| dd/mm/yy |
Ship |
2008 |
Incident |
| 7.7.08 |
Jewel of the Seas | It has been reported that the ship is experiencing engine
trouble and is running slower than normal. The cruise scheduled for
October 18 has reportedly be cancelled for the ship to enter drydock. |
Engine problems |
| 5.7.08 |
Rhapsody of the Seas | The Assocated Press reports Royal Caribbean Cruises says it mistakenly broke state law in discharging about 20,000 gallons of wastewater into Chatham Strait in Southeast Alaska. Crew members mistakenly discharged gray water, wastewater from cabin showers and sinks, on June 10. The error was not discovered until a week later. The ship's captain and environmental officer were apparently suspended while a full investigation is conducted. | Environmental |
| 24.6.08 |
Freedom of the Seas | A passenger writes: While
ship was at mooring at Labadee (Haiti) sudden 50+mph winds hit the ship
broadside. Forward mooring lines break, and small, local fishing
boats are capsized. Ship was able to hold position well, with
just aft mooring lines attached. This happened at the end of the
stay, and there were still a couple of tenders to unload.
Unloading of tenders looked rough as the winds were still high. |
Mooring lines break |
| 19.5.08 |
Royal Caribbean International | Expert Cruiser dot Com reports on a couple that has been banned from RCCL's ships forever. The headline says they complained too much, but the details say they were banned after refusing to retract a negative on-line review at Cruise Critic. RCI had provided $500 in compensation for the difficulties experienced. The passenger "...had posted a negative review and had shared the compensation information on Cruise Critic’s boards. RCI asked Brenda to take down her review “at once.” She refused and cited her right to free speech. The following day the passenger received another phone call from RCI stating the couple was banned forever from the cruise line. They were stunned. They didn’t believe it was true until an official letter was delivered citing the ban. It also contained a $500 check — their additional promised cruise credit." | Passengers
banned |
| 30.4.08 |
Explorer of the Seas | The port call at Bermuda was cancelled because of a medical
emergency that required the ship to head back toward the New Jersey
coast so it would be in range for a helicopter rescue by the Coast
Guard. As a consequence, the itinerary now included an extra day and
night at sea. |
Port call cancelled |
| 26.4.08 |
Grandeur of the Seas | From a passenger: The Ship developed propulsion problems on April 23 resulting in a 3 hour delay arriving in Bermuda on April 24th. Passengers had tours shortened or cancelled. Midday on April 25 the Captain advised propulsion problems continued and the ship would arrive 3.5 hours late in Baltimore on April 26 (10:30 AM). Those passengers with flight times prior to 2:30 pm were advised to make alternate airline arrangements. A letter was delivered to each stateroom that confirmed the arrival times and stated that a refund of $100.00 per passenger would be offered to cover the cost of ticket changes. (There was no offer to actually cover the increased cost of obtaining last minute flights.) Many people took the information at face value and made arrangements for flights departing between 3:00 pm and 4:00 pm. The ship actually arrived at the pier in Baltimore at 2:30 pm and disembarking did not start until 4:00 pm. Many people were unable to get to the airport in time to make their “new” flight times. Not a lot of happy campers! | Propulsion
problems -- Delays |
| 25.4.08 |
Majesty of the Seas | WFTV reports that a family of five were evicted from the ship late at night on Tuesday (the second day of the cruise) when their 7-month-old child became sick. They think they were kicked off the ship because her symptoms were similar to the Norwalk virus. The child was throwing up and had diarrhea. A doctor on the ship said she was dehydrated and had to be treated in a hospital. The family said a security guard gave them 10 minutes to pack their bags and get off the boat. It was 11 o'clock at night.the father asked if his wife could get out of her pajamas but the response was that there was no time for that. A doctor at the emergency room diagnosed the infant with a cold, not dehydration. He signed a form and cleared her to travel, but the ship had already left and they were stuck in the Bahamas with no passports to get home. They spent $455 on emergecy passports, $650 on plane tickets home, and $600 for the emergency room on toip of the cost of the five night cruise. RCI refuses to reimburse the family for their expenses but did offer to provide credit on a future cruise. Royal Caribbean takes exception with the parents' account (see Fox News - April 29) and has agreed as a gesture of good will to provide the family with a refund of its cruise fare and reimbursement for its flights home. | Family of 5 kicked off
cruise |
| 23.4.08 |
Navigator of the Seas | A poster
at Cruise Critic writes that the ship is stuck in Lisbon with a
problem with a stabilizer. The ship was initially anchored in the Tagis
River but was later moved to a berth in port. According to the
discussion thread, the ship is not permitted to leave Portugal until
the problem is fixed and apparently the ship willl go to Cascais for
repairs (the stabilizer fin is apparently going to be cut off/removed).
The next two port calls (Cadiz and Malaga) have been cancelled and
there is some concern as to whether the ship will make it Barcelona on
Saturday as is scheduled. The ship also skipped its scheduled call at
Azores which means the only port calls on the transatlantic cruise were
Bermuda and Lisbon. UPDATE: The
"repairs" in Cascais involved cutting off both aft stabilizers. The
ship then left for Barcelona and arrived Friday night. As compensation
for missing the three ports and being stuck in Lisbon passengers were
given a 20% credit (based on what they paid for their cruise) to be
used toward a future cruise. |
Stabilizer problems -- Ports cancelled |
| 22.4.08 |
Serenade of the Seas | A passenger writes On the second day of the cruise, the 21st
of April, at 5.00 in the morning a helicopter of the US Coast Guard
rescued an injured person. The accident happened a few hours before.
