Marella Celebration accidents and incidents

May 2020Other Incidents

On May 27, the 36-year-old cruise liner left its anchorage off Isle of Wight's eastern coast (near the seaside resort Sandawn) en-route to Barcelona.

29 April 2020Other Incidents

On April 29, 2020, the ship operator Marella Cruises officially announced that Marella Celebration will be retired (either sold or scrapped) after 15 years of service with Thomson-Marella UK. The cruise liner was scheduled to be homeported in Dubrovnik Croatia (June through October 2020, and May through October 2021), in Limassol Cyprus (Nov-Dec 2020, and March-April 2021) and in Dubai UAE (December 2020 through March 2021).

All these voyages were cancelled and transferred to Marella Explorer 2.

The cancelled 7-day itineraries from Dubrovnic (Croatia) were themed:

• "Adriatic Affair" - Hvar (Croatia), Ravenna (Italy), Venice (Italy), Koper (Slovenia), Rijeka (Croatia), Sibenik (Croatia)
• "Venetian Vistas" - Bar (Montenegro), Korcula (Croatia), Zadar (Croatia), Venice (Italy), Trieste (Italy), Split (Croatia)
• "Greek Mystique" - Souda-Chania (Crete, Greece), Piraeus-Athens (Greece), Kalamata (Greece), Corfu (Greece), Kotor (Montenegro)
• "Sail Three Seas" - Valletta (Malta), Messina (Sicily, Italy), Kefalonia (Greece), Brindisi (Italy), Kotor (Montenegro)

The cancelled 7-day itineraries from Limassol (Cyprus) were themed:

• "Aegean Titans" - Heraklion (Crete, Greece), Piraeus-Athens, Mykonos Island (Greece), Kusadasi (Turkey), Rhodes Island (Greece)
• "Ancient Affair" - Alanya (Turkey), Marmaris (Turkey), Heraklion (Crete, Greece), Ashdod-Jerusalem (Israel)

The cancelled 7-day itineraries from Dubai were themed:

• "Arabian" and "Arabian 2" - Doha (Qatar), Muscat (Oman), Khor Fakkan (Sharjah, UAE), Abu Dhabi (UAE)
• "Cities Of Gold" and "Cities Of Gold 2" - Mina Salman (Bahrain), Muscat (Oman), Khasab (Oman), Abu Dhabi (UAE)

The cancelled repositioning cruises included:

• (Oct 29 - Nov 4, 2020) 6-day "Dubrovnik to Limassol" - Piraeus-Athens, Heraklion (Crete), Rhodes (Greece), Alanya (Turkey)
• (December 2-15, 2020) 13-day "Limassol to Dubai" - Suez Canal, Aqaba-Petra (Jordan), Salalah (Oman)
• (March 10-24, 2021) 14-days "Dubai to Limassol" - Salalah, Aqaba-Petra, Suez Canal, Beirut (Lebanon)
• (April 28 - May 6, 2021) 8-day "Limassol to Dubrovnik" - Piraeus-Athens, Kefalonia, Sarande (Albania), Brindisi (Italy), Kotor (Montenegro)

23 July 2016Propulsion / Power Loss

(MS Thomson Celebration) On July 23, 2016, upon leaving Grand Harbour (call port Valletta, Malta), the vessel suffered an engine failure resulting in power loss and drifting for ~100 m. Then the Captain dropped anchor to avoid hitting the harbor's breakwater.

The accident also resulted in blocking the port's entrance for ~ 1 hour. Two tugboats secured the cruise ship as it was moving around due to water currents. While finally leaving port, the vessel was again assisted by a tugboat.

29 January 2014Crew / Passenger Injuries and Overboards

(MS Thomson Celebration) On January 29, 2014, an elderly couple was brutally assaulted and seriously injured by a 53-year-old male passenger, while the ship was near Lanzarote Island, en-route to call port Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands).

The man (Graeme Finlay, from Glasgow Scotland) accused them of "snubbing him" at dinner. The incident followed an altercation with the elderly couple at dinner. The unprovoked assault left the woman with fractured spine and shoulder injury, while the man sustained facial injuries. The couple (from Teesside, England UK) was treated at James Cook University Hospital (Middlesbrough, England).

A spokesperson for Thomson Cruises stated the assailant left the voyage right after the incident. Strangely, instead of arresting and confining him to the brig or to his cabin, the company let him disembark the ship.

(law news) On April 23, 2015, at his jury trial, Mr. Finlay denied the assault charges, stating he was acting in self-defense after being struck with a sharp object. He was cleared of all charges.

21 August 2010Propulsion / Power Loss

(MS Thomson Celebration) Due to engine problems, cruise itinerary August 16-23 was significantly changed. First, the embarkation in homeport Marmaris Turkey was delayed by over 24 hours. Then on the voyage, 2 call ports (Santorini Island and Cannakale) were canceled. Most call port times were also changed.

After departure from Rhodes Island (Aug 21), the vessel suffered power loss, resulting in total blackout and drifting for ~10 min. Reportedly, the ship also experienced problems with its plumbing and air-conditioning systems.

26 September 2006Crew / Passenger Deaths

(MS Thomson Celebration) On September 26, 2006, a 39-year-old male crew died after sustaining injuries in a tender boat accident. It occurred while one of the liner's tender boats was hoisted onto the ship.  The vessel was anchored off Guernsey Island and preparing to depart for homeport Southampton England.

14 May 2005Structural and Technical Issues

(MS Thomson Celebration) On May 8, 2005, due to technical / plumbing issues, the current 14-night Mediterranean cruise (itinerary May 8-22 roundtrip from homeport Southampton England) was canceled. The problems affected some of the onboard public restrooms, as well as 250 staterooms, in which toilets became inoperational. The problem was caused by a failed pump, affecting the ship's vacuum toilet system.

As compensation, all passengers received full refund plus 25% future Thomson Cruises booking discount.