Norwegian Breakaway leaves parents in Bahamas

[bumbershoot]

My first inkling is to say it their fault for not being back in time, but perhaps there was a time change and the wife didn't have the correct time

Even if there's a change in the timezone, it's still their fault and responsibility.

Wear a watch with the SHIP's time on it, and refer to that timepiece only. No phone, no GPS watch, etc. Just the watch that can't randomly change timezone on you.

It should have all been Eastern Time zone.

Not necessarily. Especially now since we're in daylight savings time and many other countries are NOT. Gotta pay attention to what they are telling you onboard!

I expect, he felt it was better to be with his wife and take care of her (chivalry and all), than to wonder what happened to her, alone in a port without ID and possibly with limited funds.

If that were my husband's decision there would be some serious problems later on. I can save my own dang self; I managed nearly 31 years without him and can manage another couple days, too. His job would be to be with our son.

Now I know that there was an uncle onboard and that changes things, but not *that* much...

 

[Huskiesrule]

In Alaska on a NCL cruise/excursion our train got held up by border patrol trying to leave Canada and return to Alaska. All trains were stopped as something was going on with one of them and they checked everybody's passport in every car. I think there 3 or 4 ships in port waiting for passengers who took their excursions. I just remember getting of the train and seeing an NCL rep telling us to run. We didn't run but we sure speed walked back to the ship! I knew it would be up to NCL to get us back to the ship, but that was not a comforting thought as we had already seen that happen on our cruise. Seeing that little boat pull up to our ship to get people back on board was not a cruise experience I wanted

 

[valee]

Does anyone know if there are any additional repercussions for late returners? I don't think they could be charged for any of the additional expenses such as port charges for extended time at the dock, but do any cruise lines refuse future bookings for pier runners?
The slow pokes on the television show were apparently high rollers, so I suspect they received a light reprimand, but if a mere mortal such as me pulled that on a cruise line that doesn't have problems selling out cabins, I wouldn't be surprised to find any future bookings cancelled. The parks ban misbehavers, and it would make sense for the cruise line to have a similar process.
Unfortunately, there are people that will not change their behavior until it has a significant personal impact.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I have never heard of any guest missing the vessel, being charged for extra port costs. Believe me, if they were in would be VERY painful.

AKK

 

[RedSox68]

I can't even wrap my head around this one. What would make her think it was a good idea to get drunk off her butt while being the sole caregiver of a baby she had left on the ship? Even if she had made it back to the ship, how is she going to take care of the baby if she is loaded?

And they thought it was funny -- they were laughing hysterically, you could hear them all the way up to the top deck, and the one woman was making fun of her husband for packing up all their stuff. Boy I bet the rest of their cruise was not fun.

 

[RedSox68]

So what is the official impact? I know it impacts--but who does if effect the cruise? (Curious what the show shared.)

I didn't see the show, but I know from past experience (delayed because of hurricanes or late passengers), that it affects future arrival times, departing with tides, port requirements for leaving (time restrictions maybe), etc. When we sailed on the Magic from LA to the Panama Canal, we sailed through Hurricane Hillary. The Captain apologized over the loudspeakers in every room the next morning, explaining that if they had skirted the hurricane, they would have missed their allotted time at the locks in PC.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I didn't see the show, but I know from past experience (delayed because of hurricanes or late passengers), that it affects future arrival times, departing with tides, port requirements for leaving (time restrictions maybe), etc. When we sailed on the Magic from LA to the Panama Canal, we sailed through Hurricane Hillary. The Captain apologized over the loudspeakers in every room the next morning, explaining that if they had skirted the hurricane, they would have missed their allotted time at the locks in PC.

Wow.

We were late only once to a cruise and that was due to a car breakdown. It was awful. The ship held but we never expected them to. At least when we arrived by tow truck, it was obvious why we were late. I do not recommend that at all.

