(WSVN) – A Florida family’s travel plans are at a standstill after they learned their cruise ship was changing course less than a week before it set sail.
For Wellingtonians, a Royal Caribbean cruise seemed ideal.
“We’re looking at her lovely size 16 dress. She ordered it, it has a little bit of a puffy skirt,” Avila Wellington said.
The family of five was planning a much-needed vacation and wanted to celebrate each other’s milestones.
“My other son is 13 and my husband is 50. We’re so excited, but right now we don’t know if we’ll even get off the boat,” Wellington said.
Her concerns stemmed from a notice the family received, which stated, in part, that the trip had been rescheduled to Labadee, Haiti.
Recently, violence has escalated in Haiti.
At least three commercial planes were shot at in November, and the Federal Aviation Administration banned U.S. airlines from flying to Haiti for at least 30 days.
The US State Department has also advised Americans like the Wellington family not to travel to the country.
At first they thought the letter was fake.
“I was like, ‘Yeah, yeah,'” Wellington said.
After learning that the letter was real, they became worried.
“Will my children be kidnapped? Will something happen on board? Others could take that chance. We’re not very comfortable doing that. No,” she said.
Avila said her family was forced to make a difficult choice after Royal Caribbean denied her request for a refund.
“We have been through so much as a family, and we should be celebrating that and our Puerto Rican roots, and I can’t believe Royal Caribbean is allowed to do that.” she said.
A Royal Caribbean spokesperson said safety is its top priority, adding: “Our global security and intelligence teams are continuously monitoring the situation in Haiti.”
The company announced it was rescheduling the trip due to damage to the pier where the San Juan boat was docked.
A Coast Guard spokesperson said the port was damaged in April.
But the documents say the Wellingtons were informed of the change in November, the Monday before Thanksgiving, less than a week before they were scheduled to depart.
“It’s like, ‘Sorry, I’m so sad.’ I’m just going to take the money.’ That’s not right,” she said.
Royal Caribbean has not yet commented on why it did not notify customers sooner.
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