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Stranded cruise ship passengers who left Belfast yesterday after months of delays have been thrown into limbo again after the luxury vessel was forced to turn back.
The Villa Vie Odyssey left Northern Ireland yesterday after being stranded for months at the port.
Its 125 passengers – mainly from North America – finally took off yesterday after patiently waiting during repairs on vessel.
But now the unlucky cruiser has made a U-turn back to port – just hours into the voyage.
CEO of Villa Vie Residences Mikael Petterson got a kiss from an ecstatic passenger as they got ready to take off yesterday (Picture: Liam McBurney/PA Wire)
This is thought to be due to some missing paperwork, the BBC reports.
It is scheduled to return to Belfast Harbour at about 1.30pm today.
Now passengers face another anxious wait to find out when they will get to enjoy the adventure they paid handsomely for.
Passengers either rent their suites for 35 to 120 days or buy them for anything from £90,000 up to £260,000.
The cruise ship was meant to set sail in May before it was marooned after breaking down.
Many of the passengers were unfazed about the long wait in Northern Ireland.
Two guests even met and fell in love during the unexpected delay and have already become engaged.
Gian Perroni, from Vancouver in Canada, and Angie Harsanyi, from Colorado in the US, had both bought cabins and neither were looking for a relationship.
But the pair started walking through Belfast on their way to and back from the ship, and realised how compatible they were.
Gian said the two were ‘made for each other’, adding: ‘We found our soulmates.’
Others praised the ‘hospitality and kindness’ they received in Belfast while getting to know their temporary home during the prolonged delay.
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