruise, but don’t assume it covers living aboard for months or permanently. Maximum trip lengths, residency requirements, and medical exclusions can leave gaps. Ask the insurer to confirm in writing that your policy covers your planned residential cruise.

Does annual travel insurance cover a year-long cruise?

Not necessarily. An annual policy can cover multiple trips over a year while limiting the length of each individual trip. Some Allianz annual plans, for example, have a 45-day maximum trip length. Check your specific policy before booking an extended stay.

What type of health insurance should I consider for long-term cruise living?

International health insurance is worth exploring for extended time abroad. However, “expat” or “nomad” branding doesn’t guarantee suitable coverage. Confirm that the policy allows residential cruising and covers your destinations, treatment aboard the ship, care ashore, and the full duration of your stay.

Will insurance cover pre-existing medical conditions?

Coverage varies. A policy may exclude certain conditions, require medical underwriting, or impose waiting periods and benefit limits. Disclose your medical history accurately and request written confirmation of how each condition will be covered before purchasing.

Does Medicare cover medical care on a cruise ship?

Original Medicare generally does not cover care outside the United States, with limited exceptions. It may cover medically necessary shipboard care when the ship is in a U.S. port or within six hours of one, provided the doctor meets Medicare’s requirements. Some Medicare Advantage plans offer additional foreign travel benefits.

Is Medigap enough for an extended cruise?

Medigap’s foreign travel emergency benefit has significant limits. Plans offering it generally pay 80% of eligible charges after a $250 annual deductible, with a $50,000 lifetime maximum. The emergency must begin within the first 60 days of the trip. That makes it insufficient as your only overseas medical protection for a months-long stay.

Does medical evacuation coverage mean I’ll be taken home?

Not automatically. Evacuation benefits commonly provide transport to the nearest appropriate medical facility. Transport to your home country or preferred hospital may require a separate benefit or membership. Confirm the destination, approval requirements, trip-length restrictions, and whether transport from a ship is included.

Christina Berry posted in our group in October that she and her husband are researching a residential cruise purchase a few years out, and insurance is one of their top three priorities, right alongside choosing a ship and finding an international bank. She’s doing it in the right order. I did it backwards. We bought the condo first, and it took a heart attack to get me asking.

I’m not an insurance advisor, and rules and products vary, so speak with a licensed professional before you decide. But figure out the insurance before you sell the house, not after.

Have you already solved this? Tell us what you carry in the Live At Sea group. I’d like to know.

Retiring on a Cruise Ship: What It’s Really Like to Live at Sea

Darren Budak came home one day and told his wife, Kris, he had a plan for their retirement.

“We’re going to live on a cruise ship.”

Her response was immediate. “No, we’re not.”

But Darren knew his wife well enough to give her some time to think about it. About ten days later, Kris came back and told him she thought it was a pretty good idea after all. Her only condition was that they would never sell their house.

Six months later, she was asking when they could sell it.

Today, Darren and Kris own a cabin aboard Villa Vie’s Odyssey, and Kris’s parents have bought another cabin just down the hall. Now they’re preparing to move to Avora Lumina, making them part of a very small group of people who have actually lived on one residential cruise ship and decided to move to another.

I first met Darren and Kris in Barcelona while touring the Regent Seven Seas Navigator, the ship being converted into Avora Lumina. Kim and I had purchased a residence aboard, and so had they. The difference was that Darren and Kris were already experiencing the lifestyle we were planning to try.

I invited them onto the Live At Sea podcast because I wanted to understand what living on a cruise ship is really like once the excitement of being on vacation wears off. What do you miss? What gets frustrating? How do you deal with seeing the same people every day? And perhaps most importantly, would you do it all over again?

Their answers gave me a much better understanding of what we’re getting ourselves into.

First, Everyone Thinks You’re Crazy

Try telling your family and friends that you’re selling your house and moving onto a cruise ship. Most people don’t even understand what you’re talking about.