The ship had to turn and now there is a delay in the next port
Cartagena, Colombia. The ship is on its repositioning cruise to Alaska
for the summer season. |
Shortened Port Call |
| 20.3.08 |
Serenade of the Seas |
Three ships (RCI's Serenade of the Seas, HAL's Maasdam, and
Pullmantur's Holiday Dream) were prevented from docking at Bridgetown
because of high seas. Two of the ships made it into port, but a
decision was made to not disembark passengers. A fourth ship,
Silversea's Silver Wind cancelled its call for March 21, also because
of sea conditions. |
Canceled port call |
| 17.3.08 |
Legend of the Seas | Several persons from the Dominican Republic were not allowed
to leave the ship in Sint Maarten after authorities were tipped off
that they intended to stay in the country. The ship home ports in
Dominican Republic, making it a good cover for people wanting to leave
DR in search of better economic opportunities. Local sensitivity to the
issue is raised by past incidents of "ship jumpers." |
Some pax not allowed to disembark |
| 10.3.08 |
Voyager of the Seas | According to a passenger, there was a small fire onboard that did something to damage the propulsion system of the ship. As a result the ship's schedule was altered, although it did go to all 3 destinations. However shore excursions were all shortened. | Minor fire |
| 14.2.08 |
Explorer of the Seas | A passenger reports there was an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness in the first half of the 12 day cruise from New Jersey to the Eastern Caribbean. On its return to Cape Liberty, the ship encountered a violent storm, waves in excess of 25 feet, and gale force winds-force 11) -- this data was reported on our stateroom TV’s (channels 41 or 15). The captain had warned us the day prior that we would be following the storm, but this was not the case-we were in the middle of it. In a question and answer period with some of the officers on Feb. 14, including the assistant captain, he mentioned we had the misfortune of passing through 2 cold fronts and the gulf stream within the same day. The rough sea conditions lasted for 12 hours. The ship was rocking side to side, elevators were padded in the event of injury, waitstaff in the dining areas reported feeling dizzy and ill, plates were dropping, and 2 elevators that day were out of service. | Extremely Heavy Seas |
| 31.1.08 |
Navigator of the Seas | A 29 year old Jamaica crew members was arrested in Belize today. Ship security officers found the crew member him with a parcel of white powder believed to be cocaine taped to the inside of his thighs. The ship was 5 miles out of Belize City - but they figured he had picked up the drugs when he came onshore, so they called the CIB Office in Belize City. The crew member was arrested and the powder was sent for testing. And while it looked like cocaine and was concealed like cocaine, it was not. A test showed that it was just non-narcotic white powder. But still, police believe the man had bought what he thought was cocaine - which is still an offence - but not nearly as serious as trafficking cocaine. He was charged with the rarely used offence: "supplying a substance other than controlled drugs." | Non-drug drug bust |
| 28.1.08 |
Enchantment of the Seas | The ships was unable to make our port call in Grand Cayman due to rough seas. Shore excursion fees were refunded however no credits or allowances were provided. The ship arrived at the next port, Ocho Rios, the following morning | Canceled port call (Rough seas) |
| 3.1.08 |
Radiance of the Seas | Passengers spent up to two hours
bouncing around on small tenders in rough
seas after it became impossible to get them back to their ship in
George Town Harbour (Grand Cayman). Cruise lines had been advised to
make the last tender at 2pm,
but
a weather front came through sooner than anticipated, which forced
tendering from George Town to Spotts Dock on
the south side of Grand Cayman. Rather
than using the services and larger tendering vessels of Caribbean
Marine Services, Radiance of the Seas chose to use their own lifeboats
to tender passengers. The experience for passengers was not pleasant, as
described in an article in the Cayman newspaper. |
Rough sea for tendering |
| dd/mm/yy |
Ship |
2007 |
Incident |
| 31.12.07 |
Liberty of the Seas | From a passenger: I was travelling with my family for the
New Year holiday on the ship, departing Miami December 29. There were
10 other family members on board the ship with me. I was playing
in the casino and got into an argument with some high rollers in the
casino on the departing night, Saturday (12/29). There was
no physical altercation just an argument. Security broke up
the argument and I was asked to leave the casino and went back to my
cabin around 1:30am. The high roller threatened me and
a security guard was placed outside my cabin overnight. The next
day I was called by Guest Relations around 9:45pm and was told to
meet Security in the back room at the front desk at 7:00 am Monday,
which was the first port of call. There were several gentlemen
present at the meeting (head of security, guest relations) and I was
told that I have 45 minutes to pack my bags and get off the ship and
that I was a security risk to the ship. I packed my bags and was
escorted to the dining room. In the dining room there were
immigration officials who had to approve of my disembarkation.
Although I objected to being thrown off the ship and although the
immigration officials also didn't approve of my being thrown off the
ship, officials from the cruise line handed an envelope with $1,000
cash in it to the immigration official and I was then escorted off
the ship to a small boat then transferred to Labadee (private
reserve on the island of Haiti). I was put in a golf cart and
driven to the end of a fenced in area to a waiting jeep. Inside
the jeep were machine gun armed guards and the driver. I was
driven from a locked compound in Labadee, Haiti to a run down
deserted landing strip where there was a
turbo propeller plane waiting for me. On the ride to the
landing strip I was advised to duck down for my safety. I was
scared for my life and thought I was going to die. I was then
escorted onto the turbo prop and was flown from Haiti to Fort
Lauderdale, taking 3 hours. I then transferred onto a
commercial airliner at my cost and arrived home Monday
night. FYI, Haiti is listed on the US State Departments list of
countries for Americans to avoid. |
Passenger evicted |
| 5.12.07 |
Empress of the Seas | During a routine patrol of the K9 unit at Port Zante (St. Kitts), a passenger was searched and a quantity vegetable material suspected to be cannabis and quantity of a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine was found on his person. He was arrested, and investigations are ongoing. | Drug Arrest onshore |
| 2.12.07 |
Enchantment of the Seas | Passengers returning from the most recent cruises say the
ship continues to have electrical problems and is cruising at reduced
speeds which is causing itinerary changes. (See November
15 below) |
Electrical problems |
| 24.11.07 |
Jewel of the Seas | There was a small fire in the laundry room (deck 1 and 2)
that was extinguished within an hour. Passengers were awakened by the
2:30 AM alert to crew, but there was no general call and passengers
were not asked to leave their rooms. Some passengers report seeing
thick smoke venting by the pool on deck 11. Apparently the only
inconvenience, after things were brought under control, was that linens
needed to be re-laundered to remove the smell of smoke. |
Fire |
| 15.11.07 |
Enchantment of the Seas | The ship apparently had a power failure in the early morning
and was assisted by a tug into Fort Lauderdale at the cruise's end.
