P&O cancels cruise for 1,900 passengers just 24 hours before departure – Cruises – Travel

In some circumstances, people spend weeks preparing for this cruise vacation, however on this occasion, it got here to an finish before it even began. Thousands of passengers have been left heartbroken after a three-evening cruise to a Belgian seaside resort was abruptly cancelled just 24 hours before its scheduled departure. 

P&O Cruises was pressured to call off the crusing of its 25-12 months-outdated ship, Aurora, on Sunday as a consequence of unfinished refurbishment work.

The vessel was set to embark from Southampton, England to Zeebrugge, Belgium on Monday afternoon, however passengers acquired an electronic mail on Sunday informing them of the cancellation. Experts advise passengers to observe the “one day rule” to keep away from any delays when boarding the cruise, however sadly, this time round, there was no boarding, reviews Daily Express UK. 

The voyage was supposed to be Aurora’s maiden trip following a normal 5-12 months upkeep stop that started two weeks prior. 

However, the renovation was not accomplished in time for the journey with an electronic mail going out that learn: “Following a delay to Aurora’s refit, we need to cancel Aurora’s R505 cruise from Southampton to Zeebrugge.”

The associates had been eagerly anticipating celebrating their upcoming fiftieth birthdays on the trip.

Ms. Pinhorne mentioned: “At the start of it I thought: ‘Is it a joke? Is it a spam email? How do I know if this is actually true?'”

She added in frustration: “Even the day before I was getting an email saying: ‘One day till your holiday, make sure you’ve checked in’… so there was no warning that there could be any issue.”

In response to the state of affairs, a PandO Cruises spokesperson prolonged an apology for the disruption of plans: “We appreciate how disappointing this is for our guests who were booked to travel.”

The spokesperson additionally confirmed the friends’ compensation: “All guests will receive a full refund and a future cruise credit of 20% of monies paid.”

Meanwhile, the cruise ship Aurora stays docked in Rotterdam, Netherlands, for its refitting course of and is on schedule for its departure from Southampton on (*24*).