“You tell somebody, I bought a cabin on a cruise ship, and they’re like, oh, you own a timeshare,” Darren told me. “No. It’s not a timeshare. I own it. It’s mine. If I’m not in it, nobody’s in it.”

I can relate. When Kim and I tell people we’re planning to live aboard Avora Lumina for part of the year, we get some interesting looks. I think most people picture a traditional seven-day Caribbean cruise with thousands of passengers, crowded pools, buffet lines, and a completely different group of tourists arriving every week.

Residential cruising is a very different experience.

Darren and Kris’s twin sons, Kobe and Christopher, were supportive, and Kobe and his wife have already visited them aboard Odyssey. But the most interesting conversion story involves Kris’s parents.

Her father initially thought Darren had lost his mind. Then he and his wife started spending time aboard Odyssey while Darren and Kris were still working. At one point, they stayed for six months, traveling from Panama and eventually returning to Panama.

They enjoyed the experience so much that they bought their own cabin.

Think about that. The people who initially questioned the whole idea ended up moving in down the hall.

Living on a Cruise Ship Is Not a Permanent Vacation

One of the biggest misconceptions about living at sea is that you’re somehow on vacation every day. Darren was quick to explain that there’s a big difference between taking a cruise and actually making a ship your home.

When you’re on vacation, you feel pressure to do everything. Every port, every excursion, every restaurant, and every show. You’ve paid for the experience, and you want to get your money’s worth. But imagine trying to maintain that pace for five years. You’d be exhausted.

Darren explained that it takes about two or three weeks for your mentality to change. You gradually stop thinking like a tourist and start treating the ship like home.

Some days they wake up, have coffee, enjoy lunch, maybe participate in water aerobics or play cards. Darren has developed a particular fondness for a white bread veggie sandwich and a Coke in the afternoon. Other days, they might spend time relaxing in their cabin without doing much of anything.

“It’s okay to take a day off, sit in your room, do whatever. You don’t have to be a tourist 24/7.”

I loved that comment because one of my concerns about living at sea has been whether I’d feel compelled to do something every day. Apparently, you eventually get over that feeling and settle into a routine, just as you would at home.

They’ve even started decorating their cabin with wallpaper, painting, and window film. These are the same little improvements you might make to a house or condo because you want the space to reflect your personality.

For Darren and Kris, Odyssey isn’t just a cruise ship. It’s their home.

Kris also told me about one of her favorite routines, something she calls “land coffee.” Depending on where the ship is sailing, the coffee aboard can vary, so some mornings they simply walk into town, find a local coffee shop, enjoy a cup, and stroll back to the ship.

It’s such a simple pleasure, but imagine being able to enjoy your morning coffee in a different country every few days.

Sometimes You Just Want to Be Left Alone

Here’s something you probably won’t find in the marketing brochures.

Living aboard a residential cruise ship means being part of a relatively small community where you see many of the same people every day. You’re surrounded by neighbors at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and during activities. That can be a wonderful experience, but it can also become a little overwhelming.

Darren admits he’s not a huge extrovert, and he has a great expression for when he’s had enough socializing.

“My social bucket’s full.”

Fortunately, residents have developed an unwritten social code that helps everyone respect each other’s space. If you sit at a table for two, people generally understand that you’re looking for a quiet dinner together. They’ll wave or say hello but won’t necessarily join you. If you sit at a larger table, you’re signaling that you’re open to company.

And when you really want some time to yourself, you can order room service or spend an evening relaxing in your cabin.

Kris pointed out that there are also plenty of quiet corners around the ship where you can get away without feeling like you’re isolating yourself from the community.

I thought this was one of the more revealing parts of our conversation because a residential cruise ship is essentially a floating neighborhood. You develop friendships, get to know your neighbors, and become part of a community, but you also need the freedom to have some privacy.

Just because you live together doesn’t mean you need to spend every waking hour together.

What Do You Actually Miss When You Live at Sea?

I was particularly interested in what Darren and Kris missed about living on land. I expected them to talk about their house, favorite restaurants, or perhaps having a backyard, but their answers were surprisingly different.

Darren said he misses work.