Departure of the next cruise, a 4 night cruise with scheduled stops in
Key West and Cozumel, was delayed until midnight and Key West was
dropped from the itinerary. Also, rooms mid-ship reportedly do
not
have air conditioning. UPDATE
November 17 from a passenger: We
made it to Cozumel. Ship has 50% propulsion. They gave each cabin $200
shipboard credit, and 25% of current fare off for future cruise. A lot of upset people, not only at
itinerary change but sporadic A/C. Of the 2,300 cruising, 2,000 are
first time Royal Caribbean cruisers. |
Electrical problems -- Itinerary change |
| 13.11.07 |
Sovereign of the Seas | The Bahama
Journal reports
that a 28 year old Nicaraguan man is standing trial accused of forcing
himself on a 20 year old cruise passenger while she was asleep in a
friend's cabin on March 7, 2007. According to the article, the
young
woman had arrived in the Port of Nassau and shopped at
the Straw Market that afternoon. She testified that after dropping off
her
packages at the cruise ship and enjoying a few drinks at Senor Frogs in
downtown Nassau, she went to dinner with several of her friends. After
dinner, she said she returned to the cabin with three of her friends
and immediately went to sleep. She told the court she had no
recollection of what happened between that time and when she awoke to
discover she was naked from the waist down and the crew member was on
top of
her and had penetrated her. On November 19, the assailant was
acquitted. The case is laid out in Bahama Journal articles, if you are
interested in reading about the case. |
Sexual assault |
| 29.10.07 |
Radiance of the Seas | Passenger's disembarkation was delayed four hours
because of a staffing problem onshore which delayed the screening of
disembarking passengers as Lahaina (Maui). The ship was on a 14
day cruise from Los Angeles. It previously had to skip its call
at Hilo because of 50-knot winds off the Big Island. |
Delayed disembarkation |
| 17.10.07 |
Serenade of the Seas | The ship will return about six hours late to San
Diego from its 15 night Hawaii cruise ending on October 20. The
delay is caused by a medical
evacuation emergency which required the ship to backtrack back toward
Honolulu in order for the ship to be close enough for a helicopter to
meet the ship. |
Delayed
arrival |
| 2.9.07 |
Freedom of the Seas | Disembarkation from the ship was delayed four hours after
security screeners spotted what they thought was a grenade in the
luggage of a passenger onboard the ship. Passengers were not
allowed to disembark and the Terminal was evacuated. When the
bomb squad unit arrived, they determined the item was not a real
grenade but a child's belt buckle shaped like a grenade.
Passengers were finally allowed to disembark at 11:30 AM. |
Bomb scare |
| 23.8.07 |
Brilliance of the Seas | A reader reports that there was suspicion of a person
overboard this evening. A search of the ocean
(Mediterranean) was undertaken and passengers were later asked to
return to their staterooms so a full count of passengers/crew could be
completed. The following morning passengers were told that no
passengers
were missing. |
False alarm of person overboard |
| 23.8.07 |
Brilliance of the Seas | From a reader in
Civitavecchia: I was
boarding the Legend of the Seas yesterday around 1:45pm, when a freak
storm rolled in from the West. The Brilliance of the Seas was on
the opposite side of the harbour. Once the winds picked up, we
noticed the ship list a lot to the port side and eventually
the aft mooring ropes snapped. The aft of the ship swung out to the
middle of the harbour. The biggest problem is that there was
another ferry coming at the same time. The captain on that ferry
attempted to turn the ship a 180 to avoid hitting the Brilliance and
nearly hit the Legend while it's attempt. At the end of the day,
apparently, nobody was hurt, however both gangways for the Brilliance
fell in the water and divers were contacted to attempt to locate
them. |
"Near miss" |
| 8.8.07 |
Mariner of the Seas | According to The Daily Herald, The criminal session in the Court of First Instance in Phillipsburg today was devoted entirely to the so-called Mariner of the Seas case. All nine suspects on trial allegedly were involved in the import and export of drugs through the US-based cruise ship carrying this name. Authorities uncovered and intercepted a major drug smuggling operation on May 17, in which Mariner of the Seas was allegedly used to import marijuana into St. Maarten from Aruba and to transport large quantities of cocaine to Miami, Florida. | Drug case |
| 28.7.07 |
Mariner of the Seas | There was a fire on deck 0 in the incinerator.
Smoke could be smelled on some decks but the captain
made a quick announcement that they were investigating and no one was
allowed to smoke until further notice - he came back on to report that
the fire was completely put out and smoking was now allowed.
There was no disruption of the cruise, which was on its last night of a
seven night Eastern Caribbean cruise to/from Port Canaveral. |
Fire |
| 18.6.07 |
Freedom of the Seas | The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for a 24 year old man who apparently fell overboard somewhere between Exuma, Bahamas and San Salvador. The ship had left Miami Sunday en route to Puerto Rico when his family reported him missing at approximately 8:30 a.m. Monday. He had last been seen at approximately 1:45 a.m. Monday while he was resting in his stateroom balcony. The ship reversed its course in order to conduct a search along the track it sailed. and the Coast Guard is conducting an air search. A variety of onboard announcements and searches have been conducted; however, the young man has not been found. The ship returned to a revised itinerary on Tuesday. | Passenger Overboard? |
| 4.4.07 |
Brilliance of the Seas | The Cayman
Compass reported that a cook had spent 5 nights in custody (in
Cayman Islands) after he was found to posses .52 gram of cocaine and
.38 gram of ganja in a random drug search onboard while the ship was
outside the territorial jurisdiction of Cayman Islands. He was
turned over to Cayman authorities by the ship's officers and the court
allowed the prosecution even though the possession was discovered
outside the court's jurisdiction. The cook was fined $1150; if he
can't pay, he'll spend 90 days in jail. |
Crew Beware |
| 31.3.07 |
Grandeur of the Seas | A reader sent this picture
along, taken when she was in Cozumel on 22 March 07. It shows the
dent, obviously not repaired, from when the ship struck the peir at
Costa Maya on April 20,
2005. Please be aware that the photo is high resolution and a
large file (1MB) |
Huge dent |
| 18.2.07 |
Rhapsody of the Seas | The
ship was apparently delayed in dry dock. Embarkation was delayed
and
departure originally scheduled for 4PM was rescheduled for 11PM of
midnight. Passenger feedback indicates work had not been
completed
during drydock ... the Windjammer cafe was closed for the entire cruise
and there were other inconveniences. See: http://consumerist.com/consumer/complaints/royal-cruise-was-a-royal-disaster-273015.php |
Delay |
| 29.1.07 |
Splendor of the Seas | The ship is expected to return to Galveston several hours
late (at 1PM) from a four day cruise (25 - 29 January) to/from
Cozumel. After leaving Cozumel Saturday, it returned early
Sunday monring to offload a seriously ill passenger. Passengers
were told at 10AM that the ship's return to Galveston would be delayed
and were permitted free use of telephones and internet in order to
notify folks and/or to change travel arrangements. |
Late arrival - Medical emergency |
| 24.1.07 |
Freedom of the Seas | A 71-year-old male passenger was found found floating
unconscious in the water at the Sandbar (Grand Cayman). He was taken
back to shore by the boat he had come out on but did not survive.
