What Is a World Cruise?
Have you been thinking about going on an Around the World Cruise but are wondering what all of the fuss is about? World Cruises are an incredible opportunity to see the world – sometimes circumnavigating the entire world – in one trip, often roundtrip from the same airport.
You will visit multiple continents, countries, go through nearly every time zone, cross oceans and transit canals. An around the world cruise is unlike nearly any experience you will get.
Which Cruise Lines Do World Cruises?
Cruises around the world are offered from many cruise lines. Each year there are about eleven cruise lines (but that number is increasing!) that offer world cruises. These range from mainstream cruise lines all the way up to ultra luxury. Which cruise lines offer these incredible voyages doesn’t change that much year after year.
There are a few cruise lines that nearly always offer world cruises, but there are more companies adding these incredible itineraries to their line-ups each year.
- Azamara Cruises
- Costa Cruises
- Cunard Cruises
- Usually offers two “World Cruises”
- One a full circumnavigation
- One a hundred plus day roundtrip continent circumnavigation
- Fred. Olsen Cruise Line
- Holland America Line
- Oceania Cruises
- Typically one of the longest world cruises offered, most often at 180 days
- P&O Cruises
- Princess Cruises
- Two world cruises, one for Northern Hemisphere winter, one in Southern Hemisphere winter.
- Regent Seven Seas
- Royal Caribbean Cruise Line
- Offering it’s first World Cruise in late 2023/early 2024 at 274 nights
- Seabourn Cruises
- Silversea Cruises
- Viking Cruises
- Offering two ships sailing world cruises starting in 2024
- It is expected that Crystal Cruises, when they are back up and running, will eventually offer an around-the-world0 cruise again.
Example Itinerary:
What is a World Cruise?
A World Cruise is an around-the-world voyage onboard a cruise ship. The title of “World Cruise” is one denoted to a voyage by the cruise line. In many cases (though not all) it means a full circumnavigation of the globe. For some though it will be a near circumnavigation (for instance leaving from Fort Lauderdale, sailing west through the Panama Canal and then ending somewhere in Europe.
Some are less about going around-the-world and instead are more about visiting a large swath of the earth in one journey. For instance sometimes there are “world cruises” that visit a few continents very in depth – perhaps leaving from Europe, visiting Asia and Africa, and then returning to their home port.
Why Wouldn’t A World Cruise Go All The Way Around the World?
The age old question. There are a few reasons for this and they are all logistical.
- Ship location
- If the World Cruise ends in Europe at the start of the cruise lines summer European season it makes good sense for them to end the cruise in Europe versus sailing back and forth across the Atlantic several extra times.
- Length of Voyage
- To do a World Cruise that went in depth on every continent would end up taking a whole year. (If you’re interested in that take a look at Royal Caribbean’s Ultimate World Cruise) At some point cruise lines have to focus on what itinerary will offer an opportunity to explore different regions.
- If a cruise line is opting to focus on a few continents versus actually circling the globe it is because they know their guests are especially interested in those regions and want to explore more in depth. To actually circle the globe with that kind of focus on those continents would take extra months that the cruise line doesn’t have available for that ship (and that the passengers probably don’t have, either).
Who Goes On An Around the World Cruise?
Passengers on cruises around the world are most often retirees. Occasionally, there are some younger people that are still working that have occupations that travel well – this is most common with writers but certainly not exclusive to writers.
The demographic is higher than you’d find on a one week Caribbean cruise, but it is far from a retirement home at sea. There are people that retired at 40, a young couple on a sabbatical. There are retired doctors, lawyers, school teachers. There are some investment bankers and everything in between. It’s a pretty big mix of people that sail on a World Cruise.
Some passengers love it so much that go every single year for decades. These folks consider it they’re “winter home”. For other passengers it is truly a once in a life time journey that they’ve been saving up for over the course of decades. This creates a mix of passenger demographics.
Are There Kids on an Around the World Cruise?
Yes, sometimes. Sometimes there are kids on a World Cruise but it’s definitely not a guarantee. Oftentimes there might only be one or two kids but on different parts of it there might be ten.
While there might be some children onboard, most often if they are there they are onboard for a segment of the World Cruise (see below for an explanation on segments) versus for the full voyage.
If you are considering bringing children with you and want to ensure they have friends to spend time with contact the cruise line ahead of time. Also consider that if there are only a couple kids onboard there is no guarantee that the children you bring will get along with the other couple kids onboard.
Also, some cruise lines may offer basic children’s activities for those youth onboard; this is not a guarantee though so if this is a service you’re interested in make sure to contact the cruise line ahead of time.
Cruise Line Loyalty Status
As it’s not uncommon for passengers to go on a world Cruise every year some have been on 18, 19, 20 or more.
With so many passengers cruising on these long voyages it’s easy for them to rack up cruise line loyalty, within one cruise going from the lowest level to often at least mid-level.
This means that on a ship with 1,000 passengers it’s easy to have 800 or more of those passengers be near the “elite” or whatever the highest or near highest tier of loyalty is for that cruise line.
Some cruise line loyalty perks include things like having your laundry done – those type perks are absolutely still included.
But, what happens when a perk says you can cut in line for tenders…and 800 other people can, too? On a more common cruise – for instance a week in the Caribbean – having these top-tiered cruisers on is the exception, not the rule. So, things like being able to queue jump for tenders is a small issue – maybe 10 people have the perk out of 2,000.
On a World Cruise sometimes certain perks that you might have earned through your years of sailing – might be downgraded. Hopefully you can sort out the math that if 80% of the people onboard are eligible to jump the line then you just end up with a really long line.
