An Australian company at the center of a “nightmare” cruise where passengers were forced to visit Tasmania instead of New Zealand has been hit with further allegations.
A two-week New Zealand cruise by P&O Cruises Australia, euphemistically titled Pacific Adventure which began on November 20, was thrown into disarray when the ship was turned away by NZ border control which forced the ship to change its itinerary at the last minute to a trip to Tasmania.
A spokesperson for the company confirmed to news.com.au that “the itinerary has changed and unfortunately guests on this current cruise will no longer be visiting New Zealand.”
Guests were informed, according to the spokesperson, before embarking on their 13-day cruise that there might be “significant changes to the itinerary,” due to New Zealand’s strict biosecurity requirements.
A New Zealand cruise by Australia’s P&O Cruises was thrown into disarray when the ship was turned away by NZ border control which forced the ship to change its itinerary at the last minute to a trip to Tasmania.
“The ship left Sydney on Monday to clean the hull in the Bay of Plenty, however the weather did not permit this to happen, so we apologize that the itinerary had to be amended,” the spokesman said.
“The change in forecast conditions made it too dangerous for divers, and therefore we could not get permission to enter New Zealand.
“Instead of sailing around New Zealand, Pacific Adventures is on its way to Tasmania, and we hope guests will enjoy their time in Hobart, Port Arthur and Eden.”
The spokeswoman said guests had been offered “additional compensation” but did not specify the compensation.
An Australian man who had family members on the cruise told news.com.au that P&O had not offered to refund passengers or the chance to reschedule.
“They mentioned the potential issue before the cruise left but didn’t offer a refund so yes they warned people but they didn’t give you the option to reschedule,” the man said.
Passengers forced to visit Tasmania instead of New Zealand.Nine News
A letter sent to passengers on November 24, seen by news.com.au, revealed passengers were compensated with an onboard credit of $300 ($197 US) as well as a future cruise credit of 50 percent of the total cruise fare paid.
A man, who has traveled with the company before, told news.com.au that what happened was “nothing new for P&O”.
“The same thing happened to us on the same cruise last February,” he said.
“We had to spend two days in the Bay of Plenty while divers cleaned the hull. We lost all visits to the North Island and some of the South Island”.
The man said the company was “obviously aware” of the problem beforehand and described it as “very poor planning”.
P&O did not offer to refund passengers or the opportunity to reschedule, a family member told a passenger. However, they are compensated with an onboard credit of $300 as well as a future cruise credit of 50 percent of the total cruise fare paid. P&O
Other Aussies voiced their opinions on social media with one declaring they wanted a “full refund” and “get off this boat”.
“This is just dirt covered in gold glitter. My husband has asked ET to take him home,” said another.
“Honestly I just want to go home,” another lamented.
According to The Australian Biosecurity New Zealand’s northern region commissioner Mike Inglis told NZ TV there was “about a level of biofouling” on board the Pacific Adventure ship.
“Our biosecurity regulations are in place to protect us from pests such as exotic caulpera, which can impact New Zealand’s environment, unique marine ecosystems, aquaculture industry and economy,” he said.
He said photos sent by the ship’s operator showed “high-risk organisms” that “could pose a risk to New Zealand if the ship were to sail in our waters”.
“We appreciate that cleaning the hull of a cruise ship is a difficult and complex task that is often dictated by the weather,” he said.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