In 2006, there were 10 deaths in the Cayman Islands that were
watersports related. Seven of the 10 deaths in 2006 involved
snorkelers and three involved divers. All but one of them was older
than 48. |
Pax death on excursion |
| 7.1.07 |
Freedom of the Seas |
From a passenger: The ship left late from Miami on January
7. RCI staff were reporting that the delay in boarding was a
result of a large number of foreign nationals disembarking from the
earlier cruise. Passenegers waited in line both inside the
terminal and outside the terminal for up to 4 hours with boarding
beginning at 4:00PM. RCI did not supply water and many passengers
had reactions due to the high heat. CNN reported that the actual cause
for the delayed boarding was the department of Homeland Security and
local police closed the cargo area of the Port of Miami to investigate
an unauthorized vehicle. The same cruise missed the port of Georgetown
(Grand Cayman) on January 10, due to high winds.
|
Departure delayed |
| 2.1.07 |
Brilliance of the Seas | The had been a 2.5 hour power failure during the Christmas/New Year's cruise ending today in Miami. According to one passenger, "the ship drifted for that time. Many people in the aft cabins were very concerned that there was a fire as there was considerable smoke. We saw people sitting out in the hallways and some people got up and went down to the centrum" | Power Failure |
| dd/mm/yy |
Ship |
2006 |
Incident |
| 18.12.06 |
Explorer of
the
Seas |
Passengers were notified today that the port call at Belize City was cancelled (the ship wasapparently behind schedule given the need to return to Miami for a medical emergency six hours after leaving on December 17, even though the Captain said they'd make up the time). They were told instead the ship would stop at Cozumel for 19 hours, go to Grand Cayman, Costa Maya and then back to Miami. On December 20 passengers were told that Costa Maya could not accommodate the ship so the ship woould dock at Montego Bay instead. According to passengers, "shore excursions were disorganized and the crew were as misinformed as the passengers." One passenger writes: We had to tender at Cozumel the first day, then we were able to pull onto the dock when the Freedom of the Seas left, but then had to back out again when the Enchantment arrived at 9AM the next morning. The confusion caused HUGE lines for tendering, and I personally felt like a second-class citizen being bumped out of the dock like that. (For a sister ship!!!) Grand Cayman was a joke, I'm sorry I ever left the ship. Our ship made the 6th, yes that's 6 ships tendered at the tiny island of Grand Cayman. Needless to say, the shore excursions were all booked, and crowded, and once again, the line to tender was ridiculous. | Itinerary changes |
| 17.12.06 |
Enchantment of
the
Seas |
A half dozen passengers have independently reported that an
older male passenger was pulled out of the water after going overboard
while the ship sailed from Cozumel toward its return to Fort
Lauderdale. Reports indicate the man did not survive. There
are no news reports or press releases regarding this indicent. |
Person overboard |
| 5.11.06 |
Radiance of the
Seas |
From a passenger: Just got back from Radiance of the Seas 10/28/06 cruise to Puerto Rico, Antigua, St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Nassau. The evening we were sailing back to Ft. Lauderdale (4 November) a fire broke out in the Windjammer and the captain came on the loud speaker at 2AM to announce BRAVO - BRAVO - BRAVO, we have a fire in the Windjammer -- everyone stay tuned to for further announcements. Finally he came back on about a half an hour later to inform us that all was well and that we could go back to sleep. | Fire |
| 31.10.06 |
Enchantment of the
Seas |
A strong squall of wind caused the ship to drag its anchor
300 metres before it ran into a moored barge off Pageant Beach
(Georgetown, Cayman Islands). The ship had been anchored off
shore from the WHarf Restauarnt area, Other than two dents in the
port side and a long 100-foot scrape, there was no damage to the
ship. Most passengers were ashore when the incident
occured. Here's a
picture from a passenger. |
Collision |
| 22.10.06 |
Mariner of the
Seas |
The seven day cruise ending today had some issues given a
group of 500+ alternative lifestyle passengers (gay men). There
is debate about how disruptive the group was, but there appears to be
no debate that some passengers were forced to leave the cruise because
of individual behaviour problems. Rather than detail the issues
here, go to Cruise
Critic if you'd like more information (from different perspectives). |
Onboard disruptive behaviour |
| 22.9.06 |
Jewel of the
Seas |
From a passenger: Bravo, Bravo, Bravo called during early dinner seating -- area affected is deck 2 midship. The story onboard was that one of the Platters tossed a lit cigarette into the trash can thinking it was out. Smoke filled several cabins and the automatic sprinklers came on. The captain came on the intercom three times to explain what was going on and let the passengers know when it was under control. No major damage reported, no injuries. According to a poster at Cruise Critic: The staff and crew had everything under control in less than 20 minutes. Seven staterooms had to be evacuated and people reassigned to other rooms. The rooms mostly suffered water damage from the sprinkler system. | Fire |
| 19.9.06 |
Freedom of the
Seas |
According to passengers, the ship collided with a refueling
ship as it was leaving Montego Bay. Damage was not significant
and following an ispection the ship got underway. The delay
lasted approximately 30 minutes. |
Collision |
| 17.9.06- 24.9.06 |
Rhapsody of the Seas |
From a passenger: There was a terrible vibration seven days whenever the main engines were running. My mid-ship suite shook so hard that blossoms fell off of the flowers I had sent to our stateroom. I had contacted Royal Caribbean months in advance to discuss with them the smoothest possible area to book a stateroom and was advised to get a suite -- I told them at the time I was a disabled Firefighter with severe neck injuries. The continual vibrations caused me a great deal of pain. After the cruise I found out RCI was aware of the vibration problems when I booked passage, but said nothing to me about it. RCI offered me a 20% discount on another cruise. One extremely painful week was enough sailing for me; I declined. | Severe
vibrations |
| 10.9.06 |
Grandeur of the
Seas |
As a result of a mechanical problem involving the rudder,
the cruise ending today didn't arrive in Baltimore until 2:30.
