At sea

Meet Chris. She’s an Around the World passenger and she’ll be turning 84 on board next month. Chris isn’t any ordinary passenger; she’s Oceania’s first resident passenger. That’s right. She’s booked on three years of back-to-back cruises.

Why live onboard? She told us she transferred her condo to her son to avoid inheritance taxes, then her doctor retired so she decided it was the ideal time to make a change. She gave away everything but 20 boxes and a recliner and an ottoman which she put in storage and moved into an Airbnb until she decided on what was next. She visited three seniors’ living homes which she said were all lovely but the residents weren’t as active and spry as she is so she didn’t think she was quite ready for that.

A retired teacher and school administrator, she’d been on Oceania’s inaugural 2015 Around the World cruise and loved it because she’d met such interesting people. That’s when she asked her financial advisor/nephew whether it was feasible for her to live on board. He looked at the numbers and said she certainly could - for up to 18 years!🤣

She’s now taken up residence in a cabin on deck 7 and loving every minute.Read more