Oct. 29, 2026
An “Endless” Cruise Has Left Resident Passengers Stranded In Cambodia
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RSS Feed A residential cruise ship sailing around the world only gave its passengers several hours notice to disembark the ship they called home and find another place to live. More than 200 people expected to live on the ‘Odyssey’ for at least another year and a half, many of whom sold their homes and invested hundreds of thousands of dollars to become permanent residents sailing around the world. The company announced it ran out of money for fuel because of rising oil prices due to the Iran war and had no other choice but to suspend operations. Villa Vie was one of a number of companies that marketed endless, around-the-world cruises, where passengers could live less expensively than on land. Now, those passengers are stranded in Cambodia, trying to figure out what to do next.
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00:00:02
Speaker 1: Hey there folks, it is Thursday, October 29th, and I'm starting this episode with a pop culture reference that I'm not that sure about and I might need some help on. Gilligan's Island. They were supposed to be gone for how long of a tour?
00:00:18
Speaker 2: Three hour tour.
00:00:19
Speaker 1: Okay, theirs went too long. We've got another boat now that got cut way short in its tour about a year and a half. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ, the story that is just unbelievable. These folks are supposed to be on a three and a half year journey. Set up residence on this ship to sail around the world. They just got kicked off their ship, out of their homes, and they are floating around in Cambodia somewhere right now.
00:00:54
Speaker 2: Yeah, they got eviction notices for a cruise ship home that they signed up for, paid for, and were anticipating. And they were a little bit more, obviously, than halfway through. I had never heard of this concept before. I actually think it's pretty cool.
00:01:09
Speaker 1: Love it.
00:01:10
Speaker 2: I think it's pretty awesome.
00:01:11
Speaker 1: Won't ever do it. Really, it is really interesting. This is a great idea. I guess you can't really, they haven't pulled it off. But this sounded amazing. But Rose, this is their home. permanent residence for these people.
00:01:27
Speaker 2: Yes. People paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to, instead of having, you know, your, your home and your garage and mowing your lawn, now you leave all that behind and you just stay on the move. And I mean, look, that's very appealing to a lot of people. It's kind of like the much elevated and worldly version of doing the RV thing across the mirror. I think a lot of people have those dreams of just being mobile and not having anything weighing you down. So, It's a cool fantasy that people were living out or at least They thought they were living out.
00:02:00
Speaker 1: This is an incredible story. We don't know what's going to happen to these folks exactly now or to this company, but we did get an update about this company, and it doesn't sound good. But yes, we are talking about this ship. The name is the MV Odyssey, and they took off robes from Belfast October 2024.
00:02:18
Speaker 2: Wow.
00:02:18
Speaker 1: They took off in October of 2024 with 203 passengers, 156 crew members, and this was supposed to be a three-person And a happier journey. Now, on their website, this didn't age well. But about this journey, they say, quote, On October 3rd, 2024, the Villa V Odyssey departed Belfast and began her continuous voyage around the world. And she hasn't stopped since.
00:02:46
Speaker 2: Or, yeah, they might need to update that.
00:02:49
Speaker 1: Yeah, they haven't. But I thought that was kind of, but Robes reading about this and you've seen their website and it's so beautifully done and explains things so well and has so many pictures and has your itinerary. It looks amazing. I was excited.
00:03:02
Speaker 2: I actually, you could have convinced me, maybe not three and a half years, but I would do a year.
00:03:06
Speaker 1: Not a problem. I'd have done a year with you. No problem. I would.
00:03:09
Speaker 2: I think we would have had a blast. And look, I'm now I'm kind of really interested, although these fuel costs are are a huge problem. 203 passengers on this ship, 156 crew members. Actually, that is a pretty incredible ratio. You basically have personal butlers for every person in that one.
00:03:26
Speaker 1: Well, you kind of... I mean, Rogue's given what it takes to run the ship. And also, I mean, the food, the bar, the cleaning, the... I mean, you got to have a full... I mean, it's a hotel. Not even a hotel. What do you call this thing? It is a.
00:03:38
Speaker 2: A floating city?
00:03:39
Speaker 1: It is incredible what they do. Now, the costs... I don't know. You see some of the rooms. Please don't. I mean, I've seen New York City apartments that are larger.
00:03:51
Speaker 2: Cruise ships notoriously have very small cabins, but it's not about being in your room. It's about enjoying the ship and, more importantly, enjoying the ports that they take you to all around the world. So, look, I was interested because, of course, one of the first questions I think everybody might ask is, how much does that cost? You have an option. You can be a permanent resident... And it's a wide-ranging amount of money that you would spend, I guess, based on the size of the cabin you would like and the amenities. But that would go from anywhere from $ 120, 000 to $ 440, 000. That's you essentially buying your house.
