These TikTokers rose to social media success (and internet fame) in a matter of weeks. Here’s their advice for other creators (+ more CruiseTok learnings).

You know a social media event has truly gone viral when it transcends the platform and makes global headlines — and even more so when it gets its own subreddit, too.

Last year, it was the private chefs of the Hamptons — in 2024, it’s the #UltimateWorldCruise that has taken over TikTok. 

What makes this particular cruise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas unique is that it lasts a staggering nine months. Over 274 nights, the ship will make port in over 60 countries, with some 700 passengers booked to stay on board for the journey. 

Even reading that paragraph has probably left you with questions. How do you pack for nine months? How big are the rooms? What’s the food like? How much did it cost?

Happily for your (and the rest of the world’s) curiosity, there are over a dozen creators on board documenting all this and more on TikTok and other social platforms. 

I stumbled upon one creator, another South African, Amike Oosthuizen, in between the predictable mix of fitness, productivity, and BookTok content on my For You Page late last year, which sparked a journey down several TikTok rabbit holes. Now, I’m the proud follower of almost all the creators on board — and an FYP that’s almost exclusively cruise-related. (Miss you, BookTok.)

But I’m not mad about it. If I can’t travel to every continent on earth and live in a tiny cabin for nine months, at least I can live vicariously through the folks who can. 

I’m not the only one who feels this way. The CruiseTok creators' following counts range from a couple of thousand to well over 200K. They’ve spawned a cottage industry of non-passenger creators curating and reporting on their content and even featured in scores of news outlets, including TIME, The New York Times, and Vox.