If you’ve sat at your office desk and dreamed of travelling for months at a time, you aren’t alone.
When scrolling through influencers or content creators who appear constantly holidaying, it’s difficult to imagine how they can afford the non-stop adventure.
However, one man who spent the last year living on cruise ships and travelling the world claims it’s more affordable than people think.
Kevin Martin, a 48-year-old from Missouri, has revealed exactly how much it costs him to live on cruise ships full-time, down to the cent.
The ex-military man left the corporate world in 2019 and has spent the last year cruising the world, sailing with Royal Caribbean, NCL, Princess and MSC.
Documenting his travels on YouTube, Martin’s 112,000 subscribers regularly tune in to watch his videos that cover advice and stories about cruise travel, as well as detailed breakdowns of how much he spends each month.
Martin’s complete transparency has earned many fans, who appreciate how he reveals, line by line, costs for accommodation, phone plans, groceries and even home insurance.
In a video covering his April expenses, Martin revealed the total cost for a month of travel was US$1966 ($3199), including everything from groceries to health insurance.
In April Martin travelled on three cruises which took him around Mexico and Colombia, up to Canada and around Alaska.
This month was a little cheaper than usual, as Martin’s March expenses were $3344 and February cost $4186. In 2023, Martin said he typically cruised for between US$2500-$4000 ($4070-6500) per month.
How much does a month on a cruise ship cost?
The cruise fare is always the largest cost, clocking in at US$1124 ($1829) for April. This worked out to $60 per day and covered accommodation, meals on the ship, entertainment and other free amenities.
While Martin typically eats on the ship, he did enjoy a few meals out, which came to $190 and groceries cost $84.
His international phone plan was $177, insurance (which covers homeowners insurance for a property he rents out) was $88 and his discounted military health care was $24.
As for entertainment, Martin said a museum pass and a subscription to Hulu to watch a television show was $23.
Since transfers between ships and during day trips are often included in the cruise fare, he spent nothing on travel and transport, however, the ‘shopping’ column was unusually large at $618 as he needed to purchase new running shoes and a portable speaker.
With $1.60 attributed to tax bills and i-cloud storage, his total was almost $3200, or $107 per day.
How to cruise for cheap
Unfortunately, one can’t cruise around for $107 without knowing how to work the system. Martin is completely transparent about the fact that his travels were made possible by working to get significant discounts.
As a US veteran who also owns shares in cruise lines, Martin automatically receives discounts on cruise fares. However, the real key lies in getting ‘casino deals’. These can be in the form of discounts, onboard credits or other perks and are typically offered by cruise lines to encourage passengers to spend more time and money in the onboard casinos.
In December 2022, Martin spent US$50 at the slot machines on a cruise and lost it, but at the end of the cruise was offered a US$150 free casino credit for his next cruise. On the next cruise, he used the credit to play again and won US$1200. Eventually, he began receiving offers for free cruises.
Since then, Martin says he has only ever lost that initial US$50 and now only ever gambles with free credit or winnings, while still getting cheap cruise offers.