Cruise ship selling the cabins for permanent residences

[Liberal_in_LA]

so many questions went thru my mind - 1. can the owner stay in the residence 365 days of the year? 2. If so, what about leaving the ship daily for groceries and such? How much trouble would it be?

For sail: 200 homes on a cruise ship



About half of the cabins on the $1.1-billion Utopia, set to launch in 2013, will be offered as permanent residences ranging from about $3.7 million to $26 million.

David Robb, chairman of Utopia Residences, with a model of the Utopia. Some cruise industry experts doubt the plan to sell homes on the ship can stay afloat during the economic downturn. (Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times / January 7, 2010)


By Hugo Martín

January 11, 2010

In the worst economic storm in decades, a Beverly Hills company has an ambitious plan to build a $1.1-billion cruise ship, set to cast off in 2013. But instead of offering four- or five-day excursions as typical cruise lines do, the business plans to sell half the cabins as floating homes.

Opulent cabins aboard the ship Utopia now range in price from about $3.7 million to $26 million. But even at these prices, a key draw will be location.

During the Cannes Film Festival, the ship is slated to drop anchor near the south of France in the Mediterranean sea. During the carnival celebration in Rio de Janeiro, the ship plans to dock off the coast of the Brazilian city. On New Year's Eve, cruise ship operators hope to take passengers to Sydney Harbor in Australia to enjoy the fireworks display.

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An additional 200 cabins will be sold as permanent residences, with prices ranging from about $3.7 million for a 1,400-square-foot home with two bedrooms and two bathrooms to $26 million for a 6,600-square-foot cabin with four bedrooms and three baths.

Utopia officials say purchasers would be buying a cabin on the ship but not an ownership share of the ship itself.

"They are not condominiums, and the residents do not own the ship or common areas," said David Robb, chairman of Utopia Residences.

In addition, the cabin owners would have to pay regular fees for utilities, security, concierge services and access to private onboard clubs.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-cruise-ship11-2010jan11,0,2549020.story

[high density]

1. $3.7 million buys a lot of airfare and nice hotel rooms.

Or even perhaps a condo in your favorite half dozen places.

[mainer]

5. And a land-based condo won't sink or get mothballed.

And I doubt a ship-based condo is going to appreciate in value.

[high density]

11. Great point: what is the value of these places in 30 years

Plus the "homeowners" fees will be ridiculous and only get worse as diesel rises. They'll have to keep their fingers crossed that the boat owner doesn't go out of business.

[Stevenmarc]

19. But 3.7 million doesn't buy a lot of yacht

So if you are looking for a yacht like experience without the yacht size headaches this is a bargain

[LiberalFighter]

2. Anyone buying are fools!!

[Liberal_in_LA]

3. why?

[NoSheep]

21. Ever been on a cruise?

[Liberal_in_LA]

27. nope. Get seasick. Crossed my mind to try a 3 day cruise, with lots of medicine of course

[NoSheep]

38. Some people like them and that's fine but I didn't. I felt confined.

[RebelOne]

39. I've been on four cruises and I loved every minute.

How could you feel confined when the ship is so big and there are so many things to do? Sure, if you spent all your time in a tiny cabin, you would feel confined.

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. Actually not quite

one trend we will see, for many complex reasons, are ocean bound homes.

Now I will not laugh about a cruise ship trying this... granted there are also people talking of... homes built on rafts.

As they say mileage will vary, but in a world with overpopulation this is not as nuts as it sounds.

And it also offers a pleasant way for the very wealthy to leave behind the nation states and those pesky obligations to the state. This is the target market by the way.

[T Wolf]

15. Let's hope the pirates take note and target these cretins. There should be lots of

booty (arrgh) to be had.

[nadinbrzezinski]

18. There are certain waters I will not take a cruise ship through

for that reason. The Caribbean and the coast off Somalia, as well as the Malacca straits come to mind.

And captains of these vessels with ahem VIPs will avoid those waters too... or against maritime law, will have their crew armed and chiefly well drilled.

[ArcticFox]

31. Against maritime law?

What, to have guns on a ship? I always thought that was actually recommended.

[nadinbrzezinski]

35. Merchant ships are not armed by protocol

and international agreements since oh 1952.

