The luxury cruise liner stranded in Belfast for four months remains anchored off the coast of Northern Ireland after two failed attempts to finally set sail on a round-the-world voyage.
The Villa Vie Odyssey was originally due to embark on a “perpetual” three-and-a-half-year trip on 30 May but was marooned after requiring repairs, leaving passengers stranded in Belfast over summer.
The 125 passengers were finally allowed onboard on Monday night with the expectation they were finally off on their voyage but the ship soon anchored a few miles away in the mouth of Belfast Lough where it has remained since.
The ship’s operator, Villa Vie Residences, confirmed on Tuesday there was still “some administrative paperwork to be finished before leaving the Belfast area” with a new departure scheduled for Tuesday night at 11pm. The ship was still there on Wednesday morning.
The liner, which is 31 years old and had been idle for four years before being taken over by the cruise company, is expected to depart on Wednesday afternoon, according to the Belfast harbour website.
Passengers who have spent the past two nights onboard told the BBC the mood was positive. Gian Perroni and Angie Harsanyi said the ship was “just waiting for last certification to come through”.
Others waved goodbye to the Northern Ireland city they had become so familiar with on Monday night, bringing souvenirs and memories with them.
One man, who carried a model of the Titanic onboard on Monday, said he enjoyed Belfast but was ready for the rest of the cruise.
A woman from Georgia said she had always wanted to see the world, but thanked Belfast for hosting them, calling it “a wonderful place”.
One pair of would-be voyagers became engaged while waiting for the cruise to begin.
On Tuesday, John Frim, a passenger, said he was a bit “confused” by the situation but was “happy to be home” and to have slept in his “own bed” onboard the vessel for the first time.
Another traveller, Andy Garrison, 75, said passengers had been “resilient” while waiting for the repairs to be completed. While he said he liked Belfast “a lot”, he was “so happy to be sailing away”.
He added: “I’m ready to go. We stop briefly in Brest, France, and then we go to Spain, we go to Portugal, and we head across the ocean to go to the Bahamas, where we stay for a while in the Bahamas.”