Ultimate World Cruise passengers are officially saying goodbye to the Serenade of the Seas after an epic nine-month journey.
For almost a year, the cruise’s famous passengers have documented the highs and lows of the lengthy sailing, from the moment it departed from Miami on Dec. 10, 2023. Nine months later, the passengers are finally back on solid land Tuesday, September 10, and having mixed feelings.
Some revealed to USA Today that they were “exhausted” at certain points of the voyage, but are still grateful for the experience. The sailing consisted of four legs, stopped in over 65 countries and made its way to all seven continents, so it’s understandable that some cruisers felt drained during the long trip.
“It’s a blur,” one of the ship's Tiktok famous passengers, Adita Larson, said of the journey, especially the cruise’s Europe leg. “We don’t know where we were yesterday; we don’t know where we’re going tomorrow," she added.
Some cruisers recall their friends being so wiped out from all the ports of call that they decided to sit out certain shore excursions and rest on the ship. Others recalled changing their minds about the once-dreaded "sea days" and instead looking forward to a relaxing day on the open ocean.
9-Month Cruise Passenger Says It’s 'Bizarre’ to Be Returning to Land as Voyage Ends in Less Than a Week
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Despite the 274-night adventure tiring cruisers like Larson out, it brought them to destinations that were absolutely “beautiful,” she notes — especially the icebergs in Antarctica.
“You can't video and you can’t photograph how beautiful it is to stand in front of those icebergs and see them right in front of your eyes so close,” she told the outlet.
She also noted the sense of community that formed among passengers, as there were about 650 longterm Ultimate World Cruisers in addition to new passengers coming in and out with every leg.
The social media-savvy cruiser says she plans to continue documenting her life, “especially after we get home, the adjustment after nine months of being away from home, and sleeping on a bed that's not rocking anymore."
The 9-Month World Cruise Is Almost Over, Leaving One of Its Famous Passengers Feeling Conflicted
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While Royal Caribbean gave travelers a once-in-a-lifetime experience, the cruise line did face some unexpected challenges regarding itinerary changes due to political unrest and unsafe conditions in some regions, and when they confirmed the death of a passenger in February.
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In January, cruiser Brandee Lake opened up about the updates that were made to the original voyage.
"The itinerary has changed a bit a couple of times. Because when we first signed up, Russia and Ukraine were on it," Lake told PEOPLE at the time. "Israel was also on [the itinerary], and now it's not."
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(999x0:1001x2)/brandee-lake-9-month-cruise-022124-0bdff308b4cc4da9b20057d5093f345d.jpg "9-Month World Cruise Ends Today as Passengers Admit They're 'Exhausted' and Grateful for ‘Beautiful’ Voyage (3)")
Royal Caribbean confirmed to PEOPLE in January that it was going to cancel the original itinerary through the Red Sea and Suez Canal in May to keep its passengers and crew members safe. Cruisers ended up voting on a more “scenic route” that would navigate around Africa and add many new ports of call.
Passengers began preparing to re-enter land-lover life last week.
Another famous passenger, Dr. Jenny, who goes by drjennytravels on TikTok, has been documenting the ups and down of the entire journey. Last week, as she counted down the final days, she opened up about how “bizarre” it is to see the voyage come to an end.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(421x0:423x2)/Dr-Jenny-Travels-090524-2-17329dc3fb134274b4f588cc17b05270.jpg "9-Month World Cruise Ends Today as Passengers Admit They're 'Exhausted' and Grateful for ‘Beautiful’ Voyage (4)")
“Look at this,” she said in aTikTokshared on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Pointing to a sign on a cabin door, she continues, “Seven days left. This is in my hall for the World Cruise and as you can see — look at all the luggage out here.”
“This is just bizarre. We have watched people put their luggage out here as they’ve come and gone, but now this is us. This is World Cruisers,” she says of the last people on board, adding that it was a “sad day" for her.
According to various Tiktokers, rumors of a second world cruise are already swirling on board, but Royal Caribbean has not yet made any announcements about another voyage.
