Who is currently booked on a World Cruise?

[muggo11]

aquadesiac, I din’t know.  we will be flying with points and planning extended stay in Sydney upon our return. 

[jertom]

On 9/9/2019 at 3:08 PM, Sergeant Major said:

 

 We have 108 membership campgrounds were we can camp for free; so even if we stay at each one of them for one month each, it takes 9 years just to visit them all one time. We also have 100s of discounted campgrounds. As far as timeshares go, we have about 150 of them we can now live in with just the yearly maintenance fee costs, as well as 100s of discounted timeshares. We could live 12 months per year in campgrounds, timeshares, or cruise ships, but choose to do varying amounts of time in each. . 🙂

 

Wow, just the 150 timeshares boggles my mind ! It seems like a lot of yearly fees to pay. Not to mention whatever fees the 108  campground memberships require.

[Sergeant Major]

 

On 11/1/2019 at 5:49 AM, jertom said:

 

Wow, just the 150 timeshares boggles my mind ! It seems like a lot of yearly fees to pay. Not to mention whatever fees the 108  campground memberships require.

 

jertom,

 

The campground membership has cost us around $20K with all previous upgrades & 9 years of past annual maintenance fees, but now the only cost going forward is the $585.00 per year annual maintenance fee for up to 365 days of pre-paid camping. The campgrounds include everything prepaid (water, electric, sewer, trash, property taxes, maintenance, lawn care, etc. as well as all amenities such as pool, Jacuzzi, gym, other rec facilities, lodges, day rooms, restrooms, etc.), so that is how we save enough money to also do cruises. Got to pay to play, but campground membership(s) can be a big money saver in the long run.

Edited November 6, 2019 by Sergeant Major

[jertom]

2 hours ago, Sergeant Major said:

 

 

jertom,

 

The campground membership has cost us around $20K with all previous upgrades & 9 years of past annual maintenance fees, but now the only cost going forward is the $585.00 per year annual maintenance fee for up to 365 days of pre-paid camping. The campgrounds include everything prepaid (water, electric, sewer, trash, property taxes, maintenance, lawn care, etc. as well as all amenities such as pool, Jacuzzi, gym, other rec facilities, lodges, day rooms, restrooms, etc.), so that is how we save enough money to also do cruises. Got to pay to play, but campground membership(s) can be a big money saver in the long run.

Thanks for the explanation. $585 a year is a good deal. I assume that is a membership that allows camping at multiple campgrounds all around the country ?

[Sergeant Major]

Just now, jertom said:

Thanks for the explanation. $585 a year is a good deal. I assume that is a membership that allows camping at multiple campgrounds all around the country ?

 

Jertom,

 

Yes, the 108 campgrounds, included in our membership, are all owned by the same corporation, and are spread around the USA. The more we use the system, the lower our overall, nightly camping cost, since the yearly maintenance fee is the only cost going forward.

Edited November 6, 2019 by Sergeant Major

[jertom]

12 hours ago, Sergeant Major said:

 

Jertom,

 

Yes, the 108 campgrounds, included in our membership, are all owned by the same corporation, and are spread around the USA. The more we use the system, the lower our overall, nightly camping cost, since the yearly maintenance fee is the only cost going forward.

 

Very good ! A real incentive to use those campgrounds and keep travel costs down. Good luck !.

[lovegod01]

It’s gotta be outta prise range for most people surely 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

3 hours ago, lovegod01 said:

It’s gotta be outta prise range for most people surely 

 

If you're talking about world cruises, yes.  It takes having lived a careful lifestyle, and to have been very fortunate.  I think most folks here consider themselves very fortunate, but they have also probably been thrifty over the span of their lives.

[muggo11]

Re: price and affordability. We are, by no means, wealthy. But, we no longer own a home and will own no cars when we sail.  We will also be debt-free with a lot less stuff. We figure the costs of cruising with intermittent 1-3 month stays In various locations around the globe can be done within our $6K avg monthly  retirement budget (2/3 from Social Security, the rest from savings). I have worked since I was 17 and saved here and there as I could.
 

We figure the WC will cost us about $50K all in and we will offset that splurge the rest of the year with inexpensive apartments in Australia and then Italy. At least that’s the plan for Year 1. International nomads as long as our health allows. 

[Aquadesiac]

I've always believed that whatever goal we set could be achieved if we worked hard enough. I started talking about taking a world cruise about ten years ago. Somehow, we found a way to retire my DH early in 2015 AND do the traveling we'd always dreamed of. We took our first World Cruise in 2018. We're booked for our 2nd in 2021. 

 

If you set travel as a priority, and make a plan, you can make it work. 

[LynnTTT]

We are definitely not rich; my husband worked for a county government and I worked for an insurance broker.  But about 25 years ago we had finished up with college costs and were thinking about building our dream house.  Then stopped to think.  What we really love is travel.  So from then till retirement we put aside almost 20% of our income. And committed to a "15% rule".  Anything we bought or could afford we paid 15% less and saved the rest.  If you can afford a $30,000 car, but one for $25,000 and drive that car to death. If you can afford/qualify for a $ 300,000 house just buy the $ 255,000 house and save the difference.  Drink water when dining out instead of buying a $ 3 soda.  No fancy jewelry or Christmas presents. Max out a 401k. 

