Australians who paid thousands of dollars to go on a cruise to visit three ports in New Caledonia have been left furious after they were given a $50 onboard credit for a big itinerary change a week after booking.
Outraged passengers were informed that the cruise would no longer visit the advertised tropical paradise, but would instead call at the port of Brisbane, with some Queenslanders flying from the city to board the ship in Sydney for the voyage.
Brisbane residents David and Terry booked the eight-day cruise with their wives through Choose Your Cruise to visit the South Pacific paradise.
“How can you advertise in a place you know you’re not going to go?” they told A Current Affair in an episode aired on Friday.
‘I booked the cruise to go to three South Sea islands, and we won’t go to any South Seas, we won’t see any white sand beaches.
“We live in Brisbane so maybe we can come home, do the laundry and head back to the port in the afternoon.”
The retirees told the program they wanted to visit a place they had never been before and had seen a Choose Your Cruise advert promising a stopover in Noumea with delicious food, white sand beaches and swimming with fish.
The cruise was advertised on Facebook as an island getaway with onboard entertainment from the ’80s and ’90s, including artists like Marcia Hines and Human Nature.
Brisbane residents David and Terry (pictured) booked the cruise with their wives but were disappointed to discover it would stop in their hometown instead of New Caledonia.
The retirees said they wanted to visit a place they had never been before and had only received a $50 onboard voucher for the important change of destination.
“Nowhere does it say, ‘Oh, by the way, you probably won’t be able to see any of this,'” the disappointed passengers said.
The couples paid around $4,000 each for the cruise, excluding flights from Brisbane to board the ship.
“I like entertainment, but a lot of those bands on the ship aren’t my kind of music,” they said.
“The destination, the islands (were) my main reason for booking.”
Gold Coast passenger Kylie paid more than $6,000 to go on a family holiday with her mother and daughter to visit New Caledonia.
The Gold Coast family said it was a “shame” to receive an itinerary change a week after booking the cruise and now finding out they were going to Brisbane.
“Instead of going to the South Pacific, we’ll still go for eight nights, but we’ll make one stop, which would be at the port of Brisbane,” Kylie said.
Choose Your Cruise project director Caitlin Manov said guests were informed of a change to their itineraries in September.
“Due to the current conflicts and civil unrest in New Caledonia, and the corresponding travel warnings issued by Smart Traveller, we have had to adjust our planned ports of call in that region,” said Ms Manov.
An ad on Facebook promised an eight-day cruise with three stops in New Caledonia (pictured)
Instead, guests were able to sail around Willis Island off the coast of Cairns (pictured).
‘The travel advisory remains in effect and we want to ensure that the safety and well-being of all artists and guests are our top priorities.
“We understand how much our guests were looking forward to the South Pacific itinerary and share their disappointment that New Caledonia remains out of reach for now.”
Manov said due to the limited availability of ports in the South Pacific and because they had a packed entertainment schedule with 40 musical acts, some of which required access to an airport, Brisbane was the only viable port option.
The company refused to refund customers for the trip, instead offering passengers a $50 credit that could be used on board.
Guests were also informed that they would also be sailing around Willis Island, off the coast of Cairns, and as it was an external territory, they would still be able to get the service duty free.
“It’s just a scenic cruise around a weather station that’s small,” said passenger Kylie.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Choose Your Cruise for comment.