Many passengers missed flights home. The cruise embarking
today’s sailing
is delayed until midnight Monday so that repairs can be made. The
ship was to operate a
Bermuda itinerary
but will instead make a three-night cruise to
nowhere, returning Friday morning to
Baltimore as scheduled. Those who sail will
receive a 50% refund and a 25% credit on a future cruise. Those who
cancel will receive a 125% credit for a future sailing. Those
returning to Balitomre late were give up to $100 toward flight change
fees. |
Delay / Itinerary Change |
| 27.8.06 |
Serenade of the Seas |
Passengers were notified upon embarkation that there was a
problem with one of the ship's azipod propulsion units and that they
would be cruising at reduced speeds. While no ports were dropped,
arrival and departure times had to be adjusted. |
Propulsion problem |
| 31.7.06 |
Enchantment of the
Seas |
A passenger returning from the four day cruise ending today
posted a message at Cruise
Critic detailing their experience with bed bugs on the ship
(Stateroom 7094), and the less-than-attentive response on the part of
onboard staff. They report that when they left the ship, the room
had been made up for the next passengers and it had not been
fumigated. Further
passenger statement here. |
Bed Bugs |
| 30.7.06 |
Enchantment of the
Seas |
Novedades (local
newspaper) in Cancun reports that a short circuit caused a fire on a
life boat while it was being lower from the ship while in
Cozumel. The fire was quickly extinguished and there were no
injuries. Click
here for a picture of the ship. |
Fire |
| 26.7.06 |
Voyager of the Seas |
RCI
issued a statement that a 22 year old woman was missing from the
Voyager of the Seas, sailing in the Mediterranean. The woman was
last
seen at approximately 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, when she joined her parents
to sleep in their stateroom. At that time, the ship was sailing from
Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy, to Naples, Italy. She was reported
missing by her sister at approximately 7:30 a.m. Tuesday. A
variety of
onboard announcements and searches were immediately carried out,without
success. |
Missing |
| 15.7.06 |
Enchantment of the Seas |
From a passenger: On Saturday 7/15 there was a midnight
buffet on the pool deck ... somewhere between 1 am and 4 am, my son
heard that someone had fallen overboard or committed suicide. He said
the ship stopped for approx. 1 half hour, and a lifeboat was put into
the water. He asked several of the deck crew about it, and got the same
response every time, "we aren't allowed to talk about it." |
??Person overboard?? |
| 27.6.06 |
Radiance of the Seas |
Passengers were notified at 10:30 AM that the ship's port
call at Juneau was cancelled due to satellite communication problems
that delayed sending the manifest for security clearance by the US
Coast Guard. Guests were offered a $100 onboard credit for the
missed port call. |
Missed Port |
| 27.5.06 |
Legend of the Seas |
The seven day cruise ending today missed calls at Lisbon and
La Rochelle because of eather and high seas. The first appraoch
to Guernsey was cancelled but a stop on the ship's returen to
Southampton was wuccessful. |
Itinerary changes |
| 23.5.06 |
Empress of the Seas |
CBS3 in
Philadelphia reported on a case of a crew member diagnosed with
typhoid fever and that "thousands of passengers may have been exposed
to the life-threatening illness." The bartender joined the ship
April 29th, arriving from India, and was taken off duty May 11th "with
flu-like symptoms." |
Health Issue |
| 20.5.06 |
Adventure of the Seas |
The ship had an encounter with volcanic ash from Montserrat. Information is available by clicking here. | Encounter with Volcanic Ash |
| 16.5.06 |
Mariner of the Seas |
A
21 year old man went overboard in an area between Cape
Canaveral and the Bahamas. He was was reported missing by friends
at 11AM when they found he
hadn't slept in his bed. The US Coast Guard received the "man
overboard" report around 7 PM and launched an aerial search along the
liner's 120 mile long track. The man had
reportedly been drinking heavily and video equipment shows him going
over the railing at 2:16 AM. |
Passenger Overboard |
| 29.4.06- 6.5.06 |
Empress of the
Seas |
From a passenger -- The ship (roundtrip from Philadelphia to Bermuda) encountered
extreme sea conditions for approximately a day and a half due to a very
large stationary low pressure system between Bermuda and the Eastern US
seaboard. 30-foot seas and 50+ MPH winds pummeled the ship all
night Sunday April 29, all day and night Sunday April 30
until early morning Monday May 1. Forced to
sail at reduced speed to keep the motion
"tolerable". Even so, the ship was thrown about
violently. Items that weren't anchored down were thrown
about. Televisions were thrown to the floor (or onto beds) in
some staterooms. The ship appeared deserted as the majority of
passengers were stricken to their staterooms sickened by the
seas. Barf bags were placed throughout the ship. The severe sea
conditions and reduced speed caused the ship to arrive in Bermuda one
day late. St. Georges was skipped and the ship docked in Hamilton
for only two days (Tuesday at noon to Thursday at 11:00 am). Some
passengers opted to fly home at their own expense rather than risk
another rough sailing home. The ride back was actually quite
smooth...a great relief to many onboard! Embarkation was completely disorganized in Philadelphia -- fiinally sailed at 6:30 PM, 3.5 hours late. Apparently the ship arrived late that morning, the ground staff was shorthanded, and there were problems off-loading the luggage. Unfortunately, no info conveyed to arriving passengers, who waited in parking lots without knowing what was going on. Arriving guests finally started to find their own way to the luggage facility and the terminal to board the ship...causing a chaotic situation. |
Storm |
| 7.4.06 |
Rhapsody of the
Seas |
A passenger reports that about 8:45 PM the ship listed 10
degrees. According to the Captain it was due to a malfunction
with the stabilizing mechanism. The sudden list caused the water
to dump out of the pool on the top decks, dishes to crash to the ground
in the dining room, the quarters to spill out of the machines in the
Casino, liquor in the shops to come crashing and
spilling as it streamed all over the deck floor, and items in
the stateroom were thrown about. We rocked back and
forth 4 times until the captain stabilized the boat.