They can and are armed ONLY in time of active war for self defense.

[GodlessBiker]

10. If you have $300 million, why not get a $10 million cabin? I would. I like to cruise.

[flvegan]

4. Like the ship, The World.

Watched an entire show devoted to that thing. Not a bad place to crash if you have the cash.

[A HERETIC I AM]

14. Yup. It's already been done.

For those wondering why anyone would buy such a thing, there are several reasons.

An ever changing environment. It's a Condo that moves.

Privacy.

If you like shipboard living, it works well.

Way the hell out of my price range, but I wouldn't begrudge anyone who chose to do such a thing.

[FBaggins]

22. The difference here is that only SOME of the cabins are being sold

That means that the others are rented out... which means that they need to have a fairly consistent itinerary. The World of Residensea is attractive (like I've got the money, right?) because to goes all over the world. It's in Cannes for the big film festival... it will go where the America's Cup is... Monte Carlo for the race... etc, etc.

On edit... my mistake, I didn't read far enough. I don't know how you sell the remaining cabins for such an eclectic schedule.

[virgogal]

6. Oh! They're not condos. I was all ready to make an offer on a

2BR/2BA cabin.

Just changed my mind. :-)

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. lol. a 2br/2bath with balcony and garage? lol

[Born_A_Truman]

7. Sounds similar to "The World"

http://www.aboardtheworld.com/

[wtmusic]

13. Yep, already been done.

Supposedly the minimum worth of their homeowners is $5M.

[A HERETIC I AM]

16. JInx! You owe me a coke!

well..I was typing when you were typing the same thing, but you got yours in before I did.

[wtmusic]

37. But you're farther up the list

I call it a draw :toast:

[T Wolf]

12. The rich continue to make out like the bandits they are, while the rest of us just (maybe) make do.

A long time ago, i told my daughters, "If you want to be rich, cater to the rich. Those parasites will always be with us and will always have enough money to buy whatever they want."

Fortunately, they both have decided that doing good is more important than getting rich, so they are in worthwhile, but non-lucrative, lines of work.

But the lesson remains true.

[OI812]

25. I have a neighbor who hates rich people and rants about it all the time. He buys $50 lottery ticket

every week.

I don't know if he appreciates the irony...

[Stevenmarc]

17. .

[Quantess]

20. Cruise ships are hemorrhaging $$ even worse than hotels.

It's a survival move on the ships' part.

[Gman2]

23. Those are similar to the ones Repukes will keep all the liberals on.

Only you cant leave. And they will be anchored in bays.

[no_hypocrisy]

24. The Life Boat.

[onehandle]

26. Internet access on cruise ships is expensive.

That would be a huge expense for me.

[MercutioATC]

30. I'm thinking that if you're paying $3.7M or more for a cabin...

...internet access fees aren't really a concern.

[Born_A_Truman]

28. There are people who live on regular cruise ships now...

They do back-to-back-to-back cruises. An inside cabin booked at the right time is cheaper than assisted living.

I love cruising but no way would want to actually live full time on a cruise ship.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

34. Bingo. Inside cabins can be had for as little as $350/wk per person.

That may seem expensive, but consider that you are getting fed (as much as you can eat) 4x a day, plenty of excercise and sun is available, and you get to see the world. No utilities, no car payments/ins, etc...

If your job can be done completely mobile and you can swing ~$2500/mo in living expenses... living in an inside cabin on a cruise ship for a few years could be a pretty sweet gig for someone whose single or even a couple.

[Liberal_in_LA]

36. Seriously?

[Born_A_Truman]

40. Yes

Princess has a lady that lives full time. I can't remember her name but she is a widow and she and her husband cruised alot.

[daleo]

29. Insurance for rich global warming denialists

It could get ugly when the booze (and food) runs out, though.

Actually, there's a movie in there.

[Vinca]

32. If I had 3.7 million to spend for one of their low end cabins,

I'd go house shopping in Maui.

[silverhandorder]

33. My parents are thinking about something like this.

My parents will be retiring soon and both are looking to go somewhere where their investments will be untouched by the shitstorm that might start here. Would they be potentially still be able to live in US via this cruise ship and have residence somewhere else?