YouTuber Emma Cruises and Hudson the Cat set to raise more money for Mercy Ships

Emma Le Teace, 28, from Sussex, or Emma Cruises, as she is known online, has 206,000 subscribers on YouTube alone as she reviews cruises for her international audience.

But when Emma is at home, her rescue cat Hudson enjoys making cameo appearances on her computer screen as she updates her followers on the latest deals and ‘try before you buy’ cruise tips.

Earlier this year, Emma decided to release a plush toy version of Hudson and was stunned to sell 1,300 of them, in the process raising £9,400.

She decided to donate all the money to Mercy Ships after hearing a podcast featuring Scott Harrison, whose life was transformed after volunteering for Mercy Ships in 2005.

In the podcast, he explains how the transformational experience of volunteering for two years as a photojournalist for Mercy Ships in Liberia and Benin, led him to start his own non-profit, Charity: Water.

Emma read more about Mercy Ships and its two floating hospitals and felt that Captain Hudson cat toys could support this life-changing work.

It’s a charity that remains close to Emma’s heart – so much so that she is now taking orders for a second Hudson the cat plush toy and, once again, plans to give all the profits to Mercy Ships. So far, she has already more than 800 orders on the waiting list.

Speaking exclusively to World of Cruising, Emma said: “I think we can raise even more than last time. Everyone who bought the first version has been sharing pictures of their Captain Hudsons on social media and the demand for them has grown. Everyone wants their own one.

“The next one is designed with a little yellow life jacket and a choc chip cookie in their pocket – as my followers know I love cookies and I always look for them on cruises. My followers know that by buying a Captain Hudson they are changing lives and they really like doing their part for Mercy Ships and its patients.”

Mercy Ships newest purpose-built hospital ship, Global Mercy, has elements of a ferry, as ship-makers, Stena Roro helped blend the ferry and hospital designs together to build the 174m long ship.

Emma has created around 500 videos and has been on 51 cruises, now averaging one cruise a month. It was during the pandemic-enforced lockdowns that the following of her cruise channel, established in 2017, really took off – with so many people trapped at home and seeking escapism.

In 2021, the maths graduate quit her data development job to devote herself full-time to being a YouTuber and cruise writer and works with travel agents to sell the cruises she features.

Joanne Balaam, Mercy Ships’ UK chief executive, added: “We are so grateful Emma has chosen to support us through her Captain Hudson toy again. She has already raised more than £9,400 for our charity and her support has also seen many people learning about Mercy Ships.

“Thank you, Emma, and your international followers, for all you are doing to transform lives through surgery and medical training in the world’s poorest countries.”

To add your name to the waiting list for a Captain Hudson Version 2, click here.