Villa Vie’s Residents Deserved a Better Exit Plan

Some Villa Vie Odyssey residents had sold their homes to move aboard. When the residential ship suspended operations in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, on Tuesday, passengers say they were given seven hours to leave.

I expect an operator selling years of life at sea to have a plan for where residents will sleep if the sailing stops. The accounts emerging from Cambodia describe something much less adequate: a deadline to disembark and, according to one resident, a shuttle into town without accommodation arranged.

Villa Vie Residences suspended operations after fuel costs overwhelmed its operating model, forcing 203 residents off the ship. Odyssey remained docked on Wednesday while the Florida-based company considered restructuring and recapitalization.

The company said it was helping residents disembark and find temporary accommodation. Residents disputed the extent of that assistance.

Randy Cassingham, who documented the voyage on his Residential Cruising website, said shuttles took passengers from the port into central Sihanoukville.

“They didn’t even give us a list of hotels, let alone help us get there or pay for them,” he wrote.

That complaint goes to the most basic part of the shutdown. These people had bought accommodation for long-term residence.

The disembarkation notice required residents to leave by 2 p.m. Those unable to remove all their possessions could arrange a return through Guest Services, with shuttle access for collecting belongings continuing until 6 p.m. the following day. Crew would remain aboard to maintain essential systems. The ship had been carrying 156 crew members.

In a subsequent update, Cassingham said Villa Vie offered a charter flight to the United States at $1,100 per person. He described some residents as having committed most of their savings to the venture and now facing uncertainty over where they would live.

The fuel crisis was severe

Villa Vie estimated that fuel costs in parts of Asia had reached $6,000 to $8,000 per cabin each month, compared with a historical average of $1,800. Its notice said it had been unable to obtain the fuel needed to continue sailing and would place Odyssey in temporary layup.

Executive chairman Mikael Petterson attributed the increase to the war in Iran. Traffic restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz since the conflict began have constrained petroleum-based fuel supplies, particularly in Southeast Asia, and pushed prices higher.

Petterson said longer port stays and a slower itinerary had reduced consumption but had not prevented operating losses.

“Passing the full increase on to residents is not a realistic solution,” he said.

Those figures explain why the company could not simply carry on as scheduled. They do not resolve the separate question of how it handled the people living aboard.

Residents say the trouble started earlier

Residents Paul and Lynn Montoya, a retired couple from Wyoming who bought a window cabin, said problems predated the suspension. Paul said itinerary changes, inconsistent internet service and deteriorating food quality had led residents to leave in recent months.

“We were tired of every two to four weeks being asked for money for fuel, money for everything,” Lynn said.

That included another request, she said, for money to buy fuel to leave Cambodia. She also alleged that crew members had not been paid.

Villa Vie could not immediately be reached for comment on the residents’ complaints. Whether residents will receive refunds remains unclear.

A long-term home, with no confirmed restart

The roughly 25,000-gross-ton Odyssey was built in 1993 and previously sailed as Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ Braemar. Villa Vie acquired it in December 2023 and converted it in Belfast for residential service, marketing accommodation for about 650 residents.

The world voyage began in October 2024 as a planned three-and-a-half-year circumnavigation covering more than 425 ports across 147 countries. Villa Vie’s website lists permanent residency from $119,999, plus a monthly charge of $5,000 for a couple. Five-year options start at $59,999 before monthly fees.

Those prices and durations explain why a suspension carries consequences far beyond an interrupted holiday.

Carol Larson, who paid $120,000 in installments for her cabin in addition to monthly maintenance charges, said her plan offered the possibility of living aboard for as long as 15 years. She hoped residents might be able to buy the vessel, but described that as an aspiration.

The interrupted itinerary included Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia over the following month. Long Dimanche, deputy governor of Preah Sihanouk province, said Odyssey had arrived the previous Friday and originally was due to leave on Wednesday. He subsequently expected it to refuel and depart on Saturday, although Villa Vie had not publicly confirmed that departure.

The company had also planned a second residential vessel for early 2029. Its suspension statement did not explain what would happen to that project.

For now, Villa Vie has neither finalized financing nor completed a transaction to support a recovery. Petterson said it would pursue restructuring and recapitalization over the next 60 days, warning that “no outcome is assured.”

A credible recovery plan needs to address where displaced residents will live and who will pay while that process unfolds. Finding enough money to move the ship again would leave the most immediate problem unresolved.