Man buys flat on cruise ship because it's cheaper than home and he can travel the world

Look up ‘life at sea’ in the dictionary and you’ll probably find a photo of Austin Wells.

The San Diego resident decided to buy an apartment on a cruise ship, and insists it’s cheaper than the cost of an apartment in his California home town.

What’s more, the world will quite literally be Wells’ oyster, and he gets to travel day in, day out. Nuts, right?

Storylines.com

Speaking to CNBC, Wells revealed that he spent $300,000 (£246,465) on a 12-year lease studio apartment onboard the MV Narrative.

However, the ship is still under construction in Croatia and isn’t due to set sail until 2025.

The mega cruise ship boasts a whopping 500 private rooms and apartments, with Wells’ room spanning 237 square feet and features a desk, shower room, pantry and foldaway bed.

People such as Wells who live onboard full-time are granted access not only to a private gym and farmer’s market, but also medical services, 24-hour room service and private kitchens.

We have to admit, this buying a flat on a boat malarky sounds pretty cushy.

What’s more, the ship plays host to 20 restaurants and bars, a school, a library, a bank, a cinema and a swimming pool.

28-year-old Wells shared: "The thing that most excites me is I don’t have to upend my daily routine, in order to go see the world.

"My working hours will be shifted towards evenings, nights and very early mornings, but that does open up the ability for me to see a city midday to afternoon.”

He added: "This is probably the first time ever that there is even the ability to have a standard job and even consider working and living from a floating apartment complex."

Wells also said he hopes he’s going to make lots of friends onboard seeing as he’ll be ‘travelling the world with them’.

According to The Sun, a flat in San Diego costs around $2,500 (£2,053.88) per month while Wells’ room on the MV Narrative will set him back about $2,000 (£1,643.10) per month, which adds up to an instant saving of $500 (£410.77) on rent alone.

The paper notes that Alister Punton and Shannon Lee, the bosses of luxury residential ship brand Storyline, came up with MV Narrative because they ‘wanted to offer more affordable apartments for life at sea’.

Around 1,000 residents will call MV Narrative home when it sets sail in a couple of years and there’ll be 11 different types of home onboard.

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