Pensioners bet on a lifetime cruise. They ended up in a Cambodian scam town

{"text":[[{"start":9.5,"text":"As the sun rose over the tropical port of Sihanoukville, the 200 passengers on the “never-ending” Odyssey retirement cruise were woken by the captain’s booming voice telling them over loudspeakers it was time to abandon ship."}],[{"start":23.04,"text":"The Odyssey’s residents — as they call themselves — had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on long-term and even permanent lodging on the cruise ship. But this week, they were dumped in a Cambodian town best known as a haven for organised crime."}],[{"start":37.38,"text":"“We signed up for forever and were looking forward to travelling around the world, but here we are, stuck in scam central,” said Randy Cassingham, 67, who sold his Colorado home on 40 acres of land to finance the voyage with his wife Kit, a 72-year-old life coach."}],[{"start":54.68,"text":"Villa Vie Residences, the US company behind the Odyssey, has blamed sharp fuel price rises following the war in the Middle East for aborting the cruise after just two years."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":65.02,"text":"But passengers believe the problems go back much further. “The fuel cost did not cause the problems, it revealed them,” said Paul Fishman, another long-term resident."}],[{"start":75.14,"text":"Like a baby boomer Fyre Festival — the 2017 luxury music event that has become a byword for high-profile flop — the Odyssey’s ill-fated voyage has been meticulously chronicled by passengers on social media, blogs and podcasts."}],[{"start":90.34,"text":"The problems began before the voyage even started. Passengers mustering to board the Odyssey in 2024 were stranded in Belfast for months while Villa Vie carried out repairs to the 30-year-old vessel."}],[{"start":102.18,"text":"But many passengers look back fondly on their time in Northern Ireland. “Everyone recognised us when we went in the pubs — they called us the boat people,” recalled Kit Cassingham. “It was much nicer than here.”"}],[{"start":114.46,"text":"Since the Odyssey set sail, passengers have frequently complained about poor WiFi connections, air conditioning and heating problems, maintenance issues and cancelled port calls. The ship had no television for the final three months, forcing passengers to stream content over a temperamental internet connection."}],[{"start":131.34,"text":"Passengers paid between $120,000 and $440,000 upfront to buy cabins and then paid monthly fees of between $3,500 and $11,000 for ongoing costs."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":144.18,"text":"The Cassinghams paid $370,000 for their cabin and ongoing fees of $8,000, which dropped by $2,000 a month after they bought shares in the business."}],[{"start":155.74,"text":"As Villa Vie’s costs mounted, the company asked passengers to make one-off payments to reduce their monthly fees."}],[{"start":161.98,"text":"“That was the first inkling we got that things weren’t right,” said Paul Montoya, 68, an entrepreneur from Wyoming, who has run businesses as diverse as radio stations and bed-and-breakfasts. “It was clear they were using the money to meet their rising operational costs, but it meant they received less regular maintenance income.”"}],[{"start":180.9,"text":"Sharply rising fuel costs this year exacerbated the problems. Villa Vie said its monthly fuel costs per cabin went from about $1,800 to as much as $8,000. The company asked passengers to pay an extra $2,000 a month and tried unsuccessfully to raise new funding from outside investors."}],[{"start":199.86,"text":"Villa Vie attempted to manage fuel consumption by altering the ship’s itinerary and staying in ports for longer, passengers said. It called in at Singapore on four separate occasions because that was where fuel was cheapest, they said."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":213.54,"text":"At other ports, passengers were asked to contribute thousands of dollars to pay for fuel to continue the journey. Passengers also made donations to the crew, who they said went unpaid for months at a time."}],[{"start":225.18,"text":"“That is what I find most shocking,” said Lynn Montoya, 64, who has run companies by herself and with her husband Paul. “The number one rule in business is you always pay your staff.”"}],[{"start":236.02,"text":"Passengers are now stranded in the Cambodian resort town of Sihanoukville, once a sleepy backpacker haunt that has in recent years become a haven for Chinese casinos and scam compounds."}],[{"start":247.86,"text":"Sihanoukville was this week named by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think-tank as one of south-east Asia’s four main criminal hubs, citing cyber-scams, sex trafficking and money laundering. It said the town was also a major transit point for synthetic drugs, cocaine and smuggled wildlife products."}],[{"start":266.34,"text":"About a quarter of Odyssey’s passengers are now staying at Sihanoukville’s Independence Hotel, where the bar — visited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis during Sihanoukville’s brief flourishing in the 1960s — has become a meeting spot as they plot their next moves."}],[{"start":282.54,"text":"Some are already making their way to Phnom Penh to fly home. Others plan to stay in south-east Asia, where the cost of living is much lower, as they assess whether they can recoup their money from Villa Vie."}],[{"start":293.3,"text":"The company did not respond to requests for comment on Friday. On Tuesday, Villa Vie said its focus was now “on supporting residents, crew and employees while we work toward restructuring and recapitalisation over the next 60 days”."}],[{"start":308.26,"text":"“That work is ongoing, and no outcome is assured,” it said."}],[{"start":312.38,"text":"Villa Vie is not the only company offering long-term cruises that has struggled. In 2023, a three-year voyage offered by Miray Cruises was aborted after it ran into operational and financial difficulties."}],[{"start":324.5,"text":"A cruise business that operates under the Ritz-Carlton brand — though unaffiliated with the hotel group — has also suffered heavy losses."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":332.38,"text":"The newcomers are trying to offer more affordable versions of The World, the luxury “liveaboard” that has been sailing for 24 years."}],[{"start":339.9,"text":"Despite having space for 650 passengers, the Odyssey’s resident population never exceeded about 350. They included retired firefighters and police officers, former finance professionals, IT workers and published authors. Most were American, with a smattering of Europeans, Australians and South Africans."}],[{"start":359.2,"text":"Most residents were in their sixties and seventies, and would pass the time at sea playing board games and pickleball, hanging out by the pool and enjoying movie afternoons. Over time, some of the more creative residents began putting on amateur dramatic nights and hosting lectures."}],[{"start":374.66,"text":"Port visits offered an opportunity to experience different cultures and savour the local nightlife. On one occasion, the Cassinghams went onshore to the cinema to watch the Hollywood blockbuster The Odyssey, based on Homer’s epic of a long voyage fraught with disaster. “It was all very relatable,” said Kit."}],[{"start":392.26,"text":"The couple have been simultaneously dealing with a cancer diagnosis for Randy. “People ask if the cancer is stressful for us,” Kit said. “But it’s nothing compared to the ship.”"}],[{"start":408.82,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1793415765_3576.mp3"}