Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs

A luxury cruise ship on a years-long voyage around the world said it suspended operations due to extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia.

The US-based operator of the Villa Vie Odyssey said it was working with passengers on disembarkation plans and "temporary living arrangements".

It is unclear how many were on board but the nearly 200m (656ft) vessel can carry up to 650 passengers. It departed Belfast in October 2024 for a "continuous voyage around the world".

Global fuel prices have soared since the Iran war started earlier this year. The ship's operator said the monthly fuel cost per cabin in parts of Asia has risen to as much as $8,000 (£6,000) from $1,800.

Villa Vie Residences said it had taken "significant steps to reduce fuel consumption, including slowing the itinerary and spending more time in port". But those measures turned out to be insufficient to "offset the extraordinary increase in fuel costs".

"Passing the full increase on to residents is not a realistic solution," it said.

The company would spend the next 60 days on "restructuring and recapitalisation", though "no outcome is assured", it said.

There were reportedly around 200 passengers on board when they were ordered to disembark in the Cambodian port city of Sihanoukville, a once sleepy beach town that has gained global notoriety in recent years as a hub for Chinese casinos and scam centres.

The Villa Vie Odyssey's voyage was expected to span 3.5 years and cover nearly 150 countries, according to its website.

Its departure had faced delays as the ship underwent repairs, leaving passengers stranded in Belfast for months and costing the company millions of pounds.

The ship was more than 750 days into its circumnavigation before announcing its suspension of its journey on Tuesday - which means its passengers would now be stranded in Cambodia.

Passengers Lanette Canen and Johan Bodin told the BBC they were informed by Villa Vie Residences' chief executive at 6am on Tuesday that they had to leave by 2pm on the same day.

The couple said passengers had known for some time about the company's financial difficulties. A potential investor had previously come onboard the ship to do due dilligence, but in the end it did not work out.

"Even then, we were still hoping a miracle investor would come through," they said. "Although there were signs that this would happen, we still felt disbelief when it became real. We were heartbroken. It felt like our dream had been crushed."

"There have been a lot of hugs and tears as residents support one another and process what has happened."

Another passenger Holly Hennessey said that the ship's passengers had earlier been asked to consider paying a fuel surcharge as global prices soared, and that their itinerary had been "severely curtailed".

Some people decided to disembark and travel on land, she said.

"It was not on my bingo card of places where I'd be spending a lot of time," Hennessey told the BBC from Cambodia.

"We're all in different hotels; there are a number of shipmates in the hotel that I'm in. We're just waiting."

Canen and Bodin said the location in Cambodia was "a difficult place to disembark" because of the distance to a major international airport.

During their time onboard the Villa Vie Odyssey, passengers had access to several bars and restaurants, a pool deck and a pickleball court, according to its website.

Permanent residencies in its cabins ranged from $120,000 to $440,000. Those cabins were also available for rent from $3,500 a month.

Last year, the company launched a lifetime residence programme for people to spend their retirement years at sea.

In 2024, days after US President Donald Trump won his second term, Villa Vie Residences announced a four-year "Skip Forward" package.

Its CEO told Fox Business at the time that it was the "perfect product for those who said they'd leave the country if 'XYZ' wins the election".

For Canen and Bodin the experience was "worth it", despite the fact it was shorter than expected.

"We loved our two years on Odyssey—the adventures, the places we visited and the friends we made along the way."

Many of the passengers have already made plans to "settle together off the ship, so those friendships and that sense of community are continuing on land", they said.

The couple plans to spend a few days in Sihanoukville, before travelling to different parts of South East Asia while they "figure out our next chapter".

But others, like Hennessey, have decided to stick around in Cambodia in the hopes that the Odyssey will set sail again soon.

"Until they say we are done - done done - I am not giving up. I could never duplicate this lifestyle. The idea of going home? It would be so trite," she said.

"Cambodia's not the worst place to hang out."

Additional reporting by Thanya Doksone.