 

[smiths02]

I know there are lots of advantages to taking a shore excursion other than Disney including cost in many cases however we almost always book DCL excursions or plan to be back on-board 2 hours before the ship sails. We were on a DCL excursion to Rome and there were some uncooperative people in our group which caused us to get back almost an hour late however since it was a DCL excursion the ship was waiting for us. When the last person from our group of 40 boarded we set sail. A taxi with 4 people drove up when we were heading out of the port and could not believe that we did not come back for them. Unfortunately there are a lot of people that take cruises that think the world should cater to them and don't care of others are inconvenienced due to their actions. There was a time in Venice when a friend of ours was on the DCL ship and they had to wait 2 hours due to young children being left on the ship. The parents strolled up 2 hours late and did not think anything of if. Well they had a personal meeting with the Captain and could not leave their children in the kids club anytime the ship was in port even if they were on the ship.

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

 

[hubbard53]

geesh...what does the media have against the cruise line industry!?

The mother was late and the father made a conscious decision to go find the wife and ensure she had travel documents. Knowing they would "miss the boat", he ensure his kids were under the care of his family also on the cruise. . .

but yet, we get this headline:

Stranded Mother Pleads and Sobs as Cruise Ship Sails Away With Her Kids On Board

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

They will wait as long as they can but if they have to leave, they should then make arrangements for you.

 

[Ofinn]

Even if there's a change in the timezone, it's still their fault and responsibility.

Wear a watch with the SHIP's time on it, and refer to that timepiece only. No phone, no GPS watch, etc. Just the watch that can't randomly change timezone on you.



Not necessarily. Especially now since we're in daylight savings time and many other countries are NOT. Gotta pay attention to what they are telling you onboard!



If that were my husband's decision there would be some serious problems later on. I can save my own dang self; I managed nearly 31 years without him and can manage another couple days, too. His job would be to be with our son.

Now I know that there was an uncle onboard and that changes things, but not *that* much...

I think it's unfair to judge the husbands actions when we really don't know the situation. Leaving the kids on a ship with family is not abandonment. A lot of people leave their kids with family and go away for days. Not to mention these kids were not babies they were 9 and 12. In hind sight we can see that the women was an idiot, but if she missed the boat because something bad happened to her people probably wouldn't be so quick to judge the husbands actions. This was the mother of his children, a very important person in his kids lives so I'm sure he had a lot of thoughts running through his head. I've been in a situation where I didn't know where a loved one was, and it was not a good feeling.

 

[DL1957]

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

My understanding is if is less than 2 hour wait they stay or if they are able to stayed docked. If not they handle everything to get you to the next port. If you are not on one of their excursions you are on your own to pay all cost. I wouldn't be surprised if the couple in this article had to bear the cost.
I have been sailing since 1999 on DCL and have never heard of a DCL sponsored shore excursion not being waited for at the dock. Maybe someone else has heard of this happening.

 

[RedSox68]

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

I believe they have to wait. We did a DCL excursion in Barcelona to Montserrat. We had the ditsiest tour guide ever -- she gave several differnt times to be back at the bus. Upon departure time, we were missing an elderly gentleman who was traveling alone. She and the bus driver looked everywhere, but decided to leave without him (she had told him to be back at 4:30 when she really was leaving at 4:00). As a result, we had to miss La Sagrada because they ran out of time. We were watching from the deck as the poor gentlemen, completely frazzled and upset, was brought by taxi to the port. The ship had been notified by the tour group and there were officers waiting to get him through the terminal and security -- he was the only one we were waiting for, but it was a Disney excursion and not his fault.

The most horrific experience we had trying to make the ship was in L.A. We had a rental car that had to be returned to Hertz near the port, but we could not for the life of us find their office. We left in plenty of time, but it turned out their office was in a high rise building with no signs outside for Hertz! We kept calling and they kept giving us wrong directions (they couldn't comprehend the direction we were arriving from). By the time we got in there, it was 2:30. We were beyond panicked. They rushed us through and called a taxi. We got on the ship at 3:30 -- with departure at 4:00! I was sick the rest of the night -- that was way too much stress to start a cruise with. Never again.

