Today I ran across an interesting video prepared by a Holland American Line passenger following the boiler fire on the M/S Westerdam.
You may recall that the Westerdam caught fire on June 28, 2014 as it was sailing to Alaska. The automatic fire suppression did not extinguish the fire and the crew had to
The Shanghai Daily reports that a passenger on a cruise from Shanghai was found dead in one of the cruise ship’s pools.
The newspaper says that Princess Cruises confirmed the death of the 29-year-old woman onboard the Sapphire Princess cruise ship.
"It is thought that she drowned," according to the newspaper.
The cruise reportedly left Shanghai for
A local CBS news station reports that the Coast Guard medevaced an ill passenger from a cruise ship today.
The Miami Coast Guard station received a message this morning that a 26-year old man aboard the Carnival cruise ship Fascination was suffering symptoms of appendicitis. At the time, the Carnival cruise ship was about 32
Cruise Law News has been told that a person allegedly went overboard from the Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas as the cruise ship was returning from Bermuda to Baltimore earlier this week.
The incident reportedly occurred around 3:00 AM late Wednesday night / early Thursday morning, August 7th.
According to a person on the
A local FOX News station in Clearwater, Florida reports that the U.S. Coast Guard medevaced a passenger with a medical emergency from a Carnival cruise ship.
The Carnival Ecstasy was sailing around 250 miles southwest of the Florida Keys on Thursday, when a 51 year old male passenger began experiencing symptoms of a heart attack.
An article by Cruise Critic titled No More Free Breakfasts caught my eye today.
Cruise Critic says that Royal Caribbean is adding a $10 surcharge for kids and parents to dine with the cruise line’s DreamWorks characters at breakfast on the Oasis, Allure, Freedom, Liberty, Voyager, and Mariner of the Seas.
According to Cruise
A video of a jet ski accident on a beach in the Bahamas has gone viral with the U.K.’s Daily Express newspaper saying that it is the most viewed story in the world on its website.
The video shows the moment a young tourist sitting on a jet-ski narrowly escaping injury as another jet
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On July 23rd, Senator John (Jay) Rockefeller convened a hearing regarding the “Cruise Passenger Protection Act (S.1340): Improving Consumer Protections for Cruise Passengers." We attended the hearing, together with our friend and former client, Laurie Dishman who testified about the way she was treated after being sexually assaulted during a Royal Caribbean cruise.
Senator Rockefeller
Disgraced Costa captain Francesco Schettino is back in the news after a professor at the University of Rome invited him to lecture to a class of graduate students studying forensic science.
A number of news sources quote Schettino saying: "I was called in because I am an expert. I had to illustrate the management of panic
KIRO TV reports that the Grand Princess cruise ship experienced a problem with one of its engines and was required to return to port in Seattle for almost four hours.
The U.S. Coast Guard said that a port-side engine "died" on the cruise ship around 4:50 PM after the the ship left Seattle heading on an
A reader of Cruise Law News brought to our attention that Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe recently tweeted:
"Le Gouvernement a signé aujourd’hui un protocole d’accord avec Carnival Cruises pour la construction d’un resort sur l’Ile de la Tortue."
Translated, this says that Haiti and Carnival have struck a deal to develop a resort on
Reuters reports that Royal Caribbean’s CEO Richard Fain recently sold 94,850 shares at average price of $62.38 for a total value of $5,916,743.00; and exercised options for 51,143 shares at $7.27 per share for a total value of $3,190,300.00.
CEO Fain holds over a million shares of his cruise line’s stock. Reuters says he holds
Media reports say that Royal Caribbean Cruises Chief Operating Officer (COO) Adam Goldstein sold 42,152 shares of his cruise company’s stock yesterday.
The shares were sold at an average price of $61.68 for $2,599,935.36.
COO Goldstein still owns 370,724 shares of Royal Caribbean stock, valued at $22,866,256.
Royal Caribbean announced its earnings results on Thursday.
News sources in Canada are reporting that Royal Caribbean barred a woman from cruising with her family after she admitted that she was pregnant but didn’t have a note from her doctor stating that she was fit to travel.
Global Toronto states that Michelle Ligori, her husband and their two sons were booked aboard Royal Caribbean’s
It’s been a while since I awarded my "Worst Cruise Line in the World" award. Quite frankly, I became tired of giving it to Carnival and Royal Caribbean every month. But a reader of Cruise Law News just sent me a story of little Nicolas Colucci, age 5, who underwent emergency surgery after doctors found a "a large cancerous tumor growing inside his liver." He is now undergoing chemotherapy.
The Lil’ Mama website explains that the Colucci family bought a family cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) that was scheduled for June 1, 2014. The family asked NCL to reschedule their cruise to another date. NCL refused. NCL wouldn’t bend their corporate policies regarding medical emergencies – not even for a child battling cancer. You can read about the dreadful story here.
This is not the first time that NCL has acted in such a heartless manner.
