Key Aspects:
- Villa Vie Residences’ Odyssey has departed Sihanoukville, Cambodia, and is now en route to Singapore.
- The ship is now under the control of its lender rather than Villa Vie Residences, and its fate is still unconfirmed.
- A plan from residents to purchase and operate the ship also failed when additional debt was disclosed.
Villa Vie Residences’ beleaguered ship, Odyssey, has departed Cambodia and is en route to Singapore, but not because of the residential cruise company’s directives. According to CBS News, the ship is now under the control of its creditor, effectively repossessed following the financial difficulties the company is facing.
The company reportedly sent a message to residents updating them on the situation, but maintaining an optimistic tone about what may be next for Odyssey.
“The lender has taken possession of the ship, but that does not mean the Odyssey’s future has been decided,” the company said. “No sale has been scheduled. We believe there is time to bring forward a viable plan and are working to do that.”
Cruise Hive reported on Tuesday, October 27, 2026 that the ship had abruptly ceased operations to be laid up in Sihanoukville, Cambodia. At that time, all remaining residents onboard the 24,344-gross ton ship were instructed to debark and were given just a day to collect their belongings and leave.
Now, Cruise Hive’s ship tracker confirms that Odyssey is on the move, showing Singapore as her destination. The ship is only moving at 7 knots (8 miles per hour), however, well below her maximum cruising speed of 17 knots (20 miles per hour).
In the months leading up to her operational pause, residents had reported the ship moving at slower speeds as a fuel conservation measure. Rising fuel costs were cited by the cruise line as part of the reason for the pause.
“We have taken significant steps to reduce fuel consumption, including slowing the itinerary and spending more time in port,” the cruise line explained in a release on October 27. “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.“
Multiple unconfirmed sources have reportedly noted that the ship may now be auctioned off, though the company has not acknowledged that possibility.
“This is a 30- to 90-day process, and, during that process, we have time to get a restructure done,” said Mike Petterson, the company’s founder and executive chairman, to CBS News.
Residents Cannot Purchase the Ship
Another possible recovery plan has also failed as a group of 169 Odyssey residents did pledge to attempt to purchase the vessel, but that attempt has now been denied by the lender, Sagar Capital.
A letter from Sagar Capital posted to a Facebook page for the ship paints a dire picture and it may not be possible to reach another financial agreement to keep the ship operating.
“We were given access to Villa Vie’s records only last Saturday. Our review found substantially more debt than we had anticipated,” the letter noted.
Furthermore, the letter explained that a Chapter 11 bankruptcy declaration could cost roughly $3 million for the first 60 days, prohibitively high for such a proceeding to move forward without unacceptable risk to the ship’s residents.
What Will Happen to Odyssey?
At the moment, there is no confirmed plan in place for Odyssey. While the ship is moving to Singapore, that may only be a temporary stop if the vessel is auctioned. There is no ship-breaking yard in Singapore, but any buyer would then move the ship to an appropriate facility for scrapping, if that is the eventual outcome.
It is also possible the ship may be sold to another cruise line that could refurbish the vessel for further service. Odyssey first entered service in 1993 as Crown Dynasty for the now-defunct Crown Cruise Line, and has moved to multiple operators over the past 33 years, including Majesty Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines.
