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AlexCherie
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I'm sure we've all talked about it, living on a cruise ship all year long.

Storylines is creating such an environment; you own your cabin. Penthouse levels run around $112,000 a year for a pair of guests, for your ongoing, comprehensive fair. At roughly $5000 per person, per month, given that it includes wine, beer, standard cocktails and all port charges, gratuities, etc ... it's actually not expensive. Also, roughly 20% larger at nearly 577 square feet, than an Oceania ship.

 

You can sub-let your cabin when not in it. 1000 guests. All manner of water play toys available. 20 dining locations, nearly all of it included (other than 90 day aged steaks, etc). 

Thoughts?

https://www.storylines.com/listings-3?s=unit

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Great....man  I love being on a cruise ship.... I could live here    Is much akin to moving to ski country because you love skiing  but soon discover   the love of your life soon becomes "white mud" all too soon .     

 Seem the attraction to anything fun lies in the fact that it is an escape from your  routine and norm    A journey down the rabbit hole,  an escape from life     Like moving  to Hawaii where after 8-12 months  80% of the people move back.  Great to visit  not so much live swapping one set of problems for another.     

No, anything to excess soon looses its inherent charm that attracted you in the beginning.........  So, live on a cruise ship?   Ok,   what will you then seek out to  find your prior amore in ?

Edited by Hawaiidan
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1 hour ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

And IIRC, resale prices are below the initial offering price, with small buyer demand.

 

Good spamming though.

Buying and IIRC property  is much akin to that of buying a boat.   Your happiest day is when you buy it and Sell it.    My mantra is never buy anything you can nor rent, borrow or steal......... 

 

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3 hours ago, ORV said:

Didn't "The World" do this 10-15 years ago?

Yes but the world was in the millions if I remember correctly..

Today I have a lot of friends moving to independent living..there is one place in SF Valley, CA that is new and the 1st person is $13,000 a month...I have to read the info carefully after the game (Go Rams)  and see what the real price and rules are..

To me its interesting..

Jancruz1

Edited by Jancruz
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4 minutes ago, Jancruz said:

Yes but the world was in the millions if I remember correctly..

Today I have a lot of friends moving to independent living..there is one place in SF Valley, CA that is new and the 1st person is $13,000 a month...I have to read the info carefully after the game (Go Rams)  and see what the real price and rules are..

To me its interesting..

Jancruz1

I have been researching this option also.  And just recently had to move my parents into assisted living as well...and although it is a really wonderful facility....in a great neighborhood....we are paying $20,000 to $25,000 per month.  Of course they need more assistance than could possible be supplied on any cruise ship.....but for my husband and I?  It is feasible.....esp if you can rent it out?  I would still keep my home of course and would sort of go back and forth depending on the itinerary.

My main concern at this point IS the possibility of becoming BORED (I hear you HAWAIIDAN!) and the medical issues as I am a lung cancer patient.....but again, could schedule checkups, etc. and go back and forth.

And if the amount of calls and e mails that I am receiving are any indication, they are NOT selling well! As I am being contacted a LOT by their sales team.

 

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23 minutes ago, chloemonkey said:

I have been researching this option also.  And just recently had to move my parents into assisted living as well...and although it is a really wonderful facility....in a great neighborhood....we are paying $20,000 to $25,000 per month.  Of course they need more assistance than could possible be supplied on any cruise ship.....but for my husband and I?  It is feasible.....esp if you can rent it out?  I would still keep my home of course and would sort of go back and forth depending on the itinerary.

My main concern at this point IS the possibility of becoming BORED (I hear you HAWAIIDAN!) and the medical issues as I am a lung cancer patient.....but again, could schedule checkups, etc. and go back and forth.

And if the amount of calls and e mails that I am receiving are any indication, they are NOT selling well! As I am being contacted a LOT by their sales team.

 

A fresh view of the concept " the grass is always greener on the other side of the hill"  might not be considering that , the grass is really poison oak and it is flammable !

