As passengers on Royal Caribbean’s Ultimate World Cruise wait for news Friday on a major change to the itinerary due to unrest in the Middle East, one cruise lineman is talking about how those on board feel about the announcement.
“I think they did the best they could at this point,” Susan Weber tells PEOPLE. “They didn’t want to announce anything too soon.”
On Feb. 9, the company confirmed to PEOPLE that it is “reviewing alternatives” for Serenade of the sea the ship, which is scheduled to pass through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal in May, during the Middle East segment.
Weber, 55, says when she toured the ship with the captain a few weeks ago, he talked about contingency plans that included a tour of Africa. Royal Caribbean did not share whether this is an option it is considering.
“The last statement he made was, ‘Royal Caribbean will not put you in harm’s way,'” she says. “There, to me, [he] said: ‘We are not going through the Suez Canal.’ Many people still simply did not want to believe it. To this day, they don’t want to believe it.”
Weber’s daughter, Abby Cooper, who plans to join the cruise for 10 days in Europe this summer, said in a TikTok video posted last week that the captain revealed to passengers during a farewell ceremony on February 7 that Royal Caribbean would make an announcement on February 16 about the changes. in the itinerary.
Suez Canal.
Getty
Royal Caribbean confirms ‘reviewing alternative’ routes for 9-month cruise amid Middle East unrest
“Obviously it’s disappointing that we might not be able to see some of the places we wanted to see, but safety is number one,” says Weber. “And personally, with everything that’s going on in the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, with all the media attention that our ship and crew have gotten, I feel like our ship would be a target for anyone at this point. . So I think it would be wise not to pass.”
Weber says he thinks most passengers understand the changes are coming, and he doesn’t feel like cruisers are scared.
“I think more than anything, people still want it to happen, to go through the Suez Canal,” she says.
Cooper, 28, points out that some long-awaited destinations, such as Jordan’s ancient city of Petra, will be dropped from the itinerary if they change the route.
“It’s definitely disappointing, but then again, you roll with the punches,” says Weber. He adds that everyone is speculating about the new itinerary: “We all can’t wait to see what happens.”
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Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty
Captain of 9-month cruise says potential diversion announcement imminent amid Red Sea and Suez Canal unrest
Susan, a nurse, was traveling with her sister, Lisa Weber, a doctor who took a vacation to go on the trip. Cooper, who has two children so was unable to join for a long time, says it was a “perfect fit” to be reunited with her mum six months after traveling in Italy, France and Spain.
Overall, Weber says, her cruise experience was “absolutely wonderful.” Her favorite thing is meeting the population of each country and getting to know the culture.
The most challenging part, she says, is seeing “the lack of compassion on the part of some passengers.” Weber says she always told her daughters, “You can only hide your true colors for so long.”
“That was definitely shown on the ship, whether it was homophobia, racism, intolerance towards children… . .” she says. “I mean, I’ve seen all of this and it’s really disheartening.”
Black TikTok creator Brandee Lake posted a video in December detailing a microaggression she experienced. Lake said she was mistaken for an employee on the ship and people questioned how she could afford the cruise. Another black passenger, Anthony Antoine, shared a similar experience and the discomfort he felt on board because of some of his fellow cruisers.
And while at least two passengers have gone viral with since-deleted Tiktok voiceovers that contained views many found offensive, Weber says the bad behavior she witnessed came from someone else.
“I know it’s out there,” Weber adds. “I’m always the type of person who wants to see the good in the world, and I just want to see tolerance, and just get along. So yes, it was very sad to see things like that.”
Cooper, who used to work in social media management, says the response to the cruise content she shared on TikTok, which often features Susan, has been “really amazing.”
“Everybody loves my mom,” she says.
“Abby and I are a no-nonsense family, and what you see is what you get with us,” says Susan, who, like her daughter, lives in Wichita, Kansas.
Cooper notes that the viral popularity of the cruise on TikTok has made it look more like a reality show than it actually is.
“They didn’t handpick those ‘cast members’ like they did Jersey Shore or Real Housewives”, talks about travelers who gained a serious audience on social networks during their trip. “These are actually real people. And so, I think that’s a huge misconception, especially after the term ‘cast members’ started being thrown around.”
She jokes that, unlike those shows, her mom and aunt “don’t want to get involved with anyone in society, and they don’t want to get into fights in clubs.”
TikToker on 9-month world cruise says ‘I hate it here’ amid canceled trips, hate from other passengers
Asked why the cruise became such a social media sensation, Cooper says, “I think it really started with just a few people who are like me, just know how to do TikTok pretty well and can edit a video and just record their day in the life. And, all of a sudden, people said, ‘Oh, not only is this happening, but we have an insider’s view of it with people documenting it day in and day out.'”
“[Viewers] wanted it to be a social experience, wanted it to be Lord of the Fliesor Big Brother, more than it is,” she adds.
But she also thinks many people simply live vicariously through travelers. “Just the thought of being able to travel for nine months, that’s not something many people can do. . . go to all seven continents and have this crazy itinerary,” she says. “There’s just so many aspects about it that feel almost surreal.”
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Source: HIS Education