The ship travels around the world to nations such as Italy, France, Greece, India, Sweden and the United Kingdom where the characters experience different cultures, adventures, and situations.
The series is the second spin-off of a Disney Channel series (after the short-lived That's So Raven spinoff Cory in the House); as well as the last Disney Channel series to debut broadcasting exclusively in standard definition, and the first of three Disney Channel shows to transition from standard definition to high definition, which occurred on August 7, 2009, with the season 2 premiere, "The Spy Who Shoved Me", and the second multi-camera comedy (after Sonny with a Chance) to utilize a filmized appearance instead of the Filmlook appearance that was used in the first season.
He stated, "Our audience has shown us that after 88 episodes, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody remains one of their favorite sitcoms ever, we decided to find a new way for Zack, Cody, London, and Mr. Moseby to live 'The Suite Life' in a whole new setting – this time aboard a luxury cruise liner.
[10] On May 11, 2009, Disney issued a press release stating that the second season had been extended to include a larger number of episodes than the original thirteen.
"[11] As of 2024, The Suite Life series still holds the record (162 episodes) for having the longest running characters on air in a Disney Channel franchise produced without interruption.
According to show creators and producers, the choice of setting was made to appeal to an international audience with different ports-of-call, such as India, Greece, Italy, Morocco, the United Kingdom and Thailand.
There are also various areas on the SS Tipton that are mentioned, but never seen, including several decks and the ship's putt-putt golf course, where the captain spends most of his time.
In the crossover episode of Wizards of Waverly Place, "Cast-Away (To Another Show)," Mr. Moseby reveals that the ship itself weighs 87,000 tons.
The episode "Double-Crossed" is the second part of a three-way crossover that begins on Wizards of Waverly Place and concludes on Hannah Montana.
Cody promises to get tickets for himself and Bailey to a concert in Hawaii featuring Hannah Montana, who has boarded the SS Tipton.
In the meantime, the Russo siblings enjoy a cruise of their own until Alex pulls a prank that causes Justin to turn blue.
[15] In 2013, during an interview with Gawker, Dylan Sprouse revealed he and his brother had pitched an idea to the Disney Channel about continuing the Suite Life series.
Disney rejected the idea initially, but contacted the twins a year later with an edited concept that retained the boy and his father storyline, but Zack and Cody would move to a Miami hotel instead, Selena Gomez would also star and the twins would not get producer credits like they had requested.
[11] As of August 2009, the highest rated episode of The Suite Life on Deck was "Double-Crossed," the second part of Wizards On Deck with Hannah Montana, a trilogy of crossover episodes featuring guest stars from Wizards of Waverly Place and Hannah Montana which premiered on July 17, 2009, on Disney Channel.
The special was viewed by more than 10.6 million viewers, program of the night across both cable and broadcast television, and ranks as one of the highest-rated episodes for a Disney Channel original series.
[citation needed] In November 2023, an episode entitled "When in Rome..." went viral over social media due to Zack and Cody's restaurant reservation date.