They even had to pay a fine Cruise ship leaves family stranded - 30,000 francs gone
A family of nine was traveling on a cruise ship - until they were left stranded. Afterwards, they had to pay a penalty fee.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- The Gault family from the USA booked a cruise on the Norwegian Encore for 30,000 dollars.
- But everything went wrong during a shore excursion.
- The family missed the ship and even had to pay a fine.
What was supposed to start as a dream vacation turned into a nightmare for the American Gault family. They booked a cruise on the Norwegian Encore for a whopping 30,000 dollars, but the trip ended in complete chaos.
During a shore leave in Alaska, the family of nine visited a lumberjack show. On the way back to port, the drama began:
The shuttle bus back to the ship was full, and they were advised to wait for the next one. But another bus didn't show up.
The family panicked and phoned the port authority, but it was too late. They only made it to the port to see the ship sail away - with their clothes, passports and medication. The six children, their parents Cailyn and Joshua and their 78-year-old grandmother were stranded.
Still sick with corona on the journey home
To make matters worse, the shipping company charged Joshua Gault's credit card almost 9,000 euros because the family had missed the ship. A US law stipulates that passengers traveling home to the USA must call at another foreign port, which was impossible for the Gaults without passports.
The family now had to organize their own accommodation, food and flights, while the costs continued to rise. Several days and several stopovers later, they returned home exhausted. On the journey home, they also fell ill with Covid-19, with several family members suffering severe cases.
It was only after the media became involved that Norwegian Cruise Lines agreed to reimburse the fees and extra costs. The family will also receive a pro-rata refund of their cruise expenses and a 20% discount on their next cruise.
