A passenger on Royal Caribbean's 9-month ultimate cruise said she prepared by first taking a 'test cruise' in the same room

24.01.2024 - 20:13 / insider.com / Royal Caribbean

Familiarity set in when Angie Linderman stepped inside her cabin on Royal Caribbeans's Serenade of the Seas Ultimate World Cruise, a nine-month sailing to 65 countries.

The tan carpet with blue swirls was instantly recognizable under her feet, and the mattress and linens felt just as soft as she remembered.

The room was familiar because a little over a month earlier, Linderman, who is recording her adventure on her TikTok account @angielinderman, slept in the exact same stateroom on another cruise to prepare for the journey.

The idea to board a nine-month cruise came about in the summer of 2022. Linderman's sister-in-law heard about the journey and pitched it to the family.

While Linderman's sister-in-law, brother, and their children weighed the pros and cons of going, Linderman was also intrigued, even though she had never vacationed on a cruise before, she told Business Insider.

"I want to go. This sounds amazing,'" Linderman, 38, recalls saying.

The idea for a nine-month cruise started as a lofty dream that Linderman and her brother's family joked about that summer.

But by the end of August, the idea became reality, she told BI. Linderman booked a solo room on the ship and her brother's family reserved a cabin, too.

Ultimate World Cruise Q&A or really FAQ since i dont know how to do a Q&A on here. Help! I tried to andwer as many as I could that I know a lot of people have, but let me kniw what else you want to know about what its like on @Royal Caribbean’s Ultiamte World Cruise. #RoyalCaribbean #crusing #explore #solotravler #worldCruise #UltimateWorldCruise #UWC #SerenadeOfTheSeas #cruise #travel #solofemaletraveler #cruiseship #cruisetok

Linderman said the cruise, which starts at $60,000, was possible after receiving money from her parent's life insurance plans. In the span of eight years, both of Linderman's parents passed away from cancer.

The trip was not only financially possible because of her parents, but their passing served as her reminder that "retirement is not guaranteed to any of us," Linderman said.

After booking her spot on the Ultimate World Cruise, she said she found a friend to house-sit for her in Portland, Oregon, while she is away. And with a contracted, remote job, she was able to reduce her hours to 10 a week while sailing.

As December 10 — the start of the world cruise approached — Linderman said she started preparing.

Unlike many of the other passengers onboard the world cruise, Linderman had zero experience on massive, vacation ships. She had, however, spent two years volunteering in West Africa with Mercy Ships, a nonprofit that operates floating hospitals.

There, she said she lived with a small group for 10-month stretches, ate at the same dining hall every night, and