The residential cruise around the world, Vila Vie starts

• Villa Vie Residences’ residential cruise ship, Odyssey, set sail from Belfast, Northern Ireland.
• The ship plans to circle the world once every three and a half years.
• Odyssey’s departure was delayed 4 months amid mechanical and certification issues.

After a dramatic four-month delay, Villa Vie’s residential cruise ship has finally set sail on its round-the-world journey.

The company, called Odyssey, has promised its residents a cruise that will stop at 425 destinations in 147 countries for the first time around the world. Travelers are set to see Europe, Asia, Australia, North and South America and Africa – all while living in a floating condominium equipped with the comforts of a traditional cruise.

Villa Vie’s more than 30-year-old vessel has been stuck in Belfast, Northern Ireland, amid mechanical and certification issues – until now. The vessel has left port and is now in the Irish Sea. It is not yet clear where he will sail after Belfast.

Representatives for Villa Vie did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Villa Vie Odyssey joins the more than 20-year-old The World as one of the few to embark on the ambitious circumnavigation voyage, marking a breakthrough in the notoriously tumultuous residential cruise industry.

Over the past few years, startups promising floating condominiums have been plagued by delays and financial concerns.

In November 2023, Life at Sea Cruises canceled its three-year round-the-world voyage just two weeks before its scheduled departure after failing to secure sufficient funding to purchase a ship. In July, the company filed for bankruptcy.

Endless cruise startup Storylines said it is building its own luxury residential ship. However, its launch was delayed until 2027, and former employees, consultants and investors told BI in 2023 that they began to doubt the ship would ever be built.