Initially selling an “endless” cruise around the world, Villa Vie Residences ended up cutting just over 200 passengers’ new stage of life short.
It gave all those aboard its Odyssey ship half a day to disembark in Cambodia on Oct. 27, saying that rising fuel prices put its “current operating model under unsustainable financial pressure.”
Many of the travelers aboard the ship were retirees who had sold their homes or otherwise given up their residences before the ship set sail in October 2024, taking up the offer of a permanent residence at sea.
Some purchased flights out of Cambodia to destinations around the world, while others are currently in temporary accommodations as they wait for assistance from Villa Vie Residences.
“We’ve stretched out payrolls as far as we can”: Villa Vie Residences filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Villa Vie is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, CBS News confirmed.
The cruise operator ran up heavy debts when its monthly fuel expenses grew from approximately $1,800 USD per month in 2024 and 2025 to between $6,000 and $8,000 USD per month after fuel prices spiked due to the war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Related: Cruise passengers told to get off after line shuts down
“For us, when our monthly expenses go up from $400,000 to $2 million, where are we going to get the $1.6 million?” Villa Vie Residences CEO Mikael Petterson told CBS News in a phone interview.
“We’ve borrowed money, we’ve stretched our payrolls as far as we can, and we’re at a point where it’s just at a breaking point where we need capitalization.”
Villa Vie Residences was originally incorporated in Delaware in 2023 but was later re-registered in the Marshall Islands while conducting the main bulk of its business out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Villa Vie Residences
What will happen to stranded Villa Vie Odyssey passengers?
Petterson has not provided additional details about when the company will file for bankruptcy protection. He said the cruise line ran out of money without finding a financial partner to help it absorb spiking fuel prices until the situation in the Middle East improved.
Prior to asking passengers to disembark, Villa Vie said it attempted to minimize its fuel expenses by extending the time spent in the ports.
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In a previous statement on the collapse, Villa Vie Residences said it was “working with residents to coordinate disembarkation and identify temporary living arrangements,” WSMV4 reported. The cabins were sold to passengers at prices starting at $3,499 per month for renters and going up to $100,000 for ownership.
Several travelers have disputed the Villa Vie claim that the cruise company was helping affected passengers find housing arrangements, according to NBC News.
“Honestly, right now, I’m in denial and in shock, and I’m heartbroken,” Benjamin Schatz, a retiree who had been aboard the cruise, told CBS News. “There are people now who are homeless and who have very little money and don’t know what they’re going to do.”
