'Endless cruise' where passengers can spend their entire life on board to set sail next week

Cruises are a hugely popular way for people to holiday nowadays. And usually it’s just for that, a holiday - you know, a couple of days, maybe even two weeks if you’ve got the annual leave for it.

There’s plenty of options too from a simple alcohol-free cruise to the more unique ‘spicy cruise’ where couples swap partners. But next week, something a little more extreme will set sail.

On board the ‘endless cruise, passengers can spend their entire life on there.

The ‘first perpetual world cruise’, the 31-year-old Villa Vie Odyssey will set sail on 30 May after intense refurbishment and cosmetic work.

Residents can spend their life on board. (Villa Vie Residences)

Offering an ‘intimate, new cruise lifestyle’, it will begin its voyage from Belfast, Northern Ireland, with around 300 passengers, or ‘residents’, on board.

One of only two residential cruise ships in operation, it will be able to ‘reach parts of the world that larger ships cannot access’.

The Villa Vie Odyssey will visit a whopping 425 ports in 147 countries across all the seven continents of the world as it circumnavigates the globe every three and a half years.

Passengers have the choice between pay-as-you-go and ownership options. Under ownership, residents can ‘own a villa’ and ‘customise’ the living space. Owning means residents have a villa guaranteed for 15 years and it starts at $99,000 (£77,696).

The ship itself features eight decks with three restaurants, five bars and lounges, a pool with two Jacuzzis, a spa and fitness centre and a library.

There is also private offices and conference spaces onboard, meaning those who work ‘remotely’ can take it to the extreme can work online from anywhere in the world.

It will travel the world. (Villa Vie Residences)

Villa Vie Odyssey’s ‘segment one’ will explore northern Europe where residents can ‘savour Nordic culture under the Northern Lights'.

It will then go to the likes of ‘Greenland and Beyond’ before the Caribbean and then onto South America.

You can book onto the different segments, or for the more dedicated, residents can comit to the ‘endless cruise’ and just, well, stay on the boat.

The CEO of Villa Vie Residences, Mikael Petterson, said: “Villa Vie Odyssey will be customized for her immersive, 3.5-year global circumnavigations, ensuring all the comforts and amenities of home. Named by the residents themselves, Odyssey reflects the company ethos of creating a community to share unforgettable moments of discovery on an extended journey, connecting people, places, and self.”

Well, a life travelling the world on board a ship seems like quite the commitment – but there’s plenty of people out there who choose to live on cruises.