Luxury cruise passengers stranded in Cambodia due to soaring fuel costs

Key points

• Villa Vie Odyssey suspended its around-the-world voyage due to extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia.
• The operator said monthly fuel cost per cabin in parts of Asia has risen to as much as $8,000 from $1,800.
• The company plans 60 days of restructuring and recapitalisation, with no outcome assured.

A luxury cruise ship on a years-long voyage around the world has suspended operations because of extraordinarily high fuel costs, leaving passengers stranded in Cambodia. The US-based operator of Villa Vie Odyssey said it was working with passengers on disembarkation plans and temporary living arrangements.

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

Rising fuel costs

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

The company said it had slowed the itinerary and spent more time in port to cut fuel use, but these steps were insufficient to offset the increase. It said passing the full increase on to residents was not a realistic solution.

It was not on my bingo card of places where I'd be spending a lot of time

— Holly Hennessey

Passengers wait in Cambodia

Around 200 passengers were reportedly on board when they were ordered to disembark in the Cambodian port city of Sihanoukville. The voyage was expected to span 3.5 years and cover nearly 150 countries, and the ship was more than 750 days into its circumnavigation when the suspension was announced on Tuesday.

Passenger Holly Hennessey told the BBC from Cambodia that residents were staying in different hotels and waiting. She said residents had earlier been asked to consider a fuel surcharge and that the itinerary had been severely curtailed.