This is the unfortunate story of Vie Villa Odyssey, a luxury cruise ship that was supposed to sail around the world in 1,301 days and visit 147 countries. Despite the high-priced cabins and promises of luxury, nearly four months later, around 100 passengers find themselves stranded in Belfast, the principal port of Northern Ireland in United Kingdom. Villa Vie Residences, the company operating the vessel, recently updated its customers, who likely aren’t singing the company’s praises, about what’s going to happen next.
Some context. The original plan for the Odyssey customers was to embark on a 3.5-year global journey aboard a ship. Additionally, the company offered them the possibility to buy one of the cabins for up to $899,000. This meant that customers weren’t just purchasing a trip but also the opportunity to continue living aboard the cruise ship for the anticipated 15-year lifespan of the vessel upon the completion of the voyage.
Naturally, for this plan to materialize, the ship needed to set sail in the first place. The cruise ship arrived at Queen’s Island in Belfast for outfitting before its scheduled departure on May 30 for the first three-year leg of the journey. Unfortunately, Odyssey has been unable to depart due to issues with its rudders and gearbox. As a result, the approximately 100 passengers planning to embark on the global cruise have been stranded in the city for almost four months.
Paying to be stranded. Villa Vie Residences’ first decision was to make their stay at the inhospitable port as pleasant as possible. The company allowed its customers to stay on the ship during the day but obligated them to disembark every night for safety reasons during repair work. They were then transferred to hotels in Belfast or other cities, with the cruise operator paying for all the expenses.
During these nearly four months, many passengers not only frequented the city but also took advantage of their free time to go on excursions to nearby and not-so-nearby destinations. Some traveled to places as diverse as Greenland or the Canary Islands in Spain, with the cruise company also organizing and paying for the trips. One passenger even found time to return home to Australia (twice) during the wait. However, the “all-inclusive” offer seems to have come to an end.
Bad news. Villa Vie Residences founder and CEO Mikael Petterson had previously mentioned that “his best guess” was that the ship would set sail on Sept. 9 or 10, noting that it was still a “moving target if it’s either of those days.” Now, those dates have passed, and the company has already informed its customers that there will be further delays.
In its recent memo, Villa Vie explained that it has requested its “residents” to pay for their own accommodations for the next few days until the ship receives full certification. Although the ship has completed its sea trials, a crucial “test drive” for cruise liners, it’s still awaiting its passenger ship safety certificate, which is necessary to begin sailing.
A never-ending bill. Since the initial delay, Petterson said that Villa Vie had paid nearly $2 million for hotels and extras for its clients stranded in Belfast. “I wouldn’t say it’s crushing, but it does compound the stress of still not having launched and still not making revenue.”
So, when will it sail? That’s the big question, the same one being asked by the 100 passengers who were looking forward to starting a vacation in May. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn out like Petterson’s previous CEO job at Life at Sea, another cruise line. The company ended up canceling its plans for a similar round-the-world trip.
Image | Peter Hansen
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