Sometimes life on the terra firma gets a bit boring. And so, if you have a spare $450,000 laying around somewhere for Virgin Galactic’s space shuttle, or your husband is a staff chief engineer on a cruise ship – you can choose to forget about the slog of land for a while. Exactly what Christine Kesteloo, a social media influencer, did for half a year.
After losing her job as a cruise director during the pandemic, the 40-year-old “wife on board” focused her attention on social media presence. This career transition enabled Kesteloo, for instance, to reside on her husband’s cruise ship for a duration of six months. Something her husband, Piet, clearly didn’t mind, as it allowed the couple to spend evenings not separated by an ocean.
Recently, Christine Kesteloo made headlines for sharing what it’s like to live onboard for the better part of the year
Image credits: christinekesteloo
Image credits: christinekesteloo
Recently, Christine released a detailed story about the ups and downs of living at sea. “The room we live in is also quite small, but perhaps no tinier than some studio apartments in New York City,” she wrote for Insider.
“Our bathroom is super tight and our space has a weird layout — at night, I have to climb over my husband to get out of bed to use the restroom.”
In one of Christine’s recent videos, she cheers as she visited her 108th country by the age of 40. Given that there are only 195 of them, following their intended timeline of five more years on the open waters, she could potentially explore every corner of the world before beginning to long for the comforts of land.
As the wife of the staff chief engineer of the cruise, Christine has the privilege of exploring various corners of the world on a daily basis, with minimal expenses
Image credits: christinekesteloo
Image credits: christinekesteloo
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Image credits: dutchworld_americangirl
Speaking of missing land, Ryan Gutridge is not one of them. As an IT engineer, he started using Royal Caribbean cruise ships as a potential home back in 2021, in the midst of the pandemic, after realizing that the cost of living is more affordable when your feet aren’t touching land.
“At that time, cruise lines hadn’t announced when or if they were coming back. I thought that if they returned, I’d want to try taking my job with me on a short cruise,” he explained to Insider. “I wanted to see how the WiFi would work and if I could access some elements of my job with heavy security.”
Ryan Gutridge, an IT engineer, however, discovered that residing on a cruise ship comes with a lower cost compared to securing accommodations on land
Image credits: Ryan Gutridge
Like a modern Christopher Columbus, Gutridge discovered not uncharted lands but a way to break free from them for a while. Gutridge’s first stay at the Royal Caribbean cruise was a smooth sail, so to speak, and he started crunching numbers to see if this can work out as a long-haul alternative for a shelter.
Upon analyzing the financial aspects, the IT specialist came to the realization that the cost of living at sea for approximately 300 nights was nearly equivalent to what he was spending on his apartment and waste disposal services. And so, over the past couple of years, as he explored an entirely novel lifestyle, Gutridge has been contemplating the idea of completely divesting himself of earthly possessions.
“I’ve scaled back my cruising budget for next year because of inflation, but by 2025 I’d like to get rid of my apartment, sell my car, and purchase a scooter that I’ll store at a friend’s garage,” he said.
“Most of the time, I’m so busy that I don’t even notice we’re at the same place — I just know I’m not in an apartment staring at the wall. I’m stress-free.”
As did 28-year-old Austin Wells, who also joined the trend by acquiring a luxurious apartment aboard a cruise ship that sets sail in 2025
Image credits: CNBC
Of course, you can always take it to another level and simply move into a cruise ship full-time, as 28-year-old Austin Wells plans to do.
Speaking with CNBC, the Meta (formerly Facebook) employee expressed that one of the most thrilling aspects of his initial choice to relocate is the fact that he won’t be required to disrupt his everyday routine to explore the world.
“I’m going from this model where you want to go somewhere, you pack a bag, you get on a flight, you rent a room, to now my condo, my gym, my doctors and dentists, all of my grocery stores travel the world with me,” he explained.
Wells’ studio apartment finds its place within the confines of the MV Narrative, an opulent residential cruise vessel crafted by Storylines that will set sail in 2025 from Croatia. The space came with a price tag of $300,000 for a lease spanning 12 years.
Undoubtedly, the MV Narrative appears to encompass all conceivable essentials, boasting an array of 20 dining and bar establishments, a microbrewery, a library stocked with 10,000 books, a cinema, three pools, laundry amenities, a gym, an art studio, and even the provision of an onboard medical professional.
“This is probably the first time ever that there is even the ability to have a standard job and even consider working and living from a floating apartment complex,” Wells said.
Image credits: Storylines At Sea
This is what people online had to say about those who chose to make a cruise ship their home
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