00:04:25
Speaker 1: Yeah. And this is where you live. You're a permanent resident. That's kind of incredible. Yeah.
00:04:31
Speaker 2: Again, for something that I didn't even know existed, you can be a five-year resident. That starts anywhere from $ 59, 000 to $ 99, 000. And then a three-year resident begins at $ 99, 000. And, you know, anytime you see starts at or begins at, you know, the actual cost is probably at least 20%, 25% higher.
00:04:50
Speaker 1: I like the idea that you can get some add-ons. I don't mind it so much. So 425 destinations around the world, 147 countries, 100-plus islands. The itinerary is incredible. Wow. Where they bounce around. It is amazing. They have the schedule essentially for months laid out. This many days we're at seashore. Then we're stopping at this point. We're in northern this. It is amazing. Whoever put this together.
00:05:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, do they switch out crews? I was just imagining if you're a worker, you can't possibly be expected to stay away from your family and your loved ones for that period of time, especially if you're a captain or someone who needs to have experience and skills. I would imagine you'd have some roots somewhere. So I'm guessing at different ports what they switch out some of the staff.
00:05:35
Speaker 1: I would hope so.
00:05:36
Speaker 2: I have so many questions about how this works.
00:05:38
Speaker 1: Well, it didn't. Here's the problem. It's fuel. They need a lot of it. So they explain the fuel costs this way, that on average, it costs them about $ 1, 800 a month per cabin to fuel this thing. So if you're a resident there, they pack it in some kind of way to your fee to where that $ 800 for your cabin covers the fuel costs. Makes sense. Well, robes lately, that ain't... This is astronomical.
00:06:08
Speaker 2: This is crazy, the difference. So they say, yes, a normal, what they were anticipating at least, the average fuel cost, $ 1, 800 a month. The fuel cost per cabin now, $ 6, 000 to $ 8, 000 a month. What is that? Three to four times what they anticipated or what the average was. And that's just something you can't anticipate. It's so crazy to think. that a war, and look, there's the cost of life, there's all sorts of things that are much more significant about what happened with our continuing war with Iran. But think about all the ripple effects and to think that all these people may have been saving up most certainly their whole lives. to do this once in a lifetime cruise around the world. And now they're all literally stranded in Cambodia because President Trump decided to go to war with Iran.
00:07:00
Speaker 1: You said something or pointed this out, and it is remarkable because we always see things on so big of a level. There are 200 people who are homeless because of that war. Fuel costs directly. I mean, nothing else to talk about. This is it. Fuel costs people their homes directly. It's wild. Nobody could anticipate this. No. I get it. But it's just the impacts it's having on people left and right are hard to see. Now, the company, didn't know about them, Villavie Residences. They're based in Florida. And how they describe themselves, Roves, is that they offer a new model of global living at sea. Combining the freedom of world travel with the comforts of home through long-term voyage experiences and residential ownership opportunities, Villa V empowers travelers to explore the world without compromise.
00:08:02
Speaker 2: Well, there was a lot of compromise going on, and none that they actually chose or agreed to. It was forced upon them.
00:08:09
Speaker 1: This is crazy, bro. They're out of their home. So the story got going this week. Everybody, they got to Cambodia, and they are reporting now because a lot of the people are speaking out. They got eight hours. They got a heads up. It's 6 a.m.
00:08:22
Speaker 2: Hours.
00:08:22
Speaker 1: Got to get the hell out of here by 2.
00:08:24
Speaker 2: Pack your stuff up and be gone. Good luck.
00:08:28
Speaker 1: In Cambodia, by the way. In Cambodia.
00:08:30
Speaker 2: And they said that they started to get wind of this, I believe, when they were in Vietnam, they said about a month ago, when they were talking about how they could possibly offset the growing costs of fuel. So they were probably, maybe they didn't expect this dramatic of a, hey, you know, get off the ship now kind of announcement. But I think maybe many of them were concerned and had concerns that, Their trip could be cut short.
00:08:59
Speaker 1: You know you're in trouble. The CEOs, the company folks came to the people who were living on the ship, the residents, and said, can y'all help us raise a million dollars? Because if we don't get this, we only got four days left of fuel.
00:09:16
Speaker 2: Wow.
00:09:17
Speaker 1: And the lights are going to go out and you're not going to have air conditioning. So they told them that. How they ended up getting that money, I do not know, but it continued for a little bit. Well, they slowed down, trying to save gas. Shit, is what they came up against.
00:09:32
Speaker 2: My goodness.
00:09:33
Speaker 1: This is what we saw. Yeah, I do want to share the statement. This is what the company put out, alerting us all to there being a problem.
