Passengers stranded after three-year cruise abruptly cancelled
When Life At Sea announced their world-first three-year voyage in early 2023, many were quick to jump at the opportunity to spend the next years of their life onboard.
People from around the globe sold their homes and belongings to fork out the hefty $180,000 price tag to spend 36 months travelling the world, with their once-in-a-lifetime voyage set to kick off in November.
But now, as their departure date loomed, Life At Sea have left passengers stranded after abruptly cancelling the trip in its entirety.
Life at Sea Cruises was scheduled to depart from Istanbul, Turkey on November 1st but departure was relocated and delayed twice to November 30th, before passengers were informed on November 17th the cruise was off, according to CNN.
The news outlet reported that the ship that was destined to be the vessel of the three-year journey was bought by another company just one day before the voyage was cancelled.
The owner of Life at Sea Cruises’ parent company Miray Cruises, then confirmed they couldn’t afford the ship because investors had pulled out “due to unrest in the Middle East” – but suggested they were working on getting another ship and a new departure date.
The idea that the vessel would be replaced filled some travellers with hope they would still be embarking on their three-year adventure, before CEO of Miray Cruises was forced to clarify: “In case we weren’t clear, the Life at Sea cruise trip is cancelled.”
Passengers were devastated by the news, with those who thought they had locked in the next three years of their lives telling CNN they felt “incredibly sad”, “angry” and “betrayed”.
“I had the next three years of my life planned to live an extraordinary life, and now [I have] nothing,” said one cruiser.
“I don’t think they will ever understand how much damage they’ve caused us,” said another.
The more than $180,000 three-year trip had been celebrated by big cruising fans and called a “nightmare” and “claustrophobic” by critics across social media.
The company’s website is still advertising the cruise as normal, with a countdown stating on Monday it was three hours “until we go for an adventure of a lifetime”.
Image credits: Life At Sea