After 9 months at sea touring the world from Australia to Antarctica, passengers on the Final World Cruise have lastly reached their residence port.
Vacationers at the moment are revealing what 274 days on a ship was like and the way they made life adjustments to arrange for the “trip of a lifetime” that went viral on TikTok with hundreds of thousands of views underneath the hashtag #RoyalCaribbeanUltimateWorldCruise.
Jennifer Hunnicutt, PhD, a medical researcher from Las Vegas, was one of many tons of of passengers aboard the Royal Caribbean World Cruise and lately returned to regular life again within the U.S.
TRAVELERS ON TIKTOK ARE MAKING GROCERY STORES THE HOTTEST VACATION ‘DESTINATION’
Hunnicutt stated she and her husband booked the cruise after seeing an announcement of the journey in 2021.
“This is 2021, so we’re coming out of the pandemic or at least still in the pandemic, and we had a lot of pent-up energy,” Hunnicutt instructed Fox Information Digital.
Jennifer Hunnicutt and 600-plus passengers on the Final World Cruise have lastly made it again to land after spending 9 months at sea. (Jennifer Hunnicutt)
“We had wanted to travel so bad, and we wanted to see the world [and] were like, ‘Maybe we just do this.’”
CEDAR POINT THEME PARK UNVEILS RECORD-BREAKING ‘TILT’ ROLLER COASTER FOR 2025
Hunnicutt stated she had many questions earlier than packing up and leaving, from work life to web accessibility. She was glad to study that web use was included in the price.
Hunnicutt and her husband continued to work on the ship and needed to navigate the completely different time zones whereas sustaining a distant job. (Jennifer Hunnicutt)
Main as much as the journey, Hunnicutt and her husband made preparations to nonetheless be employed whereas having fun with their time on the water.
They transitioned to proudly owning their very own enterprise, which meant the workload was “super flexible” and so they bought to resolve “how much or how little work” they’d tackle, Hunnicutt stated.
MAN TRAVELS THE WORLD ON A CRUISE SHIP FOR FREE AFTER QUITTING HIS DAY JOB: ‘HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH’
One factor Hunnicutt didn’t anticipate main as much as her time on the ship was the fixed shifting of time zones, she stated.
Hunnicutt stated she and her husband went on a mini cruise earlier than the 274-day journey as a “test run” to see what life could be like on a ship. (Jennifer Hunnicutt)
“It’s part of being remote and owning your own business and traveling, but it was challenging,” Hunnicutt added.
Hunnicutt stated she and her husband went on a “world cruise test run” the place they booked an analogous cabin on one other boat to arrange for the longer journey.
TRAVEL EXPERTS REVEAL BEST TIME TO FLY BEFORE A CRUISE AND WHY
Hunnicutt’s favourite a part of the journey, and one of many important causes she determined to go on the journey, was experiencing Antarctica. (Jennifer Hunnicutt)
“We went to the gym. I specifically scheduled work meetings during that time to see if it was possible to take work calls, and it was on that little test run that we were like, ‘All right, we got this.’ We are so stoked to be doing this for nine months,” she stated.
CONSIDERING A CRUISE? HIGH SEAS MAY BE THE RIGHT OPTION FOR BOTH FAMILY AND WALLET
Hunnicutt stated that because the journey grew nearer, she considered what it could be prefer to be surrounded by strangers virtually 24/7.
“We had the most incredible experiences and learned so much, and it was definitely all worth it.”
“I just had a lot of social anxiety about being around all these people who are much older than us, maybe different parts of life than us … and, after the fact, I can say that was not a concern,” she added.
AMID SURGING CRUISE SHIP ILLNESSES, EXPERTS SHARE WAYS TO STAY SAFE ON THE HIGH SEAS
“We met the most amazing people, people who will be lifelong friends … I wasn’t expecting that.”
Hunnicutt stated the spotlight of the voyage was seeing Antarctica, however there have been eight days of touring in tough waters by way of the Drake Passage earlier than the ship lastly made it to the continent.
The Final World Cruise passengers stopped at seven continents, 65 nations and world wonders over the course of 274 days. (Amike Oosthuizen)
The cruise’s itinerary was damaged up into 4 geographic “segments” for a complete of 17 distinctive sailings, and friends additionally had the chance to individually decide and select sure locations versus touring the total 9 months. Beginning costs for the expertise vary between $60,000 and $117,000 per individual, not together with excursions, in line with the Royal Caribbean web site, FOX Enterprise reported.
Amike Oosthuizen, 26, from South Africa, additionally booked the cruise and went along with her dad and mom and her husband.
15 TRAVEL ESSENTIALS YOU NEED FOR YOUR FIRST CRUISE
“It was definitely the trip of a lifetime. It was really a dream come true,” Oosthuizen instructed Fox Information Digital.
Amike Oosthuizen (second to the proper) was amazed by all of the issues she realized in regards to the world after 274 days on the Final World Cruise. (Amike Oosthuizen)
“I saw so many places and learned from so many cultures and people from across the world, and it really broadened my perspective [on] the world. I feel really educated, in a sense, because there’s so much stuff I didn’t know. And I’m like, ‘Wow, there’s so much out there.’”
Oosthuizen stated she and her husband sought out jobs three years earlier than the cruise that might permit them to work remotely in the course of the cruise.
She stated she additionally discovered associates to remain in her residence and handle her canines.
For extra Way of life articles, go to www.foxnews/life-style
“It was a weird thing to think you’re going to pack up your life and just go on this world cruise. And then life is basically going to stop for nine months while you’re on the cruise. But, I mean, life goes on. We kept on working. Everything worked out.”
Oosthuizen and her husband labored remotely on the ship after particularly discovering a job three years forward of the cruise that allowed them to nonetheless work exterior of South Africa. (Amike Oosthuizen)
Oosthuizen stated the expertise allowed her to study extra about herself and the world.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
Not every part went in line with plan, Oosthuizen stated, as there have been some tough seas. She additionally stated packing her belongings for a nine-month journey and conserving climate adjustments in thoughts was difficult.
Greater than 600 passengers took half within the Final World Cruise internationally, and now they’re wanting again at what it was like spending 9 months on the boat. (Jennifer Hunnicutt; Amike Oosthuizen)
“A lot of people would come up to me and, like, say, ‘How can you do that? Like, it’s nine months of your life.’ And now, looking back, the nine months went so quick,” Oosthuizen stated.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“I feel like this [was an] experience money really can’t buy … It was definitely all worth it,” she added.
Fox Information Digital reached out to Royal Caribbean for remark.
Fox Information Digital’s Kristen Altus contributed to this report.