00:09:42
Speaker 2: Yes, this is from Villa V. Residences. Today announced that it has suspended operations in Cambodia and as the company works to address extraordinary increases in fuel costs and evaluate restructuring and recapitalization alternatives. Fuel costs have risen sharply in the regions where the company has been operating on an equivalent per cabin basis. Monthly fuel expenses that historically averaged approximately $ 1, 800 has recently reached an estimated $ 6, 000 to $ 8, 000 in parts of Asia. The company cannot simply pass increases of that scale onto residents in And the resulting shortfall has placed its current operating model under unsustainable financial pressure.
00:10:26
Speaker 1: Can I ask you a question as a person who's saved up and been on this trip and your home was at risk? If they said, hey, can you give us eight grand a month for the rest of this trip? Would you have said, let me try to figure it out?
00:10:37
Speaker 2: I don't think that that's, I mean, do the math on that. What that's like $ 96, 000 a year more than you had been willing to pay. That's almost basically, it sounds like that's what some people paid for the whole trip. Now you want me to cough that up.
00:10:52
Speaker 1: Or the alternative is you lose your home. Right.
00:10:56
Speaker 2: And look, I think if people had the money, I think many of them might've been willing to do it. But, but how many people have that much money laying around?
00:11:04
Speaker 1: Just curious. obviously wouldn't have done it. If you're asking us for this money, you are terrible with money. So you'd feel like you're just throwing it down the drain.
00:11:12
Speaker 2: You start to wonder. Obviously, I don't know if this is something new, if this is something they've done before, but they have to calculate all of the unexpected possible costs that may come up. But I guess you could just not anticipate. I mean, these fuel costs, even here in this country, are astronomical, and no one could have seen it coming. When?
00:11:34
Speaker 1: Remember, when did they leave?
00:11:37
Speaker 2: 24, October 24.
00:11:39
Speaker 1: And when did the war start, right? The war started a year and a half after they left. How do you anticipate this?
00:11:45
Speaker 2: You can't.
00:11:46
Speaker 1: Right?
00:11:46
Speaker 2: So they went on to say this company, the company is working with residents to coordinate disembarkation and identify temporary living arrangements. Philadelphia Residences recognizes that this is a difficult and disruptive period for residents, crew members and employees and is working to support those affected as plans develop. Since the conflict began in late February, we have taken significant steps to reduce fuel consumption, including slowing the itinerary and spending more time in port. Those measures have not been enough to offset the extraordinary increase in fuel costs, and we have been unable to continue carrying the resulting operating losses. Yes, and so they went on to say passing the fuel increase onto residences is not realistic. Our focus now is on supporting residents, crew, and employees. Yeah, they say the work is ongoing. No outcome is assured.
00:12:45
Speaker 1: Can you park it long enough to save it up? You can't. If you stayed in one port, you've got to pay port fees.
00:12:50
Speaker 2: You've got to pay port fees.
00:12:51
Speaker 1: They've got that problem. I don't know. What can you do? Just float out there somewhere and save fuel? No.
00:12:58
Speaker 2: Are they trying to get folks temporary housing in Cambodia with the hopes that they could then possibly get back on the ship if fuel costs come down?
00:13:10
Speaker 1: No, that is not what we're hearing because the CEO is telling a different story about the direction this company appears to be going. Stay here, we will explain that. And Rogue, you're talking about these passengers that want to possibly find a place in Cambodia? No, no, no, no, no. They want to come back home. to America where most of them are from.
00:13:40
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone to Amy and TJ. We've heard about being stranded at sea. We've heard all sorts of cruise ship woes, but nothing quite like this 200 plus passengers, 156 crew members. literally stranded in cambodia and look this is shocking and terrible and awful because of rising fuel costs they can't offset the difference and so they've literally had to cut this three and a half year cruise short by a year and a half they've been out to sea essentially for two years now touring the world but they were guaranteed a lot more than.
00:14:17
Speaker 1: That well i mean you would You would want to know that, right? Make sure you guys aren't going to go under anytime soon. What are your financials and all these things? And they were as an incentive. I mean, it's a pretty good pitch. You're guaranteed 15 years. People who were investing were guaranteed. You had a minimum of 15 years and your investment here is not going to go away. Well, this is 15 minutes. Some of these folks have had no time on this ship. And some of these folks bought in. This is their permanent residence. They don't have another home to go to. They're going to have to go find families to hang with. Can they quickly find another apartment? They've got to get the hell back. Yes, this is a Florida-based company. Most of the folks here, they say, are Americans. The interviews I've seen, these are Americans. Wow.
00:15:01
Speaker 2: And so, yes, while some people might have rented or leased their cabins, some people were permanent residents. They purchased the cabins. I'm wondering, did you get insurance with that? I mean, I'm curious if there's any sort of ability to recoup anything.
