A family aboard the ill-fated MSC cruise, which was diverted from the Bahamas to Boston due to bad weather this week, shares their ordeal with as they sip hot chocolate and shiver in the sun during what was supposed to be a winter break.
On Wednesday, mother-of-three Lakeya Allen told from the ship that she had packed “booty shorts” for what she said was a tropical cruise to the Bahamas, where she planned to meet the rest of her family for their Christmas trip.
Allen left $4,000 for the trip and return flight from Chicago to New York, where the cruise was scheduled to depart. She had been looking forward to giving her children a family vacation. She had finally saved enough to take her on the trip after years of financial hardship and having to rely on Section 8 Housing, among other things.
The night before their departure, the cruise line broke the news that their planned route to the Bahamas was too dangerous given the brewing storms.
Instead, the ship would travel to Boston and eventually Canada.
On Wednesday, mother-of-three Lakeya Allen told from the ship that she had packed “booty shorts” for what she said was a tropical cruise to the Bahamas, where she planned to meet the rest of her family for their Christmas trip
Allen left $4,000 for the trip and return flight from Chicago to New York, where the cruise was scheduled to depart. She had been looking forward to treating her children to a family vacation and hoped to make it an annual tradition
The night before she was to set sail, the cruise line broke the news that her planned route to the Bahamas was too dangerous given the brewing storms. Instead, the ship would travel to Boston and eventually Canada
Allen and her family received no upgrade to a better room or any compensation – not even a “steak dinner.”
Allen had to repack her young children's luggage to accommodate the change in weather – she swapped the booty shorts and swimsuits for long winter jackets.
Passengers were given the option to cancel their trip – but some were already in town to board the ship and decided to continue despite the drastic change in destination.
According to cruise staff, the mother announced that 2,100 passengers had disembarked from the cruise ship.
But despite the drop in passenger numbers, the family received no upgrade to a better room or any compensation – not even a “steak dinner,” Allen said.
“It's COLD, cold, the wind is blowing cold, officially cold,” passenger Lakeya Allen – known as Mzzkeya on TikTok – shared in an angry video on the app.
She uploaded another video with the caption: “When you go to the Bahamas and are supposed to land in Boston for your Christmas cruise.” “The indoor pool was full!”
Allen shared her disappointment with how the cruise went on TikTok, claiming it was too cold to even go into the pool.
She pointed the camera at “crazy” children who decided to brave the elements and swim, saying it was “bloody freezing” and “cold cold”.
During a brief stop in Boston on Monday, a storm on the East Coast brought less-than-ideal cruising weather conditions, including heavy rain and strong winds.
Allen told Good Morning America she “never thought we'd be back in cold weather.”
She also joked about drinking hot chocolate by the window on the cruise ship instead of enjoying the sunny weather by the pool.
An MSC cruise statement said “unusual weather” had made it impossible to reach the Bahamas safely.
Allen told Good Morning America she never thought we'd be back in cold weather.
An email published online purportedly revealed that MSC Cruises only informed its customers the evening before their trip, citing severe weather such as heavy rain in ports and wind gusts of over 40 knots that could make docking unsafe
The company said: “The only alternative would have been the even more extreme step of canceling the cruise – and the holidays of thousands of people – completely.”
Passengers were not offered a full refund despite the change in plans, but were able to cancel the trip to receive a credit that they could use toward a future cruise as they wished.
According to Chris Gray Faust, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic, cruise ships have what's called a “contract of carriage” that doesn't guarantee ports.
“The cruise line has the legal right to change these ports,” she said.
While other cruise ships canceled their trips completely due to the unfavorable weather conditions, the MSC cruise ship is now on its way to Canada, where temperatures are below zero.
“This guy who was helping us with our luggage said, 'You're going to Canada,'” Girish Keswani told the Boston Globe. “We all laughed about it.”
MSC Cruises justified the move by saying the original course would have run straight into severe storms off the coast of Florida, while New England and Canada would “experience nicer weather conditions.”
Passengers were introduced to a new itinerary that began in New York City and spent three days in Boston, one day in Portland, one day in St. John, Canada, and another day at sea before returning to the Big Apple.