Edited by Hawaiidan
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Storylines has been working on this idea for a few years now.  Originally they planned to buy an old ship [even showed pictures of it, despite not actually having bought it...]; they sold cabins on that basis.  Then they announced plans to build a new ship, and sold cabins on that design.  They continue to revise the design of the ship (including the cabins), and there has been a lot of skepticism about the reality of the promises.  I have seen too many land-based condominium projects produce severe cost increases when the developer's estimates get replaced by actual costs – since this ship-condo idea has never been done before [The World of Residency is too old to be relevant now] it's hard to see where the developers are getting their numbers, especially with the constant changes.  Buyer beware!

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9 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Great....man  I love being on a cruise ship.... I could live here    Is much akin to moving to ski country because you love skiing  but soon discover   the love of your life soon becomes "white mud" all too soon .     

 Seem the attraction to anything fun lies in the fact that it is an escape from your  routine and norm    A journey down the rabbit hole,  an escape from life     Like moving  to Hawaii where after 8-12 months  80% of the people move back.  Great to visit  not so much live swapping one set of problems for another.     

No, anything to excess soon looses its inherent charm that attracted you in the beginning.........  So, live on a cruise ship?   Ok,   what will you then seek out to  find your prior amore in ?

Great perspective. Although I will say that the view from your apartment in Hawaii or Vail never changes. The ports do. 

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5 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Storylines has been working on this idea for a few years now.  Originally they planned to buy an old ship [even showed pictures of it, despite not actually having bought it...]; they sold cabins on that basis.  Then they announced plans to build a new ship, and sold cabins on that design.  They continue to revise the design of the ship (including the cabins), and there has been a lot of skepticism about the reality of the promises.  I have seen too many land-based condominium projects produce severe cost increases when the developer's estimates get replaced by actual costs – since this ship-condo idea has never been done before [The World of Residency is too old to be relevant now] it's hard to see where the developers are getting their numbers, especially with the constant changes.  Buyer beware!


Yes, and whatever they charge per person today becomes part of an inflation maelstrom later. 

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When Covid shut down cruising, The World of Residency was forced to throw all its owners off the ship.  If you had sold your house to finance the cabin, where would you have gone?  Granted, most of the owners on The World treat it as their 3rd or 4th home – but Storylines is pitching to people who would actually plan to live onboard. 😮

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13 hours ago, AlexCherie said:

Great perspective. Although I will say that the view from your apartment in Hawaii or Vail never changes. The ports do. 

Well after sailing for some 45 years pleasure and military,  I have to say that  No they do  not.....     After you go to the same ones anywhere few if any change have seen    Oh a new terminal in Bora   .  However pal, thats about it from the Med to  Gulf of Tonkin.  .   There used to be a joke about the carribe...   That there was only 1 island and the ship would go out at night  and circle around while they changed the signs.........   Alexander wept that he had no more worlds to conquer ... so too with many cruiser who have made their vacations and obsession.

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8 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Well after sailing for some 45 years pleasure and military,  I have to say that  No they do  not.....     After you go to the same ones anywhere few if any change have seen    Oh a new terminal in Bora   .  However pal, thats about it from the Med to  Gulf of Tonkin.  .   There used to be a joke about the carribe...   That there was only 1 island and the ship would go out at night  and circle around while they changed the signs.........   Alexander wept that he had no more worlds to conquer ... so too with many cruiser who have made their vacations and obsession.



LOL. From your perspective, then why move an inch? 

I think the missed perspective here is that Storyline is presenting what essentially is ABNB on the water. The value proposition is such that they are charging today 20% less than any cruise line, and giving you at least 20 to even 40% more space than you can find in equivilant charges.

My math might be fuzzy, but I'm coming up with a bit less than $100 a night ($3000 per month) and the smallest balconies are larger than anything outside of Penthouse size rooms on Oceania. 

Yes, at some point you have to include actually buying that suite and including it in your finances. But even if you build in a monthly nut for $2400 mortgage, you are at $4200 a month per person. That's one week in any penthouse, on any cruise ship on the water. 

