Passengers missed schedule departure time for Norwegian Cruise Lines vessel and captain would not allow late guests to board

Eight cruise passengers had to scramble to reunite with their cruise ship after being left behind in São Tomé and Príncipe.

The passengers, including a pregnant woman and a paraplegic traveller, missed their scheduled departure time from the island of São Tomé in the Gulf of Guinea, about 250km off the coast of Gabon, after disembarking the Norwegian Dawn to take a local tour.

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She suffered a stroke just three weeks before the cruise and can’t speak

Ten months ago, my parents paid £4,000 for a holiday with Princess Cruises through the travel agent cruise118.com. Last month, three weeks before departure, my mum suffered a stroke. She’s now in intensive care, unable to speak and or move. I tried to cancel the holiday and claim the 25% refund due under the booking terms and conditions. BA immediately agreed to refund the flights, but cruise118.com informed me that, due to data protection rules (GDPR), only my mother, as the lead passenger, could cancel. My parents had annual travel insurance but it did not cover the region they were going to. My mother applied to upgrade it the day before her stroke, but by the time the quote arrived it was too late.
LHV, York

This is terribly sad. Your mother is only in her 60s and was active and healthy. Cruise118.com’s stance strikes me as utterly unreasonable. You had sent a letter from the hospital confirming her condition and offered to put your father, as a named passenger, on the phone.

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Cruising is booming – 2023 ticket sales have surpassed historic levels and 2024 has seen the launch of the largest cruise ship ever built. But as cruise tourism's popularity has increased, so have the pollution problems it brings. To customers, it may not be evident that any problems exist, since some cruise line companies claim to be becoming more climate-friendly. But the truth can be quite different. Josh Toussaint-Strauss interrogates what impact the world's biggest ships are having on the planet

• ‘Biggest, baddest’ – but is it the cleanest? World’s largest cruise ship sets sail

• ‘A good cruise is one that doesn’t come’: Europe’s ports bear brunt of ship pollution

• Shipping’s dirty secret: how ‘scrubbers’ clean the air – while contaminating the sea

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Our writer travelled on a low-emission ship to the top of Europe in winter to experience the northern lights, cross-country skiing and a freezing plunge in the sea

The view from the ship’s bridge is what I expected: a ribbon of dark Arctic water leading through a maze of snowy mountain islands. But the view of the bridge is a shock. Where is the wheel, the chart and that big metal thing that goes “ting”? You know, the one marked “Dead Slow” and “Full Steam”, like you see in Titanic when they spot the iceberg? In its public areas, the Havila Capella looks like any modern cruise ship or upmarket ferry. There are lounges, a panoramic bar, a couple of gyms and a deck that can be strolled. It is what lies behind the bulkheads that is very different.

On a bridge that is more USS Enterprise than Titanic, Captain Brynjard Ulvøy checks the flatscreen displays. “You see, if we increase speed … ” He nods at the first officer in the comfortable chair who taps another screen. “We drain the batteries and use more liquid natural gas.” Another nod and the ship eases back a little. “At this speed, we are at our most economical.”

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Operator of P&O Cruises and Cunard fleets agrees to consult with seafarers’ union over any proposed changes to employment contracts

Carnival UK has committed not to fire and rehire its cruise ship staff, after it was revealed that the company had made provisions to potentially dismiss and re-engage more than 900 seafarers on its P&O Cruises and Cunard fleet.

The cruise operator’s Bermuda-based employment firm last week notified authorities including the UK Insolvency Service of a consultation to vary the terms and conditions of 919 maritime workers across its 10 UK-based ships.

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On a first-time luxury river cruise in France, our reporter learns why this all-inclusive trip, despite its expense, was worth it.