Passengers who sold up for a 'cruise for life' are given hours to disembark in Cambodia over soaring fuel costs
The Villa Vie Odyssey cruise ship, whose passengers paying up to £260,000 for permanent residency were told to disembark in Cambodia with no clear refund plan.A cabin suite aboard the Villa Vie Odyssey. Residents had been paying around £70 a day for rent, utilities and food on what was sold as a permanent floating home.
Villa Vie Residences told the 203 passengers aboard the Odyssey they had just seven hours to pack up and leave the ship during a scheduled stop at Sihanoukville, Cambodia, after Iran-war fuel costs surged from $1,800 to as much as $8,000 per cabin each month. Some passengers had sold their homes and paid up to $440,000 for permanent residency on the vessel, which left Belfast in October 2024 on a planned 3.5-year world voyage. The company says it will cover accommodation and local transport in Cambodia but will not pay for passengers' flights home.
Passenger blogger Randy Cassingham said the collapse followed 'a cascade of problems' — not just fuel costs but flawed business model and management mistakes.
Fuel costs have risen by more than 300 per cent as a result of the Iran war, with Brent crude hitting $115 a barrel this week and Strait of Hormuz disruptions tightening petroleum supplies.
The company has proposed an extra $500-a-month surcharge on top of existing fees, but passengers refused — and Villa Vie founder Mikael Petterson admitted 'no outcome is assured' in its 60-day rescue plan.
