Celebrity Cruiseshas canceled the current voyage of the 1,808-passenger Celebrity Century due to what the line is saying is damage to the ship's rudder. Celebrity says the damage to the 71,545-ton vessel was discovered Thursday while the ship was docked near Nice, France. The ship was just one day into a 12-night Mediterranean sailing out of Barcelona.The line says the ship will undergo repairs in a dry dock and reenter service for its next scheduled sailing on Oct. 25. The ship will remain in the port of Villefranche, France, near Nice, until 5:00 pm on Saturday, and passengers can remain onboard until that time.The cancellation has forced passengers on the vessel and their travel agents to scramble to find alternative accommodations in Europe for the coming week."We have been working through the night trying to get our clients reaccommodated," notes Chuck Flagg, of Cruise Holidays in Canton, Ga. "Hotel space near Villefranche and flights from Nice are at a premium."ALSO ONLINE:A photo tour of cabins on Cunard's new Queen Elizabeth
DEAL WATCH:Silversea Cruises slashes fares for solo travelersFlagg says it appears rail service is still impacted by the recent strike in France as Celebrity Cruises is only offering passengers on the damaged ship a 10-hour bus ride back to Barcelona.Celebrity didn't say what caused the rudder damage.The Century is the second major cruise ship this month to become incapacitated while sailing in the Mediterranean. Regent Seven Seas Cruises' Seven Seas Voyager suffered a propulsion problem on Oct. 3 and also is undergoing repairs in dry dock. The line has canceled two voyages on the vessel.Celebrity says passengers on this week's canceled voyage of the Celebrity Century will receive compensation equal to their full cruise fare plus a future cruise credit worth 25% of the value of the fare.Share your thoughts below.p class="htArticlePostDate">Posted Oct 15 2010 7:33AMGene Sloan, USA Today
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