Maltese tourists were impacted by a cancelled cruise after the ship was detained by Coast Guard at the port of Miami.
The MSC Poesia was detained for inspection on Sunday, and the voyage, with an 11-night southern and western Caribbean itinerary, had to be cancelled.
CBS News reports that MSC Cruises said the cancellation was due to a "regulatory matter" that arose before departure, which it wasn’t able to solve in time to sail.
As a result, it cancelled the cruise and apologised to its customers. Guests were told they will receive a full refund of their cruise fare as well as a future cruise credit equal to 100 per cent of the cruise fare paid. MSC is understood to also be helping passengers get home by, for instance, reimbursing eligible change fees and additional transportation home required for those who need to change their return travel.
This newsroom is informed that around 20 Maltese guests were going to be taking the cruise.
According to CBS, the Coast Guard identified "deficiencies” with systems that are on the vessel, which it is working to address with MSC.
Earlier this year in May, Panama-flagged MSC Poesia departed Seattle, United States, on her first cruise to Alaska – MSC Cruises’ first time in this region.
It did so after having received an upgrade at Palumbo shipyards in Malta. Contacted, Palumbo Shipyards General Manager Joseph Calleja said he does not know of and has not heard of any connection with what happened in Miami and their work.
Main Image:Hector Elizalde/Unsplash
