Two Australians who paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for a life at sea have been left stranded in Cambodia after their residential cruise ship abruptly suspended operations.
Brisbane mother Rina Cavazza and Melbourne retiree Frances Paroissien were living aboard the Villa Vie Odyssey, operated by US-based Villa Vie Residences, when passengers were told to disembark in Cambodia.
The vessel left Belfast in October 2024 on a planned three-and-a-half-year round-the-world voyage covering more than 425 destinations in 147 countries. It was carrying 203 passengers and 156 crew when it docked in Cambodia on Tuesday, including five Australians.
Cavazza, who paid AUS$170,000 for a berth and had 18 months left on her plan, said passengers were given just seven hours' notice to leave the ship in Sihanoukville. "I'm more numb than anything," she said, adding that while problems had been mounting for months, residents had believed there was light at the end of the tunnel.
She blamed the company's financial management rather than the fuel crisis alone, saying residents had been asked to put in more money to keep the business afloat.
The Florida-based operator said the war in Iran had driven up fuel costs, making its operating model financially unsustainable. Monthly fuel expenses per cabin, which had averaged about US$1,800, were estimated to have reached US$6,000 to US$8,000 in parts of Asia.
Paroissien, 78, had already lost AUS$85,000 on a cancelled previous venture before buying a cabin for over AUS$200,000 under a 15-year lease, and had spent only 25 months aboard. She said residents were told in August the company owed millions to creditors, and that passengers had contributed more than US$2 million to help the ship leave Singapore but later refused further requests.
With no home to return to in Melbourne, she has leased an apartment in Thailand for six months. "I'm not going home because I don't have a home to go to," she said.
Cavazza said the voyage may not be over for her. "It's not the end of the story for me, but it's just a roadblock," she said. The ship remains docked in Cambodia with no confirmed departure date.
๐๐ผ๐๐ป๐น๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ๐ฝ โ
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