He’s still employed full-time and hasn’t completely transitioned into retirement, so when he’s aboard, he sometimes feels disconnected from his professional life. I found that interesting because retirement isn’t simply about having enough money to stop working. For many people, work provides purpose, structure, and a sense of accomplishment.

Giving that up can be harder than we expect.

Kris had a completely different answer. She misses watching sports.

Watching a game together is one of the ways they relax, but streaming services and internet connections don’t always cooperate at sea. Add in the time-zone changes, and something as simple as watching college football can mean getting up at four in the morning.

It might sound trivial, but I think these are exactly the kinds of things people need to consider before moving onto a ship.

It’s easy to imagine watching beautiful sunsets over the Mediterranean. It’s harder to imagine missing your favorite football game because the internet isn’t cooperating.

The reality is that you trade some everyday conveniences for a lifestyle that offers experiences you simply couldn’t have if you stayed home.

The Places You Visit Make Up for a Lot

Of course, one of the biggest advantages of living on a cruise ship is waking up in destinations that most people will never have the opportunity to visit.

Darren and Kris shared some incredible stories from their travels.

In Wrangell, Alaska, they took an excursion to Anan Creek, where they watched a grizzly bear swimming after salmon. In Vanuatu, they explored an island on foot and eventually found themselves looking at a beautiful resort with overwater bungalows.

Kris told me she’d always dreamed of staying in one of those huts overlooking the water. But standing on the deck of Odyssey and looking back at the resort, she realized she might already have something better.

“Now I’m like, wait a second. I’m on a cruise ship looking at the hut overlooking the water. I think I have a better view.”

She has a point.

They also visited a port in Mexico that hadn’t seen a cruise ship in years, where they decided to hike an extinct volcano. Well, one of them hiked it. The other finished the climb on a horse named Uber.

You can’t make this stuff up.

What I particularly like about residential cruising is that you’re not constantly racing against the clock. Traditional cruise ships might arrive in port at eight in the morning and leave at five in the afternoon, giving passengers just enough time to see a few attractions and buy a souvenir.

Residential ships often stay for several days, allowing you to explore a destination at your own pace. You can find a favorite restaurant, wander through neighborhoods, get to know local people, or even spend a night ashore and rejoin the ship later.

That’s a very different way to experience the world.

Why Would Someone Leave One Residential Cruise Ship for Another?

This is where Darren and Kris’s story gets particularly interesting.

They’re preparing to leave Villa Vie’s Odyssey and move aboard Avora Lumina. Considering how few people have ever lived on a residential cruise ship, the number who have made the decision to move from one to another must be incredibly small.

I wanted to understand why they would leave a ship where they’d already built friendships and established a comfortable routine.

One reason was that they had missed the beginning of Odyssey’s journey. Because they were still working, they couldn’t fully participate in the early stages of building the community.

This time, they want to be there from day one.

“We would love to experience the journey from the beginning,” Kris told me.

I found that fascinating because it reinforced something I’ve been thinking about for a while. Residential cruising isn’t simply about visiting destinations. It’s also about the people you share those experiences with.

Darren and Kris want to help build that community from the beginning, bringing with them the experience they’ve gained aboard Odyssey.

They’re also looking forward to a different onboard experience. Avora Lumina is being converted from the Regent Seven Seas Navigator, and its larger suites and more upscale accommodations were part of the attraction.

They managed to secure one of the larger residences and had some pretty specific requirements.

For Darren, a bathtub was nonnegotiable. They also wanted more living space, which ultimately led them to choose a larger suite without a balcony.

Their reasoning was that they’d use the indoor space every day, while the outdoor deck was only about fifty feet from their cabin.

Kim and I made a slightly different choice. Our residence is 501 square feet and includes a small balcony. Having a separate bedroom, a bathtub, and our own outdoor space was important to us.

Neither approach is necessarily better. It really comes down to how you expect to live aboard.

When you’re purchasing a home on a ship, the layout matters just as much as it would when choosing a condo on land.

But What Happens to All Their Friends?

