MSC Poesia never left Miami. The 92,627-ton ship, built in 2008, was detained at PortMiami's MSC Terminal AA on Sunday, Nov 1, during an expanded U.S. Coast Guard examination, with passengers already aboard for an 11-night Caribbean and Central America cruise that was due to return Nov 12. The itinerary was set to call at Ocho Rios in Jamaica, Cartagena in Colombia, Colon in Panama, Puerto Limon in Costa Rica, Roatan in Honduras and Belize City in Belize.
The Coast Guard said it was verifying the ship's compliance with international standards and U.S. regulations, and later said inspectors had identified deficiencies with systems on board the vessel, which are being addressed with MSC. Neither side has named the specific deficiencies, and the ship remains detained until they are corrected.
On Tuesday morning, Nov 3, Captain Michele Tuvo told guests the sailing is canceled. In a statement, MSC said: “We have made the difficult decision to cancel the current sailing. Prior to departure, a regulatory matter arose that required resolution. Despite our efforts to address the matter, we were unable to resolve it in time for the sailing to proceed.”
Guests will receive a full refund of the cruise fare and of eligible prepaid purchases, including drink packages, WiFi plans, dining packages and MSC shore excursions, plus a future cruise credit and additional compensation detailed in a letter placed in staterooms. Guests may stay aboard until noon on Thursday, Nov 5, WiFi has been made free aboard, and MSC is helping guests with their journey home. Photo: MSC Poesia in port in Gdynia, by Maciej Nux, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
What it means for your sailing: if you were booked on MSC Poesia's Nov 1 sailing, your cruise is canceled, and you are due a full refund of the fare and eligible prepaid purchases plus a future cruise credit. The letter in your stateroom lays out the compensation and disembarkation details, and you can stay aboard until noon on Thursday, Nov 5, while you rearrange your trip home. If you are booked on the ship's next sailing, the 10-night cruise departing Miami on Nov 12, MSC has announced no changes to it, so plan to travel as scheduled and keep an eye on your email in case that changes.
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