Residential World Cruise Postponed Due to Canadian Booking Fallout
A new residential cruise line has postponed its first around-the-world voyage, leaving an unknown number of booked guests scrambling to change their lifestyle plans just five weeks before they were to embark on a 29-month adventure.
The news, announced by Victoria Cruises Line on June 16, 2025, confirmed that the 1,350-guest Victoria Majestic will not sail from Port Everglades as planned on July 26, 2025, due to a low occupancy level.
Apparently, booking cancellations from an undisclosed number of Canadian passengers are responsible for the voyage being nixed, and the cruise line pointed to issues between Canada and the US as the reason why.
In a statement posted on its website, Victoria Cruises Line, which is based in Hungary, explained that the decision to cancel was not an easy one.
“As a responsible operator, we had set a minimum occupancy threshold of 80% to ensure the quality, stability, and sustainability of life on board. By the end of April, we were very close to meeting this target,” the cruise line’s notice stated.
“However, recent political and economic tensions between the United States and Canada have led to an unexpected wave of cancellations from several Canadian residents, making the current occupancy level (430 cabins) insufficient for a viable launch,” it added.
It seems to indicate that the Canadians who cancelled did so to avoid traveling to the embarkation port in Florida.
“In light of these developments, we have no choice but to postpone the start of our journey. The new departure date will be announced soon, and we will personally notify all affected residents,” Victoria Cruises Line stated.
The line’s statement indicates that booked guests will receive some kind of compensation from the line, apparently in addition to refunds of rental fees already paid, and that details would be sent directly to passengers.
Ship’s Departure Date Had Been Previously Postponed
Victoria Majestic formerly operated as Veendam for Holland America Line, which sold the vessel in 2020. It is not the first delay of the ship’s maiden residential world cruise under its present owner.
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When Victoria Cruises Line introduced itself to the cruise industry in 2023 as a cabin-for-rent operation, it had set a May 2023 world cruise launch.
That was later pushed back to September 2023 and then, eventually, rescheduled for September 2025 and finally, the latest launch date, July 26, 2025.
The brand offered rental rates based on accommodation chosen, with monthly rental fees that started at $2,399 with a minimum six-month rental contract. The world cruise was to last 886 days — roughly 2.5 years, with 703 days in ports around the globe and 183 days at sea.
Victoria Cruises Line is one of just a few residential cruise lines that have cropped up in recent years. The most well-known is probably Villa Vie Residences, which operates Villa Vie Odyssey, a ship that also experienced a series of delays.
Operating continuous 3.5-year world cruises, the ship departed Belfast, Northern Ireland, in October 2024 following months of postponements tied to engine problems and other operational issues.
Another line, Miray Cruises, introduced a residential option aboard its ship, Lara, in 2023 but soon cancelled the project. The line, based in Turkey, currently sails 3- and 4-day Mediterranean cruises.
Residential World Cruise Postponed Due to Canadian Booking Fallout