Any disruption to a cruise vacation – a missed port of call, bad weather, technical problems onboard the ship – can be disappointing, but most travelers understand that such incidents can occasionally happen and take any changes in stride.
Unfortunately, some guests get more upset when unexpected incidents impact their cruise experience. Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador, John Heald, often receives such complaints and does his best to ease guests’ disappointment while carefully explaining the situation.
Recently, one guest was particularly upset and felt their cruise had been cut short because of a medical incident onboard Carnival Celebration.
“I am writing this representing every guest who was denied a last night of what we had paid for. I was on Celebration last week. The ship arrived back to Miami early. Most places closed. It was horrible! Allegedly someone was sick,” the guest explained.
“Monday someone was medevac’d from the ship and they should have done the same for this person but no. It’s like Carnival said ‘screw ‘em’ they’ll be alright.’ Well I’m NOT alright! It was like being on the ship during a port day but you can’t get off! What was wrong with this person anyway? Why is there no compensation? This was not a seven day cruise as promised by Carnival.”
Clearly, the individual who contacted Heald is upset that the ship returned to PortMiami earlier than planned, which required select onboard services to be closed.
The incident occurred aboard the October 27 cruise, a 7-night Western Caribbean sailing that visited Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Roatan. Carnival Celebration departs and returns on Sundays, and the Saturdays of each cruise are typically days at sea.
Heald explained why the ship’s captain returned to the homeport faster rather than arranging for an airlift medical evacuation.
“As it is not a subject I have discussed before I wanted to explain to this lady and perhaps to others who may not understand,” he said.
“When a guest is perhaps too ill to be evacuated by the brilliant men and women of USCG via helicopter or boat, or when the weather perhaps does not make this operation possible, the ship will divert to a port to dock the ship there and safely take that guest or the crew member ashore for the urgent medical care needed.”
Details of the medical incident aboard Carnival Celebration have not been released in order to safeguard the individual’s privacy, as well as that of their traveling companions, friends, and family members.
Heald does note, however, that blood donations were asked for onboard, though this may have been for a separate incident.
“To the guests who answered the call to donate blood I say a massive thank you for your generosity, care, and consideration,” Heald mentioned.
While medical incidents do not happen on every sailing, Carnival Celebration can welcome as many as 6,500 guests when fully booked. With so many travelers onboard, especially for a popular Halloween sailing, multiple incidents are not necessarily surprising.
What Happens When a Ship Returns to the Homeport Early?
As for the ship’s operational change and early arrival to Miami, this is a decision made by the captain in order to bring the guest or crew member to care as quickly as possible. For this incident, sailing back to Miami faster than anticipated was the best option.
“In this particular case the ship was closer to Miami then anywhere else so the Captain went full speed to get the ship there early,” Heald confirmed.
This did require some onboard changes that may have disappointed travelers on the last night of their cruise.
“I am not sure exactly what time on Friday night the ship docked but when the vessel is in US waters we legally cannot open the casino or the shops,” Heald said. “Closing the casino and shops in incidents like this is disappointing for people, I do understand that but it is also a very small price to pay to help save a human life.”
To be clear, no other changes were made onboard and all entertainment and activity options proceeded as scheduled. Furthermore, all restaurants, bars, and lounges operated as planned even though Carnival Celebration was in Miami earlier than anticipated.
Read Also: What to Do on the Last Sea Day of a Carnival Cruise
Since Heald notes that the ship returned on Friday night, this would mean that the casino and shops would have been closed throughout Saturday as well.
The guest claims that travelers weren’t permitted off the ship while docked in Miami. This may be due to the short notice of the ship’s arrival, which could mean it wasn’t possible to offer shore excursions.
Furthermore, port operations could prohibit travelers from leaving the ship independently. While this is not an ideal situation, it is certainly an exceptional occurrence, and guests should not expect compensation for changes that helped get someone urgent medical care.
It is not known why the ship was unable to evacuate the guest once docked and then move back out to sea for the remainder of the sailing, but this could also be a result of overall timing, port operations, planned marine traffic, and weather concerns.
The 180,000-gross-ton, Excel class Carnival Celebration has continued on her planned sailings without further delays. The ship can welcome 6,565 travelers at double occupancy, with more than 1,700 international crew members onboard to ensure every guest can celebrate a fantastic cruise, even if the unexpected might happen.
