When Shirene Thomas, a retired social services administrator from Illinois, saw news reports about a new cruise product that offered residences at sea for as little as $30,000 a year, she got rid of everything she owned and signed up to sail the world.
Instead, she’s been homeless and wandering Europe for almost a year. The first company she bought into, Life at Sea, went belly up last November, after she and many others had already arrived in Istanbul, ready to begin their new adventures. With no home and all her possessions gone, she signed up for a three-and-a-half-year cruise with Villa Vie Residences to join its first ship, the Villa Vie Odyssey, which was supposed to set sail from Belfast in May but remains docked there for ongoing repairs and upgrades.
“It’s tough,” Thomas said. “There’s certainly been great moments. I’ve seen and done a lot of things. But it’s exactly the opposite of what we signed up for. We didn’t want to take more flights, to have to change hotels, find places to eat … I think I’ve slept in more than 100 beds.”
With the refurbished 30-year-old ship undergoing its sea trials this week in Belfast, she is optimistic the Villa Vie Odyssey will finally sail this month. And she says she has gotten most of her money back from Life at Sea and Villa Vie has covered or is promising to cover the hotels she’s paid for since the original sailing date of May 30.
It should be one of the safest places to live if we can all get along.
Still, given what she knows now, would she do it all over again?
“That’s a good question,” she said, with a pause.
“But I really believe this is the wave of the future—pun intended. … Think about it as a floating city that can avoid pandemics, civil unrest, hurricanes, typhoons, gun violence.
“People are very optimistic,” she said of the other passengers who have been waiting in Belfast to sail, including about 40 others who she said had also originally contracted with Life at Sea. “It’s a new endeavor, and hopefully people will look back at us as pioneers.”
Indeed, given the soaring popularity of cruising post-pandemic, both buyers and sellers say that despite the struggles companies are having getting new residential cruise ships launched, it’s a business model with plenty of potential—and risks.
So who are the companies entering this market? How are their ships different from mass-market cruises? How much do cabins cost? And who’s buying in?
A model of the forthcoming Ulyssia yacht that is slated to launch as a residential cruise concept in the coming years.
Photo by Ollie Jones/Courtesy of Ulyssia
How many residential cruise ships are there?
Villa Vie expects the Odyssey to be the second residential ship to set sail, and the first with pricing more for the average person. The first, the World, has been sailing for 20 years. But it’s invitation-only, and cabins cost millions. Next week, the same group behind that successful venture plans to unveil details for a second ship, an ultra-luxurious, 132-residence yacht named Ulyssia, with plans to launch in 2029. And another company, called Storylines, is building a ship that it plans to launch in 2027 with pricing that falls in between Villa Vie and the World. Several other companies are in various stages of planning to launch similar business models.
Given the fate of Life at Sea, isn’t buying into one of these ships a risky investment?
“If you’re thinking that there’s no risk in it, then you’re not going forward with your eyes wide open, right?” said Myle Hammond, a real estate investor from Alexandria, Virginia, who has purchased a cabin with Storylines. “There are always all sorts of risks. But what is the potential reward? … I think it’s a great concept that I would really like to see succeed.”
Hammond and other buyers said it’s really no different than buying into real estate that has yet to be developed. You just have to do your homework.
John Hennessee, who, along with his wife, Melody, bought into Villa Vie after tiring of the RV life they set out on after selling their Florida business, is bullish on the future of Villa Vie Residences. He said he expects the value of his cabin on the Villa Vie Odyssey to double once the ship sets sail. And Martin Buggy, who, along with his partner, Melissa Edyvean, has bought a cabin with Storylines, sees their purchase as both a potential retirement home and an investment. He says the prices are already rising, and his “back-of-the-napkin calculations” indicate that if they use the cabin just half the year, and let the ship lease it out for the rest of the time, it should be cost neutral.
A Superior Suite on the forthcoming Villa Vie Odyssey.
Courtesy of Villa Vie Residences
How are the ships different from mass-market cruises?
Villa Vie and Storylines promote their products as lifestyle communities, not cruise lines. “When people come to us, they’re not looking for a cruise, they’re looking … to take everything off their bucket list and do it in a fun, safe manner with like-minded people,” said Storylines founder Alister Punton.
The Villa Vie Odyssey is a refurbishment of a ship that last sailed as the Braemar for the British Fred Olsen Cruise Lines. While its amenities—three restaurants, a pool, a spa, and a culinary center where cooking classes are held—are more like those of a traditional cruise ship, they will also include medical and dental clinics and a golf simulator to appeal to longer-term guests.
Storylines said its ship, which will hold up to 1,000 guests, will have 20 dining venues, a full hospital, a veterinary clinic for dogs and cats, a wellness center, and even a school for residents with children.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the residential ships and traditional cruises is the itineraries. Both ships will circumnavigate the globe every three and a half years, with multiday stops versus the traditional one-day in-and-out.
Misty Frost of Phoenix, who, along with her husband, Dean, has purchased a cabin with Storylines, said they see it as a “floating home.” “Let’s say we want to spend a month in Italy,” she said. “We can do that, and then just catch up with the ship wherever it is.”
A rendering of the Storylines vessel, which is slated to launch in 2027.
Courtesy of Storylines
How much do residential cruises cost?
Villa Vie offers opportunities to lease or buy cabins, with pay-as-you-go options for 90-day segments. The prices to buy range from $99,000 to $349,000. Those who purchase cabins then have to just pay operational costs, which range from just under $2,000 to just over $4,000 per person per month. “That’s cheaper than living on land,” said Hennessee. Prices include food, wine and beer with dinner, some excursions, housekeeping, laundry, gratuities, shows, onboard enrichment programs, and Starlink Wi-Fi.
Storylines cabins start at $600,000 for fractional ownership and go up to nearly $10 million for four-bedroom cabins. It has similar all-inclusive monthly operational fees, which range in price depending on the cabin.
Who’s buying into residential cruises?
Buyers come from around the world, although most are from the United States, both companies said. Some are retired, while others are able to work from anywhere in the world. And most, of course, are well traveled. “We do have a significant amount of [past] cruisers,” said Villa Vie founder and CEO Mikael Petterson. “But I have many people that have never cruised before. They just want to travel the world,” he said. “I have one person that was in a plane crash, so he won’t fly. But he loves to travel. So this is the perfect solution for him.”