When Boston Heights resident Lynn Remly started her cruise March 7, the itinerary was clear.

The Zaandam, a Holland America Line cruise ship, would take her and its 1,200 passengers around the west and east coasts of South America before returning to the United States.

Along the way, of course, would be the cities and sites she had planned to see: Buenos Aires, Argentina; Montevideo, Uruguay; the Falkland Islands and other spots of interest.

She was excited about getting to visit Punta Arenas, Chile, again. A museum in one of the world’s most southern big cities is one of her favorites.

The coronavirus crisis wasn’t on her list.

But on the way to Tierra Del Fuego, Remly’s scheduled 14-day trip was invaded by the coronavirus and became the "cruise from hell," she said.

"On the 14th, we went ashore, and that was the last day we went to shore," Remly said. "The captain sent notice that we were not going to dock anywhere in Argentina."

Passengers and crew on the ship were becoming ill with flu-like symptoms.

With Argentina off the agenda, the captain turned back to Punta Arenas. The thought was that the Zaandam would dock and Remly and her fellow passengers would catch flights home.

A deal negotiated by Holland America to allow passengers to disembark fell apart as Chilean authorities changed their minds. Chile wanted the ship to quarantine for two weeks.

"The captain said, ‘There’s no way I’m going to sit around here for 14 days,’ " Remly said. "[We] went north to Santiago."

In Santiago, the ship was able to obtain fuel and food even though passengers weren’t allowed to leave.

On about March 26, the captain announced that about 200 crew and passengers were ill. On March 27, he informed passengers that four people had died, two of them from COVID-19.

"We all knew it was serious, but when people die, the whole issue becomes ratcheted up," Remly said. "For me, all of a sudden, I thought, ‘For heaven’s sake, I could die.’ "

A veteran of many cruises, Remly said she prefers an inside cabin, which she had on the Zaandam. This time, with a quarantine on the ship, it became a liability.

"Being in a cabin with no window or anything is a little tough," she said.

On March 28, the Rotterdam, a larger Holland America vessel, rendezvoused with the Zaandam off the coast of Panama.

"The idea was to take the healthy people on to the Rotterdam," Remly said.

The switch was made on the night of the 28th.

"It was at about 10 or 11 at night when I got over there," she said.

Passengers continued to arrive until about 800 people had been moved to the larger ship. The plan was for the Zaandam and Rotterdam to travel together back to the United States.

The Zaandam had waited several days off the coast of Panama when a "humanitarian gesture" on the part of authorities allowed the ships to pass through the Panama Canal. But some odd restrictions were put on passengers.

"We went through at midnight," Remly said. "We had to leave our curtains closed and people who had balconies couldn’t go out on their balconies."

The ships made their way through Caribbean waters toward Fort Lauderdale.

"The captain, the day before we landed, came on the television in full uniform and announced we were going to be allowed to dock," Remly said.

By the next day, Thursday, that permission had been revoked. While negotiations continued to allow passengers off the ship, they had their temperatures taken.

"If your temperature was normal," she said, "they gave you a white card that said ’permission to disembark.’ "

Finally, on Friday about 9 a.m., Remly and her fellow passengers were allowed to leave the Rotterdam. News reports indicate that 26 sick passengers remained on board to be treated.

"I was out of there like a bat…" she said.

A police escort that Remly estimates at 30 to 40 motorcycle units followed the buses of passengers to the airport.

A chartered flight took Remly to the Atlanta airport. From there, she took a commercial flight home.

She finally made it back Friday night to her Boston Heights home, where she is in self quarantine.

Remly is retired from a career that included stints as a professor and lawyer, but she stays busy as president of the Friends of the Hudson Library and Historical Society. She’s looking forward to getting back to running the library’s book sale four days a week.

Remly said she’s still tired from the stress of the "cruise from hell," but is content to be resting at home with her three cats.

"When you are sitting alone in a room … you think a lot," she said. "You start to realize the only thing that matters is that your friends and family are safe."

Alan Ashworth can be reached at 330-996-3859 or emailed at aashworth@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj.