1 Day Cruise To The Bahamas

A home at the end of the world

The World is a magic carpet ride on water. The ship, a condo at sea, circumnavigates the world year-round, stopping at ports chosen by the resident owners. There are 106 completely furnished apartments on board, many with complete kitchens, an array of athletic facilities and five restaurants,, serving a variety of cuisines. Not for Everyman, a minimum net worth of $10 million is mandatory. Photo: Contributed Photo / Stamford Advocate Contributed Studios average 337 square feet, studio apartments start at 674 square feet, two bedrooms at more than 1,100 square feet, three-bedroom, three-bath homes begin at 1,758 square feet and top out at almost 3,300 square feet. There’s even one six-bedroom, 6.5 bath penthouse unit of 4,184 square feet on the 11th deck. Photo: Contributed Photo / Stamford Advocate Contributed In 2011, the yacht began its global journey in Argentina, continuing to Antartica, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia and Panama over a three-month period. In November and December, the ship will visit Turkey, Greece, Egypt, Oman, the Seychelles, offer an 18-day expedition in Madagascar, and visit Mozambique and South Africa, with Christmas and New Year’s Eve in Cape Town. Photo: Contributed Photo / Stamford Advocate Contributed All homes have been completely furnished by their occupants, but new owners may refurbish, refurnish or even rebuild, with permission. Nina Campbell of London, J.P. Molyneux of New York, TMT Design by Di Pilla of Milan and Yran and Storbraaten designed the original home interiors. Photo: Contributed Photo / Stamford Advocate Contributed The World was born in the creative mind of Norwegian native Knut Kloster Jr., who gave birth to the modern cruise industry and envisioned a unique oceangoing resort community, originally called ResidenSea. Earlier, Kloster was the founder, along with Ted Arison, of the Norwegian Carribean Cruise Line, chairman of the Royal Viking Line and president of Norwegian Cruise Line Ltd. Arison left to found the Carnival Cruise Line. Photo: Contributed Photo / Stamford Advocate Contributed

The World set sail on her maiden magic carpet voyage from Norway in March, 2002, christened by three Norwegian priests with champagne and holy water as it ventured down the slipway. The very first opportunity for travelers to own real estate on a ship, The World circumnavigates the globe year-round, stopping at ports selected by the resident-owners who may board and depart at any time, any place. It's a cosmopolitan fantasy world of travel and exploration, with visits to major events such as the Cannes International Film Festival and the America's Cup Yacht race. Residents currently hail from 19 countries, among them Australia, England and South Africa, and have an average age of 55, with some 40 percent retired. Easily 45 percent of the owners are from the U.S., primarily Arizona, California and Florida.

Bahamas Cruise 2011 – Day 1 - Aylee Bits

The flight was on time. They’re more strict now about carry-on allowance, I usually get away with 2 carry-ons and a small camera bag. I like that they haven’t followed suit with other airlines that do not offer any kind of complimentary snacks. I also noticed that their beverage cups are bigger than that of the other airlines I’ve flown with. I would give Delta 4, but I know there other local airlines, albeit very few, that offer more complimentary amenities.

Airport: Orlando International Airport

I didn’t stay here overnight, but it was a very nice hotel. Rooms have balconies overlooking the airport/hotel atrium or the outside of the airport. The location is very convenient for travelers and the room is nice, clean and was a hood size. The bathroom was big. The downside, noise from the airport and the elevator location. I probably won’t book this hotel for more than 2 nights for vacation, hotel is best for business trips.

Cruise Terminal: Port Canaveral

The port was very easy to navigate and it was organized. There were a lot of spaces for loading and unloading people and luggages. The parking was very close too. A lot of staff were right there at the loading/unloading area to help you with your luggage. Parking was $60 for 4 days.

Cruise: Royal Caribbean – Monarch of the Seas $1076.14 oceanview stateroom / 2 people

It took us about an hour from unloading our luggage from the car to our cabins. And we had priority (handicapped) boarding. We got to the elevator area and there were a lot of people. There were 5 of us and my 8-year old cousin is handicapped. We were having trouble finding an elevator that will fit my cousin and her wheelchair and at least one person to go with her. The staff by the elevator didn’t even try to help us. However, on other days, there were other staff that helped us with the elevator.

Cabins

Wi-fi was not accessible in our cabins. There were only a few areas with hotspots. There was no designated staff for the ship’s internet cafe. If you have questions, you must go to the guest services desk which you might you might have to fall in line for. Make sure you bookmark the logout page, and you have to do bookmark quick when using an iPhone. The average speed I got was 0.5mbps upload and download.