New Residential Cruiseliner - Orphalese [Archive]

trubey

October 26th, 2005, 01:09 PM

The website certainly is beautiful and the idea sounds wonderfully romantic. But when you start analyzing life on board, it might become a bit dull. Most people would not want to live far away from their family and friends. Seeing the world from the ship would be lovely, but aren't most World Cruise voyagers ready to return home after 100 days or so? Human nature seems to need the familiar and customary only punctuated with spurts of adventure. Yes, this ship is different from a World Cruise in that you are in your own home, but I do have questions:

Can a floating apartment really be home? Do they allow pets? Can your grandkids come and stay? How do you putter around a luxury apartment? How would I know it's spring if I can't plant my tomatoes? I'm sure they must have addressed most of these questions and still believe that the market would be there.

I might have missed it, but do they have the arrangements to rent out your apartment on some sort of time-share or sub-let apartment?

Now, after I've just said all these negative things, I would like to offer my services if anyone needs a housesitter for their new apartment.

susana.

Iggipolka

October 26th, 2005, 06:54 PM

Oh wow..sign me up. I'm so there.

Just gotta win that darn lottery.

blackbird71

October 26th, 2005, 10:39 PM

http://www.theorphalese.com/

They have a gorgeous website - and an interesting vision for their itineraries!

I like their website and IF I won the lotto I would buy a cabin. One plus over The World is it sounds like you get to pick the furniture for your cabin. BUT I really do believe the 80,000 shopping mall will be a bust.

And it fits my hobbies... Cruising... Photography...Puters.... I WOULD never get bored.
My "new" friends would be the same as any "retirement" condo type friends. I would meet the regulars for coffee just like I do now( I am not retired now but have time off between puter contracts) :) But day to day the ports I would visit would be a thousand times better than the always the same store and things to do within 20 miles of a "retirement" home.

blackbird71

October 26th, 2005, 10:44 PM

Dup...

blackbird71

October 27th, 2005, 01:08 PM

The last poster is messed up.. Hopefully this will correct it. :)

On my thoughs on the 80,000 shopping mall. IMHO the people onboard will not spend enough money to support that big an area.

IMHO.. I would do a 20,000 sq foot mall and use the rest for "estates". I believe the most popular one will be the 1,000 sq ft two bedroom Pegasus. Using my math :p I would guess it would take 1,500 sq ft for each 1,000 sq ft cabin when you include common and other areas. So the would give you 40 new "estates" carved out of the 60,000 sq ft. Now the Pegasus goes for $1,800,000 so that would mean $72 million for the building and profits of the ship. In addition those 40 cabins will pay $2,500 per month each for maintenance. That amounts to $100,000 per month to run the ship. IMHO that will be more than what the 60,000 sq currently marked for the mall would bring in...

Just my opinion.

seabreezer

October 28th, 2005, 05:18 PM

One of the rules of ownership on The World is that you must have another residence. After all, you'll need to pay taxes somewhere, right? Also, these ships will need to go into drydock like any other cruise ship. Very few people live on The World full time and some do rent out their units. Most residents come and go. There are only a few if any units that weren't sold.
The Orphalese will not have the same ambiance as The World. It sounds like it will feel much more like a regular cruise ship. Also, I think the attraction of the World is the itinerary that stops in major destinations for multiple nights and has many short hops. The Orphalese may not be able to stay in one place for long since it accomodates "regular" cruisers who expect multiple destinations in 10 days or so. The cost to own is certainly attractive, especially the maintenence fee but there could be more small print if you really delve into it.

blackbird71

October 28th, 2005, 08:51 PM

As a single 56 who loves to cruise I dreamed of the World when it first came out. IMHO, I would have no problem living on the ship year round. Dry Dock is not a problem for me,,, I could take my rollaboard to a hotel in town for a week or two.

I have never understood the World's requirement for a other home. If forced to I would "rent" a bedroom from my brother. :D

This ship looks to do the same 2-3 day port stays as the World. But it does sound like it will make longer leaps between ports to hit all the places it wants to hit.

bepsf

October 28th, 2005, 11:26 PM

Anyone notice the full kitchens and laundry facilities in each "apartment"?

Where do you go to buy groceries?
Can they be delivered?

blackbird71

October 29th, 2005, 12:37 PM

Anyone notice the full kitchens and laundry facilities in each "apartment"?

Where do you go to buy groceries?
Can they be delivered?
There is a small grocery store onboard the World but from what I read, the prices are high and most just use it for the basics.

But for most of the year, this brings a new meaning to shopping ashore. So that one or two bottles of vino become one or two cases. :cool: When in Spain .. Spainish vino..... when in Chile ............

When I was dreaming of buying on the World, I read every article and it sounds like most people eat ashore and IF they cook onboard they shop ashore.

As a single I eat out most of the time. And little would change for me living on either ship. When thinking about cooking onboard, what I came down to was meals I love but can not get onboard or ashore. For me that would be one of my loves,,, Mexican food. That may mean making things you can get easy in the US from scratch... But what else were you doing anyway.

