Cruise ship leaves passengers stranded on African island
 

Should the cruise ship have waited for them??


Eight passengers stranded on African island after Norwegian cruise ship left without them

SOP for most cruise lines as I understand it. If the ship sells shore tours and you're on one of them the ship will wait if you're late returning. Private tours--you're s___ out of luck. Happens frequently. No sympathy here. They knew the rules.

The other end side of that coin--if the cruise line sells you transportation anywhere along the line the ship will wait for you even if you're late. We were departing Miami on an RCCL ship (Can't remember which one...Navigator, maybe?) and two passengers flying in from somewhere on the east coast on a flight arranged by RCCL were delayed because of weather. The ship waited nearly two hours in port for them. They finally showed up, leaving port at about 7 PM rather than 5 PM.

My question would be, why would people pay money to go to Africa?

Curiously few details on the coast guard trying to get them back. It says they weren’t allowed to board. Was the ship already moving? If it was still docked the cruise ship should have let them board. If not it was likely a safety issue. Personally I think the ship should wait a reasonable time for latecomers if it doesn’t interfere with timing of the next port. But still people should know that booking private excursions is risky.

I have often wondered about the legality of this. The ship's tour is usually double the cost of doing the exact same tour privately, so they're making a huge profit. By scaremongering ahead of time (at the port presentation they always mention leaving private tours behind) they are coercing a lot of passengers into paying double. Without that leverage they would sell a lot fewer tours.

We avoid ship's tours because getting 50 old people off and on the bus takes considerably longer than getting eight on and off a minibus. Plus, with fifty people there are always a few that get back late and delay the tour even further, resulting in less time spent at the attractions.

We have never had a problem getting back to the ship on time as the third party tour companies know that their survival depends on maintaining a good track record.

Should the ship have waited? No. The people knew the schedule. If the ship arranges the tour then they are obligated to make it work because it is their own tour. In my opinion, it’s like going to the theatre. They start the play on time whether or not everyone who bought tickets are there.

No, the cruise ship should not wait for them, as long as that was well publicized. Public transportation has to operate on schedules. There are many people who don't listen or don't care and expect tolerance. Let them learn the hardware. Was on a river cruise last year and that happened and cost a couple we knew 100 Euro. They were lucky the River Cruise ship stopped at an interim point to pick them up. Note, they were very prompt for the rest of the cruise.

Because they can?
Africa is a marvelous continent full of widely varied cultures, marvelous scenery and adventure.
You might just as well ask, "Why would people money to go anywhere?"

All true. We also used private tours. We were lucky and never had a problem. Many take the same gamble but are not so lucky. As fore the cruise line raking in extra money, that is the reason they exist. First and foremost, to make as much as they can.

My wife and I spent 3 weeks in Namibia and 2 weeks in Rwanda and it was the most amazing experience of our lives. We would go back to either country in a heartbeat but we have only so much time and money and so many other places in the world (including other African countries) we want to experience.

You obviously have never been. Africa is a very big continent. I’ve been 3 times now and would go back in an instant if it were less expensive. The most magical place I’ve been.

All cruise ships will leave you. They wait for nobody. That’s why you always book your excursions through the ship. IF they had booked through the ship, the ship would have to wait. They booked independently and weren’t back on time. Cruise ships leave people all the time.

the Africa comment stole the spotlight, from the Original post..

You need to add, "Unless the people who are late had bought their tickets direct from the theatre manager, in which case the show will start when they arrive and everyone who bought their tickets through an agency will be kept waiting".

Nope!!!

They know the rules…. If you take a private excursion, then you assume the risks of being late.

What little sympathy I would have for these cruisers in their predicament was lost when they acted like total asshats by doubling down and going all over the media trying to paint the cruise line as the bad guy.