A Couple Stared Desperately After Their Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship After They Were Late For Boarding And Were Left In The Bahamas

Apr 09, 2019

Vacation time is meant to be relaxing and fun. For most members of the workforce, vacation time is almost something sacred. There are only so many vacation days per year and most of us want to use them wisely. As a result, most folks will plan what to do on their off days down to the last detail - especially if things such as hotel or cruise bookings are involved.

The planning doesn't just happen on the vacationer's side, of course. Any kind of venue or lodging that offers services or accommodation also has to plan according to their guests. Arrival and departure times have to be coordinated, necessary equipment and wares have to be purchased. It's completely understandable and very common that hotels demand a certain amount of money in advance, and not showing up for a booking usually means forfeiting the advance.

Hotels are not the only venues that have to deal with customers not showing up when they were supposed to. Cruise ship crews can also tell stories about rude or simple unorganized vacationers that end up arriving late and becoming a nuisance for other guests and staff alike. Unfortunately, cruise ships have to follow a very strict schedule, which sometimes means that late guests are left quite literally stranded.

The internet discovered a video of one unlucky couple who was left stranded by their cruise ship a few years ago. The incident took place in mid-February 2019 and happened on the sixth day of a week-long Caribbean cruise.
A Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship, the Symphony of the Sea, stopped to allow passengers to enjoy Nassau, Bahamas. The unfortunate incident experienced by the couple took place at the last port for the cruise before returning to Miami.

The video of the couple was taken by people watching from a nearby ship. The boarding call for the couple's ship came at 3:30 PM local time. Ship workers began removing the gangway forty-five minutes later and closed the hatches to the ship. After this, it was impossible to get on for any guests left behind.

However, two of the ship's passengers came running in the direction of the ship about five minutes later. The couple carried bags they accumulated while shopping. The couple panicked and waved frantically. But moments later, their panic turned to grief as they became resigned to their apparent fate. Other passengers aboard the Symphony of the Sea stared at the couple as the ship pulled away from the docks.

Now, before judging the ship's crew, you should keep in mind that a cruise ship runs on a very tight schedule. As the Telegraph reports, a cruise ship's travel route is planned two years in advance. This is because not only do the ships need to plot their route - they also need to reserve spots in each harbor they dock at and each port, in turn, needs to make sure that there won't be any overlap of too many ships. Most cruise ships are very large and not all ports can accommodate ships of that size - and some can only accommodate a very small number. Additionally, ships are assigned a certain time at which they will be guided out of the port by the dockers and port workers - and missing this time accrues additional costs. Waiting for only a handful of guests, even though they may be late for very good reasons, is simply not cost-effective. 

The couple spoke briefly with dockworkers about their problem. The dockworkers were unable to help them, however, and the couple soon began walking down the pier. But not before each of them glanced in the direction of the ship a few times more.

The fate of the couple would now be decided by the reason they were late to the ship. If it turned out the couple was late due to a fault of their own, they would be responsible for finding their own way home. Tickets from Nassau, Bahamas location where the couple was stranded to Miami are approximately $180 apiece. However, if the fault was with the tour planners or the cruise line, the couple would receive assistance in their efforts to return to America.

According to The Daily Mail, Mrs. Gonzalez Roesch said that they weren't the only couple the shift left behind, as there were six other passengers that made the exact same mistake. 

Do you feel bad for the couple? Do you think the couple should be returned home by the cruise line regardless of the reason they were late? Let us know in the comments and be sure to pass this article on to others!