Aussie cruisers put a $15,000 deposit down for a life at sea – they are still waiting to sail

• Dennis and Taryna Wawn from Perth were amongst those who put down a deposit with apparent residential cruise operators Victoria Cruises Line.
• However, the cruise has never sailed, and they and others haven’t been given their money back.
• The company is still promising the cruise will leave soon, but when you dig a little deeper, it doesn’t look likely.

When Victoria Cruise Line advertised the opportunity to live at sea on a residential cruise, Perth couple Dennis and Taryna Wawn were ready to start a new chapter of their lives.

The recently retired couple put down their money, ready to live a life they would never have previously dreamed of. However, that was three years ago. The ship still hasn’t set sail, and the couple hasn’t been given their money back.

The BBC has reported that there are many others going through the exact same situation as the Wawns, even going as far selling their homes and rehoming pets, as Victoria Cruise Line fails to deliver on its promise of a residential cruise, and continues to hold onto hundreds of cruise deposits. 

This battle has been going on for years, and continues without a resolution. The cruise was originally meant to leave in May 2023.

Adam Glezer, a well-known consumer advocate, told the BBC: “The people that put down a deposit for this cruise were sold a dream… and it has turned into nothing short of a nightmare.”

Those who have lost money have tried getting into contact with the company, others are launching legal cases or trying their luck with government agencies. 

Victoria Cruise Line continues to advertise the residential cruise, telling BBC that it needs more passengers booked before it can charter a cruise ship. They apparently require 80% occupancy to charter a ship.

The Wawn’s paid a USD$10,000 (AUD$15,135) deposit to the cruise line, after talking at length with the company and even joining a Facebook group of other future ship residents.

Another booked passenger, former Aussie journalist Graham Whittaker believes that the line could have taken millions from passengers.

“It got dirty because we started to find scores and scores more people who had never been refunded, who had asked for their money back, who had been lied to.”

The cruise line continues to deny that it’s engaging in any sort of dodgy business practices, but investigations have uncovered many instances of questionable practice:

• There are images of “residents” onboard that are actually stock photos taken from the internet.
• A couple filed a complaint in Ohio in the USA, and the investigation found that people purporting to be staff on the company website had no plans to be onboard the cruise and had never received offers of employment.
• Another couple won a case in Hungary, shortly after the company quickly moved its base to Italy.
• The company is registered in Italy, but as a wholesaler of food, drinks and tobacco.
• The company is also registered in Hungary, with Viktoria Takacs-Ollram listed as the founder, and her 79-year old mother as the CEO. The business was previously registered in Hungary in 2017, as an accounting firm. 
• The company has been threatening legal action against those airing their concerns on social media or talking to media publications.
• On the company’s Facebook page it claimed to have chartered Veendam from Holland America, but this was denied by the real owners of the ship.  

Affordable residential cruising has been a big discussion point over recent years in the cruise world, with several different ‘cruise lines’ such as Life at Sea Cruises and Victoria Cruise Lines, failing to deliver on their promise.

However, one cruise line did manage to make it come to fruition, and Ville Vie Residences, while it did initially have many delays, is now sailing successfully with full-time residents on board.

Do you know more about this story? Contact us or leave a comment below – we are keen to ensure that other cruisers know what is happening.