Passengers reject ‘unacceptable’ compensation after ‘cruise from hell’

MICHAEL was in the middle of proposing to his girlfriend when all hell broke loose on his cruise ship. He says his special moment was “ruined forever”.

IT WAS meant to be a special moment for this couple, but now it will be one they will never forget — for all the wrong reasons.

In the perfect setting while on a 10-day cruise in the South Pacific, Michael Barsoum planned to propose to his partner Mary.

Unfortunately for the pair, it ended up being horrible timing, as it was also the moment when chaos erupted on the cruise ship Carnival Legend.

Passengers on the ship, which arrived in its home port in Melbourne on Saturday, endured three days of violence before a 23-member family was offloaded in an unscheduled stop-off on the NSW south coast.

Despite backlash against the ship’s operator Carnival Cruise Line’s “unacceptable” offer of a 25 per cent discount on future cruises for passengers — with many furious passengers demanding a refund instead — the company told news.com.au on Monday it was standing by the offer.

Meanwhile Michael Barsoum is furious that his plan to propose to Mary on the cruise had ended in violence.

“That moment is ruined forever now,’ Mr Barsoum told the Herald Sunof his proposal.

Michael Barsoum and his fiance, Mary.

Mr Barsoum, from Cranbourne in Melbourne, said he was forced to halt the proposal to help innocent passengers who were being caught up in the bloodshed.

“Women and children were getting pulled into the fights ... I was punched in the face trying to protect my fiancee,” he said.

He is among hundreds now demanding a refund for the “cruise from hell”.

“I want my money back. I want a complete refund,” he said.

In a statement to news.com.au, a Carnival Cruise Line spokesman said the company had launched a full inquiry into all the events associated with the cruise, including the security response.

“On the question of compensation we offered everyone on the cruise a general 25 per cent future cruise credit as a goodwill gesture,” the spokesman said.

“But it must also be noted that we, as you would expect, are addressing on a case-by-case basis issues involving those guests who were directly impacted by the disruptive behaviour and where there were extenuating circumstances.”

Passengers on the Carnival Legend have told how they were targeted by members of an unruly family and were forced to lock themselves in their cabins for safety during days of violent brawls on the 10-day cruise.

There had also been threats to stab and throw people overboard, passengers said.

A scuffle on the lido deck.

A fight breaks out on the ship. Picture: 3AW

Video footage captured a number of violent clashes on the ship that saw security staff being forced to intervene. One witness told the ABC she had seen seven separate fights break out on the ship.

“Very violent — they were full-on attacks,” passenger Lisa Bolitho said.

She also questioned the ship’s management, and quoted the captain as having said: “‘What do you want me to do about it — throw them overboard?’”

The Carnival Legend, which was scheduled to return to Melbourne on Saturday, was forced to make an unscheduled stop on Friday in Eden, on the NSW south coast, where police offloaded 23 members of one family.

NSW police are investigating the incident but no charges have been laid.

The ship’s operator, Carnival Cruise Line, has express regret for the events on the cruise.

“We sincerely regret that the unruly conduct and actions of the passengers removed from the ship in Eden may have prevented other guests from fully enjoying their cruise on Carnival Legend,” Carnival Cruise Line’s Australian vice president Jennifer Vandekreeke said on Saturday.

Passengers are escorted by police off the Carnival Legend.

Passengers were taken off the ship by police in the NSW south coast town of Eden.

The company said it was conducting “a full investigation to ensure that a situation such as this never happens again”.

But many passengers have slammed the offer as “unacceptable” and said they wouldn’t be travelling on a Carnival cruise again.

“I won’t be travelling Carnival ever again so a 25 per cent off a future cruise in my eyes is unacceptable,” passenger Mark Morrison told AAP.

“To add insult to injury ... they charged us a $19.54 credit card convenience fee to settle accounts before disembarkation this morning.”

A distressed father, who had more than 20 members of his family on the ship, reacted angrily on Facebook to Carnival’s handling of the situation.

David Barkho told news.com.au that he would be seeing his lawyer about the allegations. “It is in the hands of my lawyer,” he said.

Both Carnival and NSW Police are investigating the incident.