Travel question: What are my rights if we have to abandon ship?

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Going nowhere? Norwegian Pearl on a previous voyage (NCL)

Q I take many cruises but I was aghast to see how the passengers on Norwegian Pearl were treated after the ship broke down in Barcelona. You wrote that the voyage ended 500 miles short of their destination in Rome but that the cruise line was being stingy in paying for onward flights. Should I ever find myself in this unfortunate position, what are my rights?

Jane H

A The voyage that ended abruptly in Barcelona was not a happy one. The passengers aboard Norwegian Pearl were initially told the ship would miss a call in Monaco but would sail to Livorno (the port for Florence and Pisa) as planned and end up in Civitavecchia, the port for Rome, on schedule tomorrow morning. But eventually, yesterday afternoon Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) told passengers the voyage had been abandoned.