Man who has lived on cruise ship permanently for 23 years shares how much it really costs
A man who has called cruise ships his home for more than two decades revealed how much it costs him.
Mario Salcedo - who was sweetly nicknamed 'Super Mario' by his seafaring friends onboard his favourite Royal Caribbean boat - became a permanent passenger aged 47.
He decided to ditch his demanding job as an international finance director at a multinational corporation because he was bored of constantly travelling by plane.
The bloke spent more time in hotel rooms than his Miami home, so he booked himself onto his first cruise in the late 90s for a change of scenery.
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Another 100 back-to-back voyages followed as Mario quickly fell in love with cruising, seeing him spend more than £1 million living on ocean liners by 2016.
Although the businessman - who works remotely while onboard - has splashed a lot of cash over the years, he's still conscious about his spending.
Mario sat down with cruise content creator Alanna Zingano in May 2019 to discuss what financial state you need to be in to live on a cruise ship.
He explained that the costs you incur along the way all stem back to the 'original decision' you make when you choose what vessel to travel on.
"Assuming you chose the luxury segment of the market, now the money becomes critical," Mario said.
"You're gonna be paying a lot more to live on on a luxury line than you would on a contemporary line, probably at least twice as much."
The ship lover - who has permanent sea legs due to all the time he has spent off dry land - recommended selecting something of 'reasonable' price before then planning out your budget.
Speaking of what he does as a solo-cruiser who often heads to the Caribbean, Mario explained that he always ensures he has at least $100 (£82.03) a day to play with.
"It's not gonna be a hundred every cruise," he added, pointing out that it depends on factors such as the season, what ship your on and where you are heading.
Between large expenses, taxes and tips, Mario explained he tends to fork out around $185 (£151.75) each day for the 'basics' - meaning without any luxuries such as alcohol, excursions, or internet access.
"Multiply that by 365 days," the cruise connoisseur said. "If you do the math, in my case, my budget is $72,093 (£59,136). So the minimum is $72,000 (£59,060)."
Mario emphasised the fact that this doesn't include any 'perks' holidaymakers might usually enjoy and that he opts to stay in an interior cabin so he 'can cruise on the cheap', which has no window.
He also crunched the numbers on the same arrangement for a cabin with a balcony, which he claims would cost $101,258 (£83,063).
A junior suite for a year would set you back $136,000 (£111,563), according to Mario.
"I looked up the average cost of assisted living in the United States per year and it's $100,380 (£82,343)," he then added. "You can see that if you do an interior cabin, it's cheaper to live on a cruise ship."
The figures he churned out were from 2019, so granted, these have probably risen significantly since then.
But still - it seems that moving onto a cruise liner might be a financially-sound decision for some people.
Topics: Travel, Lifestyle, Money, Cruise Ship
Olivia Burke