One of the things I wondered about was how Darren and Kris felt about leaving the friends they’d made aboard Odyssey.

These aren’t people they see once a year on vacation. They’re neighbors they eat with, explore with, and share experiences with. Some of those relationships have developed over months of traveling together.

They admitted they’ll miss their friends, which is understandable.

But there’s an interesting twist to their situation. Kris’s parents are staying aboard Odyssey, so the family will now have connections to two different residential ships.

Her parents can visit Lumina, and Darren and Kris can return to Odyssey to visit family and friends.

It’s certainly an unusual arrangement. Most people think of their neighborhood as a few streets surrounding their house. For this family, their neighborhood will span two ships traveling around the world.

The Reality Is That Things Will Go Wrong

This might be the most important lesson from our conversation.

If you’re considering retiring on a cruise ship, you need to understand that things aren’t always going to go according to plan.

Ports get canceled, itineraries change, the weather doesn’t cooperate, and equipment breaks down. Internet connections can be frustrating, and sometimes the experience simply won’t meet your expectations.

I’ve followed the residential cruise industry closely, and we’ve seen our share of delays, disappointments, and promises that haven’t materialized.

These are complicated projects involving ships, international regulations, ports, financing, and thousands of moving parts. Anyone expecting everything to go perfectly is probably setting themselves up for disappointment.

Darren put it well.

“If you’re going to walk on and expect everything to always fall in line and be perfect, I think you’re setting yourself up for failure.”

He said the crew gets things right nine times out of ten, but when something goes wrong, how you react makes all the difference.

I’ve spent enough time cruising to know exactly what he means. Some passengers can have an otherwise wonderful vacation ruined by one canceled port or a disappointing meal. Others shrug their shoulders, order another glass of wine, and enjoy the day.

I suspect the second group is going to enjoy residential cruising a whole lot more.

And that’s probably true of life in general.

Their Advice: Try It Before You Buy It

Both Darren and Kris were clear about the importance of experiencing residential cruising before making a major financial commitment.

They recommend spending at least three or four weeks aboard a residential ship, rather than assuming a traditional seven-day cruise will tell you everything you need to know.

You need enough time for the vacation mentality to wear off and for everyday life to settle in. It’s only then that you’ll discover whether you actually enjoy living in a smaller space, eating in the same restaurants, and spending time with the same community.

Because ultimately, that’s the real question.

It’s not whether you love cruising. It’s whether you’d enjoy making a cruise ship your home.

Kris summed up her philosophy with three words: “Embrace the unknown.”

Living at sea means visiting places you’ve never heard of, meeting people you never would have met, and having experiences you could never have planned.

But it also means giving up some control over your schedule and learning to be flexible when things change.

For some people, that uncertainty is part of the adventure. For others, it might become a source of frustration.

Knowing which type of person you are is probably one of the most important things to figure out before buying a residence at sea.

Would I Retire on a Cruise Ship?

Kim and I have already made the decision to give it a try.

We’ve purchased a residence aboard Avora Lumina, which is scheduled to launch in 2028, and we’re planning to be aboard for its inaugural sailing from Lisbon.

I’m excited about the opportunity, but I won’t pretend I don’t have concerns.

Will the ship launch on schedule? Will the community turn out to be what we hope? Will we enjoy living in a relatively small space for months at a time? And what happens when the excitement of waking up in a new country eventually becomes normal?

I don’t know the answers to those questions yet.

There’s also the financial commitment. Purchasing a residence aboard a ship isn’t like buying a condo on land, and the ongoing maintenance and living expenses are significant. You’re also depending on the operator to maintain the ship, manage the itinerary, and deliver the experience you’ve paid for.

Those are real considerations, and I don’t think anyone should overlook them simply because the pictures look beautiful.

But what struck me most about my conversation with Darren and Kris was that they’ve already experienced the lifestyle, including many of its inconveniences, and they’ve decided they want to do it again.

They know what it’s like when the internet doesn’t work, when plans change, and when they need a little distance from their neighbors. They also know what it’s like to wake up in Alaska one month and explore a remote island in the South Pacific another.