However, if you want to upgrade your loyalty status quickly, a World Cruise is a great way to do it.
What Makes These World Cruises Special?
A World Cruise is an opportunity to see the world while also having a “home” to go back to. It’s a logistically easy way to see the world – you only have to pack and unpack once, and quite often you can fly in and out of an airport that’s convenient for you.
A lot of people think that on a cruise you just stop somewhere for a few hours. And, while that is somewhat true of normal cruises – on a World Cruise there is the time (after all a lot of these voyages are 4 months long!) to spend longer at some of the most incredible places on earth. World Cruises regularly feature overnight stops at top destinations – giving you multiple days to go out and explore.
The destinations and the travel might be what draws people to a World Cruise initially, the shipboard experience is likely what keeps them coming back year after year. Onboard a World Cruise there are typically additional cultural talks and cultural ambassadors onboard. There are also usually extra activities onboard such as crafts, watercolors, and additional dance classes. On top of that there are a lot of events befitting of a World Cruise – themed nights, Gala dinners, and so much more!
How Much Does an Around the World Cruise Cost?
An around the world cruise can be more affordable (albeit still expensive) than you might think. Many World Cruises are advertised with starting prices between $15,000-$20,000 per person. While that is a lot of money, these cruises are typically 100-140 days long. Some average prices per day for World Cruises can end up at just over $100 per person, per day.
On the other side of it a World Cruise can cost nearly as much as you want it to. Some luxury cruise brands offering World Cruises will charge $170,000+ for their most premium suites.
What’s Included in the Cost of an Around the World Cruise?
In addition to the additional onboard activities offered, World Cruises typically also include a multitude of “extras”. These extras include things like customized or World Cruise logo gifts, shore excursions, luggage shipping, airfare, onboard credit, and now some lines are even offering onboard medical expenses.
What is offered for these “extras” differs greatly by cruise line but most will offer some sort of perks.
Within the price of an around the world cruise on every line is basic beverages – such as the drink stations in the buffet area, with basic coffee, tea, water, and usually a lemonade or such. At breakfast it will likely include some fruit juice as well. Sodas, specialty coffees and teas, and alcohol are typically extra unless it is noted as an “all-inclusive” option.
For food typically the buffet and the main dining room are included in the price as well. This would include breakfast, lunch, dinner, and often fun extras like afternoon tea or brunch on Sundays.
However, in addition to the above, some cruise lines are “all-inclusive”. All-inclusive has slightly different meanings for different cruise lines, but it typically means that drinks (including alcohol) as well as specialty restaurants and gratuities are included. It can sometimes also mean things like shore excursions and Wi-Fi or even spa treatments.
How Long Is an Around the World Cruise?
There is no set answer to this as it differs drastically between cruise lines. There are World Cruises as short as 80 days and as long as 180 days.
A long world cruise tends to includes more overnight ports whereas a shorter world cruise tends to have longer days in port but less overnights.
The longest cruises also tend to be on luxury lines. Here’s a sample of how long a world cruise is on different cruise lines:
Costa – 127 nights
Crystal Cruises – 140 nights
Cunard – 117 nights/ 105 nights
Fred. Olsen – 79 nights
MSC – 118 nights
Oceania – 180 days
P&O Cruises – 99 nights
Princess – 107/111 nights
Regent Seven Seas – 143 nights
Seabourn – 140 nights
Silversea – 140 nights
Viking – 138 nights
When Does an Around the World Cruise Sail?
You won’t find World Cruises offered to the Northern Hemisphere market over the summer – why? A lot of people that go on a World Cruise want to get away for the winter. The rest of the reason is pretty simple – it’s more profitable for a cruise line to sail shorter cruises to popular family destinations over the winter months.
Most World cruises leave sometime in January. Many are in the first week in January just after that ships respective New Years Eve cruise. Some don’t leave until early February and some cruise lines – namely Viking – tend to have their cruise leave just before the holidays. Having these ships taking the same group of passengers around the globe for four months during these months is good business by the cruise line. These tend to be slower months for traditional cruising, so having one ship out of their fleet operating a longer cruise is not going to hit the bottom line too hard.
Princess Cruises has been offering a World Cruise roundtrip out of Sydney, Australia for the past few years. This cruise – to line up with the Australia and Southern Hemisphere cruise market – heads out in what the Northern Hemisphere views as the summer (also known as there winter) and is gone over the months of June, July, and August (plus or minus a bit either way).
Does that all sound great but you can’t quite sail the whole thing? Maybe a segment of a World Cruise would be right for you.
What is a World Cruise “Segment”?
If you look at a World Cruise itinerary and love it but know that you can’t be gone for months at a time, what is there to do? The itinerary is fantastic and you like the idea of a World Cruise. Maybe you just want to test it out and see if it’s for you.
Have no fear – segments are here!
A segment of a World Cruise is just what it sounds – it’s just a part of the larger voyage. Segments are usually divided up into at minimum three weeks long but can be months long as well.
Things to know about World Cruise segments:
- They aren’t available on every around the world cruise
- Some World Cruises sell out completely as a full voyage. If this happens it’s easier for the cruise line to offer the sailing to the same group of passengers for the whole cruise.
- The cruise line decides what segments are possible
- Unfortunately you can’t just say, I want to join the ship here and leave there. To have passengers join the ship requires additional facilities on both the pier as well as additional set up and work for the crew onboard the ship. There are also different visa requirements for different parts of the world so that will also play a role in where cruise lines allow passengers to embark/disembark the ship.
Would You Ever Consider Going on a World Cruise?
Are you thinking of an around the world cruise? Want to know more? Take a look at which cruise lines do world cruises and are sailing world cruises in the coming years…