 

[RedSox68]

I think it's unfair to judge the husbands actions when we really don't know the situation. Leaving the kids on a ship with family is not abandonment. A lot of people leave their kids with family and go away for days. Not to mention these kids were not babies they were 9 and 12. In hind sight we can see that the women was an idiot, but if she missed the boat because something bad happened to her people probably wouldn't be so quick to judge the husbands actions. This was the mother of his children, a very important person in his kids lives so I'm sure he had a lot of thoughts running through his head. I've been in a situation where I didn't know where a loved one was, and it was not a good feeling.

I 100% agree. The headlines to that story are terribly misleading and quite dramatic. A PP mentioned that if a loved one didn't return, your first thought would be that something happened to them. I'm sure the husband was very distraught thinking that she may have been hurt or lost or worse. He didn't leave the children in the kids club and leave -- he had family there. The one at complete fault was the woman. It was obvious she was shopping and lost track of time -- but that is on her and not the husband or the ship for reacting the way they did.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

They will wait as long as they can. Generally meaning to make the next port in time. They same with most lines, to the best of my knowledge.

AKK

 

[sunshinemelody]

geesh...what does the media have against the cruise line industry!?

The mother was late and the father made a conscious decision to go find the wife and ensure she had travel documents. Knowing they would "miss the boat", he ensure his kids were under the care of his family also on the cruise. . .

but yet, we get this headline:

Stranded Mother Pleads and Sobs as Cruise Ship Sails Away With Her Kids On Board

They don't.

It's all click bait to get more revenue. Sure they'd still get clicks from a title like: Parents Stranded After Mother Fails to Arrive On Time for Cruise Back to New York -- turning it into a story about her being afraid makes it more appealing.

 

[phinz]

They don't.

It's all click bait to get more revenue. Sure they'd still get clicks from a title like: Parents Stranded After Mother Fails to Arrive On Time for Cruise Back to New York -- turning it into a story about her being afraid makes it more appealing.

Nailed it. There are rarely proper headlines anymore. News has become a source of entertainment and the web has made it a lucrative revenue generation tool, so the more clickthrus they can get, the more money they make.

 

[wl1117]

Maybe I'm not most wives, but I would be furious if my husband left our young kids behind (even with relatives) to "rescue" me. If she had limited funds she could have returned some of those purchases and used that money. It's not rocket science to find a hotel and fend for yourself for a few days, even in a foreign country. It's not like they don't speak English or take American money. Wire some cash and FedEx the documents if she needs them and hope she learns a lesson. Sorry if I sound a bit harsh, but women who play the "damsel in distress" card to avoid taking personal responsibility really annoy me.

I agree. After reading about this, I told my husband he da^n well better not get off that boat to look for me, leaving our kids behind. I'm an adult and I'll figure it out.

 

[ASchwa]

But does booking a DCL excursion guarantee the ship will wait or does it just guarantee that DCL will make sure you can get to the ship at the next port?

Only that DCL will make sure that you get to the next port. My first DCL cruise was to Alaska in 2012. It was the last sailing to Alaska. During the stop at Juneau, a couple on an excursion to the musher's camp was stranded because the helicopter couldn't land. It was drizzling and conditions were not good. Anyway, they spent the night at the camp and were taken down the next day. The Wonder left Juneau late, and went to Ketchikan. The ship left Ketchiken on time and the couple who were stranded was down way after that time. They were taken to Vancouver, the debarkation port for our cruise. As I understand, they were given a discount for a future cruise and some other compensation.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

There were other relatives onboard besides the parents. At least an uncle, and perhaps others. That may be why the husband decided to get off and look for mom. (One article I read referenced a caddy...I suppose it is possible she was out playing golf, and/or shopping.) The headline makes it sound like the children were left onboard alone. When neither of them returned, the ship left. They waited a half hour. Usually ships won't wait at all.

Is it not made sufficiently known that passengers at port calls need to be back on the ship BEFORE the all aboard time? Personally it looks like the cruise line went out of its way to pay the parents' expenses and get them back to New York.