Angry Cruise Ship Passengers 'Yelling' Refund As Norwegian Cruise Skip Several Itinerary Stops

Pandemonium prevailed in the Norwegian Spirit cruise ship as irate passengers thronged the atrium shouting refund after the ship skipped many ports listed in the itinerary during their 14-day sailing.

Guests vent their frustration in the atrium of the Norwegian cruise ship by raising demand for an immediate refund.

The Norwegian Cruise Line ship departed from Southampton, England on September 27th. It ran into problems very soon.

According to one passenger, the first port was to be Amsterdam but that was canceled even before the guests boarded the ship. They made Le Havre the first port of call.

A series of itinerary changes and cancellations of port visits infuriated passengers as the promise cruise deals were not being delivered.

According to cruise news, citing unpredictable weather and rough seas the cruise ship canceled the first port visit of Le Havre.

After that cancellation of stops in Bergen and Flam followed. The stop at Iceland was scrapped saying that guests might catch Lorenzo hurricane on the way back to Ireland.

Then Norwegian cruise added two other stops in Norway and one in Greenock, near Glasgow. But Greenock did not work out as high winds lashed.

As the irate passengers rushed to atrium an officer tried to intervene and started talking above everyone. He was booed and heckled. After he left, a chant for refund started.

Eventually, security arrived on the scene and things became quiet. But a petition demanding refund is still circulating on board.

According to reports, Norwegian has now assured all guests that it will offer a 25 percent credit toward a future cruise.

Meanwhile, Norwegian Cruise Line that operates many premium brands like Oceania and Regent Seven Seas is all set to unveil a new ship "Encore" in November.

To promote the ship the NCL has enlisted singer and talk-show-host Kelly Clarkson as Encore's “godmother.” Clarkson will christen the ship in Miami on Nov. 21.

Encore ship will have a 1,100-foot race track that extends 13 feet off the ship with a laser-tag arena.

According to president-CEO Andy Stuart cruise industry and current players will keep growing despite new challengers entering the space.

“The industry is consistently growing. If you build it, they will come,” Stuart added.

Stuart also defended the idea of celebrity integrations. He noted that product integration and promotional opportunities beyond advertising is the new trend in the industry.

According to the Ad Age data Carnival cruise spent $322 million in marketing last year. In that, it spent only $88 million for media. However, Stuart says media advertising is still an important component as “we’ve got to reach a lot of people.”