P&O’s Cruise Ship Denied Entry Into New Zealand Due To Dirty Hull Leaving Passengers In Uproar

A couple’s wedding on Saturday had to be cancelled after a P&O cruise around New Zealand was drastically altered during the voyage. The Pacific Adventure set sail from Sydney on Monday for a 13-night “Kiwi Adventure” voyage.

The ship was denied access into New Zealand seas because its hull hadn’t been cleaned, and it is now on its way to Tasmania.

After getting cruise tickets for a trip to New Zealand, Sydney residents Janine Sherriff and Kyle Risk arranged their ideal wedding at Hobbiton — The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movie set — close to Wellington.

The cruise began as a very early Christmas present from the parents. They discovered along the trip that one of the stops would be Hobbiton, said Sherriff.

A couple’s wedding on Saturday had to be cancelled after a P&O cruise around New Zealand was drastically altered during the voyage.

The Pacific Adventure set sail from Sydney on Monday for a 13-night Kiwi Adventure voyage. The ship was denied access into New Zealand seas because its hull hadn’t been cleaned, and it is now on its way to Tasmania.

After getting cruise tickets for a trip to New Zealand, Sydney residents Janine Sherriff and Kyle Risk arranged their ideal wedding at Hobbiton — Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movie set — close to Wellington.

The cruise began as a very early Christmas present from the parents. They discovered along the trip that one of the stops would be Hobbiton, said Sherriff.

Risk stated that the entire situation has been dreadful. It would’ve meant a lot because it was such a lovely environment. Risk said, As long as they’ve got each other.

The sheriff claims they’ve accepted P&O flights back to Sydney and will tie the knot there instead. They offered them a flight to New Zealand, but she explained that all of our visitors would be home by then.

They took a flight to return to Sydney. It’s not an ideal conclusion, but it gets them off the boat and back to the safety of home. They have also converted the 50% credit for all customers to a 50% refund, which is also excellent.

Passengers claim they were “essentially kidnapped” by P&O.

P&O Cruises Australia stated that guests were informed before departing the 13-day Kiwi Adventure journey that there could be significant changes to the program.

Due to New Zealand’s strict biosecurity demands, the vessel left Sydney on Monday for hull cleaning off the Bay of Plenty. Unfortunately, the weather did not permit this, so they regret that the itinerary must be amended.

Sydney resident David Curtis, 60, told ABC News from the sea that the vessel was on the journey to Tasmania.

Curtis stated that he intended to visit numerous pals in New Zealand after his 60th birthday celebrations.

He did say it could have been worse, referring to the young couple who missed their wedding.

All their guests had already arrived and awaited them, and they had missed their wedding. So he got off very lightly. But, once again, everybody on the ship, according to him, is highly devastated. Curtis stated.

Biosecurity Mike Inglis, New Zealand’s northern regional commissioner, says biofouling is a “major biosecurity threat” and that restrictions are in place to protect us from pests like exotic caulpera.

According to Inglis, Biosecurity New Zealand has been engaging closely with cruise lines to ensure ships arrive with clean hulls.

To help manage the risk, he has requested that cruise lines submit all of their documentation and risk mitigation strategies as soon as possible to provide early information regarding any cleaning requirements, thereby avoiding trip delays.

They recognize that cleaning the hull of a cruise vessel is a difficult and complex task frequently influenced by the weather.

TasPorts CEO Anthony Donald said the Pacific Adventure is scheduled to arrive in Hobart on November 28, noting that species deemed invasive by New Zealand authorities, preventing the ship from entering New Zealand, are common in Australian waters.

Passengers were not notified. According to Curtis, passengers were only informed of two missed ports.

They received an email from P&O last Thursday informing us that the schedule was being modified and that two places – Auckland and the Bay of Islands – would be missed. Curtis stated.

P&O Cruises Australia said in a statement that it hoped guests would enjoy their time in Hobart, Port Arthur, and Eden on the NSW South Coast.

Guests have been granted additional compensation as a result of the itinerary alteration.

P&O has now provided passengers a 50% return on their ticket price as compensation, after previously giving a credit on future bookings.

Reference- ABC News

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Source: Maritime Shipping News