The luxury cruise liner stranded in Belfast for four months is returning to the city only hours after it set sail to cheers and applause from the 125 passengers who thought when they departed on Monday they were finally on their way around the globe.
The Ville Vie Odyssey only made it a few miles out of Belfast lough, however, before it dropped anchor again for the night. Passengers were told it would finally depart at 11pm on Tuesday.
The BBC reported that the vessel would be returning to port to complete some final paperwork.
Unexpected repairs that began in May kept the liner in port, forcing its passengers, most of them from the US, to while away four months in Airbnb rentals, exploring Europe independently or accepting a holiday in the Canaries courtesy of the ship’s owners.
‘Perpetual’ cruise to leave Belfast after passengers wait four months in port
After a couple of false starts on Monday, the ship was readied for boarding shortly before 9pm to scenes of joy in the cruise terminal where its passengers had spent hours wondering whether they would finally be starting their dream voyage.
Passenger John Frim said on Tuesday that he was a bit confused by the situation but was “happy to be home” and have slept in his “own bed” onboard the vessel for the first time.
Donna Martemucci told the BBC: “Another day to explore a lovely city. All good.”
The Marine Tracker website showed the Ville Vie Odyssey at anchor north of Bangor, County Down, in the mouth of Belfast lough. Belfast Harbour’s website showed it scheduled to set sail at 11pm on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters at the cruise terminal on Monday, the chief executive of Villa Vie Residences, Mike Petterson, said he was “a little stressed” as efforts were made to clear “a few last-minute things”.
“It’s administrative paperwork. We needed the right person to press the button, at the end of the day. It’s been done and we’re putting the vessel in motion right now. The harbour master has been in direct contact with the MD. We’ve been expecting this outcome for hours.”
He said departure was expected just before midnight, when the terminal closes.
“The good news is that we have complete clearance and we will be out of here very, very, very soon.”
Asked how would he remember Belfast, Petterson said “your summer is horrible” and “you can’t cook to save your lives, but you do know how to drink”.
Passenger Andy Garrison, 75, who had arrived later, in August, for his trip, said the passengers had been resilient while waiting for the repairs to be completed.
He said he liked Belfast a lot but was “so happy to be sailing away”.
“I’m ready to go. We stop briefly in Brest, France, and then we go to Spain, we go to Portugal, and we head across the ocean to go to the Bahamas, where we stay for a while in the Bahamas.”
Cyndi Grzybowski, 69, from Appling, Georgia, said she had always wanted to see the world and was excited about the start of the voyage.
Gian Perroni, from Vancouver in Canada, and Angela Harsanyi, from Colorado in the US, got to know each other and became engaged while they waited for the cruise to begin.
Gian Perroni and Angela Harsanyi. Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA
“My better half passed away three years ago so this is giving me an opportunity to get off the farm, literally, and see the world, which is something that I have wanted to do,” Harsanyi told reporters on Monday.
The luxury cruise offers rentals from 35 to 120 days, or villas can be purchased ranging from £90,000 to £260,000. Owning a villa onboard guarantees the room for a minimum of 15 years, but the ownership stays valid for the entire operation of the ship.