You could tell by the dining staff's faces that this was an
unusual event. (Note that a similar event occurred December
17, 2005) |
Sudden List |
| 29.3.06 |
Navigator of the
Seas |
While docked at St. Maarten, a crew member jumped overboard
from one of the crew decks. He quickly climbed up a ladder on the pier
and started to walk briskly toward shore. Local authorities caught up
with him quickly and handcuffed him. They turned him over ship security
while drug sniffing dogs were brought aboard. Before the ship departed
the crew member was handed over to St. Maarten authorities. According
to other crew members, the man was rumored to be carrying drugs. |
Drug bust |
| 17.3.06 |
Mariner of the
Seas |
Three passengers (including two teenaged boys aged 15 and
16) were arrested in Ocho Rios (Jamaica) for breaches of the Dangerous
Drugs Act after ganja was alledgedly found in their position while
their were at the pier awaiting boarding on the ship. Accoding to
police, the three men's actions arroused the suspicion of police. |
Drug Bust (Onshore) |
| 22.2.06 |
Vision of the
Seas |
A 35 year old woman from Sacramento, CA says she was
sexually asaaulted while on a Mexican Riviera cruise runniung 19 - 22
February. According to a lawsuit filed later in the year (August
8), a security guard employed by the cruise line entered her cabin and
sexually assaulted and battered her. |
Sexual Assault |
| 17.02.06 |
Vision of the
Seas |
The cruise beginning February 19th will be delayed a day and
Mazatlan is dropped as a port of call. This is in order to repair
a short circuit in the starboard propulsion motor. The problem
causes the ship to travel at slower speeds and first occurred on
February 9 when the ship was maneuvering to dock in Puerto
Vallarta. The ship returned to LA from that cruise several hours
late; the following cruise skipped Puerto Vallarta. Passengers on
the cruise missing Puerto Vallarta were given a $100 onboard credit;
those on the shortened cruise were given a $200 onboard credit.
In both cases, passengers were given the option to cancel the cruise at
the last minute and receive a full credit (not refund) toward a future
sailing. |
Propulsion problems -- Itinerary changes |
| 30.1.06 |
Monarch of the
Seas |
On Friday, 27 January, at least 10 suites on
deck 10 were flooded from a broken pool pipe -- carpet had to be
replaced in rooms and in hallway; passengers given $150 each onboard
credit. According to a passenger: "Huge mess! ... Loud air
movers blowing all weekend. Some very pissed off
passengers." According to another passenger: "the pool pipe
emptied into the 3rd floor Claude's Dinning Room about 10 feet from our
table and we were chased out of the dinning hall and had only JUST
finished dinner. The people who had water in their cabins said they
were moved from that cabin to another, then again and not back to the
original cabin. For being flooded out of our dining room we received a
plate of frozen "candies" and an apology letter."
On Monday, 30 January, Captain Joern Rene
Klausen (38 years old) was found dead in his cabin at 4:15 AM before
arriving in Los Angeles. Police boarded the vessel in LA and
disembarkation was delayed until removal of the body. The death
appeared to be from natural cases;
authorities in LA will conduct an autopsy.
|
Cabins flooded --- Captain's death |
| 29.1.06 |
Legend of the
Seas |
A 34 year old Colombian crew member was arrested when the
ship arrived in Tampa for an attempted rape of a 22 year old
passenger. The incident began around 3:30 AM in the bar area
where the crew member worked -- he offered to take the passenger on a
tour and led her to a dark room and pulled her in. She was able
to escape. He was held in ship's brig until the ship's return to
Tampa. |
Attempted Rape |
| 6.1.06 |
Explorer of the
Seas |
From a passenger (in letter
to Cayman Islands officials): I visited Grand Cayman on the Explorer of the Seas and was transported to shore via a locally operated tender. I write because of the huge environmental disregard shown by the tender I was on (“Carib Hawk”). I stood at the back of the boat during the trip and noticed an excessive amount of what looked to be oil being dumped into the ocean from the boat’s motor. This is unacceptable and must not be allowed. I talked to the captain of another boat about the matter and he told me that the Ministry of Environment had been in the area investigating a similar matter the day before, and also confirmed that the oil-dumping was not normal when I showed him the pictures I took through my digital camera. The pictures may be viewed here. |
Environmental |
| dd/mm/yy |
Ship |
2005 |
Incident |
| 18.12.05 |
Radiance of the Seas | A single female, alone on the last
evening of her cruise, was stalked by a crew member while in the casino and continued
as she returned to her cabin at 1AM. Earlier in the week, her
girlfriend (with whom she was traveling) was followed by a man of a
similar description. Details available
here. |
Stalking incident |
| 17.12.05 |
Rhapsody of the Seas | On her way back to Galveston from Cozumel, was buffetted by 70 MPH winds and large waves and listed , held in position for 3 minutes . In the dining they were getting ready for main dining and lost wine bottles, dishes. and glasses. The shows were cancelled. Four cabins on Deck 4 were flooded with water -- the occupants had to be transferred to other staerooms and all their wet clothing laundered. They tore up thje rugs and hallway and laid brand new carpet all done by the next sailing on 12/18. | Sudden List |
| 10.12.05 |
Jewel of the Seas | A 59-year old woman's husband reported her missing as the
ship pulled into Nassau at 1PM. She had last been seen at
9AM. A search of the ship and ocean was done, but she wasnot
found. It is presumed she eaither jumped or fell overboard. |
Passenger overboard |
| 22.11.05 | Grandeur of the Seas | The seven day cruise from Baltimore was forced by high winds to miss Bermuda as a port of call. | Missed port |
| Early- November |
Mariner of the Seas | A passenger writes: At the beginning of November, 2005, we sailed on Mariner of the Seas owned by Royal Caribbean. On that cruise were over 1,500 "Hog on the High Seas," Harley Davidson owners. We had been given no warning that this number of motorcycle persons would be on the cruise. Their behavior was very disruptive both on the ship, at the area in Haiti where the ship stopped and where those guests were given preferred treatment, and even as they were re-boarding the ship after port stops. At on location, for example, we, my wife and I, were sitting on our cabin's balcony. A female member of the Hogs was returning to the ship when she yelled to others on other balconies, "Is this the ship with the Hogs on the High Seas?" When they answered that it was she turned around and mooned them. Another person, a male, from the Hogs sat in a bar/lounge for over 24 hours topless. Both during and after the cruise I complained to Royal Caribbean about the behavior of the Hogs on the High Seas. Their answer to me was that I was prejudice. NOTE: Hog on the High Seas is a regular event, often held on the Mariner of the Seas. If concerned, check their website for dates so you can avoid a difficult time (if so inclined). | Disruptive Group of 1500 folks |
| 27.10.05 |
Brilliance of the Seas |
A blockade of the entrance to Barcelona
Harbour by fishersmen prevented the ship from entering the harbour for
12 hours. Disembark/embarkation was thrown into chaos. Embarking
passengers who were only on a three night cruise started boarding at
11p.m. and missed one port out of two (Corsica) -- they received $100
per person onboard credit.
