Man who lives on a cruise ship has spent 24 years at sea
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Mario Salcedo gave up life on land almost 25 years ago. Tired of travelling by plane for his job, the Cuban national, who moved to Miami with his family in the 60s, booked a cruise — and fell in love with the experience. While spending life surrounded by nothing but miles of deep ocean might sound like a nightmare to some, we can all relate to the dream of escaping the 9-5 for something more adventurous.
![[Man who's lived on a cruise ship for 20 years just took his 1000th cruise]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_236791462_1737455932.813-a616.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
And it’s a dream that Mario is living. Known as ‘Super Mario’ by the staff on the ships he lives on, recently completed his 1,000th cruise with Royal Caribbean while aboard the 3,286-passenger Explorer of the Seas. The ship, which departed Miami on January 5 on an 11-night voyage to Panama and the Southern Caribbean, held a special event to celebrate the occasion.
![[Man who's lived on a cruise ship for 20 years just took his 1000th cruise]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_236791429_1737455944.049-e8ed.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Though he has an apartment in Miami, Mario spends little time there — just a few days a year. He has effectively lived full-time on a cruise ship for over 20 years. He previously told Conde Nast Traveler: ‘When I hit 45, I wanted to start a new chapter in my life travelling around the world — that was my vision’.
After trying out a few different lines, Mario booked a stint on Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas in the year 2000 and hasn’t set foot on another liner since. ‘Nothing could lure me away from them, because I get treated like royalty,’ he revealed.