I do not know this 100%, but because in the case of the World, the port dates are known a year in advance. I had planned on ordering things off the Internet for pick up in a future port. i.e. lots of books and movies from Amazon........ Some food items can be gotten this way too. With all the good coffee in the world,,,, if you gotta have Starbucks blend... Order it. :)

bepsf

October 29th, 2005, 02:14 PM

freddyD

November 10th, 2005, 11:07 PM

It is not a requirement that one has another residence.

One of the rules of ownership on The World is that you must have another residence. After all, you'll need to pay taxes somewhere, right? Also, these ships will need to go into drydock like any other cruise ship. Very few people live on The World full time and some do rent out their units. Most residents come and go. There are only a few if any units that weren't sold.
The Orphalese will not have the same ambiance as The World. It sounds like it will feel much more like a regular cruise ship. Also, I think the attraction of the World is the itinerary that stops in major destinations for multiple nights and has many short hops. The Orphalese may not be able to stay in one place for long since it accomodates "regular" cruisers who expect multiple destinations in 10 days or so. The cost to own is certainly attractive, especially the maintenence fee but there could be more small print if you really delve into it.

freddyD

November 10th, 2005, 11:13 PM

Greetings,
There is a small deli where you can buy anything offered in the restaurants. Prices are reasonable.
There is a food and beverage assessment as in most golf clubs, so most people eat in one of the four restaurants or order room serice. If you want to hire a chef, you can have the meal cooked in your kitchen and served to you in your dining room.
There is a small grocery store onboard the World but from what I read, the prices are high and most just use it for the basics.

But for most of the year, this brings a new meaning to shopping ashore. So that one or two bottles of vino become one or two cases. :cool: When in Spain .. Spainish vino..... when in Chile ............

When I was dreaming of buying on the World, I read every article and it sounds like most people eat ashore and IF they cook onboard they shop ashore.

As a single I eat out most of the time. And little would change for me living on either ship. When thinking about cooking onboard, what I came down to was meals I love but can not get onboard or ashore. For me that would be one of my loves,,, Mexican food. That may mean making things you can get easy in the US from scratch... But what else were you doing anyway.

I do not know this 100%, but because in the case of the World, the port dates are known a year in advance. I had planned on ordering things off the Internet for pick up in a future port. i.e. lots of books and movies from Amazon........ Some food items can be gotten this way too. With all the good coffee in the world,,,, if you gotta have Starbucks blend... Order it. :)

freddyD

November 10th, 2005, 11:20 PM

There is no rule that you have to have a landbased home, but you will have to pay US taxes if you are an American.
There is a very small shop on The World that is closed all the time The World is in port. I find it interesting that The Wall Street Journal would give Orphalese print with the fantastic idea to have 80,000 sq feet of retail space.
With this plan, it is obvious that the ship will never be built. And if it is it will not have 80,000 sq feet of retail space.

One of the rules of ownership on The World is that you must have another residence. After all, you'll need to pay taxes somewhere, right? Also, these ships will need to go into drydock like any other cruise ship. Very few people live on The World full time and some do rent out their units. Most residents come and go. There are only a few if any units that weren't sold.
The Orphalese will not have the same ambiance as The World. It sounds like it will feel much more like a regular cruise ship. Also, I think the attraction of the World is the itinerary that stops in major destinations for multiple nights and has many short hops. The Orphalese may not be able to stay in one place for long since it accomodates "regular" cruisers who expect multiple destinations in 10 days or so. The cost to own is certainly attractive, especially the maintenence fee but there could be more small print if you really delve into it.

BlueHerons

December 7th, 2005, 02:07 PM

As long as there are dining facilities on board (that I assume you dont have to pay extra for) I'd just as soon dine there.

Personally, I'd have them rip out the kitchen and make me a little wet-bar/butler's pantry, because I just can't imagine doing my own cooking aboard ship - esp during rough seas!

(bepsf visualizes Lucy in "The Long, Long Trailer"...)

You pay extra for everything. The $2,500+ plus per month is a type of homeowners assocation dues that go towards upkeep of the ship, staff, etc. Some apartments have HOA dues in excess of $10,000 per month.

You don't actually 'own' the apartments either from my understanding. You get fifty years of use with first right of refusal.

When did they change the primary residence requirement?

seaventurer

December 11th, 2005, 12:36 AM

www.residentialcruiseline.com

This is getting crowded...the Orphalese is smoke and mirrors...based in VEGAS...come on (it must be).

The MAGELLAN is better...

FOUR SEASONS is the most likely to succeed...the scale and size is much more appropriate...more to follow...

seaventurer

December 11th, 2005, 12:37 AM

blackbird71

December 18th, 2005, 03:03 PM

Interesting the per month per diem for the Orphalese is $2500 for their smallest 1.8 mil unit and they say that includes meals. But the MAGELLAN min per diem is 8,000 per month and they do not say if that includes meals ( would hope so... )

But IMHO something does not ring true on both of them. But I really like the more detailed sample rooms on the Magellan. For those techies :D out there look at the second bedroom in the smallest unit in the Orphalese and try to fit a bed in there... IMHO there is a problem with the doors.

