Cruise offers escape from Donald Trump’s presidency
The Odyssey is offering refuge to those unhappy with America's political climate – for a price. Photo: Villa Vie Residences
Many Americans have said they want to flee the country for the duration of Donald Trump’s second term as president.
A cruise line has made that possible.
Earlier this month, residential cruise line Villa Vie Residences announced its new “Tour La Vie” program aboard its Odyssey ship, offering a customised global journey for up to four years.
The names of package options, with annual prices starting at just under $US40,000 ($61,494), are pointed; one-year “Escape from Reality”, two-year “Mid-Term Selection”, three-year “Everywhere but Home”, and four-year “Skip Forward”.
With fears from critics of what a second Trump presidency could mean for everything from finances to personal safety, Google Trends data shows the use of search terms such as “how to move to” and “leaving the country” spiked in the US this month.
Not everyone has the financial means to make such a drastic move, but attorneys and advisers to wealthy Americans told CNBC they were seeing record demand from clients looking for second passports or long-term residencies abroad ahead of the US election.
Villa Vie Residences CEO Mikael Petterson told Newsweek the company experienced three times the call load just a few days after announcing the cruise package options.
Although the offerings may appeal to anti-Trump voters, he insisted the cruise line was politically impartial.
Petterson said passengers aboard Odyssey enjoyed similar lifestyles and did not want to talk politics.
The ship hosted two separate watch parties on board the night of the US election, with one watching right-leaning Fox News and the other viewing left-leaning MSNBC.
“We came up with this marketing campaign before we even knew who would win. Regardless of who would have won, you would have half of the population upset,” he said.
“Quite frankly, we don’t have a political view one way or the other.
“We just wanted to give people who feel threatened to have a way to get out.”
Aside from those looking to escape particular political environments, the demographics of cruise passengers also appear to be widening.
Better on-board internet service and increasingly online work has drawn young digital nomads aboard.
Earlier this year, a Tourism & Transport Forum Australia survey found Millennials and Gen Z passengers were driving increased demand for cruises, with 35 per cent of Australians under 35 planning to cruise this year versus 18 per cent of over-65s.
“It’s really cool how the community, old and young are coming together,” Petterson said.