00:15:16
Speaker 1: That's a very good question. What did they have to sign saying that we're at the mercy of sometimes the weather and the itinerary might deal? What did they have so they won't complain? But is this in their disclaimer of some kind? In case we run out of gas.
00:15:31
Speaker 2: In case we can't pay for the gas, in case fuel prices rise to such an extraordinary level, I wonder if they even anticipated any scenario in which something like this could have happened. Because you have people who are homeless now.
00:15:46
Speaker 1: They are quite literally homeless. And they're in Cambodia right now. Here the weather is lovely this time of year. No, they're hitting it 90 degrees, running around right now, trying to figure out what to do. They have complained that they're not getting the assistance that they would like from the company. The company says they're helping. It's just a mess. I hate this. I hate this for them. Babe, this is a hell of an investment in your life and your future. And it was just taken.
00:16:09
Speaker 2: Yes, because look, as you and I are talking about it, it sounds magical. It sounds like a fantasy. And then to think that it turned into a nightmare overnight. I mean, within a few weeks, it went from, I'm sure, being so incredibly exciting. Where are we going next? To where are we living now?
00:16:32
Speaker 1: They have to get back and have no homes. Yes, some people absolutely. And they've talked about it and been on interviews where they're saying they sold their homes to do this. Yes. What recourse do they have? Because if this shuts down, it's not like you can take your home with you. It's not like you can sell it to somebody who's looking for a home. It's just over. It's done.
00:16:53
Speaker 2: It's a complete loss.
00:16:55
Speaker 1: It's a complete loss.
00:16:56
Speaker 2: My goodness.
00:16:57
Speaker 1: Hate that for them. Robe's a hell of a story. We'll get more detail. Oh, excuse me. We'll probably get all kinds of stories trickling out.
00:17:04
Speaker 2: Oh, once these passengers start, and you know, as you mentioned, they've already started talking, but wait until they do get home. They will be shouting probably from the rooftops. And in terms of this company, what happens to them next?
00:17:16
Speaker 1: Yeah. CEO did a phone interview with CBS in which he says it could be pretty immediate that they're going into bankruptcy.
00:17:24
Speaker 2: That would make a lot of sense.
00:17:26
Speaker 1: So they're going to get some kind of protection. But yeah, he mentioned, he said the word, and they can expect it pretty soon.
00:17:34
Speaker 2: But it's so interesting to think, so the gas prices or the fuel prices they're saying went from $ 1, 800 a cabin to upwards of $ 8, 000 a cabin. I'm curious if that was what this cruise ship is experiencing, and they specifically reference fuel prices in Asia specifically, Have we seen those same kind of dramatic increases in plane fares or just in other, obviously, shipping costs? Anytime anything we consume or any place we want to go that requires fuel for planes, trains, automobiles, you would think if it's that astronomically higher. that we'd all be feeling the pain in a lot of other ways.
00:18:15
Speaker 1: What's the date here, baby?
00:18:16
Speaker 2: October 29th.
00:18:18
Speaker 1: I'm trying to look at the itinerary quickly because he made a specific mention of Asia, the complaint that they're having a tough time getting oil. Straight over moves, how it gets out and gets to them in particular, they have challenges. So if I go back here, I'm looking through May. They arrived in North Asia. in May and have been there. Then they moved to South Asia. Then Sri Lanka. So they are right in the midst of where the fuel is the most expensive for them. And it started early summer. So this has been going this direction, I guess. Wow.
00:18:56
Speaker 2: What a sad end to a voyage that had high hopes. And honestly, if it had gone well, you might have been able to convince me to jump on.
00:19:05
Speaker 1: No, the only problem, we would have had to see the same people over and over again. And you would try to make friends. And, you know, I'm just not, that's not my thing. We don't take cruises, for God's sake.
00:19:18
Speaker 2: Oh, you're friendlier than you give yourself credit for.
00:19:21
Speaker 1: It's that thing, you know, having to have a conversation with somebody at the airport bar. You don't have anybody to talk to. I don't have anybody to talk to. We're stuck here until our, so we might, that thing, if you're on a ship for three and a half years, you kind of run out of new people to meet.
00:19:37
Speaker 2: Well, it's like your neighbors. Like in a suburban environment, you're just out at sea in exotic world locations.
00:19:44
Speaker 1: I'm thinking right now, when you get off the elevator at our building, the number of doors you have to pass. before you get to our place, how do you like your neighbors?
00:19:55
Speaker 2: We don't really see them. We see one neighbor consistently, and that's it.
00:20:00
Speaker 1: How's that go? I mean, it's cool.
00:20:02
Speaker 2: She's running the marathon. You'll probably see her.
00:20:04
Speaker 1: Out on the route. That's not the neighbor I was thinking about.
