Celebration cruise never left port

A SPRINGHEAD couple who planned to celebrate their 32nd wedding anniversary on a cruise never left port!

Max and Pauline Koval paid more than £400 for a three-day cruise from Liverpool to Ireland on the Thomson Celebration, which was scheduled to sail from the city’s Langton Dock.

But the cruise was cancelled when a warning of severe storms in the Irish Sea meant the ship had to remain in dock.

So retired Max (61) and his 57-year-old wife decided to take an option to remain on board and enjoy all the ship’s facilities, including entertainment, food and accommodation.
Mr Koval said: “Pauline and I could really see the funny side. Here we were on a lovely ship, but with nowhere to go.”

The couple, with more than a thousand other passengers, used the time in the port to go on sightseeing trips in Liverpool — this year’s European Capital of Culture.

“It’s a lovely city,” said Max. “And we did actually go on a sail — we took a ferry across the Mersey and found a lovely real ale pub in Birkenhead.”

Pauline said: “We had a lovely time. After all, with the horrific weather forecast, I would rather have stayed where we were than at the bottom of the Irish Sea!”

A spokesperson for Thomson Cruises said: “The safety and wellbeing of passengers and crew is of paramount importance.

“We do appreciate this was very disappointing for customers, but the mood on board was good and only 75 out of 1,301 passengers decided to return home.

“We offered a full service for the weekend, including the captain’s gala dinner.”

As the cruise was cancelled due to events beyond the control of the cruise company, Thomsons, customers aren’t due a refund.

Thomson is providing passengers with a voucher offering 80 per cent of the value of the cruise off a future cruise booking.