An unfortunate mix-up left an Oklahoma family with nine members stranded in the far reaches of Alaska after their cruise ship, part of the Norwegian Cruise Lines, set sail without them. To add to their troubles, the ship charged them $9,000 in customs fees.

The Gault family, including six young children and an elderly grandmother of 78 years, had stepped off the Norwegian Encore in Ketchikan on July 12 to enjoy a local lumberjack show.

As they tried to return to their ship, a slip by the local tour operator overseeing passenger transport caused an unexpected delay. They only checked the number of people, without ensuring everyone had their tickets. This mix-up left the Gault family waiting for the next shuttle, delaying their return to the port.

Joshua Gault recounted the chaos, “We see the chaos getting onto the buses. We go to get on the bus and one of the attendees is like, ‘The bus is full, and you know you got to wait for the next bus.’” Unfortunately, the next bus never came. Despite desperate efforts to contact the port authority, they arrived just in time to see the Norwegian Encore leaving, taking with it their passports, medications, and clothes.

The family was in a tough spot, having already sunk about $30,000 into their trip, now burdened with an extra $9,000 bill from the cruise line—$971 per person—for missing the departure. This charge was due to a breach of the US Customs and Border Protection’s Passenger Vessel Services Act, as they didn’t make it to an international port as planned.

Without their passports, catching up with the ship in its next Canadian port wasn’t an option. The family had to scramble to find temporary lodging, book flights home, and provide necessities, further straining their finances.

Joshua described the ordeal: “All the flights for nine people, all the food for nine people, all the hotel stays,” reflecting on the unplanned costs they faced. After many days filled with tiring travel across different cities, flights that were canceled, and several overnight stays at airports, they finally made it back to Tulsa. They were not only drained but had also caught COVID during their travels.

“So yeah, we’re beat down right now. We’re unhealthy and beaten down,” Joshua admitted.

Currently, the family is in discussions with Norwegian to settle the situation, feeling that the cruise line owes them an apology and more. Cailyn Gault expressed her frustration, “‘We’re still looking into it, we haven’t forgotten about you,’” is what they were repeatedly told by Norwegian. “And I was like, ‘No, we feel like you pretty much forgot about us when you left us in port and told us to go figure it out.’”

Fortunately, there’s a silver lining. Norwegian Cruise Lines informed that they have begun processing a refund for the $9,000 charges and have agreed to cover the family’s travel costs, pending documentation. They also mentioned that they attempted to reach out to the Gaults after the bus mishap due to an error by the local tour operator. When contact failed, Norwegian coordinated with the port authority to arrange accommodation for a night before the family could proceed to Seattle the following day.

The cruise line shared through a representative, “In addition, these guests will be receiving a pro-rated refund for the two cruise days they missed.” To further make amends, Norwegian is offering each of the nine family members a Future Cruise Credit, presenting a 20 percent discount on their next cruise fare.

This isn’t the first occasion Norwegian has faced scrutiny for leaving passengers stranded. In a similar incident in April, eight travelers were left behind in Africa after their independent excursion returned late. Those left behind had to navigate back to their ship independently.

Most cruise lines maintain strict policies that if passengers do not return by the prescheduled time, they are left to catch up with the cruise later. However, allowances are usually made when delays occur due to the cruise line or its recommended operators.

The incident from April raised questions considering the ages and disabilities of those passengers. In that situation, Norwegian agreed to partially reimburse expenses incurred as they found their way back to the ship.