Don’t Retire on a Cruise Ship, FFS
Retirement should be the last reward for a life lived well and well. You make a career, pay your taxes, save some money, and then you can sit back and enjoy the last decades in relative comfort and safety. Increasingly, however, retirement is seen as a myth: with almost a quarter of the population having exactly zero retirement savings, and inflation and other factors continuing to push the cost of living higher and higher, more and more people are coming to the sad conclusion that there is no pension for them. .
Others want to get creative, and one of the more creative solutions that is starting to take off is the idea of retiring on a cruise ship . It is a bad idea.
Wait, people retire on cruise ships?
That’s right: people want to retire on those floating Petri dishes with diseases that leave an ecological disaster in their wake . There are so many better alternatives to a cruise when it comes to vacations, so why would you want to retire to a place that isn’t even a top contender in its non-retirement area?
In a word: Cost. Incredibly, if you’re willing to live in a windowless coffin room on one of these floating dystopias, your cost of living could be as little as $50 a day , which works out to less than $20,000 a year (plus taxes, some fees, and tips). including all your basic needs. Even if you allow a certain margin of error, we are still talking about an incredibly small amount of money compared to life on land. And there are many differences between low-cost budget cruises and expensive luxury cruises, so you can calibrate your lifestyle with some precision. In return, you are fed, have access to medical care and amenities, and can travel the world!
Still, it’s a terrible idea. Again, don’t retire on a cruise ship, FFS.
Cons of living on a cruise ship
When you think about going on a cruise, you imagine that it will be an endless adventure with a high level of service, but this concept has many, many downsides. First of all, let’s emphasize that cruises are terrible. They are ideal disease incubators where frequent and sometimes fatal outbreaks of influenza, COVID, and sometimes even bed bugs occur. They are also terrible from an environmental point of view, and the crowds of cruise ships arriving at ports of call around the world cause universal hatred.
And these are just the general reasons why cruises are terrible. There are many specific reasons why they are a poor choice for retirement:
Expenses. The old adage about mice and humans’ best-laid plans applies here: you can calculate up to five cents how much your life on a cruise will cost per day, but the whole business model of cruises is to beat you to death. Almost everything on a cruise ship that isn’t a basic necessity is an add-on, and those prices keep going up, so the cruise can continue to attract suckers with low base fares. When you pay extra for everything from beer at dinner to in-room Wi-Fi, your affordable pension will be more expensive than you thought.
Violation. If you enjoy cruising retirement, you’re obviously not afraid to travel without a fixed base, but be aware that there are several options for permanent residence on the same ship (one company, Storylines, plans to launch a boat with affordable accommodations ). for a long-term lease or purchase in 2024 ), especially if you lower your costs. This means that at least a few times a year you will need to pack your bags and leave for a new ship.
Health care. Medical personnel on a cruise ship are almost never licensed by US standards. And while most cruise ships have relatively well-equipped emergency rooms, they are certainly not hospitals, so if you have an emergency, you can expect serious delays in getting to one. And if you happen to swim next to a country with far from the most modern medical industry, you will have no choice. And it’s very likely that your health insurance won’t cover you when you’re on a cruise ship.
public influence. Retirement can be lonely . Many of us form social bonds based on our work, and the dynamics of relationships with our loved ones are often determined by what we don’t spend with each other every hour of every day. You might think that retiring on a cruise means you will be surrounded by people, even people your own age. True! But it will be an extremely transient relationship. Most people won’t live on a cruise ship, so making long-term friendships won’t be easy.
Boredom. A cruise feels like an adventure until the ship you are on makes its 20th stop in the same port. Yes, you can switch it up and change ships, but that will only add disruption and stress to your life – and most cruises go to the same places, so you’ll quickly run out of new places to visit. And the amenities on your ship won’t change often, leaving you with a very familiar array of entertainment and activity options, day after day, forever .
essence? Even if you count the numbers and cruise ship retirement makes financial sense to you, you will be living in an isolated community designed to make money off you, not support you in your old age. Unless you have a very compelling case, chances are you will very, very quickly regret leaving on a cruise ship.