The Costa Concordia tragedy, disruptions caused by Superstorm Sandy to onboard fires, overboard passengers and several unlucky excursion-related incidents, cruise lines battled what seemed to be a never-ending barrage of misfortune in 2012.
Costa Concordia - Photo Credit World Maritime News
Here are the news articles Cruise Critic readers read and talked about the most:
The Costa Concordia Tragedy
On January 13, 2012, Costa Concordia hit a rock off the coast of Italian island of Giglio. Within hours the ship had capsized, 4,000 passengers and crew evacuated and 32 people had died.
Superstorm Sandy Wrecks Havoc on Cruises
Hurricane/superstorm Sandy might easily have been one of the most disruptive weather forces the cruise industry has faced, with 10 days of itinerary changes and rough at-sea rides. In all, some 50 itineraries were upended with some passengers forced to remain at sea longer than scheduled, while others were short-changed or had their cruises canceled entirely.
Carnival Introduces All-You-Can-Drink Package
In August 2010, Carnival announced it had begun testing a flat-fee, all-inclusive beverage program called the "My Awesome Bar Program" on Carnival Victory.
Carnival Passengers Robbed on Excursion
Just because an excursion is ship-sponsored doesn't mean things can't go wrong, something 22 Carnival Splendor passengers learned when they were robbed at gunpoint in February while in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. No one was injured, but most lost a variety of valuables, as well as passports and other forms of identification.
Royal Caribbean Passengers Injured on Excursion
Carnival passengers were not the only ones to learn ship-sponsored doesn't always mean "safe." Eleven Royal Caribbean passengers were injured during a traffic accident while on a ship-sponsored shopping tour in St. Thomas in late January. The passengers were traveling in an open-air "safari cab" when it collided with a parked car.
Shipboard Fire Doesn't Dampen Passengers Spirits
On March 30 a fire broke out aboard Azamara Quest while the ship sailed off the coast of Manila.
Cruise Line Cabin Gaffe Infuriates Passengers
Nothing infuriates cruise passengers like believing a cruise line is sticking it to them, and that's exactly how a number of Royal Caribbean cruisers felt after the line took away their prime location cabins and "accidentally" sold them to other passengers. Yikes!!
Cruise Critic Predicts 2012 Trends
Fewer new-builds but growth in refurbishments, more fee-based offerings and the rebirth of Mississippi River cruising were trends Cruise Critic accurately predicted for 2012.
Passenger Overboard
Every year the cruise industry sees several people go tragically overboard, and this year was no different. The story of a female passenger who went overboard from Allure of the Seas in September caught the attention of our readers.
Crown Princess Dethroned by Noro
Few things make cruisers cringe more than the thought of contracting noro-virus while at sea. So when Crown Princess was in the news because of noro-virus twice in a two-month time span, Cruise Critic readers took notice.
Read more details on each of these stories at Cruise Critic
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