Jenny Hunnicutt was enjoying the van life in late 2021 when she and her husband learned about Royal Caribbean International's first world cruise.
Intrigued by a 274-day adventure circumnavigating the world, the nomadic couple, who both worked remotely, booked a cabin for $54,000 per person by the end of that day.
Royal's Ultimate World Cruise, which is expected to conclude Sept. 10 in Miami after nine months at sea, quickly became a viral social media sensation. Within three weeks of the Serenade of the Seas' Dec. 10 sail-away from Miami, the #ultimateworldcruise hashtag was not only trending but had more than 150 million views on TikTok, skyrocketing the voyage to international awareness.
TikTokers have shared a menagerie of details about the sailing, ranging from a flooding incident that closed a set of ship elevators to protestors blocking the ship's entrance into Amsterdam. Other posts have been more personal, like a pineapple-toting TikToker clarifying that her love for the fruit does not make her a swinger.
Social media influencer Jenny Hunnicutt in front of the Serenade of the Seas in Argentina. Source: Jenny Hunnicutt/@drjennytravels
"I think the fact that the internet was so good, for the most part, around the world allowed us to post more in real time, and that also blew the cruise up online," said Hunnicutt, 34, who has posted about 200 videos from the trip under the handle @drjennytravels.
The Ultimate World Cruise has "taken on a life of its own," said Vicki Freed, Royal Caribbean's vice president of sales, trade support and service. "The response has been amazing."
The idea for the longest-ever world cruise was hatched during the pandemic by Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley, as he told the audience during Travel Weekly's CruiseWorld conference in 2022.
Not only did Bayley want to offer a world cruise, he said, but the longest one from any cruise line (most world cruises tend to span 135 to 160 days, Freed said). Bayley said at CruiseWorld that it took some time to convince his colleagues that it was a good idea, but he eventually won out.
Interest in longer voyages and world cruises has picked up since the pandemic, Freed said. Other cruise brands, like Holland America Line, have lengthened itineraries since the pandemic, noting an interest in longer travels. Holland America will sail a 132-day world cruise in 2026, one of its longest sailings in years. Oceania is also going long, with a 180-day cruise in 2026.
And while Royal's first world cruise ends this week, it might not be its last: Executives say they are considering a second long sailing, potentially departing in late 2026.
Having never offered a world cruise, Royal needed to get the 20-year-old, 2,490-passenger Serenade of the Seas updated to cater to passengers staying on for nine months. That meant bringing in new bedding, recarpeting all of the cabins and adding laundry machines to give guests the option of washing their own clothes.
"These people were living with us for nine months," Freed said. "We wanted it to be like a brand-new home for them."
One of the most important updates was to WiFi -- which turned out to be crucial not only for guests to work remotely, homeschool their children and generally stay connected -- but for social media accounts of the cruise to go viral.
Pinpointing the origins of the cruise's TikTok fame, Hunnicutt said several elements likely contributed to its popularity, such as people being surprised by the nine-month length of the cruise (her TikTok followers have asked if any babies would be born on the ship -- the answer was no) and that many of the TikTokers onboard appeared younger than people might expect for such a long and expensive sailing.
Social media influencer Jenny Hunnicutt poses in Bonaire during Royal Caribbean's Ultimate World Cruise. Photo Credit: Jenny Hunnicutt/@drjennytravels
What's unclear is whether the internet popularity of this sailing will help boost future world cruise bookings.
"I don't know if one big social media blitz does that," Freed said, adding that the passenger base on the Ultimate World Cruise was "different," drawing some loyal-to-Royal guests but also many people "who probably never cruised before."
Mike Matthews, who co-owns Cruise Planners Fernandina Beach in Florida, doubts that TikTok stardom will boost sales of world cruises, and he said none of his clients have specifically mentioned TikTok or the cruise.
And while TikTok may be a popular tool to build interest -- adding that he is a fan of any tool that helps advisors sell -- he doesn't see evidence that people are seeing world cruises on TikTok and booking them, in part because people who are likely to afford a world cruise aren't generally using TikTok.
"I'm sure there is a buzz about it, but the demographics don't match," he said.
As Royal Caribbean decides whether to offer another world cruise, Freed's advice for advisors is to stay open to the possibility that their clients will be interested in a voyage like this.
"Don't think you don't have the clients, because you just never know who is the client," she said.
Having met many guests during a preview event before the world cruise, she said she noticed something about them.
"They're not sitting there toting their Louis Vuitton purses and their Chanel bags," she said. There's nothing wrong with people who do, she added, but the people she met on this cruise before it set sail did not put that wealth on display. "They just want the experience," she said.
For instance, one advisor had a client who bought several cruises from him in the past. This guest later bought an $800,000 suite on the Ultimate World Cruise, she said. He was, according to Freed, "the millionaire next door."