British cruise goers abroad a luxury ship currently travelling home via the African coast due to the Houthi presence in the Red Sea have become trapped in a virus outbreak.
Passengers aboard the Queen Mary 2 were meant to travel through the Suez Canal and stop off at several sought-after destinations, including Dubai, Greece and Barcelona.
But, despite being mid-way through their voyage, they will travel back to destinations they have already visited in Africa.
They will revisit South Africa and Namibia after what was a “carefree world journey” became a “nightmare”, according to passengers.
As they do so, they will need to navigate a mystery virus that may have infected up to 300 people.
Anonymous passengers aboard Cunard’s Queen Mary have told the Daily Mail news of the return trip has come as a “real pain and disappointment” as they had less-than-positive experiences at the previous destinations.
One told the publication they didn’t want to return to “unsafe” ports because, during one stopover in Durban, South Africa, they had their phone stolen.
They said: “A repeat of South Africa and Namibia is a real pain and disappointment for all of us doing the full – or so we thought – world voyage.
“Most of the ports are unsafe, we’ve had a mobile phone stolen on the way out, so are not relishing a return where one visit is quite enough especially Port Elizabeth in South Africa and Walvis Bay in Namibia – both places where our options are extremely limited.”
Another passenger said the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea that affected their trip have meant the “notion of a carefree world journey is now a nightmare”.
Adding to the disappointment is the presence of an alleged unidentified virus that has warranted lockdowns.
Passengers believe the virus has already infected up to 300 people and claim they now face up to a week of restrictions.
They are under “partial lockdown”, which could last until the end of this week, with staff “working tirelessly to keep passengers safe”.
While they are being updated daily, the experience is “sapping morale”, with other cruises now facing similar disruptions on their routes.
A representative for Cunard said the company is “committed to ensuring the safety and well-being” of guests and crew, and Carnival said it rerouted “given recent developments and in close consultation with global security experts and government authorities”.
