HALIFAX – The Oasis of the Seas left New Jersey on Sunday with more than 5,000 passengers who paid top dollar to go to the Bahamas, only to have stormy weather divert them to Halifax instead. “We were supposed to go to Florida and stay in Port Canaveral for half a day, and then go to the Bahamas, then come back on a seven-day cruise,” said Ron Green, who lives in northern Virginia. “But then the weather got bad and we came here.” “My husband said to me, this is a joke, right?” said Marie Durning of New Jersey, who added she was given several hours’ notice before boarding the ship, then left scrambling to repack her bags and prepare for a breezier, chillier Nova Scotia. “I have my winter hat and earmuffs, but I forgot my scarf.” Cruise line Royal Caribbean International provided cash and travel vouchers to help ease the anguish for some disappointed passengers. “They did give everybody a little bit of money,” said Green, who found himself back in the Nova Scotia capital again after a recent visit. “We were just here on a cruise ship about three weeks ago.” When they first heard the news about being redirected to Halifax, the Hicks family from Philadelphia chose to take a deep breath, rather than let the diversion ruin their vacation. “Due to the fact that we spent a nice penny on this trip, I told everybody to take out their frustrations before they get on the cruise ship, because once we get on the ship, I don’t want to hear about that,” said Dwayne Hicks, a first-time visitor to Nova Scotia. “I think we are halfway to the North Pole, where Santa Claus is from. “ Other tourists were less optimistic, even as the song “Farewell to Nova Scotia” was performed by an accordion player, as travellers disembarked the vessel. “I’m very disappointed,” said Nicholas Meli, who drove seven hours with his family from Toronto to New Jersey to board the cruise ship. “I am already from Canada, and I wanted to go to the Bahamas.” The thousands of visitors arrived in Halifax for just one day before departing for U.S. waters. While it was not their preferred destination, it offered a chance to explore the Halifax boardwalk, do some shopping and take a boat ride in the harbour. “It is the way the dice fell for us, but I’m grateful and I’m going to make the best of it,” said Jim Matthews, who lives near Paterson, N.J. “And I have found out that Halifax is a beautiful city.” Matthews was not the only tourist trying not let the diversion wreck their vacation. “Angry? Not at all, and I’m glad this happened, because we love coming here,” said Walter MacDonnell of Hamilton, Ont. “I have been here before, and I was really impressed when I came here before.” Tina Coppola of Connecticut conceded that the temperatures in Halifax was markedly cooler than in the Bahamas, but used the detour as an opportunity to learn about a new place. “We are making the best of it and making lemons make lemonade,” Coppola said. The Oasis of the Seas was scheduled to depart Halifax at 6 p.m. Wednesday, followed by three days at sea before returning to New Jersey.