|
Delays |
| 12-19.9.05 |
Empress of the Seas | The ship experienced engine problems en route to Key West
where temporary repairs were made. The ship was then re-routed
from a Mexican cruise to a cruise to the Bahamas where more repairs
could be made. Passengers were compensated with $150 in onboard
credit. According to some passengers who have shared information
post cruise through e-mail, problems with the ship's propulsion had
been ongoing for several weeks and the current disruption should have
been prevented. |
Propulsion problem - Itinerary change |
| 2.9.05 |
Monarch of the Seas | Three crew members were killed and nineteen others injured
when they were
overcome by hydrogen sulfide gas while replacing a section of a pipe
connected
to the ship’s sewage system. The broken line expelled about five
gallons of raw sewage and
an
unknown amount of gas in the starboard propeller shaft tunnel. No
passengers were affected but
disembarkation and embarkation was delayed. |
Accidental deaths and
injuries |
| 28.8. - 3.9.05 |
Mariner of the Seas |
The following bit of excitement was sent by a passenger and
may interest some: While
heading for Cozumel the ship was going thru a lightning storm and was
hit on one of the antenas
around 4:35am. It fried
some wiring and set off the fire alarms throughout the ship. It
took about 15 mins. to turn them off. Also the large doors between
sections on hallways closed automatically and had to be opened
manually, for a few hours. The was no serious damage to
the ship and no injury to persons. For photos go
here |
Lighting strike --- No harm |
| 20.8.05 |
Mariner of the Seas | The cruise left Barcelona 12 hours late (and missed its
first port: Marseille) because of high seas.off the French coast.
As it was, even with leaving late, the ship encountered heavy seas and
strong winds the first day out and there was widespread
seasickness. Seas calmed by the next day. |
Missed port |
| 2.8.05 |
Explorer of the Seas | Posted at Cruise Critic: After we left Miami on Sunday, at about 10pm, we felt a loud noise, like an explosion, and. the ship tilted to one side ... It went like that for about 10 minutes, I was in the Aquarium Bar , and the water from the aquarium started coming out from the top of the aquarium in the side that we were leaning to. Anything that was not tied down fell on the floor, including many bottles and stuff in the gift shop. We asked around but the anwsers we got made no sense. Scary, scary, scary. The incident appears to have been caused by a stabilizer being retracted at a faster than normal rate. | Unexpected list |
| 24-29.7.05 |
Voyager of the Seas | I normally don't post weather-related itinerary changes,
however the following passenger statement seemed worth sharing: The July 24th
trip to Bermuda went to Canada instead. Tropical storm Franklin
was to blame for the rough seas in Bermuda. Royal Caribbean was
to blame for the ridiculous decision to go north instead of spending 5
days at sea in warm waters. The ship left from New Jersey, where
the temperatures were in the 80's and 90's. Temperatures in
Canada were in the 50's and 60's, and sky conditions were foggy and
rainy the entire time. One of the stores onboard the ship
actually raised the prices of sweatshirts, knowing that passengers had
no choice but to buy them, since everyone was packed to go to Bermuda
(or at least somewhere warm). Royal Caribbean notified passengers
by handing out a flyer at the pier. There was a near mutiny
onboard, and Captain "Sven" had a meeting in the theater to inform all
the passengers that the only compensation Royal Caribbean was offering
was the $45 port charge difference. He had to bring "bodyguards"
along to share the news. A class action lawsuit is in the
works. This was not my first cruise, but it will certainly be my
last on Royal Caribbean. Their customer service is non-existent.
RECEIVED OCT 31 2005: Royal Caribbean finally sent me four "coupons" for 25% off a future cruise (one per person). Honestly, this is "too little - too late." They should've done this on the first day of the cruise, and everyone would've been satisfied. Instead, they waited three months, and angered literally thousands of passengers. |
Port change - Passenger dissatisfaction |
| 22.7.05 |
Explorer of the Seas | A Holland America L:ine employee working at Half Moon Cay
"borrowed" a jet ski and with 4 others took a spin to Cat Island.
He became detached from the others on the return and became lost.
He was reportedly adrift for two days or more before he was spotted and
rescued by
the cruise ship. |
Rescue st sea |
| 7.7.05 |
Brilliance of the Seas | A passenger onboard the ship for his honeymoon was presumed to have fallen overboard in the Mediterranean. Cruise officials learned the man in his 20s was missing when the ship docked at Kusadasi on July 5. The matter was still being investigated six weeks later -- there is some question as to whether the death was murder,suicide, or an accident. See here for the AP report, and here, AND HERE For more information see here and here | Passenger overboard / ?Murder? |
| 3.7.05 |
Grandeur of the Seas | The ship developed engine problems and returned to Baltimore four hours later than scheduled. Its departure was also delayed. According to a poster at Cruise Critic the ship can only go 18 knots as opposed to 22 meaning it won't get to Bermuda until Tuesday at 5 pm and then it has to leave Wednesday at noon. | Engine problems Delays |
| 2.7.05 |
Legend of the Seas | A passenger is in a Spanish hospital after contracting what
is believed to be Legionnaires' Disease. On June 27 the passenger
became very ill and was rushed to hospital when the
ship docked in Barcelona. Doctors diagnosed Legionella
Pneumophilia, the bacterium which causes Legionnaires' Disease.
