Libby Rome tells PEOPLE that everything she and her husband own is in a backpack
Credit: Courtesy of Libby Rome
NEED TO KNOW
- Libby Rome and her husband have lived on cruise ships full-time for over three years
- The two work remotely and use casino loyalty programs to drastically reduce costs, paying around $66 per day for both of them
- Rome enjoys waking up in new countries regularly and meeting fellow full-time cruisers who share her nomadic lifestyle
Libby Rome has been living on cruise ships full-time for the past three years — and says she couldn’t be happier.
The 52-year-old traveler tells PEOPLE she is not new to the nomadic lifestyle, as she and her husband had lived in hotels around the world for years before setting their sights on the sea.
“We’ve been nomads for 16 years, but we were growing weary of that — flights and all the yucky stuff that comes with travel, and the cost difference between flights and hotels versus a cruise was about the same, including getting a balcony,” she explains.
Their first cruise “was so wonderful” that they “both fell in love with cruising,” and the idea to live from ship to ship sank in. However, then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, so they had to table the idea for a bit.
Credit: Courtesy of Libby Rome
“Then cruises came back, and we’ve been living on cruise ships for a little over three years now full-time,” Rome shares.
Rome notes that she’s “always had a love of travel,” but it was “minimalism that enabled all of this.”
“I moved from Texas to Calgary, Canada in 2004, and I took giant truckloads of stuff with me. Most of it went to my next house and sat in boxes for years,” she shares. “So that’s what first inspired me to say, ‘Holy cow, how come I’m 30 years old and have all of this stuff? I have more stuff than any multiple of families should have.’ It felt overwhelming, and the chaos was definitely causing me stress.”
So, she and her husband “downsized significantly” and got rid of more than half of their belongings.
Credit: Courtesy of Libby Rome
“That felt so good that just a few years after that I said, ‘Let’s get down to two big suitcases and start traveling the world.’ So we did,” she says. “I’ve been working remotely as an IT consultant, moving countries and taking on different jobs, and then also working remotely. So that’s why we lived in hotels and started traveling around.”
“As we did it, we got lighter and lighter. It started with two giant suitcases, then a giant one and a smaller one, and smaller and smaller, and now we’re in a backpack,” Rome adds.
Going into their first cruise, they were simply looking for a change, but they never expected what it would lead to.
“It was just, ‘Hey, we’re going to cruise, and we’re going to cruise more often because I think we like it.’ So we started booking some more back-to-back cruises, and we started realizing that we much prefer being on a cruise than on land,” she shares.
Credit: Courtesy of Libby Rome
While they’re able to afford the cruises thanks to their remote jobs, Rome says they “did the calculations and watched YouTube videos of other people doing this” and learned they could also use casino rewards to get free cruises. Many major cruise lines feature casino loyalty programs that reward slot and table play with prizes, spanning from free drinks up to annual complimentary cruises.
“We could take it all year long back to back, and that brought our cost down so low that we’re just paying port fees and taxes,” she says. “With that strategy in place, I was able to actually save a lot of money and keep my expenditures really low by living on cruise ships.”
The couple typically cruises around Europe, since their daughter lives in the Netherlands. Rome notes that she finds itineraries that line up, and they often don’t even need to pack up their things when they port between cruises. Despite cruising year-round, they only end up going on two to three different ships a year.
Rome says they’ve been able to book back-to-back cruises for up to eight to nine months at a time. On the off chance their cruises don’t line up, they’ll stay at a hotel for a night or so before heading to the next destination.
@libby.rome I live on cruise ships full-time. I have designed a life that provides maximum freedom, time, and experiences, and I have been able to retire early (52) due to the cost savings! My husband and I have taken 70+ cruises and 900 nights, with almost 600 of those nights on Princess Cruise Line. All of 2026 is already booked full of back-to-back cruises! Follow me and check out my YouTube channel (named after me, Libby Rome) for full details. #cruiselife #cruiselifestyle #iliveonacruiseship #cruisetips #lifestyle
♬ original sound – Libby Rome
She emphasizes that they don’t have a car, a house, “even chores or errands.”
“I live a worry-free life on an actual cruise ship with 3,600 people who come and go for their vacations. I wake up in a new country every few days, and I enjoy the benefits of cruising all year round,” Rome shared in her TikTok about the experience. “Somehow I am spending less than I ever did on land. There’s a strategy behind how we keep costs low, the cruise lines we choose, and how we structure our lifestyle to make it sustainable.”
Rome says the average cost per day for both of them is around $66, which totals about $2,000 per month.
“It’s a great rate, so that’s transportation, food, accommodation and entertainment. Basically almost all of our expenses,” Rome says, noting that her minimalist lifestyle, meaning they rarely buy anything but essentials, ensures they can afford to cruise year-round.
Rome enjoys everything the ship has to offer, and when she’s not exploring the various countries, she tries to tap into her creative side through arts and crafts classes offered on board.
Over the years, Rome says she and her husband have met other people who also live on cruise ships year-round, and they often meet up at events celebrating different cruise lines’ “most traveled” guests.
“I’m starting to see those same people over and over again, which is fun because those are my cruise friends, and I’ve also met a lot of people who are really, I think, some of the most interesting people in the world because they travel so much,” Rome shares. “So it’s always interesting meeting those people.”
Rome says she and her husband aren’t planning on coming back to solid land anytime soon. She shares that her husband “loves it because of the water and being able to just be on a ship and see the landscapes and the beauty around the world.”
“That is definitely one of my main reasons too. We are both thrilled and excited to have this really neat lifestyle where we don’t really have to worry about much, no chores and no errands, and we’re having fun. We absolutely love it,” she adds.
Rome tells PEOPLE that it’s “stress-free travel,” and while there are many great elements, her “favorite part is being on a ship and waking up in different places regularly.”
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