And they’ve concluded that the benefits outweigh the frustrations.

That carries a lot more weight with me than anything I could read in a sales brochure.

I think there’s something appealing about reaching a point in life where you can stop organizing everything around a house, a car, and a familiar routine, and instead spend your time exploring the world.

It won’t be for everyone, and I suspect some people will try it and decide they’d rather be back on land.

But for Darren and Kris, the experience has clearly been worth it.

They aren’t chasing a permanent vacation. They’ve found a different way to live, and they’re choosing to continue that journey on another ship.

As for Kim and me, we’ll find out for ourselves in 2028.

I’ve already invited Darren and Kris over for dinner when we board Lumina.

Assuming, of course, their social buckets aren’t full.

Watch the Full Interview

I really enjoyed my conversation with Darren and Kris Budak, and there’s a lot more to their story than I could cover here.

You can watch the full interview on the Live At Sea podcast here.

And if you’re considering retiring on a cruise ship, or just want to learn more about the lifestyle from people who are actually doing it, join our Live At Sea Facebook community.

New Residential Ships on the Horizon

I have been fascinated with the idea of living at sea for years.

I have also learned to be cautious.

I previously invested in two residential-at-sea concepts that
ultimately did not come to market as promised. Fortunately, in both
cases I received my money back.

Not everyone has been so lucky.

The unfortunate reality of this emerging industry is that too many
entrepreneurs set out with a compelling dream but do not have the
capital required to turn that dream into a ship.

And ships require a lot of capital.

I also happen to know a thing or two about startups.

Over the past 30 years, I have started more than a dozen companies,
written the award-winning book Start. Scale. Exit. Repeat., and built
Startup Club, where I spend a lot of time around entrepreneurs trying
to turn ideas into real businesses.

That experience has taught me that almost every startup, regardless of
industry, ultimately needs four things to succeed:

Story.

People.

Money.

Systems.

Residential cruising is no different.

In fact, these projects may be one of the clearest examples of why all
four matter.

Almost every residential cruise concept has a great Story. Living
aboard a beautiful ship while traveling the world is not a difficult
dream to sell.

Some have excellent People behind them.

Eventually, they can build the Systems required to operate the ship.

But the stumbling block for many projects has been Money.

Buying an existing cruise ship can cost $100 million or more.
Converting it into residences can require another $100 million. A
purpose-built residential vessel can cost $1 billion or more.

A great idea and a few hundred deposits are simply not enough.

Residential living at sea is no longer just a theory.

The World has been operating for more than two decades at the
ultra-luxury end of the market, proving that wealthy owners will buy
private residences aboard a ship and live internationally for long
periods.

Villa Vie Odyssey has demonstrated something very different: a more
accessible residential model built around an older converted cruise
ship and a broader community of long-term residents.

Those two ships matter because they prove there is more than one
version of living at sea.

Now the next generation of projects is emerging.

One of them is Avora Lumina, where my wife Kim and I have purchased a residence.

I chose Avora in part because it had crossed one of the most important
thresholds for me: there was an actual ship.

I visited Seven Seas Navigator myself, toured the vessel and recorded
a video of the experience, which you can see here.

That mattered.

I have also stayed on Regent’s ultra-luxury ships, and they are quite
different from traditional cruise ships. The atmosphere is quieter,
the service is more personal, the public spaces feel less crowded and
the overall experience feels much closer to a floating luxury
residence than a conventional mass-market cruise.

That difference becomes important when you start thinking about living
aboard for months at a time.

A ship designed around high service levels, smaller passenger counts
and more refined public spaces naturally lends itself better to
residential living than a vessel built primarily around short,
high-volume vacations.

That was one of the reasons Avora appealed to me.

The ship existed. I could walk through it. I could see the scale, the
layout and the quality firsthand. I was not simply buying into a
rendering of what might someday exist.

That does not eliminate risk.

Far from it.

But there is a meaningful difference between owning the vessel you
intend to convert and still searching for one.

