I’m on the ultimate nine-month world cruise – this is what it’s REALLY like onboard

Being onboard a cruise ship with hundreds of strangers for nine months would be a nightmare for some people, however it’s a dream come true for others.

The Royal Caribbean Ultimate World Cruise is a 274-night journey that will visit more than 60 countries, with passengers seeing 11 wonders of the world – on a holiday that costs anywhere between £41,634 to more than £82,483.

Videos of passengers documenting their journeys have gone viral on social media with followers intrigued by their adventure.

MailOnline spoke to one of the content creators on board, who goes by @little_rat_brain on TikTok, but chooses to keep her real name private.

She revealed everything from how some guests aren’t impressed with the food, to how passengers get all of their laundry done for them.

The American travel influencer has amassed more than 130,000 followers and more than a million views thanks to her videos on the cruise.

The ship, which is called the Serenade of the Seas, departed from Miami, Florida on December 10, 2023, and will return on September 10, 2024 – leaving plenty more time for fans to get an insight into what it’s like.

She told MailOnline: ‘Travel has always been a part of my life, so it was really easy to decide to take this particular cruise. 

‘One of my family’s goals is to visit all fifty states and seven continents, and this cruise would fulfill that goal – or at least it will once we make it through the Drake Passage.

‘It’s been a fantastic time so far. I’ve loved every minute both off and on the ship.

‘I’ve been able to meet so many different people from different places, try new foods that I didn’t know existed, and see places that are hard to believe they’re on the same planet’.

The content creator admits that she was initially worried about making friends on the cruise, as she wasn’t sure ‘what the demographic would be like’.

However, so far she’s met lots of people and is forming friendships, adding that: ‘To their credit, the crew is excellent at setting up meetings for different social groups, so there are ways to meet people’.

She revealed that: ‘There are more older and retired people than any other age group, but that is to be expected. However, the range of ages on the ship is ‘actually quite surprising.

‘We have families with young children, kids going to school, and some cruisers are even attending graduate school while onboard. 

‘I’m an artist, so my schedule is pretty flexible. This trip is truly letting me explore different places and gather inspiration for the next phase in my life.

‘I think any challenges that I face at this point would mostly stem from my poor packing. 

‘I neglected to consider my personal temperature comfort zones, and forgot to bring any long pants that are comfortable for sea days. Other than that, it truly has been smooth sailing’.

When it comes to her newfound level of ‘reality star’ style fame, the passenger who goes by ‘Little Rat Brain’ admitted that it was ‘definitely unexpected’.

The TikToker said: ‘Not even two months ago, I only had 200 followers, and that’s now no longer the case. I get the interest though, if I wasn’t on the cruise, I would certainly be following everyone involved’.

Two of the most popular questions that followers of those on the cruise have are regarding the food and laundry situations.

She explains: ‘People have been complaining about the food, but frankly, my refrigerator would never have this many options. 

‘The food varies each day, and the buffet always has so many different options. I am amazed at the logistics that it must take to feed everyone onboard and to make sure that minimal food goes to waste. 

‘The Indian food is consistently amazing and the desserts always surprise me’. 

She goes on to reveal that there are two options for laundry, you can either do your own in the three laundry areas offered or send it out three times a week:

‘Personally, I’ve opted to have mine done for me, as laundry is one of my least favourite activities to do back home. 

‘It’s also nice because it comes back folded, which would be quite the ordeal in my room’. 

Commenting on her room, she added: ‘My cabin is an interior room, which I love. Prior to sailing, I found out the dimensions of my room, so I was about to figure out how to shuffle the existing furniture around to make it have the best flow possible. 

‘I also painted large murals on cloth to hang on the walls, as well as added plant squares over the artwork to give a sense of the outdoors. 

‘Every bit of space has been looked at and converted into storage, with the help of magnets and boxes’. 

At the time of writing, the cruise’s inhabitants are experiencing their ‘worst weather yet’ going through the Drake Passage. 

She exclaimed: ‘The drake passage is notoriously rough, and we are definitely getting a taste of it. 

‘For the past two days, the ship has sailed through hurricane force winds, with the highest speed being over 90 knots. 

‘The waves are also quite high, with some of them reaching the fifth deck and the spray of them have reached the tenth deck as well’. 

It comes after a storm at sea caused major flooding to certain areas of the ship, just two days in.

While it wasn’t severe, some cruisers were disgruntled by having to move rooms and put heat fans out to dry the carpet’.

She explained that so far, the passengers have seen 12 different countries and have 52 countries left. 

She said: ‘We started off in the United States, leaving from Miami, and then headed to Royal Caribbean’s private island in the Bahamas. I have to admit, I used this day to get the majority of my unpacking done. 

‘We then headed to Mexico, to see our first world wonder: Chichén Itzá-which was absolutely incredible. 

‘It’s hard to envision the scale and the science behind it when you read about it, but in person, it’s such an interesting place. After that, the ship headed towards the ABC Islands: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. 

The traveller gushed: ‘All of those islands are truly the definition of tropical paradise, the weather was fantastic and the water was such a pure shade of blue, it was unbelievable. 

‘Our next two stops were Barbados and Grenada, respectively. Both of those islands were unlike anything I’ve seen before. I wasn’t expecting Grenada to look so prehistoric and lush, although it makes sense that a tropical rainforest would be able to produce all the spices they are known for’. 

She admitted: ‘Unfortunately, due to safety concerns about weather, we had to skip French Guiana, but I think I’ll eventually make my way back there. 

‘Finally, we made it over to Brazil, which I cannot say enough good things about. I loved every single port that we went to. 

‘The vibrancy of the colors and the joyfulness of everyone that we met, along with the sheer amount of public art made it one of my top countries so far. 

‘Also, being offshore of Copacabana beach for New Year’s is something that I’ll truly cherish for the rest of my life. 

‘After that whirlwind of travel, the ship docked in Uruguay, which I didn’t expect to love nearly as much as I did. There is definitely some semi-serious consideration of moving there after this cruise is over. 

‘Finally, our last country so far is Argentina. Argentina has been a lovely area so far, especially since we saw our second world wonder-Iguazu Falls. I don’t have a country that I’m most looking forward to next, since I’m just truly excited to see every single port.

‘The excursions are also pretty varied for each port, as they cater to a range of different interests and abilities. My favorite ones so far have been riding on a dune buggy on the beach of Morro Branco and seeing baby penguins in Puerto Madryn’. 

With the bulk of the trip still to go, including destination across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and beyond, the cruisers won’t return home until September of this year.

Read the full list of destinations below: