Passengers on board what as supposed to be a Bahamas-bound cruise ship are now trying to make the most out of a not so sunny and definitely unexpected vacation destination.
One day before the MSC Meraviglia was set to depart from New York to the Bahamas, the TODAY show reports passengers were informed that worsening weather had forced a change in their itinerary and they would instead be heading to Boston, Maine and Canada.
The cruise ship departed New York last Saturday, docking for three days in Boston before leaving for Portland, Maine, where it is scheduled to dock Wednesday before heading to St. John's, Canada, on Thursday and returning to New York on Saturday.
According to its website, the ship can accommodate 5,000 passengers and 1,600 crew members, though it's unclear how many passengers decided to take the rerouted cruise.
Field Sutton, director of communications for MSC Cruises USA, said poor weather conditions forced the unexpected switch.
"The only alternative would have been to take the more extreme step of canceling the cruise -- and thousands of people's vacations -- outright," he said in a statement to TODAY.
Best friends Lakeya Allen and Val Montgomery spent a year planning a Christmas trip for friends and family and couldn't believe their warm island getaway wound up being a cold weather expedition.
"We thought we were being punked," Allen said.
"It's just like Boston, Bahamas -- Bahamas, Boston, like ..." Montgomery said.
"It's a big difference," Allen replied.
"It's a huge difference," added Montgomery.
They said it was a mad dash to put away the shorts and T-shirts and repack a new winter wardrobe.
"Imagine me having three kids to pack up. They were all packed with summer clothes," Allen said. "And they immediately run to Walmart because all our bags were already packed to repack all our winter stuff."
The two friends, like many passengers on board, are now trying to make the best of a bad situation and create new unexpected holiday memories.
"It's beautiful. I just wish we were in bathing suit attire," Allen said.
Some experienced cruise ship passengers said they've never experienced this degree of a last-minute change before. But just like planes, trains and other modes of transportation, experts told TODAY that cruises are subject to the whims of weather and many typically have clauses that allow for itinerary changes.
