Featured Image Credit: A Current Affair/The Today Show
Topics: Australia, Money, Travel, Cruise ship
Callum Jones
Topics: Australia, Money, Travel, Cruise ship
We all know how expensive renting is nowadays, with many Americans being priced out of the housing market.
And heck, if a top economist's prediction ends up being correct, then it doesn't look like things will be getting any better in the near future.
So, one couple has taken to extraordinary lengths when it comes to their living arrangements, and I'm all for it.
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Marty and Jess Ansen, from Australia, realized that they could actually save money on their retirement by avoiding going into a retirement facility.
Prior to their retirement, the pair had always enjoyed going on cruise ships - and they came to a pretty surprisingly revelation after looking into the cost of it.
The couple found that they would actually spend less by simply booking 51 cruises back-to-back rather than living in a retirement home.
Given how expensive cruises are, this says a lot about how extortionate proper social care is when, not just one cruise, but 51 of them works out cheaper.
As a result of the pandemic, the pair were forced back on dry land, and were desperate to get back out on the water at the earliest opportunity.
In June last year, they boarded the ship Coral Princess ship, where they can enjoy indulgent entertainment, buffets, table tennis matches.
Now, more than one year later the couple are still going.
Marty told A Current Affair: "Eventually I said to my agent, 'Look, whatever comes, book it' and that's how it got to be such a long cruise."
Booking 51 back-to-back cruises means they would stay on board longer than anyone else on the ship - including the captain.
"The wheels change over but we stay on board," Marty said, while Jess added: "We welcome the different captains on board."
Ren van Rooyen is the hotel manager on board the Coral Princess ship, and said that Jess and Marty are the most dedicated passengers they have.
"We always make a joke that I go away and I come back and it's like coming to see my family - my mum and dad again - they're like my second mum and dad on board," Van Rooyen said.
All of their meals are included in the cruise, and also daily housekeeping in their bedroom.
With hundreds of days of non-stop cruising under their belts, Jess and Marty have said they'd keep the trips going for the rest of their lives, if that was possible.