You can do it

[aungrl]

On 9/8/2019 at 1:23 PM, Sergeant Major said:

I also see you are from Missouri, and I was born & raised in Southern Illinois.

Where in Southern Illinois?  I grew up in Carmi....not that usual to run into someone else from the area!

[Sergeant Major]

On 12/1/2019 at 2:41 PM, aungrl said:

Where in Southern Illinois?  I grew up in Carmi....not that usual to run into someone else from the area!

 

I grew up in the countryside near several small towns: Greenville, Pocahontas, Sorento, and Woburn. These towns are located in Bond County, IL which is about 47 miles east of the Mississippi River. Carmi, IL is 86 miles (straight line distance) southeast of Greenville, IL.

[The Other Tom]

On 11/10/2019 at 6:07 AM, muggo11 said:

we will offset that splurge the rest of the year with inexpensive apartments in Australia and then Italy. At least that’s the plan for Year 1. International nomads as long as our health allows. 

What are you doing for health insurance?

[muggo11]

3 hours ago, The Other Tom said:

What are you doing for health insurance?

Our initial thinking is a medicare advantage plan from Kaiser in Washington State (returning there for major issues, if necessary—will run us around 200-250 per month). . Since we both take cancer meds, this is a must. And then supplemented by an annual travel policy as well as a membership in Med-Jet.  Need to research which annual travel policy fits our needs. All on the to-do list. 

[The Other Tom]

Thanks for the update

[SargassoPirate]

On 11/11/2019 at 3:19 PM, Aquadesiac said:

I've always believed that whatever goal we set could be achieved if we worked hard enough. I started talking about taking a world cruise about ten years ago. Somehow, we found a way to retire my DH early in 2015 AND do the traveling we'd always dreamed of. We took our first World Cruise in 2018. We're booked for our 2nd in 2021. 

 

If you set travel as a priority, and make a plan, you can make it work. 

 

Setting a goal.  That is the key.  When I retired, I sat down and started my so-called "bucket list" of things to do and places to go with my gift of time. 15 years into retirement and I will be doing a world cruise in 2022, so I'm still working on the list.

 

Friends and neighbors of our same socio-economic standard sometimes wonder out loud about how we are able to travel so much.  What they don't see is that for our entire working lives we lived below our means and saved, saved, saved, for retirement.  Something else they don't notice is our 15 year old truck that I have meticulously maintained so that it will last another 15.  And, we only eat out about once every two weeks.

 

It's all about your goals and priorities.  We don't spend money to buy things we don't need to impress people we don't know - although the guys at the auto parts store are starting to notice my "classic" truck.

 

 

[Aquadesiac]

Bet your truck does turn heads, SargassoPirate. Personally, I like to keep vehicles until the wheels fall off. And we never buy new.

 

From the time we were 30, we put 15% of our income into retirement accounts. Never missed it at the time and surely don't regret it now.  

[pocomum]

On 8/27/2019 at 1:37 PM, Aquadesiac said:

We did our first WC in 2018 on the Pacific Princess, LA to FLL. It was an amazing adventure, and like many who try it thinking a world cruise is a once in a lifetime thing, we are booked for our 2nd in 2021.

 

Originally, we were going to take the Queen Victoria from FLL to London for 97 days. We'd never been on Cunard, so we took a 21 day NYC to Norway and back to NYC this summer on the QM2. There's a lot to like on Cunard--wonderful live music throughout the ship, the English National Ballet joined us for the westward leg of the journey, fascinating visiting lecturers, and the ship is the poster child for traditional elegance.

 

But the deal breaker for me was all the formal nights (8 out of 21) and the fact that the "smart attire" rule requires a jacket for men EVERY night. So dressing for dinner is an every night deal. It's not what you think. I have no objection to dressing up and the DH is a silver fox in his tux! But when people dress up, even to the less ornate "smart attire" level, they also slather on more perfume, hair products and aftershave than usual. I have a lung condition that requires me to use supplemental O2, and a sensitivity to smells. When I first opened the closet doors in our stateroom, the miasma of perfumes past nearly knocked me over. Getting into an elevator was like Russian roulette for my lungs. Plus I'd  been fretting about how well I'd do on a transatlantic flight home from London. 

 

So we switched our 2021 reservation from Cunard to Princess--111 days roundtrip from FLL. We like the Princess style of travel, casual by day and resort casual most evenings with maybe 3 or 4 formal nights per segment. In 2021, the Island Princess will visit 6 continents. It's going to Jerusalem, a bucket list destination for me, extra stops in New Zealand and Morocco! And the itinerary has the leisurely days at sea we love.