A couple of years ago, I wrote about a man from Key Largo who purchased a NCL cruise on the Norwegian Sky leaving from Miami. But his brother died, and the funeral was in Georgia on the day the cruise ship sailed. So he notified NCL, asking for a credit on a future cruise. NCL said no. He asked for his cruise to be donated to charity (Make-A-Wish). NCL said no.
Now comes the sick part. NCL then re-sold the cabin to someone else. Yep. NCL got a double profit due to the death of a guest’s brother. Really sick.
NCL is active on Twitter @CruiseNorwegian, so I tweeted a reference to the article.
No response.
NCL’s "Executive Vice President of Global Sales and Passenger Services," Andy Stuart, is also active on Twitter @nclandy. So I tweeted him "Double cruise profit for death? Say it aint so Andy!"
No response.
NCL should have permitted a child with cancer and parents go on a once-in-a-lifetime cruise. Or make a small donation in memory of their customer’s brother. But to double sell the cabin under these circumstances? It’s cruel, greedy and outrageous.
Last year, I wrote again about NCL. A grandmother who drives disabled kids to school booked a cruise aboard the Norwegian Jewel for her family and grandkids at the cost of over $4,000. Then Superstorm Sandy struck, submerging her home under four feet of water. The storm ravaged her home, leaving her with nothing. She asked NCL to reschedule or refund her cruise. NCL said no way.
She appealed to NCL CEO Kevin Sheehan but the cruise line and its CEO wouldn’t make an exception. Absolutely no refund or rescheduling. Heartless.
Yesterday, I attended a hearing before Senator Jay Rockefeller entitled "Improving Consumer Protections for Cruise Passengers." Cruise passengers testified regarding all types of harsh conduct by cruise lines who hide behind the unreadable fine print in their one-sided, passenger tickets. At one point during the hearing, Senator Rockefeller exclaimed that he was "fed up" with the cruise lines and their "callousness."
NCL is all smiles when it sells a family a "cruise of a lifetime." But when death, disaster or a medical emergency strikes, it shows its true colors.
NCL may have a great marketing image, but it can be your worse enemy in a time of true need.
Have a thought? Leave a comment below or join the conversation on our Facebook page. And let NCL know what you think by contacting them below:
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NCL Corporation Ltd.
7665 Corporate Center Drive
Miami, Florida 33126
Corporate: (305) 436-4000
Andrew Stuart
Executive Vice President of Global Sales and Passenger Services
astuart@ncl.com
(305) 436-4000
Andrew Stuart’s twitter account: @nclandy
Kevin Sheehan (photo right)
Chief Executive Officer
ksheehan@ncl.com
(305) 436-4000
NCL Twitter: @CruiseNorwegian
July 26 2014 Update: According to a FOX NEWS station today, a "CEO of a popular cruise line reached out to the Colucci family to offer them a free cruise. The CEO asked that his cruise line not be named because he said he was genuinely touched by their story and didn’t want any publicity for his gesture."
So who was the CEO? Which cruise line did the right thing?
Here’s a clue:
Last year, NCL abandoned a grandmother (and her grandchildren) after she bought a NCL cruise when her home was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. NCL CEO refused to reschedule his customer’s cruise. But Royal Caribbean stepped up to the plate and gave the family a free cruise. Read the story: Norwegian Cruise Lines Abandons Sandy Victims, While Royal Caribbean Steps Up to the Plate!
July 27 2014 Update: The story goes viral. First a national Fox News station covers the story and then the U.K.’s Daily Mail (the largest online newspaper in the world) covers it. Bad Karma for NCL.
July 29 2014 Update: The public relations fall-out continues. Opposing Views ran a story. TravelPulse also covered the story. Gawker wasn’t too subtle with its headline Cruise Line Screws Over Family of 5-Year-Old With Cancer. PRNews wrote Norwegian Cruise Line Drowning in Bad PR. Huff Post Parents Parents Outraged Cruise Line Won’t Reschedule Their Trip In Light Of Son’s Cancer Diagnosis. Anti-Jared wrote a letter to the NCL CEO.
All of this reminds me of one of my favorite sayings – "Karma is a bitch only when you are."
Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com
Continue Reading Norwegian Cruise Line Wins Worst Cruise Line in the World Award
At the hearing today before Senator John (Jay) Rockefeller regarding the “Cruise Passenger Protection Act (S.1340): Improving Consumer Protections for Cruise Passengers," three women told the committee their horrific experiences on cruise ships.
All of their accounts involve the common theme of a lack of basic consumer protections. Laurie Dishman was a victim of rape, Amanda
One of the dangers which cruise passengers face is incompetent medical care provided by non-U.S. doctors and nurses. And when these go wrong in the high seas, most cruise passengers don’t realize that the cruise lines are not legally responsible for the malpractice of the cruise ship medical team.
One of our ten most outrageous
This afternoon, Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, announced the witness list for its Full Committee hearing this Wednesday, July 23, 2014, at 2:45 p.m. titled “The Cruise Passenger Protection Act (S.1340): Improving Consumer Protections for Cruise Passengers.”
Date: Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Hearing Start Time:
