There are a few different ways to live on a cruise ship. While there are a handful of cruise lines that sell cabins you can buy and live in full time, other cruisers get more creative and ship-hop on different ships and cruise lines.
This past week, Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador John Heald took a cruise on Carnival Vista. While he was on the ship, he sat down to talk with a husband and wife, Malcom and Robyn, who sold their homes to live on ships full-time.
Malcolm and Robyn had a home in England and one in Florida that they sold. They briefly moved to the Dominican Republic before becoming permanent cruisers in October 2024.
While they mainly sail on Carnival cruise ships, as this was their 75th cruise with them, they do sail on other cruise lines as well.
When one cruise ends, they get off one ship and go board another. Coming up, they will fly to Europe to cruise in the Mediterranean before taking a Transatlantic cruise back to the U.S.
Malcolm said they have a sailing on Carnival Legend booked out of Dover that ends in Rome. They will spend 30 days on the ship sailing back-to-back-to-back cruises. They will then sail on Carnival’s sister cruise line, Princess Cruises, over to Barcelona.
A Transatlantic cruise on Carnival Freedom will bring them back to Florida, where they will do several more cruises on Carnival Vista before sailing from Miami.
In early 2027, the couple will head to L.A. for Carnival Firenze’s South America cruises where they will spend 45 straight days on the ship.
The couple said that they keep a spreadsheet of all of their upcoming cruises.
Malcolm and Robyn do take short breaks here and there from cruising. The couple plans on taking two weeks off coming up to see Robyn’s children; this will be their longest time on land since October 2024.
The couple told Heald that the thing they miss most about not living on land is their children. They do get to FaceTime them while at sea, but they will get to see them next month.
Heald asked them what they enjoy the most about permanently living on cruise ships. She said it’s the ability to travel all over the world. They have cruised to Australia, Iceland, New Zealand, Japan, and Alaska.
“It’s the best way to travel, you see everything.”
Malcolm chimed in and said it’s meeting fellow passengers and the crew; they are fantastic. He added that they love seeing the same crew over and over, and a few times they changed ships and a few crew members just happened to move with them.
Heald joked with the couple that they should start a travel blog since they cruise and see so many interesting places around the world.
The interview ended when he asked the couple how long they think they will continue to live on cruise ships.
They were supposed to be done in June, but they kept adding on more cruises. The couple is currently booked through February 26, 2027, but will likely add on a few more sailings.
Malcolm said that they will likely cruise for another year before moving back on land.
This has us wondering, could you, or would you want to live on a cruise ship full time?
You can watch the entire four minute video that John Heald posted below.
Looking for the Best Cruise Deals?
Search Multiple Sites at Once
Instant Real Time Pricing
Search Now
