‘Trip of a lifetime’ planned by those who paid for a cabin a three-year cruise around the world ended abruptly after the company Miray Cruises recognized that You don’t have a boat and cancel the departure, a sector media reported this Sunday.
Life at Sea, a new brand of the Miray Cruises group, promised the experience of a lifetime on a cruise ship that was to set sail from Istanbul, Turkey. on November 1, but the departure date was postponed until the 11th of this month, a postponement that could not be met either.
The last date established for departure was next November 30, from Amsterdam (Netherlands), but, less than two weeks before departure, the company informed passengers that the cruise had been cancelled.
“Miray Cruises has officially canceled the three-year ‘Life at Sea’ world cruise,” Cruise Industry News magazine reported today, indicating that the ship committed to Life at Sea, the former ‘AIDAaura’, was apparently sold in November to another company, Celestyal Cruises.
Several passengers who booked some of the 111 cabins sold are still in Istanbul, since they arrived there before the original departure date.
And others say they have nowhere to return, since “they sold or rented their houses before the trip around the world, in addition to getting rid of their possessions,” picked up by the CNN television channel.
The vast majority of travelers not only spent tens of thousands of dollars to realize their lifelong dream, But now they face a wait of several months to get their money back.
The company indicated, according to the aforementioned media, that it will pay the payments in monthly installments, starting in mid-December. He has also offered to take care of accommodation until December 1, as well as return flights home for anyone is now stranded in Istanbul, but “some say they have no homes to return to.”
‘Life at Sea’ CEO Kendra Holmes, rHe announced to the company in November and recorded a video for passengers in which he admitted that the cruise was not going to sail, according to CNN.
Last March, when this long-duration cruise proposal was launched, ““Bookings are off to a spectacular start, with over 1,300 requests in the first 24 hours,” said then Mikael Petterson, managing director of the new company and from which he separated last May.
‘Life at Sea’ promised a journey of 130,000 nautical miles, equivalent to 240,000 kilometers, on a journey that included 140 countries and 7 continents, with stops in 382 ports and access to 13 places declared wonders of the world.
Barcelona, Miami, Rio de Janeiro, Antarctica and Seoul were some of the places I would visit.
The Life at Sea website is still operational, the possibility of cabin reservation is open and the counter is active with the countdown for the departure of the cruise, on November 30.
So, A cabin on deck 6 costs $81,639 per person per year, with a reserve deposit of $124,908.
Some passengers told CNN his “surprise and dismay at the cancellation” of the cruise, since they had even sold their houses or closed businesses to embark on this adventure.
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Passengers were promised meals, entertainment and recreational activities, also “connectivity” and amenities and the functionality to be able to work on board.
The ship included a 24-hour on-call hospital with free medical visits, learning and enrichment classes, and the opportunity to make a positive impact through volunteer and philanthropic initiatives.