Side issue as was pointed out, the Orphalese is by a company in Vegas add to that the mailing address for the Magellan is

Residential Cruise Line, LTD.
4145 E. Baseline Rd.
Gilbert, AZ 85234

seabreezer

December 19th, 2005, 06:41 PM

The cost structure of Magellan looks more in line with The World and more realistic. Are the units on the Orphalese more like time shares or fractionals? Then the monthly per diem makes sense.

Decebal

April 13th, 2006, 08:52 PM

The Travel Channel had a one hour docummentary on The World. It took me a couple of minutes to figure out what I was watching, since I was washing dishes when it first started. "You pick your furniture?", huh??? and then ohhhhhhhhhhhh, WOW!!!!

Well, my mom and I watched with our mouths hanging open, we could not believe the oppulence and the whole idea of just floating at your own pace with you own pillow, etc. It was really, really cool.

And yes, they have a grocery store, but as my mom pointed out, "I would never cook so much as toast, with those amazing restaurants".

I think some mornings, the best thing is just eating cereal in your pj's, no matter how beautiful the restaurant. That spa did catch my fancy though.

Only thing that was not clear, is if the restaurants were free for the residents, or do you pay like when you go out to any restaurant?

Fun to dream, and yes, that darn lottery better produce soon. :o)

wripro

April 14th, 2006, 02:16 PM

rushtrader

May 24th, 2006, 12:39 AM

The Magellan is another cruise ship with condos. These things are getting more popular. Found some info at www.magellancruisecondos.com (http://www.magellancruisecondos.com).

KiwiIan

July 20th, 2006, 02:58 AM

you pay for the restaurants on board if you are a resident, and dearly. only those who take cruises for short periods of time can get all inclusive deals which include meals. i think those who live aboard would want to try local restaurants in each port.
If you need some ideas for great restaurants here in Tauranga [one of The Worlds ports of call in October] then we can suggest a few within walking distance of the berth. Regards Ian [Tauranga]

amapola

November 16th, 2006, 08:15 PM

Not that I'm the spelling police :D , (OK, I am, but I never correct anyone out loud). Anyway, it bothers me no end that the floorplans show the DINNING area :eek:

cruiserbryce

October 4th, 2007, 02:00 AM

prices starting at 1.8 million dollars plus 2500 per month...definatly not cheap, but if I had the money I would certainly be interested

Admiral Horatio Nelson

November 16th, 2007, 07:25 AM

Unless things have changed in the last couple of years I would like to make some corrections here. My sister worked on the World for over three years, she still has ties with many people including both captains to this day (one of the captains is actually going to work on the new ship Orphalese.) I also work on ships and have visited her ship many times (when we docked in the same ports during our travels).

Unless this has changed since she left, you are required to have a primary residence on land somewhere.

Also you can eat in the main restaurant without charge, however there are speciality restaurants that you can pay extra for (but let's face it, these people most of whom are multi millionaires don't care about this.)

You have full kitchens in your apartment, you can also have a chef and wait staff come to your apartment and cook and serve meals.

You are allowed to have guests stay in your apartment as you would in your home on land.

Very few people rent out their apartments, because they are rich and don't need to do this. Some of the people who live onboard are people like the owners of Loreal, the woman who invented the Scrunchy, a Sheikh from Turkey (who was going to buy the whole ship at one point).

A few years ago, whilst my sister was still working onboard, the residents got fed up of all of the guests coming on and started buying the vacant apartments, eventually they bought the ship from the company and now the residents actually own the ship! (that's how rich they are!)

Remember this is a ship for millionaires so whether they pay for dinner or have to pay for guests is as inconsequential as whether we buy a pack of gum or not!

deepnite10

November 24th, 2007, 02:11 AM

Admiral Horatio Nelson

December 3rd, 2007, 10:40 AM

just this past month The World was on the travel channel..

i think i could live like that for a while..then the wife would
slap me outa my dream..:confused:

more realisticly..only hitting the LOTTO would get me me a
resident..even then..only a couple months of the yr while
hitting my favorite dream port s..:p

That is an old show that's being shown, well if it's the one that tells of the woman who works in the Internet cafe and also being part of the duo in the lounge then it's the same one I saw. That was actually made before 2003, before my sister even worked there. It's changed since then, well the ship looks the same but what I posted about the residents buying out the ship form the original owners happened much later than that.

Ncl35

December 27th, 2007, 11:38 PM

Overall if you ask me the four seasons looks to be much better than the orphalese. The orphalese seems to be to big for a residential cruise ship.
I also think that the shopping idea is insane. I think that the ship [If it is built] wont be near as successful as the world or the four seasons. It also seems to bland in decor for my taste. THe four seasons has so much more color and is better in price and size.