Carnival Cruise Lines and its passengers have not been having a great couple of months. First there was the news of Carnival Triumph, when the 4,000 people aboard were stranded in the Gulf of Mexico for five days. Passengers spent nearly a week at sea with no power, limited supplies, and extremely unsanitary bathroom conditions. The most recent disaster comes aboard the Carnival Dream, which is currently docked at the Caribbean island of St. Maarten.
The Carnival Dream, based in Cape Canaveral, Florida, was slated for a seven-day cruise. While docked in St. Maarten, the ship lost power during a routine check of the vessel’s emergency diesel generator, and though power has since been restored, passengers must remain on board. At first, Carnival reps felt, for accountability purposes, it was best for everyone to stay in one place siting that nobody wants to be left behind on an island. Later on, passengers were finally permitted to leave the ship.
The company is making arrangements to fly all passengers home from St. Maarten, and will also provide a refund equivalent of three days of the cruise as well as 50 percent off a future journey. The Dream’s next voyage, scheduled for March 16, has been canceled and passengers will get a full refund and 25 percent off a future cruise.
What do you think of Carnival’s recent troubles? Would these problems deter you from booking a cruise? Tell us in the comments!
MORE from ShermansTravel:
