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<\/p>\nAround 200 passengers who paid to live on a cruise ship while travelling the world have been abruptly left in a Cambodian port after the company ran out of money.<\/p>\n
US-based operator Villa Vie Residences, which markets its residency programs as luxury alternatives to current retirement options, announced it had suspended operations after two and a half years of continuous travel.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Tuesday, local time, Villa Vie blamed the “extraordinary” fuel costs following the Iran war for halting operations.<\/p>\n
Passengers were given just seven hours to pack their bags and leave during a scheduled stop in the Cambodian port of Sihanoukville, according to Long Dimanche, deputy governor of Preah Sihanouk province.<\/p>\n
He said in a statement 203 guests and 156 crew had arrived aboard the Bahamas-flagged ship from Thailand on October 23 and had been due to go on to Vietnam.<\/p>\n
“The sudden order to disembark has left many retirees and remote workers homeless thousands of miles from their home countries,” he said.<\/p>\n
Some passengers took flights out while others remained in the city, he said, adding that the ship itself was due to refuel and leave on October 31.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0An ocean-view villa inside Villa Vie’s residential cruise ship. (Supplied: Villa Vie Residences)<\/p>\n
Inside Villa Vie’s ‘continuous’ voyage<\/p>\n
Passengers aboard the 200-metre-long Odyssey cruise ship, equipped with a 24\/7 medical centre, spa and fully contained villas, are sold on a “worry-free” life at sea.<\/p>\n
Residents have the option to buy or rent rooms for a holiday or for life, with basic cabins starting at about $85,000.<\/p>\n
The cruise departed Northern Ireland in October 2024 for a continuous voyage; some passengers sold everything they had to pay for it.<\/p>\n
At the beginning of this year, the residential cruise ship dropped anchor at multiple ports on Australia’s east coast.<\/p>\n
Randy Cassingham, a passenger on board who runs a cruise blog, wrote that the disembarkation order followed a “cascade of problems”.<\/p>\n
Under a post entitled “Abandon Ship!”, he said its Belfast launch was delayed by four months, while the ship never reached its capacity of 650 residents, peaking at around 350.<\/p>\n
Loading Instagram content<\/p>\n
He said it was not a “luxury” ship but affordable until the company started “begging for money”.<\/p>\n
Villa Vie said in its statement that per-cabin monthly fuel expenses had gone from an average of $1,800 to an estimated $6,000 to $8,000 in parts of Asia.<\/p>\n
“The company cannot simply pass increases of that scale on to residents, and the resulting shortfall has placed its current operating model under unsustainable financial pressure,” it said.<\/p>\n
Mr Cassingham accused the company of doing “absolutely nothing to help” stranded passengers.<\/p>\n
Villa Vie said it was working to find temporary accommodation for residents.<\/p>\n
“Villa Vie Residences recognises that this is a difficult and disruptive period for residents, crew members and employees, and is working to support those affected as plans develop,” it said.<\/p>\n
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