00:20:07
Speaker 2: Oh, the other neighbor. Yes.
00:20:08
Speaker 1: Yes.
00:20:09
Speaker 2: We do have another neighbor. All right. To your point, we can move. And it looks like now everybody on that ship has to as well. But we'll keep on top of this story. We always appreciate you listening to us. I'm Amy Robach alongside TJ Holmes. We'll talk to you soon.
Speaker 1: Hey there folks, it is Thursday, October 29th, and I'm starting this episode with a pop culture reference that I'm not that sure about and I might need some help on. Gilligan's Island. They were supposed to be gone for how long of a tour?
00:00:18
Speaker 2: Three hour tour.
00:00:19
Speaker 1: Okay, theirs went too long. We've got another boat now that got cut way short in its tour about a year and a half. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ, the story that is just unbelievable. These folks are supposed to be on a three and a half year journey. Set up residence on this ship to sail around the world. They just got kicked off their ship, out of their homes, and they are floating around in Cambodia somewhere right now.
00:00:54
Speaker 2: Yeah, they got eviction notices for a cruise ship home that they signed up for, paid for, and were anticipating. And they were a little bit more, obviously, than halfway through. I had never heard of this concept before. I actually think it's pretty cool.
00:01:09
Speaker 1: Love it.
00:01:10
Speaker 2: I think it's pretty awesome.
00:01:11
Speaker 1: Won't ever do it. Really, it is really interesting. This is a great idea. I guess you can't really, they haven't pulled it off. But this sounded amazing. But Rose, this is their home. permanent residence for these people.
00:01:27
Speaker 2: Yes. People paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to, instead of having, you know, your, your home and your garage and mowing your lawn, now you leave all that behind and you just stay on the move. And I mean, look, that's very appealing to a lot of people. It's kind of like the much elevated and worldly version of doing the RV thing across the mirror. I think a lot of people have those dreams of just being mobile and not having anything weighing you down. So, It's a cool fantasy that people were living out or at least They thought they were living out.
00:02:00
Speaker 1: This is an incredible story. We don't know what's going to happen to these folks exactly now or to this company, but we did get an update about this company, and it doesn't sound good. But yes, we are talking about this ship. The name is the MV Odyssey, and they took off robes from Belfast October 2024.
00:02:18
Speaker 2: Wow.
00:02:18
Speaker 1: They took off in October of 2024 with 203 passengers, 156 crew members, and this was supposed to be a three-person And a happier journey. Now, on their website, this didn't age well. But about this journey, they say, quote, On October 3rd, 2024, the Villa V Odyssey departed Belfast and began her continuous voyage around the world. And she hasn't stopped since.
00:02:46
Speaker 2: Or, yeah, they might need to update that.
00:02:49
Speaker 1: Yeah, they haven't. But I thought that was kind of, but Robes reading about this and you've seen their website and it's so beautifully done and explains things so well and has so many pictures and has your itinerary. It looks amazing. I was excited.
00:03:02
Speaker 2: I actually, you could have convinced me, maybe not three and a half years, but I would do a year.
00:03:06
Speaker 1: Not a problem. I'd have done a year with you. No problem. I would.
00:03:09
Speaker 2: I think we would have had a blast. And look, I'm now I'm kind of really interested, although these fuel costs are are a huge problem. 203 passengers on this ship, 156 crew members. Actually, that is a pretty incredible ratio. You basically have personal butlers for every person in that one.
00:03:26
Speaker 1: Well, you kind of... I mean, Rogue's given what it takes to run the ship. And also, I mean, the food, the bar, the cleaning, the... I mean, you got to have a full... I mean, it's a hotel. Not even a hotel. What do you call this thing? It is a.
00:03:38
Speaker 2: A floating city?
00:03:39
Speaker 1: It is incredible what they do. Now, the costs... I don't know. You see some of the rooms. Please don't. I mean, I've seen New York City apartments that are larger.
00:03:51
Speaker 2: Cruise ships notoriously have very small cabins, but it's not about being in your room. It's about enjoying the ship and, more importantly, enjoying the ports that they take you to all around the world. So, look, I was interested because, of course, one of the first questions I think everybody might ask is, how much does that cost? You have an option. You can be a permanent resident... And it's a wide-ranging amount of money that you would spend, I guess, based on the size of the cabin you would like and the amenities. But that would go from anywhere from $ 120, 000 to $ 440, 000. That's you essentially buying your house.
00:04:25
Speaker 1: Yeah. And this is where you live. You're a permanent resident. That's kind of incredible. Yeah.
00:04:31
Speaker 2: Again, for something that I didn't even know existed, you can be a five-year resident. That starts anywhere from $ 59, 000 to $ 99, 000. And then a three-year resident begins at $ 99, 000. And, you know, anytime you see starts at or begins at, you know, the actual cost is probably at least 20%, 25% higher.
