Oceania Cruises’ Marina is set to depart Trois-Rivères, Quebec, Wednesday evening for Quebec, a spokesperson for the luxury cruise line tells our sister publication, Travel Agent. The ship had been unable to continue on to Montreal due to high water levels on the St. Lawrence River.
After Quebec, the ship will continue on to Saguenay, Corner Brook, St. Pierre, St Johns, Cobh, Dublin, Holyhead, and Portland before reaching Southampton, its ultimate destination. The ship had been bound for Montreal when the high water levels made it unable to pass under a bridge in Trois-Rivères, forcing the ship to use that as an alternate port. The ship’s passengers disembarked in Trois-Rivères, and Oceania then bused them the rest of the way to Montreal, approximately 140 miles.
All guests completed their transfer to Montreal Tuesday, while outbound guests were transferred to Trois-Rivères for boarding, the cruise line said.
According to CBC.ca, the turnaround forced the ship to make a U-turn in the St. Lawrence, a maneuver that had never been attempted before in that part of the river. The high water level issue also spurred questions about whether cruise lines might become hesitant to book trips to Montreal in the spring, when water levels are high.
“That is a reflection that will be made,” Jean Perron, cruise ship co-ordinator for the Trois-Rivières economic development organization, told CBC.ca.
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