The luxury cruise ship that was stranded in Northern Ireland for four months finally set off for its world voyage — just to almost immediately be forced back to port Tuesday.
The Villa Vie Residences’ Odyssey ship, which had been scheduled to depart Belfast in May before it was plagued with repair issues, set sail on its three-year trip late Monday night — with excited passengers shouting “Hip, hip hooray!”
However, within just hours the ship was forced to backtrack and return to dock Tuesday because final pieces of paperwork weren’t completed, the BBC reported.
The liner, which docked off the coast overnight with some 125 passengers on board, is set to arrive back in Belfast’s harbor at about 1:30 p.m. local time before departing again at 11:30 p.m.
“Not sure exactly what’s happening but we are going to be docking back in Belfast today and then leaving later on,” one of the passengers, Mary Ann Demsar, told the outlet, adding that the renewed delays were “nerve-racking.”
“There is some paperwork that still needs to be done.”
She added: “It was very nice to see the lights of Belfast in the distance.”
Hours earlier, scores of smiling passengers were spotted walking up the gangplank – including some who were waving and shouting “Goodbye Belfast.”
The ship’s delays – primarily caused by issues with the vessel’s rudders and gearbox – meant some passengers had spent months in limbo living on the docked cruise ship.
After first encountering the technical issues, the cruise liner sent the majority of passengers off on other cruises, or flew them home to wait for a new departure date.
But a handful were unable to leave – including some who had sold their homes so they could set sail.
The voyage, billed as the first round-the-world residential cruise, allows passengers to buy a cabin outright or pay as you go for the various legs of the three-year cruise.
The cost of a cabin ranges from $99,999 to $899,000, according to the cruise’s website.
If the ship hadn’t faced 17 weeks of delays, the cruise should have been in the Bahamas by now.
