Tropical Storm Barry had a lesser impact than feared but created big problems for passengers cruising on Carnival Fantasy.
The cruise ship arrived in Mobile Sunday morning, July 14, after spending an extra sea day because of the storm. The ports NOLA New Orleans and Mobile AL were both closed on Saturday and reopened Sunday morning.
Guests who were supposed to disembark on Saturday spent an extra night at sea. The 5-night voyage of the next set of cruisers turned into a 4-night sailing. The new itinerary visits Cozumel, skipping Costa Maya and spending 2 days at sea. This vessel is scheduled to return to Mobile on Thursday, July 18, for the next 4-day roundtrip.
Because a storm is an act of nature and the cruise company has no control over adverse weather, Carnival Cruise Line didn't offer a full refund for passengers who might decide they didn't want to sail on the voyage. However, if travelers chose not to sail, they can get a 100% future cruise credit.
Due to the shortened itinerary, passengers received:
- A 1-day pro-rated refund of the cruise fare
- A 1-day pro-rated refund of pre-purchased beverage packages
- One day adjustment to onboard service gratuities
- Automatic refund of pre-purchased shore excursions, along with taxes, fees, port expenses for the skipped Costa Maya port.