Cruise passengers stuck on sickness-hit Norwegian Dawn describe anger on board with 'rebellious' guests facing another 24-hour wait to leave ship as it is finally allowed to dock in Mauritius following cholera outbreak scare

Cruise ship passengers who were stuck on board the sickness-hit Norwegian Dawn liner have described their desperation to get off the ship - which has finally been allowed to dock in Mauritius following a cholera scare.

British holidaymakers are among 2,200 passengers and 1,000 crew on the cruise liner which Mauritian authorities had barred from docking on Saturday 'to avoid any health risks'.

At least 15 people on the ship were in isolation with a stomach illness, which authorities initially feared was cholera but have now confirmed was gastroenteritis.

The ship has now been allowed to dock in Port Louis but passengers are reportedly being kept on for 'at least another 24 hours' after days at sea.

Speaking earlier of passengers' frustrations at being stranded on the ship, Dutch tourist Esther Verdaas said that the atmosphere among passengers was 'not pleasant.'

'Flights are being missed, people have lost money on hotels booked in Mauritius. Guests are angry, rebellious, sad,' she told BN DeStem. 

'These are luxury problems, of course. But what I find difficult is that so much is unclear. Can we go home? When? How? Where do we get tickets?'

A passenger on the Norwegian Dawn shared a picture of the cruise coming into dock in Mauritius

Passengers were left stranded on the ship after Mauritian authorities refused to let it dock. This picture was taken by a passenger on board the Norwegian Dawn liner near Mauritius

Hundreds of tourists have been unable to board the vessel, and were forced to queue at the port before being put up in hotels

The 12-day cruise sailed from South Africa via Mozambique, and had been scheduled to dock in Port Louis on Sunday, but arrived a day earlier after missing out a stop at Reunion Island. 

Ms Verdaas explained that 'the misery started' when they had been due to dock at Reunion on Saturday, but were refused by the authorities there.

'That meant a long extra day of aimless floating on the open sea,' said the tourist, who is travelling with her husband and their two daughters.

Now cruisers are worrying about their onward journeys. 

Lucy Boyle, from Nottinghamshire, whose elderly mother and stepfather are on the cruise, said: 'I just want her home safe, she has said it's not been great at all this cruise and this is her third or fourth time with Norwegian Cruises.

'Last I heard from her, they have had all clear from that there are no cases of Cholera confirmed from the tests. Inspectors are coming aboard as soon as they dock before they are allowed off.

Holidaymakers pictured queuing at the port on Sunday. The ship was not allowed to dock on Saturday and cruise customers were put up in hotels

Dutch holidaymaker Esther Verdaas with her husband and daughters

The 12-day cruise had sailed from South Africa via Mozambique, and had been scheduled to dock in Port Louis on Sunday. It has now been allowed to dock in Mauritius

'My mum is hoping to make a flight tomorrow night. I am worried as she is diabetic and they are in their 70s, so far though she hasn't caught anything.'

At the same time as people are hoping to get off the ship, more than 2,000 cruise customers have been unable to board.

They were forced to queue at the port over the weekend before being put up in hotels when it became clear the ship could not dock.

One Brit, who had been due to start his cruise over the weekend, said that he has tried to cancel his trip and is considering getting expensive flights back to the UK.

'[I am] not on the ship but waiting to get on and not wanting to... it has been complete chaos onshore,' he told MailOnline, saying he had received no updates and that the situation was a 'complete shambles'.

The 59-year-old tourist said his partner 'is now refusing to get on the ship regardless of what happens' and said they are looking at £1,600 flights home.

He said that this would mean they would lose any possible refund on the trip, but that they are keen to get home regardless.

A tanker vessel has been pictured near the ship by a passenger on board as it remains off the Mauritian coastline.

A group of journalists had been due to embark on a press trip on the vessel on Sunday before they heard that there was suspected cholera on board, USA Today reports.

One passenger on the ship wrote on Facebook earlier today: 'We are not getting an explanation as to why we are stuck outside of Mauritius but the theory is because we had a breakout of [gastro intestinal] issues, most probably due to food poisoning.' 

The view from the ship off the coast of Mauritius, shared by a passenger on board

The 12-day cruise sailed from South Africa and had been scheduled to dock in Port Louis on Sunday, but arrived a day earlier after missing out a stop at Reunion Island 

Norwegian Dawn, which has been on a 12-day cruise around southern Africa (file image)

Another tourist on the ship said today that passengers were 'fed up' and that there were 'limited facilities' to deal with being stuck at sea. 

While Cholera is uncommon in countries such as the UK and the US, there have been significant cholera outbreaks in southern Africa over the last few months, with at least 188,000 cases recorded across seven countries since January 2023 and more than 3,000 deaths.

'The decision not to allow the cruise ship access to the quay was taken in order to avoid any health risks,' the Mauritius Ports Authority said.

'The health and safety of passengers as well as that of the country as a whole are of the utmost to the authorities,' it added, without giving any details about the nature of the health risk.

A spokesperson for the U.S.-headquartered Norwegian Cruise Line said in a statement that during the ship's trip to South Africa on February 13, some passengers had experienced mild symptoms of a stomach-related illness.

Once in Port Louis, the ship's management worked with Mauritian authorities to make sure precautions were in place and all on board were okay, the spokesperson said.

The port authority said its test results would be known in 48 hours.

The ship has 2,184 passengers and 1,026 crew members. Of these, about 2,000 passengers would have disembarked in Port Louis after completing their cruise while another 2,279 new passengers had been expected to board the ship, the port authority said.

'Passengers who were due to board the 'Norwegian Dawn' and begin their cruise from Mauritius today will not be able to do so due to potential health risks,' it said.

Those who were disembarking or joining the cruise will now do so on February 27, the Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson said.

A spokesman for the company said: 'Upon Norwegian Dawn's arrival to Port Louis Mauritius on Feb. 25, 2024, there were a small number of guests experiencing mild symptoms of a stomach-related illness. 

'Despite previous reports and speculations, there were no confirmed cases nor any evidence of cholera on board the vessel. 

'Although only six guests were being monitored due to mild symptoms of a stomach-related illness, the government of Mauritius required testing in an overabundance of caution, thereby delaying the ship's original disembarkation scheduled for Feb. 25, 2024.'

'Following the results of the regulatory testing by the government of Mauritius and their confirmation that no trace of cholera was found during their testing, Norwegian Dawn has been cleared for entry into Port Louis, Mauritius, and disembarkation of all guests will commence early morning Feb. 27, 2024 local time.'