Marcus Adams, Cruising’s Young and Restless

Marcus Adams lives in Winchester, Hampshire, UK, about an hour from London, where he commutes each day to work as a Policy Advisor to the Mayor of London. Marcus is creator of the cruise blog Sparkx (Marcus’ nickname during his youth.) Marcus was introduced to travel early on as his dad, a bank executive, did a lot of travelling in conjunction with his work as his responsibilities included developing and organizing all the management incentive trips. Consequently, Marcus got to visit a number of interesting and exotic places. Part of this exposure to travel at an early age included accompanying his parents on cruises. Marcus sailed on his first cruise ship, Majesty of the Seas, at just nine years old. He considers it a life-forming event and has been hooked on cruising ever since....

As a young adult Marcus continued to return to what he refers to as “my happy place,” cruising, and increasingly wanted to share his experience with others. I asked Marcus, “At what point did you develop your passion for cruising? Was it right away in those first couple of cruises as a young boy or did it develop over time? How did you know you were hooked?” Marcus responded, “I think to be honest that first cruise hooked me—I was hooked straightaway. I was the one who suggested the second cruise....”

Marcus has a particular fondness for Celebrity and Viking cruise lines. Nevertheless, Royal Caribbean will always hold a special place in Marcus’ heart. First, he got engaged on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. In 2014, Marcus was the first person to propose in the North Star on board the new Quantum of the Seas. The North Star observation tower is a glass-walled capsule that extends on a giant robotic arm out over the ocean and takes groups of up to 14 cruisers to more than 300 feet above sea level....

Marcus has sailed across the world including the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and Northern Europe. His most recent and upcoming cruises are of particular interest to me. Marcus’ last cruise of 2018 was a nine-night New York, Canada, and New England cruise on Anthem of the Seas. I was anxious to get a review from him, given my own plans to sail Anthem three months later. At the beginning of 2019, Marcus is booked for Celebrity Edge, perhaps the world’s most anticipated new cruise ship which launched officially in December 2018. Just a couple of months later, Marcus will cruise on the maiden voyage of MSC Cruises stunning flagship MSC Bellissima, with its bowling alley, Cirque du Soleil at Sea, and virtual cabin assistants. MSC Bellissima will be christened in Southampton, UK, becoming by far the largest cruise ship ever launched there....

Marcus is the answer to a trivia question: Which The Joy of Cruising subject has been seen by the largest number of YouTube and television viewers in the world? To find out why, read the complete story of Cruising’s Young and Restless in Chapter 13, The Joy of Cruising. Available now at Amazon and everywhere online....