The ship was detained in Barcelona for
an extra day while authorities decided if there was a risk to the 2,000
passengers. |
Legionnaires' Disease |
| 9.5.05 |
Enchantment of the Seas |
Heavy seas did some damage as the ship was heading to Rotterdam where it is scheduled to undergo a drydock lengthening at Keppel Verolme Shipyard. Five stateroom windows were broken, causing some water damage on decks two and three. No one was injured and there was no significant damage to the ship which was carrying workers but no revenue passengers. | Minor damage |
| 20.4.05 |
Grandeur of the Seas | The ship struck the pier in Costa Maya, Mexico, while
docking causing a football-shaped puncture in the bow, on its starboard
side, that was approximately 42 feet long and 5 feet wide at its widest
point. The puncture was in the first deck, approximately five feet
above the waterline. The company said 15-knot winds and a 3-knot
current contributed to the incident. There were no injuries.
Departure was delayed so guests were given the choice of flying home by
charter aircraft or remaining onboard and arriving home two days later
than planned -- all guests received a $250 per-stateroom onboard
credit. The following 7-day cruise was shortened to 5 days and
guests on that cruise were given the option to cancel and receive a
full efund or to take the revised itinerary and receive a $300
per-stateroom onboard credit. |
Collision with pier |
| 11.4.05 |
Jewel of the Seas | A Florida couple was treated after being bitten by hundreds of bed bugs during a vacation cruise on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, according to Local 6 News. "I was in such disbelief at first, you know, I mean, it was hundreds and hundreds of bugs, we had leaned against all the night before, I mean it literally made my skin crawl," the passenger said. Royal Caribbean apologized to the couple and refunded $2,800 for the tickets but declined to reimburse them for medical care or hotel expenses incurred while waiting to get home. (The incident apparrentlyoccured on the cruise beginning March 26) | Bed Bugs |
| 17.3.05 |
Majesty of the Seas | A
29 year old cabin steward disappeared somewhere between Bahamas and Key
West and is presumed dead. The case was brought to light when his
family, om December 14, 2005, filed suit against RCI for $10 million
accusing the company of not doing enough to find their son. |
Missing |
| dd/mm/yy |
Ship |
2004 |
Incident |
| 20.12.04 |
Brilliance of the Seas | A couple have sued alleging that RCI's baby sitter sexually assaulted their 2-year-old son while they were on a cruise. The assault allegedly occurred on Dec. 18, 2003. | Sexual Assault |
| 5.11.04 |
Enchantment of the Seas | While docked at Key West, the ship was struck by a barge
leaving a 8 foot hole in the vessel's hull. There is a 50 foot
long mark down the side of the ship. No one was injured and the
ship is expected to be repaired and depart from Key West as scheduled. |
Collision |
| 17.10.04 |
Brilliance of the Seas | As related by a passenger at Cruise Critic: We had left Livorno, (our third day on a cruise out of Bacelona) Italy and at about 11:30 PM the captain asked all passengers to gather at their assigned muster stations without lifejackets. A passenger had reported a large splash in the water and they weren't sure whether it was a person or an object -- they needed to account for all crew and passengers via a roll call. In the meantime, the ship was turned around and returned to the area where it happened. It took 2 hours at our muster stations before all passengers were accounted for. One employee was missing. Passengers were allowed back to their business, but the ship continued its search and was joined by other ships in the area, without success. We skipped Mykonos and proceeded to Santorini with an extra sea day since we lost too much time on the search. Later in the cruise, the captain told us that they had found a note indicating the crewmembers intent to kill himself. Thru crewmembers, the story was that he had just joined the crew (his first cruise) and was working with his wife on board. It appears that there was a love triangle situation of some sort (stories varied depending on who you talked to). It was sad and provided a little weirdness to the otherwise great trip. | Suicide |
| 11.10.04 |
Royal Caribbean International | Posted
at rec.travel.cruises newsgroup: I had a bad incident involving my very daughter on a royal carb cruise. I complained to boat staff, customer service, guest relations. It is now time to go to the upper management. It involves a sexual asault by another guest on board. Also it deals with the lack of help I got onboard and from customer service as well. The incident happened August 29, 2004. |
Sexual Assault (Pax on Child) |
| 26.9.04 |
Jewel of the Seas | A 20-metre whale was found impaled on the bow of the Jewel of the Seas when it arrived in Saint John, NB. The ship's crew spotted the finback whale about the same time as officers in a small utility boat who had been dispatched to help tie up the ship, said Bruce Fiander of the coast guard's traffic operations centre. | Collision with Whale |
| 8.9.04 |
Empress of the Seas | Seven crew members were seriously injured after a lifeboat
plunged 60 feet into the water during a training exercise. One
victim was airlifted out of Bermuda for treatment of spinal injuries
and a second man is in intensive care after nearly drowning. The
victims include 2 Filipinos, one South African, one Ecuadorian, one
West Indian, and two of unknown nationality (one of whom is South
American). |
Accident - 7 Crew
Injured |
| 4.9.04 |
Voyager of the Seas | The Jersey Journal reports that a 67 year old woman
committed suicide by jumping overboard after losing money in the
casino. See the article by clicking here.
On September 16, the paper reported: There
were indications she'd lost money in the casino on board and she
came back to her cabin, went onto the balcony of the cabin, where she
appeared to have put a chair against the railing, removed her clothing
and went off into the sea below. |
Suicide |
| 23.8.04 |
Splendor of the Seas |
A woman is suing the company, alleging she was attacked and raped by a senior worker and the cruise line did nothing about it. The incident happened on the night of December 18, 2002 -- she had only been on the ship for 1.5 days. RCI says it reported her claim to authorities and the incident "appeared to be a consensual relationship on the night of the alleged incident." | Sexual Assault (Crew on Crew) |
| 9.8.04 |
Voyager of the Seas | Associated Press reports that a female cruise passenger has
sued RCI claiming she was sexually assaulted by an employee on the
cruise running August 3 - 10, 2003. The assault happened when an
employee insisted on escorting the woman back to her cabin took her
instead to an employees-only area and attacked her. |
Sexual Assault (Crew on Pax |
| 8.7.04 |
Rhapsody of the Seas | was reported on the Herald Wire Service (and today's Miami Herald -- Florida Business Briefs) that an underage girl has filed suit accusing crew members of giving her alcohol and sexually assaulting her. &n |
