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It soon became apparent that there was a class divide between the segmenters and people doing the full trip and one between those who spent different amounts for the experience. According to The Cut, the full cruise price started at $59,999 USD per person and up to $117,599 USD for a fancy room experience. The social media star — who's been sharing his experiences on the Utlimate World Cruise for the past 18 nights — said using the word “Titanic” is a big no-no on a cruise ship after a mishap he had in mentioning it to fellow passengers. Sebastian added in his video full of “departing knowledge” that cruise ships have godmothers — and the godmother of the cruise ship he was on, which he referred to as a “floating retirement home with a Cheesecake Factory attached,” is none other than Whoopi Goldberg. While he didn’t get to be on the cruise for the entire 274-day trip, Sebastian spent 18 nights on the boat recording his experience and spilling the hot gossip.
What’s the deal with the Ultimate World Cruise?
As soon as this was announced, TikTok creators knew that being on a cruise ship for this long would inevitably spark drama and discourse, making it the perfect opportunity for creators to make content on the ship and about their time on it. Some, like Sebastian, also suggested reality television show producers were missing out on an opportunity for good television. Creators started making videos about their fascination with the people who chose to spend nine months of their lives on a ship, suggesting people to follow.
The dark side of the influencer industry
In the absence of camera crews, viewers have turned to TikTokkers to follow along for the journey. "Yesterday I arrived to an empty mini-fridge, not a bottle of water in sight, babe," he said. "Call me crazy, but I do believe that for the price of a room guests should be able to stay hydrated at their own convenience." He said he'd already made some friends, including a couple who invited him to sit with them at breakfast because he was eating alone. But it's common practice for cruises to use seawater as a source of potable water.
Marketing Manager inc. Digital/Social Media
While the Ultimate World Cruise as a whole has become a social media sensation, one TikToker has ridden the viral wave more than most. Whether or not TikTok users previously recognized the imprint's name, Atria has been a dominant presence on the bestseller lists thanks in no small part to the platform. In 2023, books published by Atria accounted for a fifth of the year's 25 overall bestselling books. Among that number were three books by Colleen Hoover, whose It Ends with Us and It Starts with Us were the top two books in the country last year, selling a combined 2,537,204 print copies. Cohen says social media audiences have a lot more power than they realize to "bend and mold the way that these things go," and urges them to use it responsibly.
He acknowledges that cameras and vlogs are ubiquitous today, at least among Gen Z. And he hopes those who may be tempted to cause a scene for views or stir the pot in the comments section will remember that "these are all humans; we could be the other person." "I hope that this takes off and allows other people to see you don't need to have this toxic positivity when it comes to influencing, and that you can express how you actually feel about something," he added. He told LiSTNR's "The Briefing Podcast" that he took $20,000 out of his mortgage to pay for a balcony room for 16 days. "So it's been exciting being like, 'Okay, what happened today?' And I'll deep dive and try to bring the info to the people." "Everyone has paid a lot of money and given up a lot in some way or another to be here, whether it be their families, their homes, their pets," added Honeycutt.
There’s one word you shouldn’t say on a cruise ship — I found out the hard way
Social media influencer Marc Sebastian has been documenting his life aboard the Ultimate World Cruise. Over the course of 274 Days passengers get to marvel at 11 World Wonders and spend time in more than 60 countries, while motoring between each new destination on the impressive Royal Caribbean ship. Three days before on January 22, 2024, Marc Sebastian posted a final shout out at sea to his followers, which has been viewed more than 860,000 times at the time of publication. The Tiktoker, who has 1.7 million followers at the time of this publication, is back on dry land after an eventful 18 days onboard Serenade of the Seas – during which he promised to tell his followers “the good, the bad, and the ugly” about his time on board. Harms, for example, thinks people should expect more "integrated" campaigns in the near future, where products are advertised more organically on social media. That could mean, for example, an influencer showing their journey on a walk to advertise a pair of sneakers, rather than talking into the camera about them.
The Titanic taboo and Whoopi Goldberg's link to the Ultimate World Cruise
As Sebastian tells it, he was on a bus with a group of cruisers in Ushuaia, which is at the southernmost tip of Argentina, when a confrontation occurred. The tour guide asked the group if their journey so far had been anything like what she'd seen on TikTok. Pretty immediately, the tour guide's questions were met with choruses of people saying that it's nothing like what's been posted online. One man was particularly vocal; he referenced Sebastian specifically and said “That guy’s just awful.” Sebastian, as you'd guess from his videos, is not conflict-averse. But so far he hasn't had any of these onboard cruisers, who have vocally criticized him both on TikTok and Facebook, confront him in real life.
