It is claimed that dozens of 'very angry' customers are refusing to leave the ship until they receive a refund

claimed drilling went on through the night and said ninety per cent of kids' attractions were closed


She was supposed to be the last word in luxury on the open waves when she set off on her inaugural trip to great fanfare just over a week ago.

But the world’s biggest cruise ship has been branded a floating ‘construction site’ that puts passengers at risk by those on board.

Furious cruise fans who left on £800million Harmony of the Seas’ ‘maiden voyage’ from Southampton to Rotterdam and a subsequent trip to Cherbourg complained contractors were still carrying out vital work on board.

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The £800million Harmony Of The Seas has been branded an 'unsafe building site' and a 'serious risk to all passengers' by its first outraged customers

The world's biggest cruise ship, which is nearly 330 foot longer than the Titanic, set sail for Rotterdam from Southampton on a four-night trip on May 22

Passenger Georgina Davie, from Southampton, said: 'Ninety percent of the children's attractions that it was marketed for have been shut for the whole cruise and are still being worked on'

Shocking images showed incomplete work on board - including an uncovered drain near a table tennis

Gaping holes were left in floors and walls, the hot water cut out, 90 per cent of children’s rides were out of service and sleep was impossible in some rooms as drilling carried on through the night.

They also said the top deck of the 1,188ft-long vessel was littered with hazards including loose cables, blow torches, open paint tins and power tools.

Ladders were left lying around and tables were dumped beside railings, leaving children at risk of climbing up and falling into the sea.

‘Hundreds’ of passengers have besieged the customer services desk throughout the sailings, according to witnesses.

Some that were offered compensation accused owner Royal Caribbean International of trying to gag them by saying they could not discuss what compensation they were offered with others on board.

The company yesterday tried to dampen down the furore by describing the North European trips as ‘pre-inaugural sailings’ before the ‘official maiden cruise’ leaves from Southampton for Barcelona tomorrow.

Another customer shared an image of overflowing urinals on the ship, and wrote alongside it: 'Urinals blocked and overflowing on our cruise to Rotterdam. Ship NOT ready but took our money'

Another customer shared an image of dozens of people queuing inside the ship (pictured) and claimed they were refusing to leave until they had a refund

One passenger posted on Twitter an image of hundreds of cardboard boxes piled high to the ceiling in the 'suite lounge room'

But passengers said they had paid a lot of money and the vessel should have been ready.

Georgina Davie, 40 – who dubbed the ship Disharmony of the Seas – said: ‘The ship is a construction site and is unsafe and a serious risk to all passengers.

‘I understand contractors sometimes don’t deliver but Royal Caribbean should have taken responsibility for it and given people their money back or reduced it and told people before getting on board instead of leaving them stuck in the middle of the sea where they can’t do anything about it.’

Mrs Davie, who was with a group of ten family members paying £389 each, said her two children had nothing to do because almost all of the attractions for youngsters were closed including the flumes, splash pool and zip line. Xboxes in the kids’ club weren’t working and there weren’t enough skates for ice skating.

Harmony Of The Seas is the biggest ever cruise ship with capacity for 6,000 passengers. When it is fully operational with passengers the ship will have 2,000 crew

It is more than three feet wider than the previous two largest ships in the world, Allure of the Seas and the Oasis of the Seas

In publicity pictures release prior to setting sail, a ride called The Ultimate Abyss could be seen on the ship, which weighs 227,000 tonnes

Georgina Davie (pictured), from Southampton, was on board and described the ship as 'a construction site... unsafe and a serious risk to all passengers'

Hoovers and extension cords could be seen left lying around on the decking clearly in the way of other passengers on board the ship

Footage showed ladders scattered across the decking (right) and builders standing around smoking amid the sun loungers

The video, taken by Ms Davie, showed the inside of a children's playroom inside which appeared deserted (left) and captured guests standing around on the slippery wet deck (right)

The Jacuzzis were also out of order and there weren’t enough high chairs in the restaurants, which were often full. Ordering room service didn’t solve the problem as it never arrived. ‘When I booked it I was told it would be amazing, the trip of a lifetime,’ said Mrs Davie, an office administrator from Southampton who has been on five cruises before.

