On Friday, the CEO of the business rearward the doomed Odyssey cruise ship apologized to residents, many of whom are now stranded in Cambodia. Hours later, that apology was gone.
Villa Vie Residences CEO and founding partner Kathy Villalba sent Odyssey residents a communication on Circle, the ship’s inner messaging platform, saying she was apologetic for the "pain, the loss, and the uncertainty" they visage following the voyage came to an abrupt halt this week.
Villa Vie had promised residents of its 509-cabin container a chance to live permanently at sea and circumnavigate the earth all three-and-a-half years. On Tuesday morning, residents were stated lone a few hours' notice to disembark.
Business Insider reviewed screenshots of the memo, which was deleted hours following it was posted. Three Villa Vie residents alongside admission to Circle confirmed the memo's contents and that it was no longer visible.
In it, Villalba stated the media notice had rotate into "overwhelming" and that she had been advised to refrain from making additional community comments.
Villalba and Villa Vie did not react to requests for comment on the memo or why it was deleted.
Read additional of our reporting on the Villa Vie Odyssey
In the apology note, Villalba stated the company was motionless in talks alongside possible investors and expressed anticipation that a resident-led undertaking to buy the container would succeed.
You can peruse the complete content here:
Dear Residents,I owe all of you a message, and I am apologetic if it has taken me this lengthy to discover the words.I think part of me has been in denial that this could really be happening. Even now, we continue to conversation alongside possible investors, holding on to any anticipation remains since I merely cannot ideate letting this aspiration go.The media notice has rotate into overwhelming, to the item that reporters are now contacting our families, including group who have nothing to do alongside the company.On the direction of counsel, I have been asked to refrain from making additional community comments, particularly as equal conversations inside Circle are no longer private.But I couldn't remain silent without telling you how deeply apologetic I am for the pain, the loss, and the doubt so many of you are facing.I cognize so many of you are hurting, scared, and angry, and I desire additional than item that I could obtain that ache away.For nearly two years, this wasn't fair a endeavor to me. It was my complete life. I poured my heart, my soul, and everything I had into it The container was my baby, but it was your home, and in so many ways, all of you became my family. I attention for this community as although it were my own children, through the fine days and the difficult ones.My squad used to call me the "Resident Wikipedia," since I knew all of you by name and by story. That meant so much to me, since getting to cognize all of you individually was the finest part of all of this.The idea of losing it leaves a gap in my bosom that I cannot commencement to describe.Thank you for believing in two average group alongside an bonzer dream. Together, we created item really special. We traveled the world, built friendships, shared laugh and tears, and informed a way of existence that so few group always get to know.I motionless don't desire this to be the end.I sincerely anticipation the inhabitant undertaking succeeds, and we remain prepared to assistance anywhere we fairly can to assistance maintain the manner you have all grown to love.Please cognize that we affection and attention concerning all and all one of you. Through the fine and the bad, equal through the disagreements and disappointments, that has never changed.Above all, I anticipation everyone is safe, supported, and looking following one another during this incredibly difficult time.From the base of my heart, appreciate you for being part of this dream.With love,Kathy <3
Read next
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you desire to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you desire to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you desire to know
Business Insider tells the innovative stories you desire to know
Joshua Nelken-Zitser is an award-winning equal at Business Insider’s London agency covering the affordability of contemporary life.Through features, investigations, on-the-ground reporting, and As Told To essays, he explores the changing disbursal of important existence milestones, what group choose to expend on whenever they can’t oversee everything they want, and how they modify as traditional markers of achievement rotate into small attainable.Joshua previously spent five years on the news desk, reporting from the US, across Europe, and the Middle East. In 2025, he moved to the endeavor array to shield wealth, spending, and person culture.In 2024, he received the Axel Springer Award for Change — Journalistic Piece of the Year and was highly commended at the British Journalism Awards for an inquiry into state-subsidized gender-transition surgeries in Iran.His debut publish (TRAUMA BONDS: How Generational Trauma Shapes, Divides and Connects Us) will be published by HarperCollins in January 2027.Got a tip? Email [email protected]. You can additionally prosecute him on X or Instagram.
