Couple spend a year and a half on a cruise because it’s cheaper than paying for retirement home

Being retired gives you the freedom to go on holiday whenever you want, but not many people often take advantage of that fact like Marty and Jess Ansen.

The couple have booked not one, not two, but 51 back-to-back cruises as they've realised it's cheaper than paying for a retirement home.

Marty and Jess have been enjoying cruising holidays for decades, but they were left desperate to get back on the water when the coronavirus outbreak brought the industry to a standstill.

When they were finally able to leave dry land, it seems like they never wanted to return.

A Current Affair

Marty explained: "Eventually I said to my agent, 'Look, whatever comes, book it' and that's how it got to be such a long cruise."

In June 2022, Marty and Jess boarded the Coral Princess ship. And more than a year on, the couple are still there.

"We're on board longer than anybody else," Marty told A Current Affair. "The wheels change over but we stay on board."

Jess added: "We welcome the different captains on board."

Even the ship's hotel manager, Ren van Rooyen, has been on board the Coral Princess for less time than the couple.

"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.

Jess and Marty are so well-known on board that last month, the crew even surprised Jess as she celebrated her birthday.

While on the ship, the couple are able to enjoy the huge buffet spreads and the housekeeping, with all of their meals included in the prices.

Over time, they've developed a routine on the cruise ship, beginning each day with an hour of table tennis together.

"We do it together and we have a lot of fun," Jess said.

A Current Affair

The couple are now looking at yet another trip around the world, with eight months left on board the Coral Princess before they disembark.

Jess and Marty won't stay put for long though, as they're set to embark on a year-long cruise aboard the Crown Princess just a few months later.

"We don't know how to wash up anymore, we don't know how to make a bed, because we haven't done it for so long. So now we have to stay on board just to stay alive!" Marty joked.

What a life.

Topics: Travel, Australia, Money

Emily Brown

Emily Brown is the Community Desk Lead at LADbible Group. Emily first began delivering news when she was just 11 years old - with a paper route. She went on to graduate with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University before contributing to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems. She joined UNILAD in 2018 to cover breaking news, trending stories and longer form features, and now works as Community Desk Lead to commission and write human interest stories from across the globe.