Residential Cruise Ship Projects at a Glance

Project Status Positioning Person/company behind it
The World Operating Ultra-luxury private residential ship Resident-owned; managed by ROW Management Ltd.
Villa Vie Odyssey Operating More accessible residential community Villa Vie Residences; Mikael Petterson and Kathy Villalba
Avora Lumina Ship acquired Premium residential Avora Residences; Mikael Petterson and Kathy Villalba
Sirius Development Families, remote workers and pets Alex Rich and Kate Hankinson
Voyager I Development Residential, entertainment and casino John Ibbitson / The FIRM International Cruise Lines
Dark Island Development Purpose-built ultra-luxury Clydebuilt; Tommy McGinn and team
Storylines MV Narrative Stalled Large, purpose-built residential community Storylines; Alister Punton, Shannon Lee and Dick Rosman
M/Y Njord Stalled / financing unresolved Ultra-luxury residential yacht Ocean Residences Development; Kristian Stensby and Leif-Erik Hvide

 

AVORA LUMINA

Avora Lumina is the project I ultimately chose.

Avora acquired Seven Seas Navigator from Regent Seven Seas Cruises and
plans to convert the vessel into a residential ship before launching
in January 2028.

That mattered to me for a very simple reason.

The ship is real.

It has operated for years.

It has been acquired.

And I was able to physically visit it and understand what I was buying into.

Kim and I purchased a residence aboard Lumina because we liked the
size of the ship, the premium service model and the concept of
spending significant parts of the year traveling while still having a
place that feels like home.

My experience on Regent ships also played a role.

Ultra-luxury cruising feels very different from traditional cruising.
There is less emphasis on crowds, lines, packed venues and constant
scheduled activity. The experience is calmer, more spacious and more
personalized.

That, in my view, translates much better to residential living.

I do not consider the investment risk-free.

Until the ship comes out of the shipyard and starts sailing with
residents aboard, there is still execution risk.

But Avora has already crossed a hurdle that many residential cruise
startups never reach.

It has the ship.

In my four-part framework, Avora has made meaningful progress on
Story, People and Money.

Now the emphasis moves increasingly toward Systems and execution.

My view: One of the more advanced new residential projects because the
underlying vessel has actually been acquired.

SIRIUS

Sirius may be the most interesting new residential concept I have seen recently.

It is being developed by entrepreneurs Alex Rich and Kate Hankinson.

Their vision is noticeably different from the retirement-oriented
model people traditionally associate with living at sea.

Sirius is targeting remote workers, families and dog owners.

Plans include an international school, extensive coworking facilities,
high-speed internet, dog-friendly residences, an onboard veterinarian
and even a rooftop dog park.

The company plans approximately 711 residences.

Sirius says it has shortlisted three existing cruise ships and is in
active negotiations, with one vessel identified as Candidate A.

They have also been unusually transparent about the expected economics.

The company estimates roughly $100 million to $150 million to acquire
a ship and another $80 million to $100 million for the conversion.

And this is where my startup framework becomes useful.

The Story is excellent.

The target market makes sense to me. I believe residential cruising is
going to become younger precisely because high-speed internet allows
people to continue working while living aboard.

The People appear to be credible entrepreneurs.

But the key question remains Money.

Who is providing roughly $200 million?

Until Sirius identifies its ship and financing, I consider it exciting
but speculative.

My view: Perhaps the most innovative customer proposition on the list.
The next milestone that matters is not another rendering. It is
financing and a ship acquisition.

VOYAGER I

Voyager I is taking yet another approach.

John Ibbitson and The FIRM International Cruise Lines increasingly
describe Voyager not simply as a residential ship, but as a floating
entertainment destination.

The concept now combines residential cruising with traditional cruise
passengers, casino gaming, VIP gaming, major entertainment, dinner
shows, premium dining, corporate events and even partial or full-ship
charters.

That potentially creates more revenue streams than a purely residential ship.

Voyager recently completed an international shipyard tender and is
evaluating potential yards, including possibilities in China.

The company is also actively searching for an international casino operator.

Interestingly, Voyager says the right casino partner could potentially
participate not just as an operator, but also through investment or
broader commercial involvement.

That tells me something.

The project is still assembling its pieces.

The Story continues to evolve.

John clearly brings persistence and vision.

But Voyager still needs to complete several critical steps, including
financing, final ship selection, shipyard selection and major
operating partnerships.

Its stated target remains 2027.

That strikes me as ambitious considering the amount of work still ahead.

My view: One of the more interesting projects to follow, but still
speculative until we see the ship, financing and major operating
partners locked down.

CLYDEBUILT DARK ISLAND

Dark Island may be the boldest project on this list.

Rather than acquiring an existing cruise ship, Scotland-based
Clydebuilt proposes building an entirely new residential vessel.

The current concept calls for a ship of roughly 89,750 gross tons with
236 residences and capacity for more than 700 residents.

The reported project value is approximately £1.2 billion.

Clydebuilt is led by Tommy McGinn and a team with considerable
engineering and shipbuilding experience.

That is important.

This does not appear to be a group of marketers who simply
commissioned a beautiful rendering and decided to become shipbuilders.

But £1.2 billion is £1.2 billion.

The Story is certainly compelling.

The People have meaningful engineering experience.

But once again we return to Money.

I have not yet seen public evidence of committed construction
financing on the scale required, a final construction contract or
major physical construction milestones.

My view: Technically fascinating and enormously ambitious. Financing
is the hurdle that matters.

M/Y NJORD

Njord provides perhaps the best cautionary example in this entire article.

On paper, the project had nearly everything.

An extraordinary luxury residential yacht.

World-class designers.

A respected ship manager.

And one of the world’s most respected shipyards.

Meyer Werft announced the project in 2021 with a planned delivery at
the end of 2025.

But there was one important qualification.

The shipbuilding agreement was subject to financing.

The financing did not come together as originally anticipated, and
2025 passed without the ship being delivered.

Njord is a powerful demonstration of something entrepreneurs sometimes
learn painfully.

You can have an incredible Story.

You can assemble exceptional People.

You can design sophisticated Systems.

But without Money, none of the other three ultimately matter.

My view: I would love to see Njord revived, but today I consider it
stalled until a new financing and construction plan emerges.

THE LESSON FROM RESIDENTIAL CRUISING

I remain extremely bullish on the idea of living at sea.

I would not have purchased a residence myself if I weren’t.

But being bullish on an industry does not mean believing every company
in that industry will succeed.

Quite the opposite.

Emerging industries attract entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs dream.

Some raise the money necessary to turn those dreams into businesses.

Others don’t.

Residential cruising will be no different.

Over the next five years, I expect we will see ships launch, projects
merge, projects change direction and some projects simply disappear.

That is normal.

What matters for potential residents is understanding where each
project actually stands.

Has the company announced a ship?

Has it actually acquired the ship?

Has financing closed?

Is there a shipyard contract?

Has construction or conversion started?

Where are deposits held?

Who operates the vessel?

Those questions matter considerably more than beautiful photographs of
infinity pools overlooking Bora Bora.

The encouraging part is that we are finally beginning to see very
different versions of residential cruising emerge.

Avora is targeting a premium residential experience.

Sirius wants to bring families, working professionals and dogs aboard.

Voyager is experimenting with an entertainment-driven business model.

Dark Island is pursuing an extraordinary purpose-built luxury vessel.

Njord represents what the very top of the market might eventually look like.

Not all of them will make it.

I hope many do.

Because I believe we are still at the very beginning of a fundamental
shift in how people think about where they can live.

High-speed internet changed the equation.

You can live almost anywhere and still remain connected to your
business, your family and the rest of the world.

For some of us, that “anywhere” may soon include the middle of the ocean.

And this time around, I will continue watching all four things:

Story.

People.

Money.

Systems.

Because when it comes to residential ships, the Story is easy.

Getting the other three right is what ultimately gets you out of port.