‘Nightmare’ cruise at center of controversy after ship forced to tour totally different country instead of original destination

An Australian company at the centre of a “nightmare” cruise where passengers were forced to tour Tasmania instead of New Zealand has been hit by further accusations.

A two-week New Zealand cruise by P&O Cruises Australia, euphemistically titled Pacific Adventure which began on November 20, was thrown into turmoil when the ship was rejected by NZ border control forcing the ship to change the itinerary at the last minute to a trip to Tasmania.

A spokesperson for the company confirmed to news.com.au the “itinerary has changed and unfortunately guests on this current voyage will no longer be visiting New Zealand.”

Guests were notified, according to the spokesperson, before embarking on their 13-day voyage that there could be “significant changes to the itinerary,” due to New Zealand’s strict biosecurity requirements.

“The ship left Sydney on Monday for hull cleaning off the Bay of Plenty, however the weather didn’t allow this to happen, so we apologize that the itinerary has had to be amended,” the spokesperson said.

“A change in the forecast conditions made it too dangerous for divers, and therefore we are unable to gain clearance to enter New Zealand.

“In lieu of sailing around New Zealand, Pacific Adventure is on her way to Tasmania, and we hope guests will enjoy their time in Hobart, Port Arthur and Eden.”

The spokesperson said guests had been offered “additional compensation” but did not specify what the compensation was.

An Australian man who had a family member on the cruise told news.com.au that P&O did not offer to refund passengers or the opportunity to reschedule.

“They mentioned the potential for the issues before the cruise set off but didn’t offer a refund so yes they did warn people but they didn’t give you an option to reschedule,” the man said.

A letter sent to passengers on November 24, viewed by news.com.au, revealed passengers were compensated with $300 ($197 US) on-board credit plus a future cruise credit of 50 per cent of the total cruise fare paid.

A man, who had previously travelled with the company told news.com.au that what happened was “nothing new to P&O”.

“The exact same thing happened to us on the same cruise last February,” he said.

“We had to spend two days at 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 previously and described it as “very bad planning”.

Other Aussies vented on social media with one person declaring they wanted a “full refund” and to “get off this boat”.

“This is just a turd covered in gold glitter. My husband has requested ET bring him home,” said another.

“Honestly I just want to go back home,” another complained.

According to The Australian Biosecurity New Zealand’s northern regional commissioner Mike Inglis told NZ TV there had been “concerning levels of biofouling” on the Pacific Adventure vessel.

“Our biosecurity rules are in place to protect us against pests such as exotic caulpera, which can impact New Zealand’s environment, unique marine ecosystems, aquaculture industry, and economy,” he said.

He said the pictures sent by the ship’s operators showed “high risk organisms” which “could pose a risk to New Zealand if the ship cruised in our waters”.

“We appreciate that cleaning the hull of a cruise ship is a difficult and complex task often dictated by the weather,” he said.