Passengers say they felt ‘punked’ after Bahamas cruise was rerouted to Boston
Holiday plans took an unexpected turn for passengers on a cruise bound for the Bahamas when adverse weather conditions prompted a reroute to Boston, Maine, and Canada.
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The MSC Meraviglia, originally destined for the warm, sandy beaches of the Caribbean, altered its course due to rapidly deteriorating and unseasonable weather. Passengers, who had prepared for a tropical getaway, were informed of the last-minute change just a day before the scheduled departure from New York on Saturday.
Passengers
The abrupt shift was met with surprise by passengers already in New York for the cruise. Val Montgomery, one of the passengers, expressed the stark contrast, saying, “We thought we were being punked. But it’s just, like, Bahamas, Boston… it’s a huge difference,” during an interview on NBC’s “TODAY” show.
MSC Cruises explained that the weather conditions would have made it unsafe to navigate to the southern Atlantic Ocean from New York City. The alternative would have been to cancel the cruise entirely, affecting thousands of vacation plans. Guests were given the option to proceed with the modified itinerary or cancel and receive future cruise credit.
The revised schedule had the cruise departing from New York City on Saturday, spending three days in Boston, followed by stops in Portland, Maine, on Wednesday and Canada on Thursday, before returning to New York on Saturday.
The decision left passengers hurriedly repacking for colder climates instead of the anticipated tropical warmth. Lakeya Allen, dealing with three kids and initially packed for summer, shared her experience of a last-minute Walmart run to get winter clothing in an interview with “TODAY.”
Once on board, Allen shared glimpses of the altered cruise experience through TikTok, showcasing kids swimming in an outdoor pool on the ship despite the chilly New York weather. She described the conditions as “cold cold — like wind-blowing cold. Like officially cold” in one of her clips. Despite the unexpected change, she highlighted the ship’s amenities, sharing videos of the indoor pool, hot tub, casino, and various dining options, emphasizing that it was a “beautiful ship” in the comments section.