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39 minutes ago, AlexCherie said:



LOL. From your perspective, then why move an inch? 

I think the missed perspective here is that Storyline is presenting what essentially is ABNB on the water. The value proposition is such that they are charging today 20% less than any cruise line, and giving you at least 20 to even 40% more space than you can find in equivilant charges.

My math might be fuzzy, but I'm coming up with a bit less than $100 a night ($3000 per month) and the smallest balconies are larger than anything outside of Penthouse size rooms on Oceania. 

Yes, at some point you have to include actually buying that suite and including it in your finances. But even if you build in a monthly nut for $2400 mortgage, you are at $4200 a month per person. That's one week in any penthouse, on any cruise ship on the water. 

Are you willing to go wherever the majority of owners decides?  I book cruises based on itinerary first, and the idea of being trapped on a ship that goes where other people want to is not at all appealing.

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1 hour ago, AlexCherie said:



LOL. From your perspective, then why move an inch? 

I think the missed perspective here is that Storyline is presenting what essentially is ABNB on the water. The value proposition is such that they are charging today 20% less than any cruise line, and giving you at least 20 to even 40% more space than you can find in equivilant charges.

My math might be fuzzy, but I'm coming up with a bit less than $100 a night ($3000 per month) and the smallest balconies are larger than anything outside of Penthouse size rooms on Oceania. 

Yes, at some point you have to include actually buying that suite and including it in your finances. But even if you build in a monthly nut for $2400 mortgage, you are at $4200 a month per person. That's one week in any penthouse, on any cruise ship on the water. 

There is a tried and true premise,  with historical base, that you should really live in that  somewhere a good 9-10 continuous months before you embrace your perceived nirvana.   

Your  assuming that ones taste, medical needs, relations all remain the same pre-move.

Call it what it is living on a cruise ship is a vision based on short term  experiences in denial of any change possible...       I like cruising as change of pace...  Living on one destroys that.   

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On 2/13/2022 at 9:00 AM, FlyerTalker said:

 

Re The World:

And IIRC (if I recall correctly), resale prices are below the initial offering price, with small buyer demand.

 

Reminder to cite your sources to keep things factual. Studios on The World originally sold for $90,000 and at the time this article below was written they were selling for $600,000 USD. However, now in 2022 you cannot touch a studio residence on The World for under $2M. 
https://www.cruisemapper.com/ships/ms-The-World-1119

Edited by Traveling_Family
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On 2/13/2022 at 6:12 AM, AlexCherie said:

Penthouse levels run around $112,000 a year for a pair of guests, for your ongoing, comprehensive fair. At roughly $5000 per person, per month, given that it includes wine, beer, standard cocktails and all port charges, gratuities, etc ... it's actually not expensive. Also, roughly 20% larger at nearly 577 square feet, than an Oceania ship.

The lowest annual fee that I see on the penthouse level is currently $153k and 904 sq ft but I do see some residences as far up as Deck 12 in the price range and square footage that you are quoting. 

I agree with you about the comparison to Oceania!

And regarding your original question...'Storylines...What are your thoughts?' Thanks for asking. I am a big fan of Storylines and am very knowledgeable about the company as I have been following for some time. I am a future resident owner. I had been looking for a vacation home and couldn't decide where to buy so I opted for 'everywhere' when this very unique and rare opportunity presented itself. 

Edited by Traveling_Family
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On 2/13/2022 at 7:35 AM, ORV said:

Didn't "The World" do this 10-15 years ago?

Yes, The World launched in 2012, exactly 20 years ago. It had some challenges in its first year which were quickly resolved and since that time has been an enormous success. 

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/the-world-luxury-ship-one-square-meter/index.html

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On 2/13/2022 at 8:01 PM, Host Jazzbeau said:

When Covid shut down cruising, The World of Residency was forced to throw all its owners off the ship.  If you had sold your house to finance the cabin, where would you have gone?  Granted, most of the owners on The World treat it as their 3rd or 4th home – but Storylines is pitching to people who would actually plan to live onboard. 😮


The World has a $10M net worth requirement as well as a requirement to own a land based home. 

