Happy ending for Worthing mother and son who were stranded aboard cruise ship

A mother and son from Worthing whose round the world trip hit bumpy waters when their cruise ship was left stranded by coronavirus have a happy ending to their tale.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Terri Shanks and her son Cameron, eight, were stuck on board the MS Maasdam in the South Pacific for almost a month after many ports closed due to the pandemic.

But now the pair have managed to get back to their home in Upton Gardens in Tarring - cutting short a round the world trip of a lifetime and leaving Terri thousands out of pocket.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Speaking from home, Terri said: "We had very mixed feelings about getting home, naturally sad that we have had to cancel all of our onward travel plans and see our dreams shattered, but also relived to be back home in this time of uncertainty and especially to be reunited with my 22-year-old daughter Georgia.

Terri and Cameron Shanks, inset, and the MS MaasdamTerri and Cameron Shanks, inset, and the MS Maasdam
Terri and Cameron Shanks, inset, and the MS Maasdam

"I think in many ways we had been very much cocooned in a safety bubble during four weeks at sea.

"Life went on as normal onboard; bars, restaurants, theatres remained open, we didn’t have to queue for food or fight over toilet rolls, social distancing didn’t exist and during those four weeks of uncertainty, strong bonds of community and friendships were formed.

"To step onto the ship four weeks ago from the ‘normal’ world we knew and step off into what feels like a semi-apocalyptic one and straight into self isolation is quite surreal."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On March 1, Terri and Cameron boarded the ship on what was due to be a five-week cruise from Auckland, New Zealand, to San Diego in California.

The deserted freeway between San Diego and Los Angeles after Terri and Cameron left the shipThe deserted freeway between San Diego and Los Angeles after Terri and Cameron left the ship
The deserted freeway between San Diego and Los Angeles after Terri and Cameron left the ship

As ports closed and the pandemic took hold, the cruise ship was forced to travel to Hilo, Hawaii, with hopes they could dock there and fly home.

But a couple of days before the ship arrived, this was cancelled so passengers had to rebook flights for Honolulu, where the cruise ship's parent company Holland America had secured a disembarkation.

Terri said: "Just before we got there the Hawaiian government had a chance of heart and said that the ship could go into the port to re-fuel and pick up food supplies, but not disembark.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"The captain and Holland America Line spent all day negotiating with the Hawaiian government and apparently even [US vice-president] Mike Pence was allowed, but in the end they only let six Hawaiian residents off, plus a lady who had broken her leg."

Terri said this left around 440 Americans onboard 'absolutely fuming because there were not allowed to repatriate into their own country'.

Instead, the ship sailed to San Diego, where they were finally allowed to disembark.

On Sunday, the pair managed to get a flight home from LAX airport in Los Angeles to Heathrow Airport.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

She welcomed foreign secretary Dominic Raab's recent announcement of plans to get all UK citizens stuck abroad back home.

She said: "With airlines grounding more and more flights each day its an exceptionally scary thought that there won’t even be a flight home when you are finally manage to disembark, and the majority of hotels & restaurants are also closed. I know for us that was the worst part, the thought of nowhere to stay and no way of getting home either."

Terri has been documenting their travels on social media. Follow her at Mums Travel Blog on Facebook, @terrisussex on Twitter and mumstravelblog.com.

A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton:

Thank you for reading this story on our website.

But I also have an urgent plea to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality local news on this free-to-read site and in print, please purchase a copy of our newspaper as well. With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on our town centres and many of our valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you buying a copy.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Our journalists are highly trained by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards anywhere in the world. Our content is universally trusted - as all independent research proves.

As Baroness Barran said in a House of Lords debate this week on the importance of journalists: "Not only are they a trusted source of facts, but they will have a role to play in rallying communities and getting the message across about how we can keep ourselves and our families safe, and protect our NHS. Undoubtedly, they have a critical role."

But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis. In return we will continue to forensically cover the local news - not only the impact of the virus but all the positive and uplifting news happening in these dark days.

In addition, please write to your MP urging the Government to provide some additional financial support for local newspapers and their websites like this one and ensuring that supermarkets continue to stock them. I cannot stress enough how important such an intervention would be.

We thank all our readers and advertisers for their understanding and support - and we wish YOU all the best in the coming weeks. Keep safe, and follow the Government advice. Thank you

Related topics: