By Jill Sperling

Kamloops couple fails to sail on cruise vacation

Mar 3, 2017 | 5:00 PM

KAMLOOPS — A Kamloops couple’s dream vacation turned into a nightmare last month when they were prohibited from boarding a cruise ship in Miami. 

Joaquim (Jack) Mendes and Nevada Skelly say they had all the documents required by the major cruise line and had no problem getting into the U.S. to embark on their journey. 

However, it was one small detail that left the couple stranded on the pier, watching as their prepaid cruise and luggage set sail without them.

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“I decided for my 50th birthday I wanted to go away on a cruise,” said Skelly. “So, we booked it back in August 2016, and made final payment in November and everything was good to go.” 

The couple drove across the border into Seattle on Feb. 8, then caught a flight to Miami where they planned to take a cruise to St. Thomas, Nassau, and the British Virgin Islands. 

When they went to board the ship on Feb. 11 they were told there was a problem with Jack’s Portuguese passport.

“Because my passport wasn’t stamped showing the date of my date of entry being the 8th of February they denied us boarding the ship,” Mendes said. 

Mendes is a permanent resident of Canada, and holds a valid U.S. visa waiver. Because his passport wasn’t stamped by U.S. customs upon arrival to the country, Norwegian Cruise Line employees believed he had overstayed from a previous U.S. trip. 
 
“They said it looked like (Jack) had overstayed from the last time (he) was in the United States, but it clearly shows the return to Canada three days later on an official stamp at Canada Customs,” Skelly said. “It’s unbelievable to us that they would argue that point vehemently when it’s clear, it’s black and white. The system is flawed.”

CFJC News reached out to Norwegian Cruise Line about their policies. In a statement they said, “We must abide by the rules and regulations set in place by the countries where our ships sail from and visit, and so are unable to allow guests to board who do not have all documentation required.”

The company goes on to ask that “…anyone traveling internationally – whether by air or sea – ensures that all of their documents are valid, completed and accurate before departure.”

The cruise ship left without Skelly and Mendes, and so did their luggage. The couple spent the next week trying to make the most of their unfortunate circumstances.

“We basically had to catch taxis to find a new hotel to stay at,” Mendes said, “and go buy just essentials like toothbrushes and things, and we needed to survive for the next week because we got left with nothing.”

The unplanned week in Miami cost the Kamloops couple thousands of dollars on top of what they had already paid for their cruise. 

While Norwegian Cruise Line is not offering a refund, the company has told CFJC News they will be offering a cruise credit. 

“In light of the very unusual inconvenience Mr. Mendes experienced with his documents, Norwegian Cruise Line will be extending him and his traveling partner a future cruise credit as a goodwill gesture, so that he can have the opportunity to return for the enjoyable cruise vacation that he originally intended,” an emailed statement read.

According to Mendes, the credit is a nice gesture, but it doesn’t restore his confidence in the cruise line. 

“There’s nothing to guarantee that I’m not going to show up there again, and be turned away again, and go through the expense of getting down there yet again, and feeling victimized again,” Mendes said. 

“I just can’t imagine that I would put myself in that place again.”