No cooking, no cleaning for a year: the Aussie couple spending 370 days living at sea

Most junk mail goes straight into the recycling bin, but for a retired couple on the Sunshine Coast, one glossy flyer sparked a 370-day voyage across six continents.

Mark and Ingrid Dudley love spending their holidays on cruise ships, racking up 20 voyages over the years, with the longest trip spanning 22 days.

But the impulse to go on a year-long adventure became a reality when the couple boarded Oceania Cruises' Regatta in Rome on September 1.

"We were interested in a world cruise for several years but were waiting for one with an itinerary we liked," Mr Dudley said.

"It's hard to put into words how exciting [boarding the cruise ship] was, the atmosphere on board is unlike anything we've experienced before and we are so excited to see what the next year looks like for us."

Fitting a year's worth of luggage into a cruise ship cabin meant taking a third bag to cover four seasons of clothing, but the biggest logistical challenge wasn't the wardrobe, it was the pharmacy.

"The thing that was hardest to pack was medication, as we needed a 12-month supply and all the boxes took up a lot of room," Mr Dudley said.

On their round-the-world trip the Dudleys are visiting 220 ports, 62 countries and six continents.

They'll be in Japan for cherry-blossom season, New Years will be celebrated in Thailand, and with any luck, they'll spot the Northern Lights while cruising through Norway.

Seeing Aurora Borealis is a highlight for the Dudleys, but not having to cook or clean for a whole year is hard to beat, they said.

Giving passengers that kind of break takes a lot of work behind the scenes.

My Cruises global head of cruises Michael Middleton said setting up a 370-day trip is a massive planning job.

"An itinerary of this scale requires coordination across destinations, ports, flights, transfers, shore experiences and local partners, while also making sure the journey feels seamless for guests," Mr Middleton said.

Mr Middleton said that 10,000 Australian and New Zealand travellers would be boarding the Regatta in its inaugural season, though some were doing shorter stints rather than a complete circumnavigation.

He said that seeing the world, but not spending months planning the logistics themselves, was a major perk to a trip such as this.

"It's not simply about visiting as many countries as possible, it's about creating a cruise that has the right pace, variety and mix of iconic destinations and less familiar places," he said.

"That level of planning is what makes a world voyage of this scale so unique."