Poppy Bilderbeck
A man has revealed why it's ended up cheaper living at sea rather than on land.
With the cost of living crisis really continuing to crisis, many are looking for alternative ways to live to save a bit of money and ultimately live a more peaceful life and Austin Wells from San Diego worked out buying an apartment on a cruise would be cheaper than home on land. Watch below:
Wells revealed that he put down $300,000 (£238,000) on a 12-year lease studio apartment onboard the MV Narrative in an interview with CNBC in 2022.
Now, let's not deny it, this is still a hefty sum and far more than most of us could even begin to imagine having in our bank accounts now - or even ever - but compare it to rising house prices across the country - and don't get me even started on London - and Wells is laughing.
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Not only this, but there's an array of amazing food to choose from while on board and you'll hardly get bored of the views out of the window when they're changing so frequently and you're sailing around the entire globe.
However, there's one small caveat.
The ship is still under construction in Croatia and isn’t due to set sail until 2025.
But Wells certainly has more than enough to look forward to and dream of to make it through the rest of 2024, with the mega cruise ship boasting a whopping 500 private rooms and apartments, with Wells’ room spanning 237 square feet and features a desk, shower room, pantry and foldaway bed.
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Those who live onboard full-time are also granted access not only to a private gym and farmer’s market, but also medical services, 24-hour room service and private kitchens.
What’s more, the ship plays host to 20 restaurants and bars, a school, a library, a bank, a cinema and a swimming pool.
But there's one thing which excites Wells 'the most'.
Wells shared: "The thing that most excites me is I don’t have to upend my daily routine, in order to go see the world.
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"My working hours will be shifted towards evenings, nights and very early mornings, but that does open up the ability for me to see a city midday to afternoon.”
He added: "This is probably the first time ever that there is even the ability to have a standard job and even consider working and living from a floating apartment complex."
Wells also said he hopes he’s going to make lots of friends onboard seeing as he’ll be ‘travelling the world with them’.
According to The Sun, a flat in San Diego costs around $2,500 (£1,980) per month while Wells’ room on the MV Narrative will set him back about $2,000 (£1,587) per month.
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The outlet notes that Alister Punton and Shannon Lee, the bosses of luxury residential ship brand Storyline, came up with MV Narrative because they ‘wanted to offer more affordable apartments for life at sea’.
Around 1,000 residents will call MV Narrative home when it sets sail in a year or so and there’ll be 11 different types of homes onboard.