‘They never said 90 per cent of the kids’ attractions wouldn’t be finished and there would be contractors all over the ship.There was one day of sunshine and we were on the deck and all the contractors were congregating there. You’re trying to sit there in your bikini and they’re standing there staring at you.’

When she finally managed to speak to customer services her group was offered $300 (£204) compensation to spend on board for each of their five balcony rooms – totalling just over £1,000. But she said it was pointless as they had an all-inclusive package including food and drinks and weren’t interested in ‘buying a handbag or massage’.

They were then offered the sum in cash at the end of the cruise but ended up empty-handed when they disembarked as no money was available. The group is now demanding a full refund.

The corridors surrounding the children's entertainment rooms appeared empty of any staff (left) while one image showed a zipline stretching across a deck (right), which Ms Davie said was closed

A water slide called The Perfect Storm had a sign in front of it indicating that it was closed off to the public

Construction work was still clearly visible as a deck had an extension cord stretched out across the carpet between sun loungers and tables

Jonny Hardy, 29, from Loughborough, who was also in a family group on the same cruise, described it as an ‘absolute disaster’ and a ‘shambles’.

There was no safety glass on Deck 15, meaning a child could have ‘dropped into the ocean’, he said, his father-in-law got fresh paint on his trousers and there were overflowing toilets. He complained Royal Caribbean had led everyone to believe it was the maiden voyage, saying: ‘Online you could buy clothing that said “Inaugural cruise”.’

Philippa Pickford issued an ‘SOS’ yesterday while on a £499-a-head three-night return cruise to Cherbourg with her daughter. She tweeted: ‘Reported our broken toilet three times!!!! Please sort it.’ Speaking from the ship last night, she said the toilet was fixed after 24 hours but the staff were ‘blasé’ about all the problems. ‘They’re saying it’s just finishing touches but finishing touches are putting flowers in the foyer, not drilling and pouring concrete.’

Other problems included a loss of hot water and baby changing facilities being closed.

Passengers took to social media to voice their anger. David S complained: ‘Not good enough. Works all over, venues closed.’ He also posted a photo of a lounge filled with cardboard boxes, some leaning haphazardly against the wall, with the hashtag ‘#disgrace’.

One holidaymaker shared this image of their breakfast on Twitter alongside the caption: 'Ordered poached eggs on #harmonyontheseas and this is what I get!'

A disgruntled customer, with the handle @dianekh000, shared this shot, ranting: 'This ship is not finished totally unacceptable and so disappointed !' and added that it was 'bad workmanship'

One photo showed white dust being cleaned up on the tiles, which the photographer claimed was the 'door on the floor that was being swept up'

Exposed planks and wooden boarding could be seen at the doorway on the ship with muddy looking carpet on either side

A picture shared by a passenger showed an exposed drain sticking out of the carpet on board the ship

The complaints continued as one customer captured grey paint on their hand and the back of their jeans - which they claimed was wet paint from the stateroom and branded 'unacceptable'

Hayley Lewis fumed: ‘Sharp debris in kids’ pools and shockingly safety glass missing in several places on top deck!’ The cruise ship begins a season of seven-night Western Mediterranean sailings on June 7 before moving to her home port of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from November.

Royal Caribbean International confirmed the trip to Rotterdam was an early sailing and not a ‘shakedown cruise’, during which systems and facilities are tested. In a statement it said it had provided ‘early sailings’ following early delivery of the ship.

It added: ‘Whilst the ship is cleared for operations and many of its features are already being enjoyed by thousands of guests, as with any new build, we are still finalising some finishing touches and thank guests for their patience as we complete these.

‘As always, Royal Caribbean’s highest priority is to ensure the safety of all its guests… and any final maintenance is being carried out in accordance with strict safety guidelines.’

A spokesman said just one facility – the Aqua Theatre – was yet to open and denied any knowledge of attempts to ‘gag’ passengers.

Much to the chagrin of the customers, it appeared that builders had even left Post-Its that read 'repair' next to certain areas that needed restoration

One image even showed the locked gate of a water slide indicating that it was closed off to the public