Shirene Thomas has found herself suddenly homeless three times in the past three years after investing in two now-failed residential cruise experiences.
Still, despite being stranded in Türkiye, Ireland, and now Cambodia, where some 200 residents were kicked off Villa Vie Odyssey (aka just Odyssey) at the end of October, the retired social services worker from Illinois says she would give life at sea another go if she found the right opportunity.
That, however, seems increasingly unlikely.
While several companies in recent years have attempted to launch ships that residents can buy or lease cabins on long-term, two have gone belly up: Villa Vie Residences (the company that operates the now-defunct Odyssey), and Life at Sea, a three-year cruise concept that ceased operations in 2023 before it ever set sail.
At least three more companies have announced plans to launch their own luxury “forever” cruise ships, but of those at least one, Storylines, is currently working to secure additional financing. The other two, Crescent Seas and Avora Residences, are still a few years away from their first sailings.
I love the idea of residential cruising. I would go back, even onto this ship [the Odyssey].
Only one residential cruise ship, The World, which is an invitation-only community for the ultra-rich, has made it work. And even that project struggled before being bought out by its residents, who according to reports must have at least $10 million in assets, meaning they can more easily defray unexpected costs like rising fuel prices, which is what Villa Vie cited as the reason for its financial hardships that resulted in being forced to kick residents off the ship and cease sailing.
The collapse of Villa Vie Residences and Life at Sea, which folded just before it was scheduled to set sail from Istanbul three years ago, raises significant questions about the viability of a residential cruise model for the masses.
Nevertheless, even some twice-burned residents, like Thomas, are not necessarily giving up.
“I love the idea of residential cruising,” Thomas said. “I would go back, even onto this ship [the Odyssey], if it was under new management and had actual true transparency and the resident experience in the forefront.”
For now, Odyssey has been taken to Singapore, where authorities have seized it on behalf of creditors. Thomas says there is still talk by some residents of trying to purchase the ship, although such an effort has already been rejected by lenders, and news reports indicate the ship will likely head to auction, where it could be sold for scrap.
The other three active residential cruise projects—in addition to a second ship, Ulyssia, being planned by the group behind The World, remain in the works, although it is unclear when and if they will actually sail.
Storylines founder and CEO Alister Punton said in a statement that his plans are moving forward, even though the company’s phone lines no longer work and many people have pulled out.
Punton, who gave enthusiastic interviews about his project two years ago, declined to talk on the phone after the collapse of Villa Vie and reports of problems with his Storylines project, a new luxury ship that aims to have everything from an onboard school and veterinary clinic to expansive wellness facilities. The phone line listed on his company’s website appears to have been disconnected and chatter on Facebook groups indicate the company’s Florida offices are also empty.
In a written statement emailed to Afar, however, Punton said that despite ongoing delays and social media chatter of Storyline’s demise, “We now have conditional financing covering the full shipbuilding contract price and are working towards satisfying the conditions and completing the financing. We will announce the closing date and name our funding partners once the financing has closed.”
For passengers who have backed out, he wrote that “most” of the requested deposit refunds have been paid, and payments beyond the $10,000 deposit are held in a trustee account and are “outside our control.”
The cost of a residential cruise
The pricing for residential cruises varies widely. Cabins on The World start at $3.4 million, while leasing options on Villa Vie were as low as $30,000 a year, plus monthly operating fees. Storylines’ cabins start at $600,000 for fractional ownership and go up to nearly $10 million for a four-bedroom accommodation. It has similar all-inclusive monthly operational fees, which range in price depending on the cabin.
And then there is the cost of the risk and uncertainty.
“Bringing the project to construction has taken much longer than we wanted or our residents expected. We recognize the frustration and uncertainty this has caused,” Punton wrote via email. He stated that the company “scaled back” administrative costs earlier this year and hopes to get back on track and win back residents when the funding is completed.
Meantime, residents of Villa Vie Odyssey are considering their next steps after being forced to disembark in Cambodia. Thomas, who was stranded in Istanbul by the collapse of Life at Sea, then in Belfast with the delayed launch of Odyssey, is currently in Cambodia, and working to get herself and her two cats, who lived onboard with her, back to the States.
“I believe I’m one of only three people in what I have nicknamed the ‘trifecta of homelessness,’” she said. “I’m not calling the whole thing a mistake, but yeah, I’ve been homeless in Europe, Asia, and the border between Europe and Asia.”