00:04:50
Speaker 1: I like the idea that you can get some add-ons. I don't mind it so much. So 425 destinations around the world, 147 countries, 100-plus islands. The itinerary is incredible. Wow. Where they bounce around. It is amazing. They have the schedule essentially for months laid out. This many days we're at seashore. Then we're stopping at this point. We're in northern this. It is amazing. Whoever put this together.
00:05:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, do they switch out crews? I was just imagining if you're a worker, you can't possibly be expected to stay away from your family and your loved ones for that period of time, especially if you're a captain or someone who needs to have experience and skills. I would imagine you'd have some roots somewhere. So I'm guessing at different ports what they switch out some of the staff.
00:05:35
Speaker 1: I would hope so.
00:05:36
Speaker 2: I have so many questions about how this works.
00:05:38
Speaker 1: Well, it didn't. Here's the problem. It's fuel. They need a lot of it. So they explain the fuel costs this way, that on average, it costs them about $ 1, 800 a month per cabin to fuel this thing. So if you're a resident there, they pack it in some kind of way to your fee to where that $ 800 for your cabin covers the fuel costs. Makes sense. Well, robes lately, that ain't... This is astronomical.
00:06:08
Speaker 2: This is crazy, the difference. So they say, yes, a normal, what they were anticipating at least, the average fuel cost, $ 1, 800 a month. The fuel cost per cabin now, $ 6, 000 to $ 8, 000 a month. What is that? Three to four times what they anticipated or what the average was. And that's just something you can't anticipate. It's so crazy to think. that a war, and look, there's the cost of life, there's all sorts of things that are much more significant about what happened with our continuing war with Iran. But think about all the ripple effects and to think that all these people may have been saving up most certainly their whole lives. to do this once in a lifetime cruise around the world. And now they're all literally stranded in Cambodia because President Trump decided to go to war with Iran.
00:07:00
Speaker 1: You said something or pointed this out, and it is remarkable because we always see things on so big of a level. There are 200 people who are homeless because of that war. Fuel costs directly. I mean, nothing else to talk about. This is it. Fuel costs people their homes directly. It's wild. Nobody could anticipate this. No. I get it. But it's just the impacts it's having on people left and right are hard to see. Now, the company, didn't know about them, Villavie Residences. They're based in Florida. And how they describe themselves, Roves, is that they offer a new model of global living at sea. Combining the freedom of world travel with the comforts of home through long-term voyage experiences and residential ownership opportunities, Villa V empowers travelers to explore the world without compromise.
00:08:02
Speaker 2: Well, there was a lot of compromise going on, and none that they actually chose or agreed to. It was forced upon them.
00:08:09
Speaker 1: This is crazy, bro. They're out of their home. So the story got going this week. Everybody, they got to Cambodia, and they are reporting now because a lot of the people are speaking out. They got eight hours. They got a heads up. It's 6 a.m.
00:08:22
Speaker 2: Hours.
00:08:22
Speaker 1: Got to get the hell out of here by 2.
00:08:24
Speaker 2: Pack your stuff up and be gone. Good luck.
00:08:28
Speaker 1: In Cambodia, by the way. In Cambodia.
00:08:30
Speaker 2: And they said that they started to get wind of this, I believe, when they were in Vietnam, they said about a month ago, when they were talking about how they could possibly offset the growing costs of fuel. So they were probably, maybe they didn't expect this dramatic of a, hey, you know, get off the ship now kind of announcement. But I think maybe many of them were concerned and had concerns that, Their trip could be cut short.
00:08:59
Speaker 1: You know you're in trouble. The CEOs, the company folks came to the people who were living on the ship, the residents, and said, can y'all help us raise a million dollars? Because if we don't get this, we only got four days left of fuel.
00:09:16
Speaker 2: Wow.
00:09:17
Speaker 1: And the lights are going to go out and you're not going to have air conditioning. So they told them that. How they ended up getting that money, I do not know, but it continued for a little bit. Well, they slowed down, trying to save gas. Shit, is what they came up against.
00:09:32
Speaker 2: My goodness.
00:09:33
Speaker 1: This is what we saw. Yeah, I do want to share the statement. This is what the company put out, alerting us all to there being a problem.
00:09:42
Speaker 2: Yes, this is from Villa V. Residences. Today announced that it has suspended operations in Cambodia and as the company works to address extraordinary increases in fuel costs and evaluate restructuring and recapitalization alternatives. Fuel costs have risen sharply in the regions where the company has been operating on an equivalent per cabin basis. Monthly fuel expenses that historically averaged approximately $ 1, 800 has recently reached an estimated $ 6, 000 to $ 8, 000 in parts of Asia. The company cannot simply pass increases of that scale onto residents in And the resulting shortfall has placed its current operating model under unsustainable financial pressure.
