MS ''The World'' is a private residential

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

operated like a

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership regime in which a building (or group of buildings) is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual own ...

complex, with large apartments that can be purchased. The residents, from many countries, can live onboard as it travels. Some choose to live onboard full-time while others visit periodically. It is operated by ROW Management, Ltd., headquartered in

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale ( ) is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and most populous city in Broward County, Florida, Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the ...

, United States. It has 165 residences (106 apartments, 19 studio apartments, and 40 studios), all owned by residents. Average occupancy is 150–200 residents and guests. ''The World'' is registered in

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

and has a gross tonnage of 43,188. It is long, wide, and has a draft, 12 decks, and a maximum speed of . The crew numbers approximately 280. On 28 January 2017, ''The World'' broke the then world record for being the southernmost ship, which was later surpassed by the

icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...

ship ''Laura Bassi'' in February 2023. The voyage was achieved by its captain, Dag H. Sævik, and the 63 residents on board at the time as well as crew-members. It reached 78°43•997´S and 163°41•421´W at the

Bay of Whales The Bay of Whales was a natural ice harbour, or iceport, indenting the front of the Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island, Antarctica, at the southernmost point of the world's ocean. While the Ross Sea stretches considerably further s ...

in the

Ross Sea The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land and within the Ross Embayment, and is the southernmost sea on Earth. It derives its name from the British explorer James Clark Ross who ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. In March 2020 it was emptied of passengers and non-essential crew because of concerns about the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. ''The World'' returned to service in July 2021. Several other residence cruise ships are under construction or planned, including ''Utopia'', ''Njord'', ''Dark Island'' , '' MV Narrative''. and Ulyssia . At least one, Villa Vie ''Odyssey'', is functioning as residential cruise ship as of 2025.

Original concept and construction

It was the idea of

Knut Kloster Knut Utstein Kloster (2 April 1929 – 20 September 2020) was a Norwegian shipping magnate. His grandfather, Lauritz Kloster, founded Kloster Rederi in 1924. In 1959, Kloster joined the family business and transformed it into a leading cruise lin ...

, whose family had a long history in the marine industry. Its originally announced name was ''The World of ResidenSea'', which was later shortened to The World. The hull was built in

Landskrona Landskrona is a town in Scania, Sweden. Located on the shores of the Öresund, it occupies a natural port, which has lent the town at first military and subsequent commercial significance. Ferries operate from Landskrona to the island of Ven, an ...

, Sweden, by

Öresundsvarvet Öresundsvarvet was a Swedish shipyard in Landskrona that was established in 1915 and largely phased out between 1980 and 1982. Foundation Öresundsvarvet was constituted on 16 December 1915 by Gothenburg shipbuilder, Arthur Du Rietz. During a ...

, and it was then towed to Fosen Mekaniske Verksteder in Rissa, Norway, for completion. It was launched in March 2002 and purchased by its residents in October 2003. The management company is responsible for operations and administration of it, including hiring employees. The residents, through their elected board of directors and a network of committees, provide guidance to the management about its itinerary, finances and lifestyle.

Facilities

It has a large lobby, deli and grocery store, a boutique, fitness center, billiard room, golf simulator and putting greens, tennis court, jogging track, spa, swimming pool, and cocktail lounges. There are six restaurants for dining that supplement the kitchens or kitchenettes in most of the residences. For on-board entertainment there are a movie theater, library and music performances. In addition to shore excursions, various classes have been offered on board. ''The World'' provides internet access in each residence.

Northwest Passage transits

Setting sail from

Nome, Alaska Nome (; , , also ''Sitŋazuaq'', ''Siqnazuaq'') is a city in the Nome Census Area, Alaska, Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough, Alaska, Unorganized Borough of the US state of Alaska. The city is located on the southern Seward Peninsula c ...

, U.S. on 18 August 2012 and reaching

Nuuk Nuuk (; , formerly ) is the capital and most populous city of Greenland, an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the territory's largest cultural and economic center. It is also the seat of gove ...

, Greenland on 12 September 2012 via the waterways through Canada's

Arctic Archipelago The Arctic Archipelago, also known as the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, is an archipelago lying to the north of the Canadian continental mainland, excluding Greenland (an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, which is, by itself, much larger ...

, ''The World'' became the largest passenger vessel at the time to transit the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea lane between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, near the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Arctic Archipelago of Canada. The eastern route along the Arctic ...

. Carrying 481 passengers and crew, for 26 days and at sea, it followed in the path of Captain

Roald Amundsen Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegians, Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Am ...

, the first sailor to complete the journey in 1906. In 2019 it traversed the Passage from east to west, becoming the 300th vessel to make the voyage, and the largest to do so in both directions.

COVID-19

In March 2020 it unloaded all passengers and non-essential crew because of concern about

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

infection. In April 2020 it was asked to leave the port of Fremantle, Australia. The government of New Zealand received a request to let it shelter in a local port. This was denied, as New Zealand had banned cruise ships (and non-New Zealand residents) from entering the country. In 2020 it was in lay-berth in

Falmouth, Cornwall Falmouth ( ; ) is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Falmouth was founded in 1613 by the Killigrew family on a site near the existing Pendennis Castle. It developed as a po ...

, and

Santa Cruz de Tenerife Santa Cruz de Tenerife (; locally ), commonly abbreviated as Santa Cruz, is a city, the capital of the island of Tenerife, Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and one of the capitals of the Canary Islands, along with Las Palmas. Santa Cruz has a ...

, Spain, before returning to service in July 2021.

References

External links

*
''The World'' at marinetraffic.com
including the current ship position via

Automatic Identification System The automatic identification system (AIS) is an automatic tracking system that uses transceivers on ships and is used by vessel traffic services (VTS). When satellites are used to receive AIS signatures, the term ''Satellite-AIS'' (S-AIS) is ...