TROUBLED: The ship has been dogged with problems

Holidaymakers on the Aurora say they have effectively been held prisoner after engine problems forced P&O Cruises to abandon five planned stops. More than 600 passengers on the 93-night cruise attended an emergency meeting and formed a protest committee after the £200million ship failed to dock at three ports in New Zealand and at two Pacific Islands. P&O said passengers, who have each paid upwards of £8,599 for the cruise, will receive compensation including £500 and a refund of the cost of four days cruising. But the protest group is now threatening legal action as some had saved for 20 years to afford the cruise. The Aurora was approaching San Francisco last night but some say the cruise has already been ruined. Protest committee member Jennifer Dunthorne said: “This failure to visit three ports in New Zealand and two Pacific Islands has turned this cruise ship into a prison for some.

“Only visiting two ports in 22 days is not what I saved for 20 years to do. “This beautiful ship which has been the pride of the P&O fleet has become a red hot bed of distress, frustration and anger. “So many people worked hard for so many years to afford this cruise. It is truly unforgivable.” It is the latest setback in a history of failings and bad luck for the ship – after the champagne bottle even refused to smash at its naming ceremony. A second protest committee meeting with the ship’s captain Paul Brown was due to be held last night. Problems on the 76,000-tonne Aurora, whose home port is Southampton, began within hours of leaving Sydney when it developed engine problems.

The ship limped to Auckland, New Zealand, with the 1,736 passengers told each day for six days that it could not leave port. This meant missing out on stops at Wellington and Napier, in the Bay of Islands, plus Moorea and Tahiti in French Polynesia. Mrs Dunthorne said: “P&O offered some free drinks and derisory payments to compensate for shattered dreams. “Passengers are outraged at the company’s apparent sole concern to concentrate on driving forward the ailing ship to pick up the next unsuspecting passengers on April 13 in Southampton – by abandoning much of the cruise it contracted to deliver.” P&O said last night: “Having sustained damage to a thrust bearing, Aurora sailed from Auckland at 5pm on Thursday March 12 after a delay of five days to enable repairs to be undertaken.

“We greatly value the support and loyalty of our passengers and very much regret the disruption to Aurora’s world cruise. In recognition of this we have offered a compensation package which we believe to be a fair reflection of the disruption to the cruise, the actual amount of which will vary depending on the fare paid.” After leaving Auckland, Aurora took the most direct course to Honolulu from where she continued towards San Francisco before heading for Southampton.When Aurora was launched by Princess Anne in 2000, the champagne bottle did not break, which was considered a bad omen. Then, on her maiden voyage, she broke down in the Bay of Biscay and had to return to port. Some £6million compensation was paid to passengers.