Couple’s fury after cruise firm change their journey
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Liz, of Parkhouse, Glasgow, said: “It looks like the ship suffered an electrical fault in one of its engines on December 9.
“Instead of returning to port for repairs the captain decided to sail on at reduced speed.
“We picked the destinations carefully. The original itinerary included a stop at Koh Samui in Thailand and also the Malaysian port of Malacca but both have been cancelled.
“TUI say they will refund £250 per person by way of an apology for the disruption. It’s a joke. As far as I can see we are due a full refund but TUI has cast us aside.”
Ian and Lorna Buick are in the same boat. The couple, of Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, demanded a refund of the £3850 they paid but got nowhere.
Ian, 61, a vehicle delivery driver, said: “I do not enjoy the days at sea and not being able to get off the ship. The changes mean there are now five days like that. And our port of call has changed from an 8am arrival to 6pm which is in effect another day at sea.
“This is not what we paid for.” I got on to TUI pointing out that surely under the Package Travel and Linked Travel Regulations 2018, it had significantly altered an essential term of the contract, therefore my readers were due their money back.
But it refused to budge, instead offering £ 250 per passenger as compensation.
A TUI spokesman said: “These changes are due to an unforeseen operational issue. The ship is now sailing at a slightly reduced speed. As a result, we have had to make some changes to the itineraries.
“We’d like to apologise for any disappointment this may cause.”
An ABTA spokesman said: “We do not consider the changes to the itinerary as significant.
“Customers are advised to travel under protest if their trip is departing soon and to pursue the matter with TUI on return.”