Cruise Ship Abandons 3.5-Year Voyage Over Fuel Costs

Sihanoukville, Cambodia. On October 27, Villa Vie Odyssey made an unscheduled stop and did not continue. About 203 passengers received roughly seven hours' notice to disembark. The ship is operated by Villa Vie Residences of Florida, and was on a planned 3.5-year world voyage.

Fuel costs ended the trip. Monthly per-cabin costs in Asia had risen from around $1,800 to between $6,000 and $8,000, Al Jazeera reported, as the Hormuz crisis drove prices across the region. Villa Vie Residences said it could no longer sustain the voyage.

The Hormuz crisis has reshaped shipping costs across Asia since late October. Iran closed the strait, sending nearly 500 vessels into congestion off its approaches. A bulk carrier called Cape Dao sank in the Gulf of Oman three weeks after a projectile struck it near Hormuz, the third ship lost near the strait since February 2026.

The 156 crew members were also put ashore at Sihanoukville. Villa Vie Residences said it was making arrangements for passengers.