Grey cruising is making people - and cruise lines - rethink retirement living
Early evening on day four of a seven-night cruise around the South Pacific, and the captain is hosting a cocktail party in the Vista Lounge of the Sun Princess. An invite-only affair, everyone's in their glad rags. A cruise director in a long, burgundy sequined dress stands on stage next to the captain and senior members of his crew; the officers are in their whites – shirts crisply ironed, shoes polished to a sheen.
The occasion? Awarding gongs to VIP passengers who have clocked up the most days at sea.
In the front row sit 86-year-old twins from Brisbane. Each has jet black hair (possibly not its natural colour), and a weathered face that hints at life well-lived.
"Marking their 1800th day at sea with Princess," intones the Eastern European-accented cruise director over the microphone. She pauses for dramatic effect as everyone in the room performs a quick mental calculation – then names the twins.
Uniworld SS Joie de Vivre is christened in Paris by its godmother Dame Joan Collins. Steve Dunlop
One stands to acknowledge the applause; the other stays seated, waving with one hand – the other hand resting on his Zimmer frame.
Companies pump out new ships
Cruising is big business. In Australia alone, more than 1 million of us boarded a ship last year. The industry's peak tourism body, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), estimates that will grow by 14 per cent, year on year, for the next decade.
The increased popularity of cruising by a nation plagued by the tyranny of distance is one reason Sydney Harbour now resembles a shipyard during the peak spring/summer southern hemisphere cruising season that runs from September to April. The huge tourist dollar cash injection to ports – regional and cities – when a ship is in dock further explains why state governments are hastily building or expanding cruise ship terminals in as many ports along the coastline as they can manage.
As cruising enjoys a renaissance and the companies pump out new ships (eight new luxury ships will come online this year alone), it's interesting to look at who's driving the growth. When launching their new ships, most cruise CEOs are keen to shake the old adage that "cruising is for newlyweds and nearly deads", by reinforcing the fact people in their 20s and 30s do cruise. Especially young families. ("Cruising is not an age thing, it's a mentality," spruiks one industry PR.)
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