Storylines does have some resident owners who plan to live on board full time. The difference is that The World is a 20 year old ship that had no pandemic protocols or preparations in place and was caught completely off guard. Storylines' ship was in the design process when Covid shut down cruising, so they were able to design high tech HVAC and other technologies into the engineering process. I have done my due diligence and find that the company is Extremely Well Prepared. Having said that, (and at the risk of stating the obvious), everyone needs to make their own risk assessments for cruise ships now. 

 https://f.hubspotusercontent40.net/hubfs/5873592/Storylines Health Emergency or Pandemic Protocol v1.0.pdf

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On 2/13/2022 at 11:24 AM, chloemonkey said:

And if the amount of calls and e mails that I am receiving are any indication, they are NOT selling well! As I am being contacted a LOT by their sales team.


If this CNN article is any indication, it seems sales are going quite well. 

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/storylines-residential-cruise-ship-concept/index.html

And considering there has been an enormous amount of media coverage in the past two months in outlets including these, I don't think any of us should be too worried about sales...

CNN
New York Post
Sacramento Bee
Miami Herald
Business Insider
MSN
Vanity Fair Italy
The Today Show
Barron's
Daily Mail (UK)
JetSet Magazine

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20 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Are you willing to go wherever the majority of owners decides?  I book cruises based on itinerary first, and the idea of being trapped on a ship that goes where other people want to is not at all appealing.

I'm of the same thought and itineraries are important. That being said, we would up on an Oceania cruise and the ports were akin to a really, really lousy Carnival cruise. Not a first class trip at all, and it was great.

I looked at the itinerary they are initially planning for a first strike. 

It was filled with smaller, less often hit ports. Frankly, some degree of HawaiiDan applies here: if you are in the Adriatic, it's really just a matter of degree isn't it? How important is the difference between ... St. Barts and St. Kitts? 

You make your life.

 

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19 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

There is a tried and true premise,  with historical base, that you should really live in that  somewhere a good 9-10 continuous months before you embrace your perceived nirvana.   

Your  assuming that ones taste, medical needs, relations all remain the same pre-move.

Call it what it is living on a cruise ship is a vision based on short term  experiences in denial of any change possible...       I like cruising as change of pace...  Living on one destroys that.   


Fair enough and I get your point. 

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16 hours ago, Traveling_Family said:

The lowest annual fee that I see on the penthouse level is currently $153k and 904 sq ft but I do see some residences as far up as Deck 12 in the price range and square footage that you are quoting. 

I agree with you about the comparison to Oceania!

And regarding your original question...'Storylines...What are your thoughts?' Thanks for asking. I am a big fan of Storylines and am very knowledgeable about the company as I have been following for some time. I am a future resident owner. I had been looking for a vacation home and couldn't decide where to buy so I opted for 'everywhere' when this very unique and rare opportunity presented itself. 



I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but ... at 377 square feet a resident is paying roughly the fees I was looking at.

And a penthouse on Oceania is just north of 400 square feet; the next step down is considerably smaller. So I'm muddying the waters a bit, if you'll excuse the turn of phrase.

It's hard to do an apples for apples comp, because then you get into including the beverage packages, getting your laundry done (unlimited, really). 

Safe enough to say it is (a LOT) less expensive, and the cabins are (much larger) at the same rough category. 

And at the end of the day, it does open the door to ABNB on the water in a way that is I think unique.

Edited by AlexCherie
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20 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Are you willing to go wherever the majority of owners decides?  I book cruises based on itinerary first, and the idea of being trapped on a ship that goes where other people want to is not at all appealing.



Not that you can't do this yourself ...
Rome 3 nights
Naples 3 nights

Sapri 1 night 
Vulcano Piano
Lipari Island
Messina 2 nights
Palermo 4 days
Marsala
Scaicca
San Leone
Malta (multiple)
Bari
Pescara
Venice
various ports in Croatia, 
various days either at sea, or using sea equipment

If anything, I think that challenges anything that any cruise line tries to make.

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