TikToker boards 9-month cruise to film the drama onboard: 'I will cause chaos' - New York Post
TikToker boards 9-month cruise to film the drama onboard: 'I will cause chaos'.
Posted: Tue, 09 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
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But things soon got tense as more people began turning up for the trip, with arguments apparently ensuing over who would get to board. One video documented a 5.30am start for an excursion to see penguins on the Falkland Islands. People in comments section of the video have been left screaming with laughter at the Marc's hilarious take on the situation.
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She said they see each other pretty often, in passing and on purpose — but not always to make content. About half of the items on Harms' viral bingo card — which Sebastian cheekily played on board — have already been crossed off, including fist fight, COVID outbreak, petty neighbor drama, cliques forming, an early departure and a (sort of) pirate takeover. The couple doesn't plan to start monetizing their videos, or stop posting them, anytime soon. The 26-year-old had done some influencing back home in South Africa (her mom, incidentally, is one of the stars of Real Housewives of Pretoria). Oosthuizen says she joined the trip with plans to post "day in the life" videos, with a focus on makeup and fashion. "But I don't feel lucky that I'm on a cruise. I feel lucky that a brand noticed that I made content and trusted me enough to put me forth into this experience."
When asked to become ship godmother for the Serenade of the Seas, christened into service in 2003, Goldberg asked whether the role meant she would need to "put the ship through college," per World of Cruising. She was previously named godmother of the Viking Serenade ship before it was removed from the Royal Caribbean's fleet in 2002, World of Cruising reported. The Serenade of the Seas is far from Goldberg's first foray as a ship godmother. According to the Cruise Critic, a cruise godmother is a title of honor given to someone "selected to bring good luck and protection to the vessel." Stars honored as cruise godmothers include Audrey Hepburn and Martha Stewart.
According to his TikTok videos, his last day on board was Tuesday, Jan. 23. It's too early to tell if and how Atria’s investment—around $7,000 for the 18-day trip—has paid off financially. At outlets that report to Circana BookScan, book sales for The Last One saw only a small bump following the announcement that Sebastian would be reading it on the cruise.
His duties included promoting their books through a virtual book club, in which thousands of humans and a handful of penguins participated. Whereas TV producers typically hold the keys to casting and plot points, it's the viewers who are shaping the #CruiseTok narrative, by reacting to and interacting with the passengers' posts in real time. "The way that we're getting higher-produced content from some people and then some more raw, gossipy content from other people really does feel like you could stitch everything together and make an episode for every single day," she added. On December 28, 2023, Sebastian announced he would be boarding the cruise in Antarctica, and would make daily videos about everything he found out. TikToker Marc Sebastian posted a video on December 12, 2023 begging reality show producers to put a crew on the cruise. For those who don't know, a tender is a small boat which passengers use to get to the dock so the main ship doesn't have to dock, like on Pirates of the Caribbean where they get into the small rowing boat to go ashore.
Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its work with and treatment of influencers. "Petition to keep Marc on the cruise. 18 days is not enough to cover all the tea," one person joked. It has been drawing a lot of attention online, with people being obsessed with what is happening on board the ship. A man on the much talked about nine-month Royal Caribbean cruise has left people 'screaming' after sharing a room tour. Marc still has 12 days of his journey left and I can’t wait to see what else he uncovers. Marc says that the intense lighting isn’t the only overstimulating feature of the boat.
The TikToker said he discovered chatting about the Titanic was frowned upon on cruises after mentioning to other passengers during a lunch that the ill-fated vessel was only 100 feet shorter than the Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas. One of the most popular characters aboard Royal Caribbean's nine-month Ultimate World Cruise is about to disembark — but before doing so, he shared a list of things about cruise culture he found bizarre. Royal Caribbean’s Ultimate World Cruise is a 274-night trip around the globe. After departing on Dec. 10, 2023, the Serenade of the Seas ship will venture to the Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Mediterranean and “Europe and beyond” in four primary segments. Some travelers are joining for the full nine-month voyage, while others are joining only for key parts.
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