With its entire fleet under a microscope, Carnival Corporation said Friday that another one of its cruise ships, the Carnival Legend, is experiencing technical issues while on the last leg of a seven-day Caribbean cruise and will be heading home to Tampa.
“Carnival Legend is experiencing a technical issue with one of the ship’s Azipod units that is affecting the vessel’s sailing speed,” a Carnival statement read. “The ship’s safety systems and hotel services are all functioning normally,” it added.
The Legend made its scheduled call yesterday in Mahogany Bay, Roatan, after visiting Cozumel and Costa Maya earlier this week. Carnival says that because of the reduction in sailing speed, the ship’s visit to Grand Cayman has been cancelled and the Legend will proceed directly to its homeport of Tampa, where it is expected to arrive on Sunday as scheduled.
This latest incident comes as Carnival is battling the media frenzy that started–or heated up–with the Carnival Triumph incident in the Gulf of Mexico in February, which left thousands of passengers stranded for days without power and basic hotel functions. Carnival also made headlines yesterday with its Carnival Dream after the vessel’s backup generators failed while docked at St. Maarten, forcing Carnival to end the cruise early and fly passengers home. Carnival said that the Dream’s next voyage, scheduled to begin March 16, has been cancelled.
The Carnival Dream and Carnival Legend incidents come just days after Carnival’s CEO promised a comprehensive review of the company’s entire fleet, which was sparked by mounting pressure from the Triumph incident.
Carnival Legend departed Tampa on Sunday, March 10 on the seven-day voyage. Carnival says guests will receive a $100.00 USD per person credit and a full refund on pre-purchased shore excursions for Grand Cayman, as well as 50 percent off a future Carnival cruise.