'Cursed' cruise ship facing new issues: 'Awoken by smell of poop in hundreds of unflushed toilets'

belfast, northern ireland - The Villa Vie Odyssey cruise ship, which finally departed from Belfast after a four-month delay, is now dealing with a sewage smell issue that has left passengers dissatisfied.

The cruise by Villa Vie Residences has been a complete disaster so far. The journey around the world came to a halt on May 30 due to technical issues in Belfast. Passengers had to disembark and stay in hotels and other accommodations in the city. On September 26, the ship was supposed to finally depart, but a new problem arose. The ship was docked at the Harland and Wolf shipyard - famous for building the Titanic - but that company went bankrupt the week before. It was only a few days later, when the paperwork of Harland and Wolf was in order, that passengers were allowed to board again.

The passengers were ecstatic. 'Only smiling people here,' said one of them to the BBC. 'I feel like I've just given birth to a baby,' said the owner of the cruise company. However, it soon became apparent that not all problems on board had been fixed. Passengers complained about toilet flushing issues, as reported by British media. It felt 'like we were in the third world,' they said.

'We woke up to the smell of poop in hundreds of unflushed toilets,' said passenger Joe Rhodes on the Substack platform. 'Nothing on this trip has gone as it should have. Everything, from the food and furniture to the TV channels and pools, seems to be less than what was promised.' The plumbing issues have since been resolved.

The cruise lasts a total of about 3.5 years and stops in 147 countries. A ticket comes at a high cost, with passengers needing to pay from around 100,000 euros to purchase a cabin. It is also possible to rent a part of the journey starting from 2,200 euros per month.