00:10:26
Speaker 1: Can I ask you a question as a person who's saved up and been on this trip and your home was at risk? If they said, hey, can you give us eight grand a month for the rest of this trip? Would you have said, let me try to figure it out?
00:10:37
Speaker 2: I don't think that that's, I mean, do the math on that. What that's like $ 96, 000 a year more than you had been willing to pay. That's almost basically, it sounds like that's what some people paid for the whole trip. Now you want me to cough that up.
00:10:52
Speaker 1: Or the alternative is you lose your home. Right.
00:10:56
Speaker 2: And look, I think if people had the money, I think many of them might've been willing to do it. But, but how many people have that much money laying around?
00:11:04
Speaker 1: Just curious. obviously wouldn't have done it. If you're asking us for this money, you are terrible with money. So you'd feel like you're just throwing it down the drain.
00:11:12
Speaker 2: You start to wonder. Obviously, I don't know if this is something new, if this is something they've done before, but they have to calculate all of the unexpected possible costs that may come up. But I guess you could just not anticipate. I mean, these fuel costs, even here in this country, are astronomical, and no one could have seen it coming. When?
00:11:34
Speaker 1: Remember, when did they leave?
00:11:37
Speaker 2: 24, October 24.
00:11:39
Speaker 1: And when did the war start, right? The war started a year and a half after they left. How do you anticipate this?
00:11:45
Speaker 2: You can't.
00:11:46
Speaker 1: Right?
00:11:46
Speaker 2: So they went on to say this company, the company is working with residents to coordinate disembarkation and identify temporary living arrangements. Philadelphia Residences recognizes that this is a difficult and disruptive period for residents, crew members and employees and is working to support those affected as plans develop. Since the conflict began in late February, we have taken significant steps to reduce fuel consumption, including slowing the itinerary and spending more time in port. Those measures have not been enough to offset the extraordinary increase in fuel costs, and we have been unable to continue carrying the resulting operating losses. Yes, and so they went on to say passing the fuel increase onto residences is not realistic. Our focus now is on supporting residents, crew, and employees. Yeah, they say the work is ongoing. No outcome is assured.
00:12:45
Speaker 1: Can you park it long enough to save it up? You can't. If you stayed in one port, you've got to pay port fees.
00:12:50
Speaker 2: You've got to pay port fees.
00:12:51
Speaker 1: They've got that problem. I don't know. What can you do? Just float out there somewhere and save fuel? No.
00:12:58
Speaker 2: Are they trying to get folks temporary housing in Cambodia with the hopes that they could then possibly get back on the ship if fuel costs come down?
00:13:10
Speaker 1: No, that is not what we're hearing because the CEO is telling a different story about the direction this company appears to be going. Stay here, we will explain that. And Rogue, you're talking about these passengers that want to possibly find a place in Cambodia? No, no, no, no, no. They want to come back home. to America where most of them are from.
00:13:40
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone to Amy and TJ. We've heard about being stranded at sea. We've heard all sorts of cruise ship woes, but nothing quite like this 200 plus passengers, 156 crew members. literally stranded in cambodia and look this is shocking and terrible and awful because of rising fuel costs they can't offset the difference and so they've literally had to cut this three and a half year cruise short by a year and a half they've been out to sea essentially for two years now touring the world but they were guaranteed a lot more than.
00:14:17
Speaker 1: That well i mean you would You would want to know that, right? Make sure you guys aren't going to go under anytime soon. What are your financials and all these things? And they were as an incentive. I mean, it's a pretty good pitch. You're guaranteed 15 years. People who were investing were guaranteed. You had a minimum of 15 years and your investment here is not going to go away. Well, this is 15 minutes. Some of these folks have had no time on this ship. And some of these folks bought in. This is their permanent residence. They don't have another home to go to. They're going to have to go find families to hang with. Can they quickly find another apartment? They've got to get the hell back. Yes, this is a Florida-based company. Most of the folks here, they say, are Americans. The interviews I've seen, these are Americans. Wow.
00:15:01
Speaker 2: And so, yes, while some people might have rented or leased their cabins, some people were permanent residents. They purchased the cabins. I'm wondering, did you get insurance with that? I mean, I'm curious if there's any sort of ability to recoup anything.
00:15:16
Speaker 1: That's a very good question. What did they have to sign saying that we're at the mercy of sometimes the weather and the itinerary might deal? What did they have so they won't complain? But is this in their disclaimer of some kind? In case we run out of gas.
00:15:31
Speaker 2: In case we can't pay for the gas, in case fuel prices rise to such an extraordinary level, I wonder if they even anticipated any scenario in which something like this could have happened. Because you have people who are homeless now.