 

Princess is not an all inclusive, but with an early booking, they are offering lots of goodies:

• Free First Class airfare with mini-suite or above,  Free economy airfare with a balcony cabin
• $1000 OBC per guest (our TA is ponying up an additional $1500. We plan to use this for many of our excursions.)
• Free wifi (one device per guest) The Island Princess has recently been upgraded to Medallion Class which means faster internet
• Pre-paid gratuities
• 4 complimentary Specialty Dining restaurant experiences per person
• 4 bottles of wine (We're not drinkers, so we may ask if we can exchange this for soda or bottled water. Otherwise, we'll share them with table mates.)

As a past Princess guest, we also got $1000 per person off the launch fares. By the time we reach LA, we'll be Elites, which means we also get free laundry including dry cleaning, shoe polishing, a mini-bar set up, canapes delivered to the stateroom  on formal nights, upgraded bath products, priority embarkation and debarkation, and a bunch of other little niceties   

 

I guess the main thing to consider is: Does the line fit your style of cruising? We enjoy a casual atmosphere with occasional gala evenings. We love long lazy sea days. A new port every day is exhausting to us. The itinerary for 2021 works for us, a few repeats we're looking forward to seeing again and many new places we're excited to explore.

 

Sorry for the book-sized post. Fair winds and following seas to everyone who's looking at a WC and all those who've already booked! We'll be celebrating our 45th anniversary in 2021. Is there a significant milestone in your life that's part of why you're considering or taking a WC? 

Thank you so much for all the info about Princess WC. We are booked on Princess WC 2021 but only the 87 day segment. Kinda wanted to be back in time to work on tax returns...It will be our first WC and hopefully, not our last. DH is retiring this August so we will be celebrating!!

I was worried about how formal the Princess WC would be. We have sailed Princess before and one of the selling points was that past cruises weren't as formal as other lines. 

Looking forward to meeting everyone onboard !! 

[Aquadesiac]

It'll be great to meet you, Pocomom! Have you found the World 2021 roll call yet? Here 'tis: 

You don't have to be on for the full 111 days to join us on the thread! Lots of fun people and some very well-organized travelers are sharing their tips. 

[95Houston]

We are booked on the 2020 WC Sea Princess Sydney to Sydney 106 nights.  Excitement is building for sure.  We did a 10 day Christmas cruise on the Sea Princess to check out the ship and locate our cabin for the WC.  Very happy.

Edited January 30, 2020 by 95Houston

[pocomum]

On 1/29/2020 at 1:52 PM, Aquadesiac said:

It'll be great to meet you, Pocomom! Have you found the World 2021 roll call yet? Here 'tis: 

You don't have to be on for the full 111 days to join us on the thread! Lots of fun people and some very well-organized travelers are sharing their tips. 

I have, thank you and I am on that roll call too . I was looking for more info and happened across this one🙂

I do have a question for fellow Canadians..what is the best insurance plan for us Canucks? Medical/trip interruption?If someone could point me to another thread I should go to, I would really appreciate the help. Thank you to all in advance 

Cheers:)

[Wendy The Wanderer]

2 hours ago, pocomum said:

I have, thank you and I am on that roll call too . I was looking for more info and happened across this one🙂

I do have a question for fellow Canadians..what is the best insurance plan for us Canucks? Medical/trip interruption?If someone could point me to another thread I should go to, I would really appreciate the help. Thank you to all in advance 

Cheers:)

 

We have had great difficulty finding insurance for our world cruise, as Canadians.  But then our WC is in the luxury category and will be costing around C$150K.  We have managed to insure half of it.  I believe Allianz is the biggest carrier.  We went through an agent who looked at all the coverage options and found whatever they could.  (We did not need medical since we have that already--that shouldn't be difficult to get, but might be expensive depending on your age.)

[pocomum]

23 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

We have had great difficulty finding insurance for our world cruise, as Canadians.  But then our WC is in the luxury category and will be costing around C$150K.  We have managed to insure half of it.  I believe Allianz is the biggest carrier.  We went through an agent who looked at all the coverage options and found whatever they could.  (We did not need medical since we have that already--that shouldn't be difficult to get, but might be expensive depending on your age.)

Thank you for your input. It has indeed been a struggle trying to find an insurance carrier. I have looked at Allianz but they can't give me a quote online for such a long cruise. I shall have to call them and see what they have to offer.

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

57 minutes ago, pocomum said:

Thank you for your input. It has indeed been a struggle trying to find an insurance carrier. I have looked at Allianz but they can't give me a quote online for such a long cruise. I shall have to call them and see what they have to offer.

 

The agent we used was SecuriGlobe, in Quebec.  They were a little hard to deal with, maybe because they had staff turnover right when I was requesting information, 888-211-4444.  But they came through with coverage split among several carriers.  Blue Cross was one, La Reliable Assurance another.  I can't even find the Allianz invoice right now.  Very confusing having multiple carriers, I'll tell you.

 

I must say that if you chose Viking, they have a decent rate for insurance, at least that's what I've been told.