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Given the amount of time and money passengers invest to sail on world cruises, the MSC cancellation is news in itself -- especially because the sailing in question was set to depart in less than three months. Other cruise lines, such as Carnival Corporation brands Holland America, Princess, Seabourn and Cunard, canceled their world voyages months ago. The cruise, which was originally scheduled to depart from Istanbul on Nov. 1 and visit nearly 400 ports, was scrapped earlier this month. One passenger told USA TODAY he and his wife were notified of the cancellation on Nov. 17, after they had already arrived in Istanbul with plans to board the ship on Nov. 11. Life at Sea Cruises had promised passengers of its inaugural three-year voyage the trip of a lifetime — they were supposed to set sail on Nov. 30, travelling to 382 ports across 140 countries over the span of three years.
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On March 1, cruise line Miray International, which owns Life at Sea, officially started accepting bookings for the first-of-its-kind world voyage aboard its MV Gemini ship, but later decided that the vessel was too small for the cruise. Finally, less than two weeks before its third and final departure date, the voyage was canceled altogether. According to the outlet, the cruise was postponed to Nov. 11 and relocated from Istanbul to Amsterdam shortly before its original Nov. 1 departure date. Miray and Life at Sea cruises are also offering customers who bought into the original cruise a separate, shorter free cruise next summer. "The decision was made after careful consideration and assessment to cancel the 2022 World Cruise, as it would not have been possible to carry it out due to there being too many ports still facing restrictions as a result of the pandemic," MSC said Thursday in its statement. But according to Joe Martucci, the nine months afforded by The Ultimate World Cruise means he and his wife can take things at their own pace.
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Both cruises are set to depart on Jan. 4, 2023, from Civitavecchia (the port for Rome). They will also make simultaneous stops in Genoa on Jan. 5, Marseille on Jan. 6 and Barcelona on Jan. 7 to pick up embarking passengers before diverging to complete their respective sailings. The marathon cruise is expected to make stops in seven continents, 65 countries, and over 150 ports of call before finally docking back at the trip's origin port in Miami. For passengers unable to commit to nine months of international travel, the cruise also offered four separate segmented trips ranging from 63 nights to 87 nights, depending on the segment.
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But if it's unable to sail on December 1, the company said it will offer buyers "alternative departure dates or expedited refunds." The sailing was originally going to take place on the MV Gemini ship, but Life at Sea later reportedly set its sights on the larger former AIDA Cruises ship AIDAaura. However, Celestyal Cruises announced earlier this month that it had acquired that vessel. The company also informed customers earlier this month that the retired cruise ship they planned to buy and renovate ahead of their departure had been bought by another company.
Life at Sea 3 Year World Cruise Cancelled
The ship was scheduled to set sail on November 30, with the original November 1 departure date having been rescheduled several times. Looking ahead to 2023, MSC Poesia was already scheduled to complete a world voyage. To make up for the missed one in 2022, MSC is adding a second world cruise on MSC Magnifica. According to the line's statement, this will be the first time any cruise brand has offered two world cruises at the same exact time. The nine-month cruise is surprisingly not the longest voyage planned in the world of cruising.
Beyond the firsthand accounts from the passengers, videos from onlookers reacting to the cruise's daily events have also gained attention on TikTok, with some garnering millions of views. Similarly, construction on Storylines' luxury residential vessel has been repeatedly postponed, prompting at least one buyer to ask for a refund. The embarkation of Victoria Cruises Line's residential Victoria Majestic — formerly a Holland America ship — was postponed from May 2023 to July 2024. Life at Sea Cruises is "facing challenges" because of investor withdrawals, according to a memo to customers written by its parent company's CEO and obtained by Business Insider. That, however, is little solace to those who sold or rented out their homes and ditched a bunch of their possessions ahead of the cruise.
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This week, Celebrity Cruises—which is actually a subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group—nixed four of its own planned trips on the Celebrity Eclipse, spokesperson for the company Susan Lomax confirmed to USA Today. Despite the fact that cruise ships are no longer required to abide by CDC guidelines, the agency has very much warned against the mode of travel in the wake of surging COVID-19 numbers. What was originally slated to be a 120-night world cruise underwent a pretty major itinerary change the night before it was to set sail.
The vessel that was believed to be heading to Life at Sea, the former AIDAuara, was sold in November to Celestyal Cruises. Set to depart on Nov. 1 and then delayed due to investment challenges, the company never acquired a ship.
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“While we’re in talks to acquire a similar vessel, if the December 1st sail is jeopardized, we offer alternative departure dates or expedited refunds,” Ugurlu wrote, according to Cruise Industry News. Guests who decide to go forward with the new itinerary will receive a 30 percent refund. They can also opt to do a partial sailing and receive a refund for days not sailed plus 15 percent off. Some would-be cruise passengers were in Istanbul, where the ship was originally scheduled to depart from, when they received news of the cancellation, per CNN. Passengers who signed up for the headline-making voyage — which was originally due to depart from Istanbul, Turkey, on Nov. 1 and visit seven continents, 135 countries and 375 ports — received news of its cancellation on Nov. 17, CNN reported. In March, Life at Sea Cruises announced it was accepting reservations for its three-year cruise around the world.
Residents would buy a three-year package for a little over $115,500 per person. This means at least some investors who had offered to help fund the purchase of the vessel likely have backed out. The company responded to a request for comment from BI with a statement that didn't address specific questions. Now, Life at Sea is promising customers repayment for the minimum US$115,500-per-person package, saying that monthly refund instalments would begin mid-December. It has also offered to pay accommodation until Dec. 1 and flights for those who had already made their way to the departure destination in Istanbul ahead of time. The decision was made as "part of our continuous review of our operating plans as we return to service," Lomax told the outlet.
Also set to be included were wellness and business centers, Starlink WiFi, and a hospital. But Life at Sea still has yet to acquire a vessel it would use for the around-the-world itinerary that was set to sail next week. And unless it's able to find one that doesn't require extensive refurbishments, this once-in-a-lifetime vacation could soon be called off.
The company also postponed its Vision of the Seas trip until March 7, 2022, and later added its Independence of the Seas sailing, which was due to depart on January 22, 2022, to its growing list of canceled cruises. Due to what Norwegian Cruise Line called “COVID-related circumstances,” the line delayed plans for five of its ships to resume service for the first time since the shutdown. In addition, three of the ships which already had welcomed back guests saw their next sailings axed.
Passengers said they were told its most recent sail date was Nov. 30, CNN reported last month, though the brand told the outlet at the time that there was not a confirmed departure date or place. Miray CEO Kendra Holmes also left earlier this month, according to Business Insider. To salvage this trip, Life at Sea is still exploring options to buy another ship, the statement said.
In October, delays in the ship's acquisition forced the company to postpone its launch twice. Amid this, Mediterranean cruise operator Celestyal announced in mid-November that it had purchased the AIDAAura, now renamed the Celestyal Discovery. Throughout 2023, Life at Sea has wooed travelers with its advertised three-year around-the-world cruise on the MV Lara, a ship.
The Life at Sea guest said he and his wife planned to stay in Istanbul until they get a full refund. “We’re at a complete loss as to what to do or where to go without having our money,” he said. Trade publications reported Miray would be acquiring the 20-year-old AIDAAura — which left Carnival Corporation's fleet in September — for its never-ending cruise. But "confidential clauses" prevented Life at Sea from publicly confirming its vessel of choice, Holmes told Business Insider in August. After this 1,095 days at sea, the vessel would continue its global circumnavigation on a different route every three years. Would-be travelers could pay extra to stay on board — potentially indefinitely.
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