To say the last 18 months constitute a PR nightmare for the cruise ship industry is an understatement.
In January 2012, Carnival Cruise Line’s Costa Concordia struck a reef off Italy’s coast, killing 32.
Last February, another Carnival ship’s engine room caught fire, leaving 4,000 passengers stranded in the Gulf of Mexico.
In March, a generator malfunction left the Carnival Dream stranded at port,
On May 8, two men went overboard from the Carnival Spirit’s mid-deck in waters near Sydney, Australia.
Finally, Monday’s fire aboard Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of the Sea’s cut 2,200 passengers’ vacations short.
There is a silver lining.
The Miami Herald reported Carnival Corp. lowered its yearly earnings forecast by 18 percent May 20 in a need to lower cruise prices because of the demand shock caused by recent negative publicity.
For those still willing to brave the high seas, cruise travel is more affordable now than it has been in recent years.
“I haven’t had any clients with any concerns,” said Susan Disney-Greenberg, cruise specialist for Savannah-Based Edgewood Travel. “They are still booking.”
Disney-Greenberg has sailed more than 60 times on 14 different cruise lines and says despite the string of unfortunate events experienced by the cruise industry, cruising is a safe way to travel.
“Safety is important to them,” she said. “They do not want to put any of their clients at risk. But accidents do happen.”
“The cruise line’s reputations are on the line. And they have been in business for many, many years, and the passengers are their first responsibility and that’s who they care about and they do their utmost to make them as safe and as secure as possible.”
As with any form of travel, there are always risks associated with nonrefundable purchases such airfare and other activities in the event travelers are unable to reach their desired destination.
“If we are looking at the scenario where you have pre-booked your shore excursions — you’ve booked the cruise, paid for it in full with air and so forth — if the tour is done through the cruise line, they’ll refund those right away,” Disney-Greenberg said.
For items on a traveler’s itinerary not purchased through the cruise line, she recommends traveler’s insurance. Disney-Greenberg also recommends travelers review their medical insurance policies before heading out of the country and assess whether they need additional coverage in their traveler’s insurance.
“If you are under the age of 65 and on your own insurance plan, you need to check it to see whether you have coverage out of the U.S.,” she said. “A number of them do.”