00:15:46
Speaker 1: They are quite literally homeless. And they're in Cambodia right now. Here the weather is lovely this time of year. No, they're hitting it 90 degrees, running around right now, trying to figure out what to do. They have complained that they're not getting the assistance that they would like from the company. The company says they're helping. It's just a mess. I hate this. I hate this for them. Babe, this is a hell of an investment in your life and your future. And it was just taken.
00:16:09
Speaker 2: Yes, because look, as you and I are talking about it, it sounds magical. It sounds like a fantasy. And then to think that it turned into a nightmare overnight. I mean, within a few weeks, it went from, I'm sure, being so incredibly exciting. Where are we going next? To where are we living now?
00:16:32
Speaker 1: They have to get back and have no homes. Yes, some people absolutely. And they've talked about it and been on interviews where they're saying they sold their homes to do this. Yes. What recourse do they have? Because if this shuts down, it's not like you can take your home with you. It's not like you can sell it to somebody who's looking for a home. It's just over. It's done.
00:16:53
Speaker 2: It's a complete loss.
00:16:55
Speaker 1: It's a complete loss.
00:16:56
Speaker 2: My goodness.
00:16:57
Speaker 1: Hate that for them. Robe's a hell of a story. We'll get more detail. Oh, excuse me. We'll probably get all kinds of stories trickling out.
00:17:04
Speaker 2: Oh, once these passengers start, and you know, as you mentioned, they've already started talking, but wait until they do get home. They will be shouting probably from the rooftops. And in terms of this company, what happens to them next?
00:17:16
Speaker 1: Yeah. CEO did a phone interview with CBS in which he says it could be pretty immediate that they're going into bankruptcy.
00:17:24
Speaker 2: That would make a lot of sense.
00:17:26
Speaker 1: So they're going to get some kind of protection. But yeah, he mentioned, he said the word, and they can expect it pretty soon.
00:17:34
Speaker 2: But it's so interesting to think, so the gas prices or the fuel prices they're saying went from $ 1, 800 a cabin to upwards of $ 8, 000 a cabin. I'm curious if that was what this cruise ship is experiencing, and they specifically reference fuel prices in Asia specifically, Have we seen those same kind of dramatic increases in plane fares or just in other, obviously, shipping costs? Anytime anything we consume or any place we want to go that requires fuel for planes, trains, automobiles, you would think if it's that astronomically higher. that we'd all be feeling the pain in a lot of other ways.
00:18:15
Speaker 1: What's the date here, baby?
00:18:16
Speaker 2: October 29th.
00:18:18
Speaker 1: I'm trying to look at the itinerary quickly because he made a specific mention of Asia, the complaint that they're having a tough time getting oil. Straight over moves, how it gets out and gets to them in particular, they have challenges. So if I go back here, I'm looking through May. They arrived in North Asia. in May and have been there. Then they moved to South Asia. Then Sri Lanka. So they are right in the midst of where the fuel is the most expensive for them. And it started early summer. So this has been going this direction, I guess. Wow.
00:18:56
Speaker 2: What a sad end to a voyage that had high hopes. And honestly, if it had gone well, you might have been able to convince me to jump on.
00:19:05
Speaker 1: No, the only problem, we would have had to see the same people over and over again. And you would try to make friends. And, you know, I'm just not, that's not my thing. We don't take cruises, for God's sake.
00:19:18
Speaker 2: Oh, you're friendlier than you give yourself credit for.
00:19:21
Speaker 1: It's that thing, you know, having to have a conversation with somebody at the airport bar. You don't have anybody to talk to. I don't have anybody to talk to. We're stuck here until our, so we might, that thing, if you're on a ship for three and a half years, you kind of run out of new people to meet.
00:19:37
Speaker 2: Well, it's like your neighbors. Like in a suburban environment, you're just out at sea in exotic world locations.
00:19:44
Speaker 1: I'm thinking right now, when you get off the elevator at our building, the number of doors you have to pass. before you get to our place, how do you like your neighbors?
00:19:55
Speaker 2: We don't really see them. We see one neighbor consistently, and that's it.
00:20:00
Speaker 1: How's that go? I mean, it's cool.
00:20:02
Speaker 2: She's running the marathon. You'll probably see her.
00:20:04
Speaker 1: Out on the route. That's not the neighbor I was thinking about.
00:20:07
Speaker 2: Oh, the other neighbor. Yes.
00:20:08
Speaker 1: Yes.
00:20:09
Speaker 2: We do have another neighbor. All right. To your point, we can move. And it looks like now everybody on that ship has to as well. But we'll keep on top of this story. We always appreciate you listening to us. I'm Amy Robach alongside TJ Holmes. We'll talk to you soon.