Nine months after his wife passed away from brain cancer in September 2022, 82-year-old Rami Mina from Rochester, New York, set his sights on a global cruise.
The retired engineer sold his home in Temecula, California, and made a $5,000 deposit to Life at Sea Cruises—a three-year journey organized by Turkey-based Miray Cruises, which promised an extraordinary adventure covering 130,000 miles, 375 ports, and 135 countries for $29,999 per year. The cruise was scheduled to depart from Amsterdam on November 30, 2023.
“They marketed it at $30,000 per person, per year, targeting digital nomads. I signed up right away,” Mina shared with The Post. “I reserved a cabin.”
Mina remembered detailing his personal story in his Life at Sea Cruises application, mentioning his interest in adventure and the recent loss of his wife.
By May 2023, he was engaging with other potential passengers through an online forum for Life at Sea Cruises and even met a few in Southern California.
However, Mina’s dream cruise—and those of many others—never materialized. On November 17, 2023, Life at Sea Cruises announced that the voyage, set to leave soon, was canceled due to their inability to secure a ship.
At that time, some passengers were still in Istanbul, where the ship was initially supposed to depart on November 1, before the location was changed to Amsterdam.
The company announced it would process refunds in monthly installments from mid-December 2023 to February 2024.
Mina had submitted a $5,000 deposit for the inaugural three-year cruise, but it never launched.
In December 2023, Mikael Petterson, the former managing director of Life at Sea Cruises, left Miray Cruises and initiated the Villa Vie Residences’ Odyssey ship, which aims to circumnavigate the globe in 3.5 years, starting May 30, 2024, from Belfast.
Cabin prices range from $99,999 to $899,000, and passengers now have the option to purchase cabins outright instead of paying a daily rate.
“The truth is that Life at Sea was based on the Villa Vie business model that Miray mismanaged,” Petterson explained via email.
“When we realized the project was failing, we had no choice but to return to the original Villa Vie plan,” he added.
The Odyssey ship has faced ongoing delays due to technical issues, leaving passengers stranded in Belfast for three months.
Petterson stated they are awaiting final clearance to head to the Caribbean and South America, while some passengers, who sold their homes, remain in limbo.
Some of them have quit their jobs or sold their properties, Mina noted, expressing sympathy for his friends. “It feels like a house of cards. The ship looked fantastic in photos, but in reality, it’s disappointing. Nobody knows when they will depart. It’s reminiscent of the infamous Fyre Festival,” he remarked.
Mina narrowly avoided losing his money to both cruise operations. By the end of June 2023, just as he was about to pay $25,000 for Life at Sea, Petterson advised him to hold off.
“He said not to make any more payments—he needed to check on the ship. He later returned, saying the ship was too small, and suggested postponing the payment,” Mina recalled.
By June 2023, Petterson had left Miray Cruises, according to Mina.
“They knew the ship wasn’t suitable for a world cruise. They admitted it was too small and needed to change it. Miray ultimately went under,” Mina said.
Before Miray failed, Mina had requested a refund and successfully retrieved his $5,000.
By January 2024, 78 passengers who had paid for the Life at Sea cruise sent a letter to the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, claiming that Miray Cruises had defrauded them of millions, having collected around $16 million for a ship that was never acquired.
Mina decided to change course and, on December 20, 2023, embarked on a 137-night world cruise aboard The Viking Sky, with stops planned in Sydney, Haifa, Istanbul, Auckland, Bali, Ho Chi Minh City, Yangon, and Mumbai through May 2024.
While he travels the world, Mina’s friends who are locked into the Villa Vie Odyssey remain stuck in Belfast with no clear departure date.
“[The passengers are] extremely doubtful and apprehensive. They are unhappy, especially after being promised their dream vacation,” Mina said.
“I can’t imagine being in a situation where everything is beyond my control.”
Petterson acknowledges the challenges faced by Villa Vie Residences passengers but remains hopeful.
“Our residents have endured a lot, starting with the troubles of Life at Sea and now significant delays in Belfast. Nonetheless, they have persevered and are eager for the next chapter of their lives.
“It wasn’t an ideal start, but in the end, it will all be worth it. I believe that wholeheartedly,” he concluded.